Gas turbine engine and combustor having air inlets and pilot burner
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsNarendra Digamber Joshi, Shawn David Wehe, ShihYang Hsieh, Changjin Yoon, Owen James Sullivan Rickey, Joseph Douglas Monty
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Abstract
A combustor includes a circumferential main combustion chamber and a plurality of air inlets, the plurality of air inlets dispersing air into the circumferential main combustion chamber. The combustor also includes at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner, which disperses combustion gases into the circumferential main combustion chamber. The air inlets and the swirl-stabilized pilot burner are aligned at least partially in a radial direction and at least partially in a circumferential direction.
Claims20
A turbine engine comprising:
- a compressor assembly for discharging compressed air;
- a combustor assembly in flow communication with the compressor assembly, the combustor assembly receiving the compressed air from the compressor assembly, the combustor assembly comprising:
- a circumferential main combustion chamber;
- a plurality of air inlets, each air inlet of the plurality of air inlets having an air inlet tube, the plurality of air inlets dispensing air into the circumferential main combustion chamber;
- and
- at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner, the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner dispersing combustion gases into the circumferential main combustion chamber, the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner comprising:
- a burner tube;
- and
- a pilot swirler mixer at an upstream end of the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner;
- and
- a turbine assembly in flow communication with the combustor assembly, the turbine assembly receiving combustion gas from the combustor assembly,
- wherein the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner and the plurality of air inlets are circumferentially spaced around the circumferential main combustion chamber such that the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner interfaces with the circumferential main combustion chamber at a different circumferential location than any air inlet of the plurality of air inlets,
- wherein a cross-sectional geometry of the burner tube is different from a cross-sectional geometry of any of the air inlet tubes, and
- wherein the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner and the plurality of air inlets are oriented such that their respective lengths are aligned to have a tangential component as well as a radial component.
A combustor, the combustor comprising:
- a circumferential main combustion chamber;
- a plurality of air inlets, each air inlet of the plurality of air inlets having an air inlet tube, the plurality of air inlets dispensing air into the circumferential main combustion chamber;
- and
- at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner, the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner dispersing combustion gases into the circumferential main combustion chamber, the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner comprising:
- a burner tube;
- and
- a pilot swirler mixer at an upstream end of the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner,
- wherein the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner and the plurality of air inlets are circumferentially spaced around the circumferential main combustion chamber such that the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner interfaces with the circumferential main combustion chamber at a different circumferential location than any air inlet of the plurality of air inlets,
- wherein a cross-sectional geometry of the burner tube is different from a cross-sectional geometry of any of the air inlet tubes, and
- wherein the at least one swirl-stabilized pilot burner and the plurality of air inlets are oriented such that their respective lengths are aligned to have a tangential component as well as a radial component.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.