Chapter 473: MIT opens champagne at halftime
After hearing Brad's answer, Goldstein was stunned for a moment, and then showed a knowing smile.
Obviously, these academic guys are no different from those in business.
A paper with a high impact factor may also mislead potential opponents in their research and development directions.
Won Ma.
A win-win means that I win twice.
"Can the progress be accelerated further?"
Now that Brad has determined the correct research direction, Goldstein, as a representative of the company and Party A, is naturally more concerned about when the results can be produced.
Although the NGAD project has not yet been revealed, and the supporting fifth-generation aeroengine does not even have specific technical parameter requirements, the related technology can be applied to the next-generation civil aeroengine that General Electric is promoting.
Better cooling performance means higher turbine front temperature, and higher turbine front temperature can not only increase thrust intuitively, but also reduce fuel consumption while keeping thrust unchanged - because under the same power, it is necessary to The compressor does less work and consumes less fuel.
For an airliner, this is a sure win.
You know, Airbus is advancing their A747XX super-large passenger aircraft plan to compete with the Boeing 3, and General Electric is currently ambitious and is preparing to compete with Rolls-Royce in engine selection.
It is expected that at least 300 of this super passenger aircraft will be produced. Considering that the engine will need to be replaced several times during its entire life, it will be a huge market of 3000-4000 units.
You must know that this is not a gadget like the CFM56. The A3XX needs at least a large bypass ratio turbofan with a thrust of 35-40 tons, and each one is incredibly profitable.
More importantly, after losing to Pratt & Whitney in the selection of two fourth-generation military engines, although the F119 and F135 actually have quite a few parts produced by General Electric, they did not suffer any loss in revenue. , but the company’s stock price has been running at a low level.
This is definitely not good news for the management team.
Of course, General Electric has a great business and will not rush to replace people in a short period of time.
But at least in the next few years, the company still needs a landmark victory to boost market confidence.
And a project that attracts worldwide attention like A3XX is obviously a good opportunity.
"Is this..."
Brad hesitated:
"According to my experience, research work is about maintaining a stable work rhythm. If you blindly increase the workload to promote R&D progress, it is likely to be counterproductive in the end."
Just when Goldstein nodded and was about to let the topic go, the other party suddenly added another sentence.
"So...you have to pay more!"
"I need to recruit more intern researchers, more experimental samples, and supercomputer computing resources!"
"have to……"
Good guy, it turns out I want money.
However, for such a project of great importance and bright prospects, General Electric, with its deep pockets, is indeed not short of those few million dollars.
Seeing Brad who was so motivated and confident, Goldstein also felt that the future was open and he immediately assured the former:
"Okay, I will apply to the higher authorities when I go back, and GE will do its best to support your research!"
"Thank you. It's an honor to work with such a great (rich) company like General Electric!"
……
The new equipment of Brad's research team is indeed not in vain. Although the heating speed of electric heating is not as good as the traditional method of direct fuel injection and ignition, the temperature control accuracy far exceeds the latter. The probability of obtaining valid experimental data has increased from What used to be less than 20% soared directly to nearly 100%.
Not to mention advanced fully digital monitoring and recording equipment, which can simplify experimental operations to no more than five steps, greatly liberating manpower and reducing many problems caused by human errors.
Therefore, before Brad and Goldstein finished their second cup of coffee, Regina, the female graduate student assigned by the former to conduct the experimental operation, knocked on the door and walked in.
He also held a floppy disk in his hand.
"Professor, the part of the data you want has come out, and it's all in here."
Brad put down his half-drunk coffee, took the floppy disk, and inserted it into the floppy drive.
Within a few minutes, a black and white temperature distribution map was displayed on the computer screen.
Regina did not leave the office just like that, but introduced to the screen:
"The hot spots on the leading edge of the high-pressure turbine guide vanes will gradually migrate to the outside as the thrust increases. The migration path is slightly different from our previous predictions, but the overall pattern is consistent. In the control group using impingement cooling, the hot spots Although the lumps are still there, the temperature has dropped a lot compared to the control group.”
Professor Brad's research group is not small in size, and the competition pressure is even greater. She will certainly seize such an opportunity to perform.
"The current problem is that after jet cooling is applied, the tip portion of the turbine blades will accumulate more heat than in the past. It is difficult to arrange jet slits at this location. The effect of film cooling alone is also average, and the temperature does not exceed the maximum temperature. limit."
"This is not a big problem. The tip area has always been the most difficult area to deal with on turbine blades. The change in the position of the hot spot also requires further testing. It is already very good that the first test can achieve such obvious results. , at least it proves that our idea of using shock cooling for key strengthening is correct!”
Looking at the pictures in front of him, Brad was obviously in a good mood.
Is it a big problem if the numerical analysis results are inaccurate?
It's just to provide a reference.
There is no way anyone can really calculate it and it is basically close to the actual situation, right?
No way?
The corners of Brad's mouth curved into a smile of joy.
This means that his research group has reached the forefront of the world not only in compressor design, but also in turbine design.
It even surpassed Oxford University, which provided this MT1 test platform.
"After processing the experimental data and the equipment, we will organize a small banquet in the evening to welcome Mr. Goldstein!"
……
It should be said that Brad is quite capable.
He is able to fully consider the complex non-uniform factors at the turbine inlet without relying on experiments, and use impact cooling to deal with them in a targeted manner. He is definitely a hero in the field of aerospace research.
The only fly in the ointment is that his calculations were completed before getting the MT1 platform, so the research object has always been individual turbine blades.
Of course this isn't Brad's problem.
With the supercomputing level of the late 90s, relying on normal calculation methods, it was indeed impossible to conduct air-heat coupling modeling of the hot end of the entire aeroengine.
But if he had heard Chang Haonan's evaluation of that "leftover" article, he would have realized that impact cooling has its limits.
Adding cooling slots in all hot areas is a headache-inducing behavior, but when it comes to the segment walls, the effect will be very poor.
Therefore, it is not a trivial matter that heat accumulates in the tip portion of turbine blades.
Especially inside a real aero engine.
Since the combustion chamber and turbine structure are surrounded by the casing, the overall heat dissipation conditions are actually worse than on the experimental bench.
After all, the high-temperature airflow sent out by the combustion of aviation fuel in the combustion chamber is not as stable as electric heating...
