How Does a Turbofan Engine works?
In the general aviation industry, the most commonly used type of engines are turbine, which universally feature a set of fan blades that compress air, mix it with fuel, and ignite it to produce thrust. Turbine engines come in various configurations: turboshafts convey the power they generate to a rotating shaft (typically a helicopter’s rotor), while turboprops drive a propeller the same way piston engines do. Turbojet and turbofan engines generate thrust from the kinetic energy of the hot exhaust gas and the bypass air forced around the core engine. Of all turbine engines, turbofans are the most popular type, and play an incredibly important role in the transportation sector.
Turbofan engine differ from turbojets in that the diameter of the forward compressor is greater than that of the engine behind it, or core. The core contains the other compressor wheels (or fans), the combustion chamber, and the turbine wheels. A portion of the air passing through the fan flows through the core, also referred to as the hot chamber, and the rest flows over it into the cold chamber. Air that is sucked into the hot chamber passes through the numerous compressor blades into the combustion chamber where fuel is mixed in with the air and ignited, then flows through another set of turbine blades and exits the engine. Most incoming air, however, goes through the cold chamber and is not combusted. Instead, after passing through the cold chamber, it mixes with the hot gas at the end of the engine, and produces the majority of the thrust generated by the turbofan engine.
The ratio of air bypassing the core to the air that flows through it is referred to as the bypass ratio, or BPR. A general engineering rule is that the higher the bypass ratio, the more fuel-efficient the engine will be. A turbofan engine with a bypass ratio of less than 2 is considered a low-bypass-ratio engine. The most powerful turbine engines are turbofans with large bypass ratios in the range of 10 or more. The GE90, produced by General Electric Aviation, produces 127,900 pounds of thrust, for instance. While turbojets have limited applications in high-speed military aircraft that frequently operate at Mach 2 or faster, turbofans are far superior for general aviation purposes.
At Aviation Parts Online, owned and operated by ASAP Semiconductor, we can help you find all the turbofan engine parts for the aerospace, civil aviation, and defense industries. We’re always available and ready to help you find all the parts and equipment you need, 24/7-365. For a quick and competitive quote, email us at sales@aviationpartsonline.com or call us at 1-720-923-2840.
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