Preliminary analysis of thermodynamic cycle of turbofan engine fuelled by hydrogen

Presented article is focus on analysis of the effect of hydrogen fuel on turbofan engine performance. Selected properties of hydrogen and possibility of introduction in civil aviation were discussed. Hydrogen implementation as aviation fuel offers obvious advantages such as low emission of combustion product, higher payload, lower fuel consumption, general availability but also poses great technical challenges. The most important aspect is to ensure engine operational safety at very high level. Hydrogen implementation would eliminate the aviation dependence of exhausting sources of fossil fuels especially of crude oil. The thermodynamic model of turbofan engine was implemented in MATLAB environment. Accepted assumptions have been discussed. Turbine cooling process has been included in the numerical model. Working fluid was modelled as semi-perfect gas. Analysis was carried out for take-off and design point conditions. Engine performances were compared for two kinds of applied fuels: liquid hydrogen and commonly used in turbine engines kerosene. Combustion heat of hydrogen is about three time higher than in comparison with conventional turbine engine fuel, what exert significant influence on engine performance. The results of engine thermodynamic cycle analysis indicate the increase in specific thrust and significant reduction of specific fuel consumption. The results are presented in tabular form and on the graphs. Obtained results have been discussed and the direction of further research was indicated.

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Opracowanie rekordu w ramach umowy 509/P-DUN/2018 ze środków MNiSW przeznaczonych na działalność upowszechniającą naukę (2018).