The Boeing Company

Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, Inc.

United Technologies Corporation

Loral Electro-optical Systems Inc.

Woodward, Inc.

Schmotolocha, Stephen N.

Robert J Pederson

Stephen N Schmotolocha

Calvin Q Morrison, Jr

Donald Henry Morris

Raymond Bernard Edelman

Lawrence J Gallagher

Benjamin Rubinstein

Lauren B Althaus

Jack V Miller

Paul G Hicks

William W Follett

Stephen N Schomotolocha

An improved fuel injection apparatus and method have a variable area injector arrangement in which a pintle defines a pilot orifice extending through a tip of the pintle for supplying a pilot flow of fuel through the fuel injector at low fuel pressures, and in particular when the pintle tip is sealed against a variable flow orifice of the variable area injector arrangement.

Piloted variable area fuel injector

A single-stage hypersonic vehicle is comprised of a low-speed and a high-speed propulsion system. The low-speed propulsion system propels the single-stage vehicle to a threshold velocity, after which the high-speed propulsion system then takes over. The low-speed propulsion system includes a combined-cycle engine featuring a swirl generator that is integrated into a turbojet engine to provide a compact turbojet and swirl afterburner-ramjet propulsion system. The high-speed propulsion system includes a hypersonic engine that is operable at the threshold takeover velocity and beyond. In various embodiments, the high-speed propulsion system comprises a scramjet, rocket, or scramjet/rocket engine depending requirements. Benefits of the swirl generator design include its ability to rapidly and efficiently atomize, vaporize, mix and burn the fuel and oxidizer for the low speed propulsion system, significantly reduce length, weight, cooling requirements and complexity for both propulsion systems, while maintaining high propulsion performance and reducing propulsion and launch costs.

Single-stage hypersonic vehicle featuring advanced swirl combustion

An ultra-compact aerovortical swirl-enhanced combustion (ASC) system features an aerovortical swirl generator for use in rocket thrusters utilizing hypergolic or non-hypergolic propellants. The ACS thruster can be sized for diameters ranging from about 0.5 to about 2.0 inches, and producing thrust levels of approximately 5 lbto about 250 lb. A plurality of helicoid flow channels in the swirl generator introduces swirl into a flow stream of a first propellant within ultra-compact sized rocket thrusters. The ASC system also includes injectors for introducing a second liquid propellant into the swirling flowfield to promote rapid and efficient atomization, mixing and vigorous combustion, which, results in major improvements in combustion and propulsion performance over current rocket thrusters, but in much shorter combustor systems. Hence, the ultra-compact ASC system is a substantial improvement in small bipropellant chemical propulsion thrusters, which can be utilized in-space satellite, spacecraft maneuvering and attitude/orbit control.

Ultra-compact, high performance aerovortical rocket thruster

A rocket engine includes a combustor assembly for carrying out a combustion process of fuel and oxidizer rocket propellants to produce thrust. A swirl generator is positioned within the combustor assembly to produce a turbulent flowfield of the fuel and oxidizer rocket propellants within the combustor assembly.

Compact, high performance swirl combustion rocket engine

A ramjet powered device that utilizes a novel swirl generator for rapidly and efficiently atomizing, vaporizing, as necessary, and mixing a fuel into an oxidant. The swirl generator converts an oxidant flow into a turbulent, three-dimensional flowfield into which the fuel is introduced. The swirl generator effects a toroidal outer recirculation zone and an inner central recirculation zone, both of which are configured in a backward-flowing manner that carries heat and combustion byproducts upstream where they are employed to continuously ignite a combustible fuel/oxidizer mixture in adjacent shear layers and stabilizes flame propagation and accelerates combustion throughout the entire combustor. The swirl generator provides smooth combustion with no instabilities and minimum total pressure losses and enables significant reductions in the L/D ratio of the combustor. Other benefits include simplicity, reliability, wide flammability limits and high combustion efficiency and thrust performance.

Compact lightweight ramjet engines incorporating swirl augmented combustion with improved performance

An afterburner apparatus that utilizes a novel swirl generator for rapidly and efficiently atomizing, vaporizing, as necessary, and mixing a fuel and an oxidant. The swirl generator converts an oxidant flow into a turbulent, three-dimensional flowfield into which the fuel is introduced. The swirl generator effects a toroidal outer recirculation zone and a central recirculation zone, which is positioned within the outer recirculation zone. These recirculation zones are configured in a backward-flowing manner that carries heat and combustion byproducts upstream where they are employed to continuously ignite a combustible fuel/oxidizer mixture in adjacent shear layers. The recirculation zones accelerate flame propagation to allow afterburning to be completed in a relatively short length. Inherent with this swirl afterburner concept are design compactness, light weight, lower cost, smooth and efficient combustion, high thrust output, wide flammability limits, continuous operation at stoichiometric fuel/oxidizer mixture ratios, no combustion instabilities, and relatively low pressure losses.

Compact swirl augmented afterburners for gas turbine engines

An improved torch igniter for use in devices such as thrust augmenters, gas turbine engines, ramjets, combined-cycle engines and industrial burners. The torch igniter includes a housing with a combustion chamber. Fuel and oxidizer are delivered into the combustion chamber and ignited by an electronic ignition source, such as a plasma jet igniter or a spark igniter, so that an upstream recirculation zone and a downstream recirculation zone are created. The upstream recirculation zone stabilizes and pilots combustion within the combustion chamber, while the downstream recirculation zone augments the combustion event. Byproducts of the combustion event within the torch igniter provide a high mass flux with high thermal energy and strong ignition source radicals that are discharged through a neck portion of the housing and are thereafter employed to initiate a primary combustion event in a primary combustor.

Torch igniter

A combined-cycle engine having at least one core engine and at least one ramjet engine. The ramjet utilizes a novel swirl generator for rapidly and efficiently atomizing, vaporizing, as necessary, and mixing a fuel into an oxidant. The swirl generator converts an oxidant flow into a turbulent, three-dimensional flowfield into which the fuel is introduced. The swirl generator effects a toroidal outer recirculation zone and an inner central recirculation zone, both of which are configured in a backward-flowing manner that carries heat and combustion byproducts upstream where they are employed to continuously ignite a combustible fuel/oxidizer mixture in adjacent shear layers, which accelerate flame propagation throughout the core flowfield. The swirl generator provides smooth combustion with no instabilities and minimum total pressure losses and enables significant reductions in the L/D ratio of the combustor. Other benefits include simplicity, reliability, wide flammability limits, high combustion efficiency and high specific thrust performance.

Combined cycle engines incorporating swirl augmented combustion for reduced volume and weight and improved performance

An afterburner apparatus that utilizes a novel swirl generator for rapidly and efficiently atomizing, vaporizing, as necessary, and mixing a fuel into an oxidant. The swirl generator converts an oxidant flow into a turbulent, three-dimensional flowfield into which the fuel is introduced. The swirl generator effects a toroidal outer recirculation zone and a central recirculation zone, which is positioned within the outer recirculation zone. These recirculation zones are configured in a backward-flowing manner that carries heat and combustion byproducts upstream where they are employed to continuously ignite a combustible fuel/oxidizer mixture in adjacent shear layers. The recirculation zones accelerate flame propagation to allow afterburning to be completed in a relatively short length. Inherent with this swirl afterburner concept are design compactness, light weight, lower cost, smooth and efficient combustion, high thrust output, wide flammability limits, continuous operation at stoichiometric fuel/oxidizer mixture ratios, no combustion instabilities, and relatively low pressure losses.

An apparatus for providing propulsive power that utilizes a novel swirl generator for rapidly and efficiently atomizing, vaporizing, as necessary, and mixing a fuel into an oxidant. The swirl generator converts an oxidant flow into a turbulent, three-dimensional flowfield into which the fuel is introduced. The swirl generator effects a toroidal outer recirculation zone and a central recirculation zone, which is positioned within the outer recirculation zone. These recirculation zones are configured in a backward-flowing manner that carries heat and combustion byproducts upstream where they are employed to continuously ignite a combustible fuel/oxidizer mixture in adjacent shear layers. The swirl generator is compatible with the throttle range of conventional gas turbine engines, provides smooth combustion with no instabilities and minimum total pressure losses, enables significant reductions the in L/D ratio of the combustor and is readily packaged into various applications. Other benefits include simplicity, reliability, wide flammability limits and high combustion efficiency/thrust performance. This concept is applicable to various propulsion systems such as such as ramjet missiles, combine cycle engines, gas turbine afterburners and energy conversion devices.

Compact, lightweight high-performance lift thruster incorporating swirl-augmented oxidizer/fuel injection, mixing and combustion

The invention comprises a surrogate weapon for simulating the sound and flash of gunfire having a combustion chamber system in which a primary chamber is an elongated cavity, having a proximal end closed with a head and an open distal end. A combustible mixture is injected via electronically timed hydrocarbon fuel and oxidizer pulses into the combustion chamber near the closed end through an annular injector having a plurality of spaced apart fuel and oxidizer nozzles. The fuel nozzles are axially spaced from the oxidizer nozzles and are closer to the head. Thus the injected fuel/oxidizer charge is stratified with a fuel concentration distribution preferentially being richer at an ignition source near the head. The open distal end of the combustion chamber is in the form of an annular convergent nozzle which also comprises the proximal end of a secondary chamber that is acoustically tuned and provided at its open distal end with an annular muzzle having a cross-sectional shape capable of controlling the fundamental frequency and modifying tuned frequency overtones of the acoustic signature. One embodiment provides the fuel nozzles as a plurality of radial grooves on the proximal side of a generally flat plate transverse to the primary combustion chamber cavity and having an aperture therethrough, the aperture being flush with the inner surface of the combustion chamber cavity, and also providing oxidizer nozzles as a plurality of radial grooves on the distal side of the flat plate.

Surrogate weapon for weapons effects signatures

The invention comprises a combined machine gun and large bore cannon weapons effects signature simulator having a rapid fire small bore methane and oxygen fired combustion chamber disposed within the combustion chamber of a large bore main tank gun weapons effects signature simulator and supplied from a common source of pressurized methane and oxygen. One embodiment includes the injection of ambient temperature oil into the large bore chamber prior to firing the combustible mixture to augment the flame content of the weapon signature. Another embodiment provides for the emission of hot oil vapor to augment the smoke content of the weapon signature. Yet another embodiment provides the machine gun simulator combustion chamber integral with and in intimate thermal contact with the wall of the large bore combustion chamber, whereby the machine gun combustion chamber utilizes the large bore combustion chamber wall to dissipate heat. Still another embodiment provides a large bore combustion chamber coaxially and distally extending from the distal end of the small bore combustion chamber, whereby the large bore combustion chamber may be filled through the small bore combustion chamber with methane and oxygen, and ignition of all of the combustible mixture is initiated in the small bore combustion chamber.

Growing community of inventors

Thousand Oaks, CA, United States of America

Robert J Pederson