Swirl stabilized vaporizer combustor

A gas turbine engine, comprising:

• a combustor to receive compressed air from a compressor and to deliver combustion products to a turbine, the combustor having a combustor wall including an upstream wall portion interconnected between an inner wall structure and an outer wall structure to define a combustion chamber, the combustion chamber defined about a longitudinal centerline of the combustor;
• a fuel vaporizer tube coupled to the combustor wall extending into the combustion chamber, the vaporizer tube having a first end opening and a second end opening;
• a swirler coupled to the upstream wall portion, the swirler comprising an axial swirler having a plurality of swirler vanes arranged to create toroidal recirculation air;
• and
• a heat shield coaxially positioned with respect to the swirler as part of the upstream wall portion, wherein the heat shield is surrounded by the swirler, wherein the second end opening of the vaporizer tube is disposed over the heat shield and faces the heat shield so that a fuel-air mixture exiting the second end impinges against the heat shield and combines, between the heat shield and the second end, with the toroidal recirculation air,
• wherein the swirler, the heat shield, and the second end opening are co-axially aligned with the longitudinal center line of the combustor.

A combustor for a gas turbine engine, comprising:

• a combustor wall including an upstream wall portion interconnected between an inner wall structure and an outer wall structure to define a combustion chamber, the combustion chamber defined about a longitudinal centerline of the combustor;
• a vaporizer tube coupled to the combustor wall and extending within the combustion chamber, the vaporizer tube having a first end opening and a second end opening, a main trunk portion having an end coextensive with the first end opening, the main trunk portion disposed about a vaporizer axis, and a branch portion having an end coextensive with the second end opening;
• and
• a swirler coupled to the upstream wall portion, the swirler comprising an axial swirler having an annulus body and a concaved heat shield body extending from the annulus body,
• wherein the vaporizer tube is coupled to the upstream wall portion radially outside a periphery of the swirler in alignment with an opening formed in the upstream wall portion, and the branch portion extends away from the vaporizer axis in a manner to dispose the second end opening over a central zone of the concaved heat shield body such that a fuel-air mixture exiting the vaporizer tube impinges against the concaved heat shield body and the impinging fuel-air mixture is combined with toroidal recirculation air between the second end and the concaved heat shield,
• wherein the swirler, the heat shield, and the second end opening are co-axially aligned with the longitudinal center line of the combustor.