TURBOJET ENGINES

A seminar report is submitted

in partial fulfillment of the requirements
for the final year (8th semester) award of the Degree
of Bachelor of Engineering in
Mechanical Engineering
BY

GAJANAN C AVANTKAR
Under the Guidance of

Prof. M.S.PATIL

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

K.L.S SOCIETYS
GOGTE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
BELGAUM-590008
2009-2010

K.L.S SOCIETYS
GOGTE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
UDYAMBAG, BELGAUM 590008
DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING

Certificate
This is to Certify that Mr.GAJANAN C AVANTKAR of VIII sem. with Examination
Number- 2GI07ME401 respectively has satisfactorily given the seminar on TURBOJET

ENGINES during the academic year 2009-10 in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
the award of degree of Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering of Visvesvaraya
Technological University, Belgaum. It is certified that all corrections/suggestions indicated for
Internal Assessment has been incorporated in Report deposited in the departmental library. The
seminar report has been approved as it satisfies the academic requirements in respect of seminar
work prescribed for the Bachelor of Engineering Degree.
Seminar Guide

Head of the Department

Prof. M.S.Patil

Prof. M.D.Deshapande

Name of Examiners
1.
2.

Signature with Date

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We take this opportunity to express our immense gratitude and to thank all those who
have helped us in accomplishing this seminar.
We would like to begin thanking our beloved principal Dr. A. S. Deshpande, who has
always been an inspiration to us and our H.O.D, Prof. M.D.Deshapande, who has always
motivated us to work hard.
We would like to thank our seminar guide Prof. M S Patil who oversaw the Seminar
work right from its inspection to its completion and showed a great amount of patience, listened
to the problems we faced and constantly encouraged us. Thank you sir, we could not have
completed this seminar without your help.
We also wish to thank all teaching and non-teaching staff and parents who have been
supportive to us during the process of completing this seminar. We also thank our friends for
giving us valuable suggestions.
To the people above, and all the other people who have done their bit in helping us,
thanks to all.

- Gajanan C Avantkar

ABSTRACT:

In todays world it is possible to travel to any part of the world within short span of time
using air transport. Earlier aviation industry was not as well developed as today; as they were
using Rotary Piston IC engines which limited the travel speed and distance; moreover the fuel
consumption of these engines was high leading to increased cost of transport.
A significant breakthrough in aviation industry took place with the advent of turbojet
engines which were Rotary -Reaction Turbine Engines which were much efficient than Rotary
piston engines and all other engines such as turbofan, turboprop, and turboshaft engines were
developed as improvement over turbojet engines.
This paper reviews the introduction to primary components of turbojet engines, principle
of operation, Newtons third law of motion governing turbojet propulsion, Brayton cycle which
is governing thermodynamic cycle for open cycle gas turbines, vehicles currently employing
turbojet engines few advantages, disadvantages, applications & key differences.

Key words: Reaction turbines, Brayton cycle, Newtons 3rd law of motion, Open cycle gas turbines
Word count: 154

CONTENTS:
1.

Introduction

History

3.

Primary components of turbojet engine.

3.1 Air intake

3.2 Compressor
3.3 Combustion chamber
3.4 Turbine
4.

3.5 Nozzle
Equations of Net thrust

5.

After burner

6.

Thrust reversal

7.

Cycle improvement

10

8.

Merits and demerits of turbojet engines.

13

9.

Notable vehicles using turbojets.

14

10. References

15

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1. INTRODUCTION
Most modern passenger and military aircraft are powered by gas turbine engines, which
are also called jet engines. The first and simplest type of gas turbine is the turbojet.

Turbojet engines had a significant impact on commercial aviation. Aside from being
faster than piston engines, turbojets had greater reliability.

Turbojets are the oldest kind of general-purpose jet engines and are reaction engines.

Turbojet engines operate on Newtons third law of motion i.e. For every action there is
an equal and opposite reaction.

Turbojets consist of an air inlet, an air compressor, a combustion chamber, a gas turbine
(that drives the air compressor) and a nozzle. The air is compressed into the chamber, heated and
expanded by the fuel combustion and then allowed to expand out through the turbine into the
nozzle where it is accelerated to high speed to provide propulsion.

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2. HISTORY
The first patent for using a gas turbine to power an aircraft was filed in 1921 by
Frenchman Maxime Guillaume. His engine was to be an axial-flow turbojet, but was never
constructed, as it would have required considerable advances over the state of the art in
compressors.

On 27 August 1939 the Heinkel He 178 became the world's first aircraft to fly under
turbojet power with test-pilot Erich Warsitz at the controls, thus becoming the first practical jet
plane. The first two operational turbojet aircraft, the Messerschmitt Me 262 and then the Gloster
Meteor entered service towards the end of World War II in 1944.

Early generation jet engines were pure turbojets, designed initially to use a centrifugal
compressor (as in the Heinkel HeS 3), and very shortly afterwards began to use Axial
compressors (as in the Junkers Jumo 004) for a smaller diameter to the overall engine housing.
They were used because they were able to achieve very high altitudes and speeds, much higher
than propeller engines, because of a better compression ratio and because of their high exhaust
speed. However they were not very fuel efficient.

One of the most recent uses of turbojet engines was the Olympus 593 on Concorde.
Concorde used turbojet engines because it turns out that the small cross-section and high exhaust
speed is ideal for operation at Mach 2. Concorde's engine burnt less fuel to produce a given
thrust for a mile at Mach 2.0 than a modern high-bypass turbofan.

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3. PRIMARY COMPONENTS OF TURBOJET ENGINES

Air intake
Compressor
Combustion chamber
Turbine

Nozzle.

Fig 3.1 Primary components of Turbojet Engine

3.1 AIR INTAKE

Preceding the compressor is the air intake (or inlet). It is designed to be as efficient as
possible at recovering the ram pressure of the air stream tube approaching the intake. The air
leaving the intake then enters the compressor. The stators (stationary blades) guide the airflow of
the compressed gases.

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3.2 COMPRESSOR
The compressor is driven by the turbine. The compressor rotates at very high speed,
adding energy to the airflow and at the same time squeezing (compressing) it into a smaller
space. Compressing the air increases its pressure and temperature.

The compressors used in turbojet engines are classified as:

Axial flow compressors.
Centrifugal compressors.
Centrifugalaxial compressors.

Compression of inlet air is achieved in a centrifugal flow engine by accelerating air outward
perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the machine as shown in Fig 3.2. The axial-flow engine
compresses air by a series of rotating and stationary airfoils moving the air parallel to the
longitudinal axis as shown in Fig 3.3. The centrifugalaxial flow design uses both kinds of
compressors to achieve the desired compression.

Fig 3.2 Centrifugal Flow Engine

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Fig 3.3 Axial Flow Engine

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In most turbojet-powered aircraft, bleed air is extracted from the compressor section at
various stages to perform a variety of jobs including air conditioning/pressurization, engine inlet
anti-icing and turbine cooling. Bleeding air off decreases the overall efficiency of the engine, but
the usefulness of the compressed air outweighs the loss in efficiency.

3.3 COMBUSTION CHAMBER

The burning process in the combustor is significantly different from that in a piston
engine. In a piston engine the burning gases are confined to a small volume and, as the fuel
burns, the pressure increases dramatically. In a turbojet the air and fuel mixture passes
unconfined through the combustion chamber. As the mixture burns its temperature increases
dramatically, but the pressure actually decreases a few percent. The arrangement of combustion
chamber in turbojet engine is shown in Fig 3.4.

The fuel-air mixture must be brought almost to a stop so that a stable flame can be
maintained. This occurs just after the start of the combustion chamber. The aft part of this flame
front is allowed to progress rearward. This ensures that all of the fuel is burned, as the flame
becomes hotter when it leans out, and because of the shape of the combustion chamber the flow
is accelerated rearwards. Some pressure drop is required, as it is the reason why the expanding
gases travel out the rear of the engine rather than out the front. Less than 25% of the air is
involved in combustion, in some engines as little as 12%, the rest acting as a reservoir to absorb
the heating effects of the burning fuel.

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Another difference between piston engines and jet engines is that the peak flame
temperature in a piston engine is experienced only momentarily in a small portion of the full
cycle. The combustor in a jet engine is exposed to the peak flame temperature continuously and
operates at a pressure high enough that a stoichiometric fuel-air ratio would melt the can and
everything downstream. Instead, jet engines run a very lean mixture, so lean that it would not
normally support combustion. A central core of the flow (primary airflow) is mixed with enough
fuel to burn readily. The cans are carefully shaped to maintain a layer of fresh unburned air
between the metal surfaces and the central core. This unburned air (secondary airflow) mixes
into the burned gases to bring the temperature down to something a turbine can tolerate.

Fig 3.4 Combustion chamber of Centrifugal Flow Turbojet Engine.

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3.4 TURBINE
Hot gases leaving the combustor are allowed to expand through the turbine. Turbines are
usually made up of high temperature metals such as inconel to resist the high temperature, and
frequently have built-in cooling channels.

In the first stage the turbine is largely an impulse turbine and rotates because of the
impact of the hot gas stream. Later stages are convergent ducts that accelerate the gas rearward
and gain energy from that process. Pressure drops, and energy is transferred into the shaft.

The turbine's rotational energy is used primarily to drive the compressor. Some shaft
power is extracted to drive accessories, like fuel, oil, and hydraulic pumps. Because of its
significantly higher entry temperature, the turbine pressure ratio is much lower than that of the
compressor. In a turbojet almost two-thirds of all the power generated by burning fuel is used by
the compressor to compress the air for the engine.

3.5 NOZZLE
After the turbine, the gases are allowed to expand through the exhaust nozzle to
atmospheric pressure, producing a high velocity jet in the exhaust plume. In a convergent nozzle,
the ducting narrows progressively to a throat. The nozzle pressure ratio on a turbojet is usually
high enough for the expanding gases to reach Mach 1.0 and choke the throat. Normally, the flow
will go supersonic in the exhaust plume outside the engine.

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4. EQUATIONS OF NET THRUST

The net thrust

of a turbojet is given by

is the rate of flow of air through the engine

is the rate of flow of fuel entering the engine
is the speed of the jet
is the true airspeed of the aircraft
represents the nozzle gross thrust
represents the ram drag of the intake.

If the speed of the jet is equal to sonic velocity the nozzle is said to be choked. If the
nozzle is choked the pressure at the nozzle exit plane is greater than atmospheric pressure, and
extra terms must be added to the above equation to account for the pressure thrust.

The rate of flow of fuel entering the engine is very small compared with the rate of flow
of air. If the contribution of fuel to the nozzle gross thrust is ignored, the net thrust is:

The speed of the jet

must exceed the true airspeed of the aircraft

if there is to be a

net forward thrust on the airframe.

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5. AFTERBURNER
An afterburner or "reheat jet pipe" is a device added to the rear of the jet engine. It
provides a means of spraying fuel directly into the hot exhaust, where it ignites and boosts
available thrust significantly; a drawback is its very high fuel consumption rate. Afterburners are
used mostly on military aircraft, but the two supersonic civilian transports, Concorde and the
TU-144, also utilized afterburners.

6. THRUST REVERSER
A thrust reverser is, essentially, a pair of
clamshell doors mounted at the rear of the engine
which, when deployed, divert thrust normal to the
jet engine flow to help slow an aircraft upon
landing. They are often used in conjunction with
spoilers. The accidental deployment of a thrust
reverser during flight is a dangerous event that
can lead to loss of control and destruction of the
aircraft. Thrust reversers are more convenient
than drogue parachute, though mechanically more
complex and expensive. Fig 3.5 shows thrust
reverser.
Fig 3.5 Thrust reverser

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7. CYCLE IMPROVEMENTS
Thermodynamics of a jet engine are modeled approximately by a Brayton Cycle.

The Brayton cycle is a thermodynamic cycle that describes the workings of the gas
turbine engine, basis of the jet engine and others. The Ericsson cycle is similar but uses external
heat and incorporates the use of a regenerator.

A Brayton-type gas turbine cycle consists of three components as shown in Fig 7.1
A gas compressor
A burner (or combustion chamber)
An expansion turbine

Fig 7.1 Brayton cycle operational components

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IDEAL BRAYTON CYCLE:

Following are the thermodynamic processes involved in Brayton Cycle ,PV and TS
diagram shown in Fig 7.2.

1) Isentropic Process - Ambient air is drawn into the compressor, where it is pressurized.
2) Isobaric Process - The compressed air then runs through a combustion chamber, where fuel

is burned, heating that aira constant-pressure process, since the chamber is open to flow in
and out.
3) Isentropic process - The heated, pressurized air then gives up its energy, expanding through

a turbine (or series of turbines). Some of the work extracted by the turbine is used to drive
the compressor.
4) Isobaric process - Heat rejection (in the atmosphere).

Fig 7.2 Idealized Brayton cycle PV & TS diagrams

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Since neither the compression nor the expansion can be truly isentropic, losses
through the compressor and the expander represent sources of inescapable working
inefficiencies. In general, increasing the compression ratio is the most direct way to increase the
overall power output of a Brayton system.

Increasing the overall pressure ratio of the compression system raises the combustor entry
temperature. Therefore, at a fixed fuel flow and airflow, there is an increase in turbine inlet
temperature. Although the higher temperature rise across the compression system implies a
larger temperature drop over the turbine system, the nozzle temperature is unaffected, because
the same amount of heat is being added to the system. There is, however, a rise in nozzle
pressure, because overall pressure ratio increases faster than the turbine expansion ratio.
Consequently, net thrust increases, while specific fuel consumption (fuel flow/net thrust)
decreases.

Thus turbojets can be made more fuel efficient by raising overall pressure ratio and
turbine inlet temperature in union. However, better turbine materials and/or improved vane/blade
cooling are required to cope with increases in both turbine inlet temperature and compressor
delivery temperature. Increasing the latter requires better compressor materials.

Minimizing heat losses and optimizing the inlet temperature ratio will increase the
system's useful work and the thermal efficiency of the turbo jet engine.

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8. MERITS AND DEMERITS OF TURBOJET ENGINES

Merits of Turbojet Engines:
Very high power-to-weight ratio, compared to reciprocating engines;
Smaller than most reciprocating engines of the same power rating.
Moves in one direction only, with far less vibration than a reciprocating engine.
Fewer moving parts than reciprocating engines.
Low operating pressures.
High operation speeds.
Low lubricating oil cost and consumption.

Demerits of Turbojet Engines:

Cost.
Less efficient than reciprocating engines at idle.
Longer startup than reciprocating engines.
Less responsive to changes in power demand compared to reciprocating engines.

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9. NOTABLE VEHICLES USING TURBOJETS

Heinkel He 178 - first air breathing jet aircraft.
Messerschmitt Me 262 - first jet fighter.
De Havilland Comet - first jet airliner.
Concorde - Mach 2 airliner.
Thrust2 - land speed record car that held the record for 14 years.

Fig 9.1 Concorde - Mach 2 airliner.

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REFERENCE
[1] S M Yahya, Turbines, Compressors and Fans, 2nd Edition
Chapter 3: The Turbojet Engine: Page 107-109
Appendix A: Principle data of Turbojet Engine: Page 731

[2] Basics of Turbojet Engines.

Website: http://en.wikipedia.org
URL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbojet_engine

[3] Basics of Turbojet Engines.

Website: http://www.grc.nasa.gov
URL: http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/airplane/aturbj.html

[4] Turbine Engines.

Website: http://www.free-online-private-pilot-ground-school.com
URL: http://www.free-online-private-pilot-ground-school.com/turbine-engines.html

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