Geared Turbofan engine cleared for first flight
Pratt & Whitney’s Geared Turbofan demonstrator engine has completed Phase II ground tests and has been cleared for flight testing on Pratt & Whitney’s 747SP flying test bed mid-year. Phase II, which began in April at Pratt & Whitney’s advanced test facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., focused on engine performance and ground acoustics with the Geared Turbofan engine’s flight capable nacelle system. The engine completed 120 hours of testing during Phase II and has logged a total 250 hours since ground testing began in November 2007.
The Phase II test program included the acoustic measurements of the Geared Turbofan demonstrator engine. The tests measured the ground-level noise characteristics of the engine, which is expected to be 50 percent quieter than today’s engines and 20 dB quieter than International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Stage 4 noise regulations. The testing used an array of 32 individual microphones around the engine test stand and 16 sound pressure transducers inside the engine to get accurate data for noise modeling.
The Geared Turbofan engine is expected to set new standards in environmental performance and operating value for the next generation of commercial aircraft. In a Geared Turbofan engine, a state-of-the-art gear system allows the engine’s fan to operate at a different speed than the low-pressure compressor and turbine, resulting in greater fuel efficiency and a slower fan speed for reduced noise. The Geared Turbofan engine builds on more than 20 years of technology development with improvements in every major module.
You must be logged in to post a comment.