Gas turbine

A gas turbine or gas turbine engine is a type of continuous flow internal combustion engine. The main parts common to all gas turbine engines form the power-producing part (known as the gas generator or core) and are, in the direction of flow:

Additional components have to be added to the gas generator to suit its application. Common to all is an air inlet but with different configurations to suit the requirements of marine use, land use or flight at speeds varying from stationary to supersonic. A propelling nozzle is added to produce thrust for flight. An extra turbine is added to drive a propeller (turboprop) or ducted fan (turbofan) to reduce fuel consumption (by increasing propulsive efficiency) at subsonic flight speeds. An extra turbine is also required to drive a helicopter rotor or land-vehicle transmission (turboshaft), marine propeller or electrical generator (power turbine). Greater thrust-to-weight ratio for flight is achieved with the addition of an afterburner.

The basic operation of the gas turbine is a Brayton cycle with air as the working fluid: atmospheric air flows through the compressor that brings it to higher pressure; energy is then added by spraying fuel into the air and igniting it so that the combustion generates a high-temperature flow; this high-temperature pressurized gas enters a turbine, producing a shaft work output in the process, used to drive the compressor; the unused energy comes out in the exhaust gases that can be repurposed for external work, such as directly producing thrust in a turbojet engine, or rotating a second, independent turbine (known as a power turbine) that can be connected to a fan, propeller, or electrical generator. The purpose of the gas turbine determines the design so that the most desirable split of energy between the thrust and the shaft work is achieved. The fourth step of the Brayton cycle (cooling of the working fluid) is omitted, as gas turbines are open systems that do not reuse the same air.

Gas turbines are used to power aircraft, trains, ships, electric generators, pumps, gas compressors, and tanks.

In an ideal gas turbine, gases undergo four thermodynamic processes: an isentropic compression, an isobaric (constant pressure) combustion, an isentropic expansion and isobaric heat rejection. Together, these make up the Brayton cycle, also known as the "constant pressure cycle". It is distinguished from the Otto cycle, in that all the processes (compression, ignition combustion, exhaust), occur at the same time, continuously.

In a real gas turbine, mechanical energy is changed irreversibly (due to internal friction and turbulence) into pressure and thermal energy when the gas is compressed (in either a centrifugal or axial compressor). Heat is added in the combustion chamber and the specific volume of the gas increases, accompanied by a slight loss in pressure. During expansion through the stator and rotor passages in the turbine, irreversible energy transformation once again occurs. Fresh air is taken in, in place of the heat rejection.

Air is taken in by a compressor, called a gas generator, with either an axial or centrifugal design, or a combination of the two. This air is then ducted into the combustor section which can be of a annular, can, or can-annular design. In the combustor section, roughly 70% of the air from the compressor is ducted around the combustor itself for cooling purposes. The remaining roughly 30% the air is mixed with fuel and ignited by the already burning air-fuel mixture, which then expands producing power across the turbine. This expansion of the mixture then leaves the combustor section and has its velocity increased across the turbine section to strike the turbine blades, spinning the disc they are attached to, thus creating useful power. Of the power produced, 60-70% is solely used to power the gas generator. The remaining power is used to power what the engine is being used for, typically an aviation application, being thrust in a turbojet, driving the fan of a turbofan, rotor or accessory of a turboshaft, and gear reduction and propeller of a turboprop.

If the engine has a power turbine added to drive an industrial generator or a helicopter rotor, the exit pressure will be as close to the entry pressure as possible with only enough energy left to overcome the pressure losses in the exhaust ducting and expel the exhaust. For a turboprop engine there will be a particular balance between propeller power and jet thrust which gives the most economical operation. In a turbojet engine only enough pressure and energy is extracted from the flow to drive the compressor and other components. The remaining high-pressure gases are accelerated through a nozzle to provide a jet to propel an aircraft.