Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Cecil H Sharpe

Samuel B Reider

Avrum S Herman

An air blast fuel supply system for a gas turbine engine comprises a floating swirler separated from the fuel injector and means for radially supporting both the swirler and fuel injector for free radial movement with respect to a combustor dome; a fuel atomization lip on the floating swirler is located in spaced overlying relationship to a tangential fuel director to form an annular fuel film at the outlet of the fuel injector and an outer annular air flow directing lip on the floating swirler directs inlet air flow against the fuel film as it leaves the atomization lip. The fuel injector includes a nozzle tube that slips to permit free axial movement of said fuel injector with resepct to the dome and wherein the tangential fuel director maintains the annular fuel film throughout axially shifted positions of said nozzle tube. This allows the fuel nozzle to be inserted through a small opening in the engine case while maintaining the integrated relationship with the swirler attached to the combustor. The fuel atomization lip has an outlet edge thereon and an outer annular air flow directing lip has outlet edge thereon maintained at a constantly fixed dimensional relationship therebetween throughout axial shifted positions of the nozzle tube whereby the fuel break-up point for atomization of fuel and air remains the same with respect to the combustor during engine operation.

Integrated, replaceable combustor swirler and fuel injector

An air blast fuel nozzle for a gas turbine engine includes a take apart head assembly having a large diameter air swirler for fuel flow from a pilot fuel distributor tube that is telescoped centrally within a take apart main fuel distributor and pilot nozzle element having means therein to form a thermal barrier air gap around the pilot fuel distributor tube and wherein the assembly further includes a main fuel distributor head having open ended axial fuel passages therethrough for supplying fuel to a main fuel distributing ring on the outboard end of the assembly immediately upstream of the air swirler.

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Brownsburg, IN, United States of America

Cecil H Sharpe