Design Requirements of Small High-Temperature-Rise Combustors

Advanced Army VTOL aircraft gas turbines dictate a new combustor requirement ─ efficient and reliable operation at low combustor airflow rate (less than 10 lb/sec) and large temperature rise (1500-2100 F). By use of a series of preliminary sizing studies, trend curves, and data scaled from current and advanced gas turbines, the impact of diminishing combustor flow rate, and therefore size, on flow splits, temperature profile, and heat release rate is shown, in order to point out significant problems anticipated as design and development of small, high-performance combustors is undertaken.