Turboshaft gas turbine engine
AssigneePratt & Whitney Canada Corp.
InventorsKeith Morgan, Eric Durocher
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A turboshaft engine for a rotorcraft includes a first spool and an independently rotatable second spool. The first spool includes a low pressure compressor, a first set of variable guide vanes disposed at an entry of the low pressure compressor, and a low pressure turbine drivingly engaged to the low pressure compressor. The second spool includes a high pressure compressor, a second set of variable guide vanes disposed at an entry of the high pressure compressor, the second set of variable guide vanes independently operable relative to the first set of variable guide vanes, and a high pressure turbine drivingly engaged to the high pressure compressor. One or both of the low pressure compressor and the high pressure compressor includes a mixed flow rotor.
Claims20
A turboshaft engine for a rotorcraft, the turboshaft engine comprising:
- a first spool having a low pressure compressor in fluid communication with an air inlet, a first set of variable guide vanes disposed at an entry of the low pressure compressor, and a low pressure turbine drivingly engaged to the low pressure compressor;
- a second spool independently rotatable relative to the first spool, the second spool having a high pressure compressor in fluid communication with the low pressure compressor to receive pressurized air therefrom, a second set of variable guide vanes disposed at an entry of the high pressure compressor, the second set of variable guide vanes independently operable relative to the first set of variable guide vanes, and a high pressure turbine drivingly engaged to the high pressure compressor;
- and
- an output shaft drivingly engaged to the low pressure turbine, the output drive shaft adapted to drivingly engage a rotatable load of the turboshaft engine;
- wherein both of the low pressure compressor and the high pressure compressor include a mixed flow rotor.
A turboshaft engine for a rotorcraft, the turboshaft engine comprising:
- at least two spools independently rotatable relative to each other, a low pressure spool of the at least two spools including a low pressure shaft interconnecting a low pressure compressor section to a low pressure turbine section, and a high pressure spool of the at least two spools including a high pressure shaft interconnecting a high pressure compressor section to a high pressure turbine section, both of the low pressure compressor section and the high pressure compressor section including a mixed flow rotor;
- and
- means for controlling an airflow through the low pressure compressor section independently of the high pressure compressor section.
A method for operating a turboshaft engine for a rotorcraft, the method comprising:
- drawing air into a core of the turboshaft engine through a low pressure compressor section and then through a high pressure compressor section located downstream from the low pressure compressor section to provide pressurized air, the low pressure compressor section rotating independently of the high pressure compressor section, both of the low pressure compressor section and the high pressure compressor section including a mixed flow rotor;
- operating a first set of variable guide vanes disposed upstream of the low pressure compressor section;
- independently of operating the first set of variable guide vanes, operating a second set of variable guide vanes disposed upstream of the high pressure compressor;
- igniting a mixture of the pressurized air and fuel to generate combustion gases;
- directing the combustion gases through a high pressure turbine section and then through a low pressure turbine section to drive the high pressure turbine section and the low pressure turbine section using the combustion gases;
- driving the high pressure compressor section with the high pressure turbine section;
- and
- driving the low pressure compressor section and a rotatable load with the low pressure turbine section, the low pressure turbine section and the high pressure turbine section rotating independently from one another.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.