United Technologies Corporation

Thomas R Clements

Charles B Graves

Derk S Philippona

James D Blevins

A method for distributing fuel within a gas turbine engine is provided. An augmentor is provided which includes a plurality of vanes. Each vane includes a pair of side walls, an aft wall, and a plurality of fuel apertures and pressurized gas apertures extending through the side walls. At least one of the pressurized gas apertures is positioned adjacent and forward of all fuel apertures at a particular position. At least one fuel distributor is provided in each vane. Fuel admitted into the fuel distributors flows into the core gas path in a direction substantially perpendicular to the core gas path. Gas admitted into the vanes at a pressure higher than that of the core gas flow, flows a distance into the core gas path in a direction substantially perpendicular to the core gas path. Fuel is selectively admitted into the fuel distributors when the augmentor is enabled. Pressurized gas entering the core gas path forward of the fuel creates a low velocity wake that enables the fuel to distribute circumferentially.

Method for distributing fuel within an augmentor

The fuel spray bars and a compressor air bar is disposed in the cavities of the extended vanes of the turbine exhaust case to flow a fuel/air mixture perpendicular to the gas path and the pilot burner encased in the tail cone ejects a hot stream of combustion products adjacent the fuel air mixture to ignite the mixture and the ejected compressor air serves to create a recirculation zone adjacent the apertures of the spray bars to sustain combustion during the actuation of the augmentor.

Augmentor burner

A truncated diffuser tail cone has a step change to establish a pilot recirculation zone. Air cooled radial spray bars supply fuel to the pilot zone. Heat shields located therein are air cooled, and additional air passes through the central portion of the end of the tail cone.

Augmentor pilot

The pilot section of a flameholder of an augmentor for a gas turbine engine is modified to improve the ignition and stability characteristics by judiciously locating aperture(s) or slot(s) in the pilot section wherein their orientation is critical so as to create a vortical flow field.

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Palm City, FL, United States of America

Thomas R Clements