Aerodynamic design of separate-jet exhausts for future civil aero engines, Part I: parametric geometry definition and CFD approach

Abstract

This paper presents the development of an integrated approach which targets the aerodynamic design of separate-jet exhaust systems for future gas-turbine aero-engines. The proposed framework comprises a series of fundamental modeling theories which are applicable to engine performance simulation, parametric geometry definition, viscous/compressible flow solution, and Design Space Exploration (DSE). A mathematical method has been developed based on Class-Shape Transformation (CST) functions for the geometric design of axi-symmetric engines with separate-jet exhausts. Design is carried out based on a set of standard nozzle design parameters along with the flow capacities established from zero-dimensional (0D) cycle analysis. The developed approach has been coupled with an automatic mesh generation and a Reynolds Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) flow-field solution method, thus forming a complete aerodynamic design tool for separate-jet exhaust systems. The employed aerodynamic method has initially been validated against experimental measurements conducted on a small-scale Turbine Powered Simulator (TPS) nacelle. The developed tool has been subsequently coupled with a comprehensive DSE method based on Latin- Hypercube Sampling (LHS). The overall framework has been deployed to investigate the design space of two civil aero-engines with separate jet exhausts, representative of current and future architectures, respectively. The inter-relationship between the exhaust systems' thrust and discharge coefficients has been thoroughly quantified. The dominant design variables that affect the aerodynamic performance of both investigated exhaust systems have been determined. A comparative evaluation has been carried out between the optimum exhaust design sub-domains established for each engine. The proposed method enables the aerodynamic design of separate-jet exhaust systems for a designated engine cycle, using only a limited set of intuitive design variables. Furthermore, it enables the quantification and correlation of the aerodynamic behavior of separate-jet exhaust systems for designated civil aero-engine architectures. Therefore, it constitutes an enabling technology towards the identification of the fundamental aerodynamic mechanisms that govern the exhaust system performance for a user-specified engine cycle