US 12,662,970 B2Granted

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AssigneeROLLS-ROYCE plc

InventorsPeter Swann, Christopher P Madden, Craig W Bemment

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Abstract

A gas turbine engine includes a staged combustion system having pilot fuel injectors and main fuel injectors. A fuel delivery regulator controls delivery of fuel to the pilot and main fuel injectors, receives fuel from a first fuel source containing a first fuel having a first fuel characteristic and a second fuel source containing a second fuel having a second fuel characteristic. In a transition range of operation between the pilot-only and the pilot-and-main ranges of operation, fuel is delivered to both the pilot and main fuel injectors at a transition staging ratio different from the pilot-and-main staging ratio. The fuel delivery regulator delivers fuel to one or both the pilot and main fuel injectors during the transition range of operation having a different fuel characteristic from fuel delivered to one or both the pilot and main fuel injectors during at least part of the pilot-and-main range of operation.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A gas turbine engine for an aircraft, comprising:

a processor;
a staged combustion system having pilot fuel injectors and main fuel injectors, the staged combustion system being operable in a pilot-only range of operation in which fuel-delivery is only to the pilot fuel injectors, and a pilot-and-main range of operation in which fuel-delivery is to at least the main fuel injectors at a relative rate defined by a pilot-and-main staging ratio;
and
a fuel delivery regulator arranged to control the fuel-delivery to the pilot and main fuel injectors, the fuel delivery regulator being arranged to receive from a first fuel source a first fuel having a first fuel characteristic and receive from a second fuel source a second fuel having a second fuel characteristic, the second fuel characteristic being different from the first, wherein
the staged combustion system is further operable in a transition range of operation between the pilot-only and the pilot-and-main ranges of operation, and
the processor is programmed to:
within the transition range of operation, execute the fuel-delivery to both the pilot and main fuel injectors at a transition staging ratio which is different from the pilot-and-main staging ratio, and
control the fuel delivery regulator to deliver one of the first and second fuels to one or both of the pilot and main fuel injectors during the transition range of operation and the other of the first and second fuels to one or both of the pilot and main fuel injectors during at least part of the pilot-and-main range of operation, wherein the first fuel is delivered to only the pilot fuel injectors during the transition range of operation.

5 more elements

A method of operating a gas turbine engine for an aircraft, the gas turbine engine comprising a staged combustion system having pilot fuel injectors and main fuel injectors, the staged combustion system being operable in a pilot-only range of operation in which fuel-delivery is only to the pilot fuel injectors, and a pilot-and-main range of operation in which fuel-delivery is to at least the main fuel injectors at a relative rate defined by a pilot-and-main staging ratio, the method comprising:

regulating fuel delivery to the pilot and main fuel injectors from a first fuel source containing a first fuel having a first fuel characteristic and a second fuel source containing a second fuel having a second fuel characteristic, the second fuel characteristic being different from the first;
and
operating the staged combustion system in a transition range of operation between the pilot-only and the pilot-and-main ranges of operation within which a processor executes the fuel-delivery to both the pilot and main fuel injectors at a transition staging ratio which is different from the pilot-and-main staging ratio,
wherein the regulating of the fuel delivery comprises delivering, under control of the processor, one of the first and second fuels to one or both of the pilot and main fuel injectors during the transition range of operation and the other of the first and second fuels to one or both of the pilot and main fuel injectors during at least part of the pilot-and-main range of operation, wherein the first fuel is delivered to only the pilot fuel injectors during the transition range of operation.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 18/888,979Filed 18 Sep 2024 · continuation
Priority: GB 220535812 Apr 2022
Published: US 2025/0012223 A19 Jan 2025
Granted: 23 Jun 2026
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification11 codes

F02C 9/40
Control of fuel supply: specially adapted to the use of a special fuel or a plurality of fuels
F02C 9/28
Control of fuel supply: regulating systems responsive to plant or ambient parameters, e.g. temperature, pressure, rotor speed
F23R 3/343
Feeding into different combustion zones: pilot flames, i.e. fuel nozzles or injectors using only a very small proportion of the total fuel to…
F05D 2220/323
In gas turbines: for aircraft propulsion, e.g. jet engines

Family

Application17/853,494Parent of this continuation · filed 29 Jun 2022
Application18/225,427Parent of this continuation · filed 24 Jul 2023
US 11,788,477 B1Parent of this continuation · filed 17 Oct 2023
US 2025/0012223 A1Pre-grant publication · published 9 Jan 2025
US 12,123,362 B2Parent of this continuation
US 2023/0323823 A1Published application
US 2023/0366357 A1Published application
US 12,662,970 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.