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2003 Phys. Educ. 38 504

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SPECIAL FEATURE: FLIGHT
www.iop.org/journals/physed

Gas turbine technology

Peter Spittle
Rolls-Royce plc, Ansty, Coventry CV7 9JR, UK
E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract
Gas turbine engines power most commercial flights operating today. Yet
many people are ignorant of the cutting-edge technologies used in the
creation and operation of these engines. This article explains some of the
principles involved with emphasis on the selection of materials for fan
blades and turbine blades, which have to operate reliably in exceedingly
hostile environments.
(Some figures in this article are in colour only in the electronic version)

Simple theory, outstanding performance wing that propel us upwards and onwards, and
The number of commercial flights has escalated to the fact that a decent proportion of these
rapidly since the middle of the last century: components are operating above their melting
currently it is believed that as many as three point (I based this on personal experience of
passengers I have sat next to and chatted with, and
million people may be in the air at any given
perhaps left slightly scared and bewildered).
moment. Clearly flight is a technology that
When boarding the aeroplane the only part
we have all embraced and are happy to exploit.
of the engine clearly visible is the fan set. I am
The ease and efficiency of transport over large
sure most people climb aboard without a glance in
distances, combined with the unrivalled levels of
the engine’s direction, yet the fan blades are not
safety within the industry when compared with any
components that should be disregarded in blasé
other mode of transport, give air travel a distinct
fashion. At full speed the 3 m diameter array
advantage. On the safety front, recent US figures rotates at 3300 rpm, and if a blade were released
actually show that you are twice as likely to die it would have enough kinetic energy to launch a
as a result of an incident involving an animal- small car over a seven-storey building. I have
drawn carriage as opposed to an aircraft. These flown eight times within the last year and on each
facts—and perhaps the exhilaration experienced and every occasion I marvel at the performance
during flight—mean that it has become common of the engines and airframes. It is amazing to me
practice for us to climb aboard 100 tonnes of that the sensation of acceleration we experience,
complex machinery and intricate electronics in as the 100 tonnes of aeroplane reaches almost
an understandable effort to experience faraway 300 km h−1 in under 20 seconds, is generated by
destinations. only two engines that are simply throwing hot air
However, once seated in a cosy window or backwards at high speed.
aisle seat, already wondering what delights will During these moments at take-off I usually
lie below the foil wrappings of the in-flight meal, experience a strange mental confrontation: like
it surprises me how little thought people generally many people there is always a small sense of
give to the technology that they are relying on. unease and a heightened awareness of strange
There seems to be little attention given to the noises and cabin movement. However, it is
30 000 components hanging together under the about then that I remind myself of the sound

504 PHYSICS EDUCATION 38 (6) 0031-9120/03/060504+08$30.00 © 2003 IOP Publishing Ltd

 Gas turbine technology

Cold bypass air

Combustion
8 stage intermediate chamber
Turbine: -
pressure compressor 2000 °C
HP 1 stage - 1500 °C
50 – 300 °C IP 1stage - 1200 °C
Fan – low pressure 6 stage high pressure LP 5 stage - 900 °C
compressor compressor
–50 to 40 °C 300 – 650 °C

Figure 1. The principle of gas turbine operation: suck, squeeze, bang, blow.

engineering and unshakeable physical principles • Squeeze: the air is then squeezed to many
that support this undertaking. Having worked times atmospheric pressure
within Rolls-Royce, and fortunately spent time • Bang: within the combustion chamber fuel
within various departments (stress, thermals, is mixed with the air and is ignited
materials and ‘lifing’1 , design etc), I have gained • Blow: the hot air expands and is blown out
an appreciation of the engineering effort, in of the rear of the engine.
terms of performance, safety and reliability, that
supports the nine tonnes of rotating machinery Sir Frank Whittle designed and built the first
below the wing, and am as a result always jet engine in 1941. Because of their major
confident and happy to be onboard. advantages in terms of power, efficiency at high
As suggested above, the fact that we now take speed and simplicity, jet engines rapidly became
flight for granted has only come to pass due to the preferred option for air travel. Rolls-Royce has
the continued drive of aero-engine manufacturers had many firsts within the commercial gas turbine
to improve engine performance. Over time there industry since Whittle’s innovation, a trend that we
have been very clear trends in improved engine maintain to this day. For example, Rolls-Royce
efficiency, power and safety, all achieved at a produced the Dart, the first gas turbine in civil
relatively low cost to you the traveller. Within flight, and the Conway, the first Bypass engine.
the following paragraphs I hope to briefly describe Our current products include the Trent series
to you the workings of this simple machine, and of gas turbines—engines that incorporate many
discuss some of the technology and ingenuity that cutting-edge technologies and that have become
successfully drive it millions of miles a year. synonymous with reliability and efficiency. The
RB211 family of engines (the RB211-524G is used
Suck, squeeze, bang, blow to power the Boeing 747, and is the precursor to
the Trent family) has accumulated over 75 million
The principle of gas turbine operation is relatively
hours of flying, a figure that equates to more than
simple (figure 1):
46 billion km, or flying to the sun and back over
• Suck: air is sucked in through the fan at the 150 times. The Trent has helped us to secure
front of the engine a large proportion of new engine sales, and as
1 The term ‘lifing’ refers to the analysis of a material’s fatigue such Rolls-Royce is now recognized as the second
properties, and the determination of a cyclic ‘life’ (cycles to biggest aero-engine manufacturer, and currently
failure) when it is subjected to a given alternating stress level. lists 38 of the top 50 airlines amongst its customers.

November 2003 PHYSICS EDUCATION 505

P Spittle

1
LP system
2 1 fa n stag e
IP system
8 compressor sta ges 5 turbine stag es
1 turbine sta ge >30 00 rpm
>75 00 rpm

3 HP system
6 co mpressor stag es
1 turbine stag e
>10 00 0 rpm

Figure 2. Rolls-Royce three-shaft engine configuration.

The Trent engine is a three-shaft engine

(figures 2 and 3), a system that allows the designer
to more efficiently match the thermodynamic and
aerodynamic requirements throughout the engine.
This is a significant step from the two-shaft engines
originally employed by Rolls-Royce and which are
still designed by our competitors. From figure 2
one can see that there are three systems:
• The low pressure system (one compressor
stage, the fan, driven by five turbine stages).
• The intermediate pressure system (eight
compressor stages driven by one turbine Figure 3. The Trent 500 engine, four of which are
used on the Airbus A340.
stage).
• The high-pressure system (six compressor
turn the fan, which pulls the air through to develop
stages driven by a single turbine stage).
the thrust. I mentioned the ‘core’ of the engine
Within the gas turbines generally seen on previously to emphasize the distinction between
Airbuses and Boeings, the expanding hot gases this region and the ‘bypass’ air (figure 1). In reality
provide only a small fraction of the engine thrust. only about a quarter of the air pulled through the
In figures 2 and 3 one can see that the gas is passed fan enters the core of the engine: the remaining
through various stages of blading. Firstly, air that cold air is thrown backwards, around the outside
is pulled in by the fan through the core of the of the core to develop the majority of the engine’s
engine is compressed by the intermediate and high thrust (see figure 1).
pressure compressor blades. After fuel injection The choice between a ‘bypass’ and a ‘turbojet’
and ignition the expanding gas exits the engine (in which 100% of thrust is developed through
through various sets of turbine blades. These the core of the engine) configuration is mainly
blades are turned (like the sails on a windmill) and, a function of desired engine efficiency and
in turn, they rotate the fan and compressor blades manoeuvrability. High ‘bypass’ ratio engines
at the front via shafts that pass through the centre are desired for commercial travel to maximize
of the engine. As such, it is the turbine blades that efficiency (see box): high jet velocity and

506 PHYSICS EDUCATION November 2003

 Gas turbine technology

they desire many rapid changes in power, attitude

High by-pass or turbojet? and speed and care a little less about propulsive
efficiency. However, as for many things in life,
To understand this statement we may consider
the decision on engine design is not necessarily as
the flux of momentum entering and leaving the
cut and dried as suggested above, but is a trade-off
engine, and a general equation that defines its
between many interacting parameters.
efficiency.
Although large bypass engines are efficient
Flux of momentum entering the engine there are some tangible negatives. They are heavy
= ṁair V bits of kit that provide considerable drag, and cost
an appreciable amount of money to purchase and
Flux of momentum leaving the engine maintain. Furthermore, not all military aircraft
= (ṁair + ṁf )Vjet scream around the skies at maximum power all
day long: many military jets that spend significant
where mair is the mass flow of air, V is the
amounts of time cruising around, needing a
velocity of air entering the engine, mf is the
little extra only for the occasional chase, are
mass flow of fuel and Vj is the velocity of air
usually equipped with low bypass engines. Fuel
leaving the engine.
consumption is important to the military, not for
Thus the net thrust, FN , that is available in
cost, but for reasons of range and weapon load
flight is given by the difference between the two
capability.
momentum fluxes, that is
As a metallurgist I am concerned with
FN = (ṁair + ṁf )Vjet − ṁair V . optimizing materials to meet the various stringent
requirements of the engine. Clearly the conditions
This equation tells us that for a high net thrust vary dramatically throughout the engine, but
there must be either a high jet velocity, Vj , or a there are at least a couple of underlying driving
large mass flow, mair . forces when choosing the material to do the
Propulsive efficiency compares the rate of job: weight and cost. It would be ideal to
work done on the aircraft to the rate of kinetic construct everything from a cheap material such
energy increase of the flow through the engine. as steel. However, with a density of 7.6 g cm−3 ,
It may be approximated for the typical case employing steel, as a compressor disc material
when the mass flow (of fuel) is much smaller for example, would cost appreciably more in
than that of the air, by [1]
2V
ηp = .
V + Vj

From this second equation we can see that

propulsive efficiency (and therefore net engine
efficiency) is maximized if the jet velocity,
Vj , is minimized. Therefore if we wish to
maximize efficiency (i.e. low Vj ) but maintain
thrust (FN ) we must maximize the mass flow
of air through the engine. Therefore we
want high bypass engines for commercial and
freight air travel.

manoeuvrability are not required because a large

proportion of time is spent at a single altitude
and speed. Military applications, however, will Figure 4. A Trent 800 fan set comprising 25 blades.
The fan has a diameter of approximately 3 m and the
use turbojet type engines, such as the Olympus mass flow of air through the engine is approximately
(Concorde) and the Pegasus (Harrier), because 72 tonnes/min, or 1.2 tonnes/second.

November 2003 PHYSICS EDUCATION 507

P Spittle

1. 2. 3.

4. 5. 6.

Figure 5. Trent fan blade production. Left: a six-step breakdown of wide-chord fan blade production for the
Trent engines using the DB-SPF technique. The fan blades for the Trent engines are manufactured from three
sheets of titanium (1). The two outer sheets will form the aerodynamic surfaces of the blade and the thicker root
section. The middle, thinner, sheet will form the ‘Warren–Girder’ structure internally, providing the blade
stiffness and impact resistance required. Once the pack of three plates has been formed a masking pattern is
painted onto the internal faces of the outer plates (2). The plates are then re-stacked, with a small tube attached to
the end, welded together around the edge, evacuated and heated above 950 ◦ C (3). At this temperature diffusion
occurs across the metallic surfaces in intimate contact within the pack and at its edges. Thus, after heat treatment
the three plates are now a single unit. The pack is then shaped into its approximate aerofoil morphology (4),
before it is inflated (5). To enable inflation the component is re-heated above 900 ◦ C and argon gas is injected, at
pressure, through the tube. After inflation the aerofoil cross section seen in images 5 and 6 is created. The girder
configuration is developed because diffusion bonding is unable to occur across the ‘masked’ regions, and these
unbonded areas are expanded during argon injection.
Right: stage 4 being completed. The operators are removing the shaped, diffusion-bonded pack from a
furnace at ≈950 ◦ C.

terms of fuel consumption than the current option sufficient flexibility and damage tolerance to
and would impart significantly higher stresses on continue uninhibited operation within wind, rain,
itself and the surrounding structures. Conversely snow and the occasional bird impact. All of
magnesium- or aluminium-based alloys might these parameters are met by a single piece of
be an ideal option with regard to weight, but metal about 10 kg in mass, approximately 1.0 m
given their relatively low tensile properties and high by 0.4 m wide (figure 4). In this instance
a propensity to become liquid around 660 ◦ C (a a titanium alloy is used—titanium 6/4 (titanium
temperature encountered within the high pressure + 6% aluminium + 4% vanadium)—a material
compressor section), they are not necessarily that meets the mechanical requirements stipulated
the metals of choice. The following sections above, with the minimum mass possible (density
detail two components that are key to efficient about 4.5 g cm−3 ).
engine operation, and demonstrate the efforts In addition, this material has the special
made to maximize performance through material, properties necessary to incorporate the required
chemistry, design and manufacture. complexity during the manufacture of the
component. In an effort to achieve the
The fan blade blade stiffness required at minimum mass Rolls-
The fan blade sees temperatures from ambient to Royce has developed a unique hollow fan blade
−50 ◦ C (at cruise altitude), rotation at 3300 rpm (figures 4 and 5). This structure proffers a
with a tip speed of 1730 km h−1 , and a centripetal significant weight saving (50%) over the solid
force through its root equivalent to 900 kN (a blade alternatives, reducing the engine’s specific
figure usually quoted by the airline pamphlets fuel consumption, thereby saving the airlines
as equivalent to the weight of 13 African bull money. The internal structure of this blade can
elephants). Furthermore, this component must only be manufactured, with sufficient integrity,
last for 80 million km (10 000 flights), displaying using the diffusion bonding, super-plastic forming

508 PHYSICS EDUCATION November 2003

 Gas turbine technology

1600
Trent
Turbine entry temperature (°C) RB211-524G/H
1400 RB211-535E4
RB211-624B4
RB211-524G2
1200
RB211-22C
Spey
Conway
1000

Avon
800 Dart
Derwent
Whittle

600
1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Year

Figure 6. Development of turbine entry temperature (TET) with time.

(DB-SPF) technique (figure 5). Production of positions and help to demonstrate that, apart from a
these components is an exacting and onerous task, large flame and some low energy material, nothing
one that Rolls-Royce has met by constructing a is released from the engine that might compromise
purpose-built facility for the job, a facility that an airframe’s integrity.
maintains a cleanliness regime beyond that of the
electronics/microchip industry. Turbine blades
Cleanliness during production is key because
of the ‘stress raising’ effects that impurities and A second key area of expertise for Rolls-Royce
foreign particulates would have within the internal is within its turbine blade manufacturing facility.
structure of the blade. Such point defects could As stated earlier, there has been a clear trend in
initiate a fatigue crack that may propagate to improved engine performance with time. In an
failure under service conditions. When we effort to improve efficiencies, weight must be shed
consider the kinetic energy of a fan blade released from the construction and operating temperature
at maximum revolution (remember the scenario must be increased.
of a small car launched very high. . . ) it can be From the graph in figure 6 it can be seen
seen that the expense of such a clean facility is that within 60 years the temperature of the gas
a necessary one. On this front, however, we can
be reassured that extensive testing and modelling
Titanium alloy
has been completed to demonstrate that, if such
Nickel
an event were to occur, the engine shrouds and
Specific strength

alloy
casings would not be compromised and no high
energy debris would exit the engine. Indeed the
aviation authorities demand that a complete engine
‘blade off’ test is completed for all new engine
projects—necessary, but a multi-million pound Steel
engine is fit for little else afterwards. To complete Aluminium
alloy
this test a small explosive charge is attached to the
root of one fan blade within the set. Then, once
Temperature
the engine has been powered up to full speed, the
charge is detonated and the blade released. High Figure 7. Specific strength versus temperature for a
speed cameras film the event from a variety of variety of common aero-engine materials.

November 2003 PHYSICS EDUCATION 509

P Spittle

(a) (b)

Multipass
≈ 115 mm

cooling air
+
thermal barrier
coating

Multipass
cooling air

Figure 8. Gas temperature: (a) 1425 ◦ C, (b) >1550 ◦ C.

leaving the combustion chamber and passing over 560 kW each from the gas stream (slightly better
the high pressure turbine blades, i.e. the turbine than your average Ford Focus) and last up to
entry temperature (TET), has risen by nearly 5 000 000 flying miles.
800 ◦ C. To accommodate this advance significant Figure 8 demonstrates a couple of the
changes have been made to the component’s technological advances that Rolls-Royce has
design, material and structure. Because of the employed in its successful turbine blade design
high temperatures involved turbine blades are and material definition, thereby allowing it to
manufactured from nickel-based alloys. Figure 7 employ a TET above the melting point of the
highlights how well nickel alloys maintain their alloy (TET > 1500 ◦ C, alloy melting point
mechanical properties with increasing temperature about 1350 ◦ C). The key advances have been
when compared with the alternatives. This the manufacture of single-crystal blades, with
curve takes account of the material’s density, and internal cooling channels, and, latterly, thermal
indicates that even though nickel is practically barrier coatings. Cooler air (air at 700 ◦ C) is
twice as dense as titanium (about 8.4 g cm−3 — bled off from the compressor and passed through
contrary to the requirements to reduce engine the turbine blades. Small laser-drilled holes in
weight) it is the only material that retains sufficient the surface of the blade allow the cooler air to
integrity at high temperature. Indeed standard flow over the working surfaces, protecting them
titanium alloys must be avoided towards the hot from the hot gas stream. In a later development
end of the aero-engine, not only because of ceramic materials have been deposited onto the
their diminishing properties, but also because at blade surfaces, further protecting them from the
temperatures in excess of 600 ◦ C, and under aggressive environment and allowing yet higher
friction, they can rapidly ignite and burn aggres- TETs to be achieved.
sively, covering the rearward stages in molten At high temperatures the major component
metal. failure mechanism is creep, i.e. over time under
The turbine blades see the most aggressive high temperatures and loads the blade will deform,
conditions within the engine, but as with all lengthen and rupture. The creep mechanisms and
components, they must readily deliver efficient elongation to failure are caused by atom migration
performance, whilst incurring minimal overhaul and diffusion. A key path for this atom movement
and repair costs. The blades that Rolls-Royce is along grain boundaries (these are areas of lattice
currently manufactures can withstand a tempera- discontinuities and therefore a relative increase in
ture of about 1550 ◦ C, rotate at 10 000 rpm, remove space). Thus, by removing this easy diffusion path

510 PHYSICS EDUCATION November 2003

 Gas turbine technology

Aluminium
Titanium
Steel
Nickel

Figure 9. Engine materials.

for the atoms by developing single-crystal blades, further into the hot end of the engine, and nickel
we increase the creep strength of the material. alloy compositions will further refine the engines’
This is a process requiring exact casting conditions performance. During your next flight it is worth
and ingenious mould designs. The mould design spending a moment to appreciate the cutting-edge
must ensure that only a single grain, in a preferred technology that is sending you skywards, and to
crystallographic orientation, is allowed to grow. feel safe and contented that it is a technology
backed by excellent know-how and millions of
Overview miles of experience.
One can see that throughout this conceptually
simple machine the engine manufacturer has Acknowledgments
worked strenuously to maximize the potential D Rugg, P Withey, C Hanley and C Woodward.
of each component. The result is a machine
combining a fantastic array of materials that Received 4 June 2003
PII: S0031-9120(03)64371-6
generates the maximum performance at minimum
weight with the current technology. Figure 9 is a
general arrangement of a Trent engine that depicts Reference
the range of materials employed. [1] Cumpsty N 2003 Jet Propulsion (Cambridge:
Materials technology continues to drive Cambridge University Press)
further advancements in aero-engine performance.
There are additional innovations that cannot
Peter Spittle is a Materials Technologist
be included in current designs because of the at Rolls-Royce. He joined as a graduate
prohibitive cost, both internally and to the trainee in 1999 with a degree in
airlines. Major improvements will probably result Materials Science and Technology from
the University of Birmingham. Since
from material development, towards lighter and completing his training period he has
stronger materials. Innovations such as metal worked as a Materials Technologist
matrix composites and engineering ceramics are within the aero-engine business and as a
Core Metallurgist within Rolls-Royce’s
a real source of interest and continued research naval marine business, supporting the
and development. In addition, research into burn- design and manufacture of reactors for
resistant titanium alloys, allowing them to be used the UK’s nuclear submarine fleet.

November 2003 PHYSICS EDUCATION 511