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Aviator506 t1_irozpeh wrote

Yup, but the concept is still very simple at its core. Follows the same 4 stages of a traditional internal combustion engine like what's in most cars. Suck, squeeze, bang, blow.

The fan and the outer stages of the compressor is driven by the turbine and sucks the air in

The inner stages of the compressor squeezes the air.

Fuel is mixed in and goes bang in the combustion chamber

The burnt exhaust gas blows out the back and spins the turbine

Turbine spins the fan and compressor and the cycle continues.

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brainblasttt t1_irpho3i wrote

It’s funny cause even in the military when they teach you about jet engines they still teach you “suck, squeeze, bang, blow” instead of the proper “intake, compression, combustion, exhaust”

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WavingWookiee t1_irqnolx wrote

I was very disappointed when I was doing an engineering seminar with some school kids and I put a big picture up of "Suck, Squeeze, Bang, Blow" related to an engine and I didn't even get even a stiffled snigger, I worry about the next generation! When I was in school, had someone come into class and put that up, I'd have been howling and quite possibly asked to leave the classroom!

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zutonofgoth t1_irpbsnh wrote

It's important to note there is more accelerate than squeeze. It's almost an order of magnitude less than a car engine. The back end of the jet is open with only some blades blocking the exit of the heated gas.

Some people get the idea the pressure is massive but it's more like bike tyre pressure, so jet engine shrouds don't need to be very strong.

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straighttoplaid t1_irpgao3 wrote

Modern engines can run pretty high compression ratios. The GE9X is advertised as having a 61:1 overall pressure ratio. I don't think you're going to see ~900 psi in a bike tire.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Electric_GE9X

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zutonofgoth t1_irpquv6 wrote

The compression ratio is the difference between the static air pressure at the front of the engine and the dynamic pressure at the rear of the engine. The dynamic pressure includes velocity in the calculation. It's not really comparing apples with apples. So you can not just multiply the values out.

https://youtu.be/32mWwC9QUqs

900psi is more like rocket engines?

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julie78787 t1_irqujss wrote

A lot of rocket engines have maximum pressures in the combustion chamber of 200-300 bar, so 3,000 to 4,500 PSI.

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Aviator506 t1_irpfbmr wrote

Yeah, most of the squeeze is done by the forward momentum of the engine through the air. And at a certain speed (~mach 3) you don't even need compressors, it will act as a ram jet, which is what the SR-71 would do as well as the fictional DarkStar in TopGun Maverick. It's certainly MUCH more complicated than how I explained, I just did the basic principles of it.

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straighttoplaid t1_irpggj7 wrote

> Yeah, most of the squeeze is done by the forward momentum of the engine through the air.

That is not true for commercial engines.

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Aviator506 t1_irpx2ly wrote

High bypass turbo fans like airliners do get a significant bit of the compression from the forward momentum. They will never be able to function like ram jets, but the momentum makes a big difference especially at high altitude where the air is less dense and there isn't as much to suck in from the fans/compressors alone. The high bypass engines of the airliners will function much more efficiently at high altitude because of this than that of a low bypass military fighter, however it won't be able to achieve as high of a top speed as that same fighter under the same conditions. Basically the low bypass gets the advantage of speed while the high bypass gets the advantage of fuel efficiency, but both greatly benefit from momentum based compression.

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KGandtheVividGirls t1_iruxjqu wrote

Think what you’re saying here is engine pressure ratio, or EPR. Ratio across the entire engine, not at a particular location, or station. The speed of the air doesn’t change that much after hitting the inlet and first stage of the compressor. A series of blades do accelerate the air then the air passes through a set of stators which are divergent ducts which slow the air converting that energy into pressure. This happens across multiple stages. At the end of the compressor is a diffuser which acts like an extra special stator. Air is at the highest pressure here. On a large modern engine it could be 800psig and over 1000F. This is simplified, there are things that need done with a compressor to get it working across the operating range.

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rafaeldiasms t1_irpr3cz wrote

Suck, squeeze, bang, blow. So, just a regular Saturday then

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ViolaPurpurea t1_irqjetz wrote

> the concept is still very simple at its core.

I see what you did there!

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ChuckFerrera t1_irr84da wrote

Mostly correct. The compressor is directly attached to the high pressure turbine (HPT) via the high pressure shaft. The low pressure turbine (the 4 stages aft of the HPT), are directly connected forward to the high bypass fan through the center of the engine via the low pressure shaft. That is, the compressor and the HPT spins independent of the LPT and fan.

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