The most unusual engine created by Rolls-Royce. Dreamliner problems with Rolls Royce engines

25.12.2021

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For more than two decades, Rolls-Royce has been producing powerful engines for wide-body airliners based on a unified three-shaft design. However, the future of engine technology lies with larger fan powertrains and smaller gas generators, and Rolls-Royce needs to find ways to combine its successful formula with new technologies to create more efficient motors.

Currently, most of Rolls-Royce's efforts are focused on the development of the Trent XWB engines for the Airbus A350 and the new version of the Trent 1000 TEN engine family, intended for installation on Boeing 787 aircraft. However, the company does not stop there, and in the near future, as follows From the presented roadmap, Rolls-Royce will develop new engines that will enter service from 2020.

The ambitious plans of the British are focused on a two-stage development of a three-shaft scheme, which will allow Rolls-Royce to take a new position in the segment of power plants for wide-body airliners. The benefit of the new technology is that it can be scaled up so that Rolls-Royce can develop a platform for mid-size engines, with a concomitant return to the narrow-body aircraft market. In addition, the company intends to expand the use of composite materials in new areas such as blades and fan casings. According to the roadmap, Rolls-Royce will develop geared turbofan engines in Phase 2. The further strategic development of the company will be based on open rotor engine technologies.

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Airbus A380-861 with GP7270 engines.

In the late 90s, the world's largest aircraft manufacturing companies Boeing and Airbus, assessing the state and opportunities of the aviation equipment market, were seriously puzzled by the issue of creating an aircraft VLCT (Very Large Commercial Transport) . It was supposed to be, first of all, an aircraft with increased passenger capacity (about 600-800 seats).

The program of American aircraft manufacturers was called Boeing-747X. In this perspective, the aircraft 747-500X, -600X and 700X were assumed with an enlarged "humped" part of the fuselage, larger than that of their predecessor Boeing-747-400.

Boeing 747-500X and 747-600X layout example.

However, these plans were thwarted by the Asian financial crisis of 1997-2000. Then Boeing decided that the market prospects in the chosen direction were too vague (primarily the lack of preliminary demand from airlines), and the 747X project was curtailed.

Having lost its main rival and, thus, having acquired a certain freedom of action, Airbus continued the work begun in June 1994 to create its own concept of the VLCT aircraft.

At the same time, in order to further increase the competitiveness of the new project, a course was taken to reduce operating costs by 15-20% compared to the competitor's Boeing 747-400 aircraft already in operation. Moreover, such a layout option was constructively chosen, which provided a significantly larger passenger capacity, including in comparison with the 400th Boeing.

Boeing 747-400 aircraft.

In December 2000, the program, then called A3XX, was launched. Its result was the world's largest passenger airliner Airbus A380-800 (853 passengers in a single-class version), a wide-body double-deck aircraft widely known in the world today, which later received the semi-official name Super Jumbo (Super Jumbo).

As a power plant on the new Airbus, it was originally intended to use the engine Trent 900, just at that time was under development in the British multinational corporation Rolls-Royce Group plc.

Rolls-Royce Trent is a family of turbofan engines, named after the River Trent, one of the main rivers in Great Britain. One of the options for translating the name of the river from the ancient Celtic language means something like "rapidly flooding." A certain logic in comparison with a powerful air-jet engine is visible :-).

It is curious that Rolls-Royce has already used this name when creating new engine models. So, for example, it was received by the world's first Rolls-Royce RB.50 Trent, which was tested on a Gloster Meteor aircraft (in the variant Gloster G.41A Meteor F.Mk.1 (EE227)).

The world's first turboprop engine Rolls-Royce RB.50 Trent (museum)

Gloster Meteor E227.

Later, the first Rolls-Royce bypass engine, also made according to the three-shaft scheme Rolls-Royce RB.203 Trent, acquired the same name. It had a bypass ratio of three. It was an independent development based on the engine Rolls-Royce Turbomeca Adour, which was the product of the interaction of firms Rolls Royce and Turbomeca and installed on military aircraft SEPECAT Jaguar and Hawker Siddeley Hawk.

Fighter-bomber of the French Air Force Sepecat Jaguar.

This engine was intended as a replacement for the existing low bypass Rolls-Royce Spey family (RB.163/168/183 Spey, by the way, is also the name of the river), installed on both civil and military aircraft in the 60s. However, he did not go into the series, but served as the basis for the creation of a new family of Rolls-Royse RB211 engines.

The Rolls-Royse RB211 has become a mainstream commercial turbofan engine. It was not easy to create, the company faced various intractable technical problems in the course of its work. As a result, projected costs turned out to be much higher than planned, the final cost of the engine also increased, and the project, together with the design firm, found itself in a crisis.

In January 1971, Rolls-Royse declared itself bankrupt. To keep the national L-1011 Tristar program afloat, for which the RB211 engine was the only one intended, the British Government nationalized the company and allowed work on the engine to continue.

Liner L-1011 Tristar.

RB211 engines on the wing of a Boeing 747-300.

And although the L-1011 Tristar aircraft could not stand the competition, and its production was discontinued on the 250th copy, the operating airlines liked the RB211 engine and continued to be operated on Boeing 747/757/767 aircraft in their various versions. Fairly successful operation continues to this day, and the RB211 engine itself in the 1990s served as the basis for the creation of a new line of engines - Rolls-Royse Trent.

With the widespread use of the RB211 engine in commercial aviation, the aviation division of Rolls-Royse (by then a state-owned company) becomes a major player in the aircraft engine market and takes third place after GE Aviation and Pratt & Whitney.

To maintain its current position and further move towards conquering the engine building market, Rolls-Royse specialists have chosen the path of creating a new engine that meets modern requirements and is suitable for almost any long-haul passenger airliner or transport aircraft.

And to reduce the costs (which were now tightly controlled by the government) for research and development, the already well-established design concept of the RB211 engine, made according to three-shaft scheme.

Thus was the beginning of the line of engines Rolls-Royse Trent. The first engine in this family, the Trent 600, was intended for installation in an aircraft. McDonnell Douglas MD-11 for British airlines British Caledonian and Air Europe. However, the first company was acquired by British Airways, which canceled the order for the MD-11, and the second "safely" ceased to exist in the early 90s.

The Trent 600 was left without customers and never left the rank of the demonstration engine of the Trent program. All the efforts of the company were directed to the development of the next modification in the family - Trent 700 for the Airbus A330 aircraft.

This engine was certified in January 1994 and became one of the options for the power plant of the A330-200/300 liners. At the same time, in May 1996, compliance with the engine standards was achieved. ICAO ETOPS180.

Aircraft A330-200 with Trent-772B-60 engines.

Modification Trent 800 (877, 895, 892) has been successfully used since May 1995 on Boeing-777-200/200ER/300 aircraft. In this segment, the Rolls-Royse engine holds 41% of the engine market. In order to improve traction performance, the fan diameter was increased: 2.80 m versus 2.47 m for the Trent 700.

Trent 800 engine.

Boeing-777/258ER aircraft with Trent 895 engines.

Since 2000, the Trent 500 variant has been installed on the ultra-long passenger liner A340-500 (553), as well as on the A340-600 modification.

Aircraft A340-642 with Trent 500 engines.

In connection with Boeing's development of extended-range B777x variants, Rolls-Royse developed an improved modification of the Trent 800 engine, called 8104, with its further development into the 8115 variant. The engine was calculated for a thrust level up to 100,000lbf with the further possibility of overcoming this symbolic threshold and increasing it to 110,000lbf.

On this modification, the latest innovative developments in the field of commercial engine building were used, in particular, a fan with wide-chord titanium blades, which have a special swept wide chord fan profile, which allows you to get the maximum (at this stage) return from the fan in terms of efficiency, weight reduction and noise. Rolls-Royse has been a pioneer in these developments and has been doing them since the 1970s.

However, the Trent 8104 remained a demonstrator. The competition has done its job. Boeing received more than $500 million from GE Aviation to develop the 777x program with the condition of exclusive use of GE engines - GE90-110B and GE90-115B in it. It is quite clear that the issue was resolved in favor of General Electric.

But what was done, of course, was not in vain. The Trent series is now Rolls-Royce's most popular commercial aviation engine line. All the latest developments of the company were embodied in the latest versions of Trent - Rolls-Royce Trent 900, Trent 1000 (for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner) and Trent XWB (for the new Airbus 350XWB). One of the series' most notable engines was the Rolls-Royce Trent 900.

This engine since the beginning of development A380 became the main one for the power plant of this airbus, its position has especially strengthened since the formation of mass orders for the aircraft. In March 2000, Singapore Airlines, followed in February 2001 by the Australian airline Qantas, chose Trent 900 as the main engine for the liners ordered by them.

Trent 900 engine.

The decision to create a Trent 900 specifically for the aircraft A380 was adopted in 1996. In May 2004, the engine was tested in the air for the first time as a single engine in a flying laboratory based on the A340-300 aircraft. The European certificate (EASA) was received in October of the same year, and in December 2006 certification was passed in America (FAA).

Test A340 with Trent 900 engine.

Aircraft A340 with test engine Trent 900.

Already in September 2007, British Airways, so to speak, supporting the domestic manufacturer :-), decided to choose the Trent 900 engine for its set of A380 aircraft (there were 12 of them in total). Thus, at the end of 2009, the share of this engine in the engine park ordered and produced A380 amounted to 52%.

Like any modern industrial manufacturer, especially an aircraft manufacturer, Rolls-Royce has partners, among whom the risks and profits are divided in accordance with their equity participation.

There are only six of them: Honeywell International, which manufactures pneumatic systems; Italian company Avio S.p.A. , whose main prerogative is the gearbox of the engine units; Volvo Aero, involved in the manufacture of the compressor casing; Goodrich Corporation - fan case and sensor systems; Italian company Industria de Turbo Propulsores S.A., engaged in the production of low pressure turbines; Hamilton Sundstrand - electronic engine control devices.

Trent 900- three-shaft with a large bypass ratio (8.7-8.5). It is believed that the production and operation of such an engine may be more difficult than conventional twin-shaft turbojet engine, however, in the process of operation, such an engine is more stable and more stable.

Schematic of the Trent 900 engine.

Three-shaft means the presence of a gas generator with three mechanically independent axial units. This gives some flexibility in design and allows different combinations of initial settings to be chosen, while obtaining different output parameters for different engines, despite the external similarity of the design.

Three-shaft engine configuration.

In addition, shorter and therefore more rigid shafts in the three-shaft version make it possible to more accurately maintain the optimal speeds of flow around the blades, thereby increasing the efficiency of the gas generator, the margin of its stable, uninterrupted operation. Accordingly, the weight and dimensions of the engine are reduced.

Differences in the size of two- and three-shaft turbojet engines.

Therefore, Rolls-Royce uses the three-shaft design on all commercial engines, resulting in a whole series of engines with the same layout, but different sizes and traction characteristics.

Engine Trent 900 inherited a significant number of advanced technological solutions from its predecessor, the Trent 8104 demonstration model. In particular, a large diameter fan (2.95 m) with wide-chord blades(24 pieces) of a special saber-arrow shape. The blades are, as it were, bent to the side opposite to rotation (very similar to the swept wing of an aircraft).

When the engine is running, they move at a circumferential speed of up to 1730 km/h, which is much higher than the speed of sound. Thanks to the blades of a specific configuration, the fan operates quite efficiently and quietly at such speeds (one of the main regulatory parameters-requirements for operators A380), especially since the flow velocity at the engine inlet, even in takeoff mode, is relatively low. At the same time, its thrust is higher than a similar fan of the usual form.

Trent 900 engine fan.

Its total mass is almost 15% lower than the mass of wide-chord fans of engines of the previous types. The main reason for this is again in the fan blades. They are made of titanium alloy, hollow inside and hardened according to the principle Warren farms(Warren girder - lattice of equilateral triangles). This makes them strong, rigid and light at the same time.

Attempts to make fan blades from composite materials on this engine failed. It did not pass the test tests for birds getting into the fan.

Interestingly, the supplier of titanium for Rolls-Royce engines (as, indeed, for most aviation equipment produced in the world) is the Russian corporation VSMPO-Avisma.

Turbine blades are used as monolithic monocrystalline, and hollow with channels and holes for effective convective-film air cooling.

Heat-loaded components, such as elements of the combustion chamber, nozzle and turbine blades are protected by a special antithermal coating (thermal-barrier coating or TVS) significantly reducing heat transfer.

When profiling the gas-air path of the gas generator, a well-proven similar unit of the Trent 500 engine was taken as a basis.

Main engine components:

single-stage fan, eight-stage intermediate compressor, six-stage high pressure compressor.

The combustion chamber is annular with 24 fuel atomizers (nozzles), the so-called Tiled Phase 5 type (proper name Rolls-Royse). This type of chamber is used on Trent 500/800/900/1000 engines. In terms of the amount of harmful emissions, it meets the requirements of CAEP 8 with a large margin.

Phase 5 combustion chamber.

Combustion chamber example (for Trent 500, same for Trent 900)

Such a combustion chamber has a certain type of lamellar design of the walls of the flame tube (tiled combustor), which, in combination with an antithermal coating (FA), significantly improves their cooling and isolation from the ultra-high temperature zone. In addition, it has a short combustion zone and, in addition to high thermal efficiency, has a markedly reduced level of NOx emissions.

Turbine Trent 900 also consists of three independent parts. These are a single-stage high pressure turbine, a single-stage intermediate turbine, and a five-stage low-pressure turbine rotating a fan.

Loading a Trent 900 onto a plane.

In addition, the engine, like almost all modern turbojet engines, has modular design, which greatly facilitates (and reduces the cost of) its manufacture, operation and repair.

As an advantage of the engine, not only its modular design is presented, but also the possibility of transportation in assembled form in the cargo compartment of a Boeing-747 transport aircraft.

The main modules of the Trent 900 design.

Trent 900 engine modules.

Module 01 . Low pressure compressor or fan rotor assembly. This rotor, together with the fan disk mounted on it, is rotated by a low-pressure turbine. The disc has dovetail grooves in which the fan blades are installed. In engines of the Trent series, their number varies from 26 to 20. The minimum number (20) for the Trent 1000, for the Trent 900 is 24. The blades can be replaced without removing the engine from the aircraft.

Module 02 . intermediate compressor. The design is assembled from disks and blades in the form of a drum. On the latest model of the Trent line (XWB), blisks are applied in this module, but they are not yet in the 900th.

Module 03. Inner casing of the intermediate compressor. It is located between the intermediate and high pressure compressor. Bearings of all rotors are mounted inside it. It has hollow racks, in which the main oil and air pipelines pass, as well as the axis of the gearbox drive.

Module 04 . Node (system) of high pressure. It consists of internal casings, high pressure compressor, combustion chamber and high pressure turbine. On Trent 500/700/800 engines, the rotor of this system rotates in the same direction as the other two rotors. Starting from the engine Trent 900 this rotation is changed to opposite, which allows to significantly increase the efficiency of the turbine assembly as a whole.

Trent 900 engine modules.

Module 05 . intermediate turbine. It consists of a turbine housing, disk, working blades, nozzle blades and bearings of the intermediate turbine and high pressure turbine. Nozzle devices are mounted in the body. In the blades of the nozzle apparatus of the 1st stage of the low-pressure turbine, thermocouples are mounted to measure the gas temperature.

Module 06 . High speed gearbox (HSGB). Located on the housing of the low pressure compressor (and fan) and driven from an inner box located in the inner housing. It is a drive for pumps, both aircraft and motor and aircraft power generators. Provides drive speeds in excess of 15,000 rpm.

Module 07 . Housing for low pressure compressor and fan. The largest (in size) of the engine modules. It is formed from 2 cylindrical surfaces and a crown of output guide vanes. The front part serves as a housing for the fan. Both cylindrical parts are equipped with special noise-absorbing pads to reduce engine noise.

Module 08 . Low pressure turbine. Special bolted discs form the turbine rotor. It rotates a fan through a low-pressure shaft, while providing a power of at least 80,000 hp, which can be approximately equal to the power of a thousand family cars.

Used for automatic engine control digital electronic system made by Hamilton Sundstrand. In addition, for the first time in the Trent line, a system of fast continuous monitoring of the engine condition was used. Engine Health Monitoring (EHM).

The location of the engine on the A380 is very convenient in terms of maintainability. The engine is fully "revealed" to provide a convenient approach to almost any point on its outer surface.

Trent 900 engine under the wing of the A380.

Trent 900. Engine revealed.

Major certified engine options to date.

Trent 970B-84 with a thrust of 78,304 lbf (348.31 kN) are installed on the A380-841 aircraft (the number “4” is the engine code Trent 900) and are used by Singapore Airlines Limited, Deutsche Lufthansa, China Southern Airlines Company Limited, Malaysia Airlines and Thai Airways International Public Company Limited.

Trent 972B-84 with 80,213 lbf (356.81 kN) thrust. This high-thrust version of the 970 engine is used on Qantas' A380-842 aircraft.

In addition, two more engine options with even greater thrust have been developed.

Trent 977B-84 designed for the cargo version of the Super Jumbo - A380F and has a thrust of 83,835 lbf (372.92 kN).

Trent 980-84- for the advanced version of the A380-900 (A380-941) with an increased carrying capacity, passenger capacity and flight range. The thrust of this engine variant is 84,098 lbf (374.09 kN).

However, while both versions of the aircraft are not planned for release.

Trent 900 engine under the wing of an A380.

A Trent 970 engine under the wing of a British Airways A380-841.

As already mentioned, from the beginning of the design of the aircraft A380 the Trent 900 engine was considered as the main one for its power plant, but it was not the only one. Airbus dumped a competitor in the VLCT aircraft program when Boeing scrapped its 747X project, but the project's engine remained.

Indeed, for its development, an alliance of two giants of aircraft engine building GE-Aviation and Pratt & Whitney was specially formed (as part of United Technologies Corporation (UTC)). Abbreviation EA - Engine Alliance.

EA was established in August 1996 to develop, manufacture, market and aftermarket a new line of VLCT engines on a 50/50 basis. By that time, these companies did not have engines with a set of necessary characteristics (including a thrust of the order of 70,000-85,000 lb (311-378 kN)) .

Forecasting global demand in this market segment, experts determined that it may not be enough to cover the possible costs of developing a new line of engines (about $ 1 billion). However, the existing customer base and possible demand were still not so small as to be completely ignored.

In this case, it would be quite logical to form a joint venture to obtain a mutually beneficial result. Otherwise, these firms could only be tough competitors. The company was created. The engine received the working name GP7000.

Schematic diagram of the GP7000 engine.

However, due to the circumstances already described, he lost the object of his installation. But, having good data, the project promised to become promising, and it was decided to re-optimize it for the A3XX aircraft, which was created just at that time under the same program, which later became an airliner A380.

Airbus supported EA in its research. First, from 1998 to 2000, according to private agreements, and from December 19, 2000, when the A380 development and production program was officially launched, the GP7000 engine also officially became the second possible engine for the power plant of this aircraft, in addition to Trent 900. The line of engines on the A380 was named GP7200.

This engine was even more firmly established in its new position on May 19, 2001, when Air France, when ordering its first 10 A380-800s, chose GP7270.

In the joint development and production of a line of engines GP7200 in addition to the main creators of the Engine Alliance GE-Aviation and Pratt & Whitney, other European aircraft manufacturers are also participating. These are the French SNECMA (gas generator), the German MTU Aero Engines (low pressure turbine and turbine casing assemblies) and the Belgian Techspace Aero S.A. (low pressure compressor, bearing housings and fan disk).

Ground tests of the first engine of the GP7200 line began already in April 2004, and in December the first flight was performed, in which the test engine was installed on a flying laboratory based on the Boeing-747. FAA certified GP7200 for commercial use in January 2006.

August 25, 2006 in France, in Toulouse, the first test flight was made A380 equipped with new engines. In December 2007, a type certificate was obtained for the use of the GP7200 engine on the A380 aircraft.

As a result, it turned out GP7200 with a bypass ratio of 8.7. It has a single-stage fan, a five-stage low-pressure compressor, a nine-stage high-pressure compressor, a low-emission annular combustion chamber, a two-stage high-pressure turbine, and a six-stage low-pressure turbine.

One of the main principles of bringing together GE and P&W into a single alliance was to use the existing promising developments of both firms to create a new engine. It was this direction that was taken as the main one.

Engine GE90-115B.

Engine PW4084.

GP7200 engine.

Thus, the engine from GE Aviation GE90-110B / 115B served as the basis for the development of the GP7200 gas generator, and the Pratt & Whitney series engine for the fan and the entire low pressure system PW4000-112(family with 112 inch (2.8 m) fan diameter) PW4084/84D . Both of these engines were intended for aircraft of the Boeing-777 series and met the ETOPS-240 standards.

In addition, certain developments applied on the CF6 series engines and engines were used. And of course, many advanced achievements of modern engine building have found their place in the design of the new engine.

Schematic diagram of the GP7200 engine.

1.Fan(based on the PW4084 motor fan design) has 24 titanium alloy blades. The blades are hollow, hardened in a truss type. Their aerodynamic shape is made using 3D design. The blades are wide-chord, swept-back, designed to operate at supersonic speeds and based on minimum noise conditions.

Housing and guide vane parts are made of aluminum alloy with Kevlar for reasons of strength, light weight, and low noise. A fairly quick replacement of the fan blades is provided without removing the engine from the wing.

2. The flow part of the low pressure compressor also made using 3-D technologies, which increases the stability of the compressor, reduces losses and has a positive effect on reducing fuel consumption. The joint design of the fan and LPC significantly reduces the possibility of dirt and small foreign objects entering the LPC channel, which increases the reliability and service life of the engine.

3.9-stage high pressure compressor. Made on the basis of the GE-90-110B compressor. 3-D technologies are also applied here, which also increases the efficiency and the possibility of uninterrupted operation of the compressor. The impeller of the first stage is made in the form of a blisk. The blades are wide-chord, swept, profiled according to the principle of fan blades.

4.Annular combustion chamber (single). Made using technical solutions tested on engines of groups CF6 and. The chamber is simple in design, but efficient in operation, low emission. Satisfies the requirements of CAEP 8 standards with a large margin.

5.High pressure turbine. 3-D technologies are applied. Separate cooling of the blades and a special thermal insulation coating ( thermal-barrier coating, TVS ) increase the life of the blades and the efficiency of the engine as a whole. The thermal consistency of the rotor and stator makes it possible to minimize the gap between the rotor blades and the turbine casing. The boltless architecture reduces the number of parts (and therefore the mass of the engine as a whole), the life of the discs and the cost of maintenance.

An example of an anti-thermal coating for GP7200 turbine blades.

6.Low pressure turbine made on the basis of 3-D technologies, which ultimately reduce fuel consumption. New technical solutions in its design increase efficiency while reducing weight and noise levels.

7. Lubrication system and bearings. The simplicity of the twin-shaft engine reduces maintenance costs. Special anti-friction carbon seals reduce oil and fuel consumption. The system has a low operating pressure. Maintenance and costs are minimized.

8. The engine is controlled by the latest generation digital electronic system FADEC III. The experience of her work on GE90 and CFM engines was taken into account. Improved and accelerated the ability to transfer data from diagnostic sensors in order to minimize possible delays in ground handling.

9.Box of drives of aggregates made on the basis of the PW4084 engine for reasons of simplicity, durability and minimal low-cost maintenance.

Certified engine options GP7200 are GP7270 and GP7277. The first is designed for the passenger A380-861 (the number "6" is the engine code) and has a takeoff thrust of 74.735 lbf (332.440 kN). The second one can be installed on the A380F version (if ready) and has a thrust of 80.290 lbf (357.100 kN). However, even now the GP7200 can deliver over 81,500 lbf (363 kN) of thrust.

GP7200 engine on an A380 aircraft.

A380-861 takeoff at Le Burget (June 2013).

Liner A380-861 at Le Burget (06.2013).

At the same time, work is constantly underway to improve the engine. Its traction efficiency is increased, the possibility of using new materials and structures to reduce weight is being investigated. For example, since mid-2011, Volvo Aero has been involved in engine production. The use of its developments in compressors and turbines made it possible to reduce the weight of the engine by 24 kg.

transportation options and maintainability engine GP7200 have the same high level as that of its predecessors and rivals. The modular design significantly increases the possibilities in this regard, and the location of the engine on the aircraft (on a pylon) with opening hoods and panels makes access to it and its systems practically unlimited, allowing many works (including major repairs) to be carried out leaving the engine on the wing.

GP7200 engines under the wing of the A380.

The same can be said about traceability, with both engines in mind: Trent 900 and GP7200. One of the main types of control of almost any modern engine, which uses the principle of operation "by technical condition"- This borescopic control. Both engines used in A380, one might say, ideally suited for him.

They, as already mentioned, can be almost completely open to provide convenient access to all systems, including special ports-holes for inspecting the blades and internal cavities of the compressor, and the turbine, as well as the cavities of the combustion chamber. All steps and cavities can be inspected without exception, especially since the engineering staff of airlines has a perfect borescopic equipment.

These are borescopes of various types and complexity, simple and video, with specialized modes for viewing and recording images, with the ability to measure detected damage using 3-D technologies and excellent articulation of optical probes ( all-way, i.e. 360°).

In addition, the possibilities for local repairs are quite wide, in particular blade cleaning using practically one-of-a-kind equipment from a German company Richard Wolf GmbH, which in many cases eliminates damage and avoids costly repairs associated with engine removal and aircraft downtime.

Much attention is paid to improving fuel efficiency. In our time, aviation science and engine building have reached such a high level that among the available samples of engines of the same purpose, it is impossible to determine any one that stands out among others with its outstanding parameters.

And this is good, because it has a positive effect on competition. For the healthy development of a new project, serious competition must be present, otherwise if there is only one engine supplier, for example, the project itself A380 could quickly become unsustainable.

Tough competition in the engine building market forces developers to use the most advanced technologies and introduce the highest achievements of science and technology into production.

However, the cost of developing engines is very high, so the struggle is for every, even the smallest increase in the share of a given manufacturer in the market. Often the choice of the buyer determines a rather small advantage, which, however, can become decisive in the future.

It is clear that all this is true for the power plant. A380. Both engines and Trent 900 and GP7200, are quite close to each other in terms of parameters, and now the constant rivalry between Engine Alliance and Rolls-Royce does not stop over whose engine will become more in demand.

In this age of energy scarcity, the dominant operating cost for airlines has become aviation fuel costs. And their share in the total costs will only increase in the future. Therefore, any, even the most minimal increase in the fuel efficiency of the engine makes it economically justified its preferential use, all other things being equal.

This is exactly where the competition between the Trent 900 and GP7200 engines now exists. An aircraft with Alliance engines currently has a fuel efficiency of 1% higher than aircraft with British engines, and the Americans are trying not to narrow this gap at least. It turns out that Rolls-Royce is forced to play catch-up in a certain way :-).

The figure seems to be small, but in fact, if the aircraft makes long flights (and most of the A-380s are intended by operators for this), then in a year the savings can be up to $ 1.7 million per aircraft and at the same time CO2 emissions could be reduced by 4,000 tons per year.

Trent 900 has a slightly greater thrust (about 1.5-2%), less weight (about 300 kg). He is slightly shorter than his opponent (about 20 cm). But in this case, it seems that all this cannot be a decisive factor in determining the preferences of airlines.

If at the initial stages of development A-380 the Trent 900 engine was the first and main, now about 49% of all ordered A380s will have to receive engines GP7200. The numbers speak for themselves and it is very likely that they will grow.

Perhaps the state of affairs was also affected by failures of the Trent 900 engine, which manifested itself in a relatively short time of its operation (at the same time, no failures of the GP7200 engine were observed). Particularly notable was the flight accident that occurred on November 4, 2010 with a Qantas A380-842 aircraft (number VH-OQH, engine Trent 972).

During the Singapore-Sydney flight, the turbine of the second engine was destroyed (in the area of the intermediate link and the first stage of the LPT), which led to even greater damage to the engine, engine nacelle, and also the surfaces of the left wing.

Qantas-A380 engine after crash landing.

The Trent 972 engine of a Qantas A380-842 after landing.

The crew returned the plane to the airport of departure ( Changi, Singapore) and made a safe landing. No harm done. The liner was completely overhauled with the replacement of all 4 engines and full testing on the ground and in the air. The repair cost $ 139 million. Then, until the circumstances were clarified, flights not only of aircraft A-380 Qantas, but also a fairly large customer of Singapore Airlines.

The opinion was expressed that the cause of the accident was errors in the basic design of the engine, in particular in the system for regulating clearances in the turbine. It is worth saying that a similar incident (destruction of the turbine) during bench tests happened with the next (more advanced) engine in the Trent line - Trent 1000, designed for the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

Figuratively speaking, it seems that in the pursuit of engine efficiency (which, by the way, largely depends on the clearances in the turbine), competition can exert, so to speak, uncontrolled "pressure" on the promotion of innovative technologies, which in the end can lead to an explosion.

However, time will, of course, show which of the engines is more worthy. The main thing is that the inevitable rivalry should take place exclusively on a peaceful basis. A-380 it’s only been flying for the fifth year and may the flight fate of this truly wonderful liner be flawless ...

Aircraft A380-841 with Trent 900 engines.

Liner A380-841.

See you again.

Photos are clickable.

he became famous for many things, but bold technological developments are definitely not the strong point of this company. Therefore, it is doubly strange that they invented an engine, even the description of which sounds somehow not believable. Judge for yourself: a Wankel diesel engine with two separate rotor sections (but this is not a twin-rotor engine).

I didn't even know Rolls-Royce was experimenting, let alone diesel rotary engines, but that's exactly what the company was doing from the late 1960s to the early 1970s. These engines were intended primarily not for the wildly expensive cars with which the Rolls-Royce name is associated, but for military vehicles.

In a December 1970 article in Autocar, this engine is described in great detail and is incomparable. This is a rotary engine based on twin rotor Wankel engines, but these are not the co-axial engines you see in traditional twin rotor engines. In fact, these are two combined rotary engines, one above the other, with a significantly larger lower rotor and combustion chamber. This is due to the fact that the two-stage engine and the large size lower rotary engine functions as a compressor for the upper engine, the latter is just responsible for the power of the machine.

The Wankel engine can work in place of a traditional supercharger or turbocharger to compress the air/fuel mixture because the rotary engine is itself a volumetric hydraulic machine. This means that the volume of the intake chamber is larger than that of the outlet chamber, so the mixture is compressed inside it.

In the case of the Wankel Rolls-Royce, the air/fuel mixture is first compressed in the lower rotor, then that engine's exhaust port (like the exhaust valve in a conventional rotor) sends the compressed mixture of diesel and air to the inlet of the top small rotary engine, where the mixture is again compressed and ignited. like a conventional diesel engine.

It looks like Rolls-Royce has put a lot of resources and effort into figuring out how to fix the problem with the rotary engine piston seal and other technical issues. As a result, no fewer than four test engines were produced, not counting the modified NSU Wankel engine, which they used as a test model:

The first engine developed by Rolls-Royce was the R1, which was considered a purely research instrument. With the volume of released gas in the compressor stage

1 126 cm 3, and in the combustion stage - 500 cm 3, the engine could reach up to 50 hp. effective power, and fuel consumption was 14 l / effective power / hour. Among other things, the engine was used to develop the most efficient arrangement of the two stages.

Nearly one-fourth of Dreamliners powered by Rolls Royce Trent 1000 TEN Package C engines are at risk of flight restrictions. The reason was new problems with Rolls Royce engines.

From the rumors that reached the correspondents of the portal site, it follows that the American aviation agency FAA, as well as the European EASA, instructed carriers to provide data on the frequency of repairs of Trent 1000 Package C engines. For almost four years, Rolls Royce has been producing these engines installed on Boeing model airliners 787-9. Such an aircraft, owned by the Australian airline Qantas, recently completed a record-breaking flight from Perth to London.

Rolls Royce does not hide the fact that there are problems. Earlier, the manufacturer said that 380 Trent 1000 TEN Package C engines are subject to additional testing, as their service life is less than specified in the specification, as the impeller blades are subject to breakdowns. Such an issue was recently reported by Japan's All Nippon Airways and Air New Zealand in 2016.

In this regard, the FAA has already announced that all aircraft equipped with Trent 1000 TEN Package C engines will be reduced ETOPS, i.e. the plane will have to constantly be at a distance of 140 minutes from the nearest airport, and not 330, as it was before.

These restrictions do not affect most European carriers that do not operate intercontinental flights with this type of aircraft. There are no routes where the nearest airport is not a 140 minute flight. In addition, they fly to North America by the shortest route through the North Atlantic, where the network of airports, although not dense, but the time limit for flights between them also does not exceed 140. Another thing is flights over the Pacific Ocean. Until the problems are solved, aircraft of this model will have to fly over its northern part - the Far East and Alaska.
By the way, the latest Dreamliner 787-9 aircraft delivered to European companies are equipped with the latest Rolls Royce Trent 1000 TEN Package D engine, with which no problems were found.

For its part, the Boeing concern showed an immediate reaction, which stated that it was ready to help all its customers operating aircraft with problem engines. Trent power plants are also installed on some Airbus models.

EASA, as a preventive measure, has instructed European carriers to carry out an inspection every 80 flights, while until now this rule was mandatory for these engines after every 200 flights. The procedure should be carried out by mechanics, inspecting the compressor impellers for cracks. Such activities require high qualifications and experience. In addition, they are quite long, as they are carried out manually by flaw detectors in hard-to-reach places.

The English manufacturer informed a month ago that he had found a solution to the problem. At the same time, he said that the engines were completely redesigned, but the new power plants for the Dreamliner would not be ready until 2022. To date, the additional maintenance of problematic engines has cost Rolls Royce £220 million.

Andrey Bochkarev