Design And Manufacture Of A Titanium Matrix Composite Low Pressure Turbine Shaft For Turboshaft Engines

Higher power density requirements for future turboshaft engines necessitate higher pressures and operating temperatures. This results in higher shaft speeds and the need for smaller shaft diameters to reduce disk bore stresses. Higher rotational speed and smaller shaft diameters lower the critical speed of the shafts relative to the operating speed of the engine, resulting in supercritical operation. This paper describes the results of a cooperative program funded by the Army Aviation Applied Technology Directorate, General Electric Aircraft Engines and Honeywell Engines, Systems and Services to design, develop and fabricate a titanium matrix composite (TMC) low pressure turbine (LPT) shaft for application in a turboshaft engine and to demonstrate improved frequency characteristics of this shaft relative to a conventional all metallic shaft.