Rigorous Characterization, Modelling, and Mitigation of Aeroengine Response to Inlet Flow Distortion

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This proposal aims to improve the sustainability of aviation by addressing challenges to realizing commercial aircraft with advanced, embedded propulsion systems. Embedded propulsion systems use jet engines integrated into the fuselage of the aircraft rather than hung from the wings. In such a configuration, fuel consumption could be reduced by up to 4%. This corresponds to a possible annual savings of up to $238 million for Canadian airlines alone. Worldwide, use of embedded propulsion systems could reduce carbon dioxide emissions by up to 28 million tonnes annually.****This type of engine configuration is not used in modern commercial aircraft due to major challenges associated with its implementation. These centre around the fact that in such a configuration, the airflow entering the engine(s) is by necessity non-uniform, having variations in velocity and pressure. This makes it challenging to design an engine whose efficiency will match that achieved in a conventional below-the-wing configuration. In particular, the fan at the front of the engine must deal with the flow non-uniformities.***The work described in this proposal will address two aspects of this challenge.***First, a systematic study of the manner in which these airflow non-uniformities affect the performance of jet engine fans will be undertaken. While many studies in the past have looked at a small number of specific test cases, no studies have had the scope to extract general trends which can be used to help engine designers. This is the aim of the proposed work.***Second, innovative simplified models of the engine fan will be developed which accurately capture the effects of the non-uniform incoming airflow. These are important because it is not possible to properly account for the effects of the non-uniform airflow early on in the design process unless accurate simplified models are available. In addition, the existence of such models will enable the fan to be designed to have specific performance characteristics in the presence of non-uniform airflow, rather than just predicting how a certain fan design will behave.***It is expected that these two investigations will lead to new insight into how embedded propulsion systems can be designed to achieve the largest possible reduction in fuel use. Computer simulations and experiments will be used to test out design ideas and determine how much impact they will have in practice.***This work is relevant to the aviation industry in Canada and worldwide. Engine manufacturers such as Pratt and Whitney Canada as well as aircraft manufacturers like Bombardier Aerospace should be interested in the results of this work. Beyond Canada, other engine and aircraft manufacturers as well as academics working in related fields should also find the work of interest. The outcomes should make important progress towards making the use of embedded propulsion systems, and the accompanying fuel consumption reduction, a reality.