Patent Application
20240181722
This disclosure relates generally to manufacturing a fiber-reinforced composite duct structure.
An aircraft propulsion system may include a duct structure for delivering air to an engine such as a turboprop gas turbine engine. The duct structure may also include a bypass duct. Various types of duct structures and methods for forming those duct structures are known in the art. While these known duct structures and methods for forming duct structures have various benefits, there is still room in the art for improvement.
According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a method is provided for manufacturing. During this method, a woven fiber sleeve is disposed over a mandrel to provide an overbraided mandrel. The woven fiber sleeve includes a base section and a mount section. The base section is wrapped circumferentially around the mandrel and extends longitudinally along the mandrel between a first end and a second end. The mount section is disposed longitudinally at an intermediate location between the first end and the second end. The mount section projects out from the base section. The overbraided mandrel is arranged with tooling. A polymer material is disposed with the woven fiber sleeve to provide a duct structure. The duct structure includes a tubular duct and an annular flange. The tubular duct is formed by the base section. The annular flange is formed by the mount section.
According to another aspect of the present disclosure, another method is provided for manufacturing. During this method, a woven fiber sleeve is disposed over a mandrel to provide an overbraided mandrel. The woven fiber sleeve includes a base section and a mount section. The base section is wrapped circumferentially around the mandrel and extends longitudinally along the mandrel between a first end and a second end. The mount section is disposed at the first end. The woven fiber sleeve is splayed out to form the mount section. The overbraided mandrel is arranged with tooling. A polymer material is disposed with the woven fiber sleeve to provide a duct structure. The duct structure includes a tubular duct and an annular flange. The tubular duct is formed by the base section. The annular flange is formed by the mount section.
According to still another aspect of the present disclosure, another method is provided for manufacturing. During this method, a woven fiber sleeve is slipped over a mandrel. A portion of the woven fiber sleeve is manipulated to provide the woven fiber sleeve with a base section and a mount section. The base section is wrapped circumferentially around the mandrel and extends longitudinally along the mandrel between a first end and a second end. The mount section projects out from the base section. A polymer material is infused into the woven fiber sleeve to provide a duct structure. The duct structure includes a tubular duct and an annular flange. The tubular duct is formed by the base section. The annular flange is formed by the mount section.
Fibers within the woven fiber sleeve may be splayed, without cutting the woven fiber sleeve, to form the mount section.
The woven fiber sleeve may also include an intermediate mount section. The intermediate mount section may be disposed longitudinally at an intermediate location between the first end and the second end. The intermediate mount section may project out from the base section. The duct structure may also include an intermediate flange formed by the intermediate mount section.
A flowpath may extend longitudinally within the duct structure between the first end and the second end. The annular flange may circumscribe a port. The port may be arranged to a side of and may be fluidly coupled with the flowpath.
The tooling may include an annular insert. The annular insert may circumscribe a first portion of the mount section. The annular insert may be disposed between a second portion of the mount section and the base section.
The first portion of the mount section may form a port into the duct structure. The second portion of the mount section may form the annular flange. The annular flange may circumscribe the port.
The annular insert may have a cross-sectional geometry that tapers as the annular insert extends towards the first portion of the mount section.
The tooling may include an exterior mold. The overbraided mandrel may be disposed within a cavity of the exterior mold.
The woven fiber sleeve may also include a first end mount section disposed longitudinally at the first end. The first end mount section may project out from the base section. The duct structure may also include an annular first end flange formed by the first end mount section.
The woven fiber sleeve may be flared out to provide the end mount section.
The woven fiber sleeve may also include a second end mount section disposed longitudinally at the second end. The second end mount section may project out from the base section. The duct structure may also include an annular second end flange formed by the second end mount section.
The woven fiber sleeve may be configured from or otherwise include carbon fiber.
The polymer material may be or otherwise include thermoplastic material.
The polymer material may be or otherwise include thermoset material.
The mandrel may be configured from or otherwise include thermoplastic material.
The duct structure may be configured for an aircraft propulsion system.
The tubular duct may be configured as or otherwise include a transition duct. The duct structure may also include an inlet duct and a bypass duct. The transition duct may include an inlet, a first outlet and a second outlet. The transition duct may extend longitudinally along a longitudinal centerline from the inlet to the second outlet. The first outlet may be arranged longitudinally along the longitudinal centerline between the inlet and the second outlet and may be circumscribed by the annular flange. The inlet duct may extend longitudinally along the longitudinal centerline to the inlet. The bypass duct may extend longitudinally along the longitudinal centerline from the second outlet.
A centerline axis of the first outlet may be angularly offset from the longitudinal centerline.
The duct structure may be configured in a monolithic body.
The present disclosure may include any one or more of the individual features disclosed above and/or below alone or in any combination thereof.
The foregoing features and the operation of the invention will become more apparent in light of the following description and the accompanying drawings.
The present disclosure includes methods for manufacturing a duct structure from fiber-reinforced composite material. This duct structure may be configured for an aircraft such as an airplane or another manned or unmanned aerial vehicle. The duct structure, for example, may be configured for a propulsion system of the aircraft. The present disclosure, however, is not limited to such an exemplary aircraft application. The duct structure, for example, may alternatively be configured for use in a part or system of the aircraft outside of (or in combination with) the aircraft propulsion system. Furthermore, the duct structure is not limited to aircraft applications in general. The duct structure, for example, may be configured for any application which would benefit from use of a (e.g., monolithic) fiber-reinforced composite duct structure manufactured as described below. However, for ease of description, the duct structure may be described with respect to an aircraft propulsion system.
Referring to
The engine sections 29-31B are arranged sequentially along a core flowpath 36 within the engine core 34. This core flowpath 36 extends within the engine core 34 from an upstream airflow inlet 38 into the engine core 34 to a downstream combustion products exhaust 40 from the engine core 34. Here, the airflow inlet 38 is also an airflow inlet into the engine 22 and the exhaust 40 is also a combustion products exhaust from the engine 22; however, the present disclosure is not limited to such an exemplary arrangement.
Each of the engine sections 28, 29, 31A and 31B includes a respective bladed rotor 42-45. Each of these bladed rotors 42-45 includes a plurality of rotor blades arranged circumferentially around and connected to one or more respective rotor disks. The rotor blades, for example, may be formed integral with or mechanically fastened, welded, brazed, adhered and/or otherwise attached to the respective rotor disk(s). The propeller rotor 42 is connected to a geartrain 48 through a propulsor shaft 50. The geartrain 48 is connected to and driven by the LPT rotor 45 through a low speed shaft 52. The compressor rotor 43 is connected to and driven by the HPT rotor 44 through a high speed shaft 54.
During engine operation, air enters the engine core 34 through the airflow inlet 38 and is directed into the core flowpath 36. The air within the core flowpath 36 may be referred to as “core air”. This core air is compressed by the compressor rotor 43 and directed into a combustion chamber 56 of a combustor in the combustor section 30. Fuel is injected into the combustion chamber 56 through one or more fuel injectors and mixed with the compressor core air to provide a fuel-air mixture. This fuel-air mixture is ignited and combustion products thereof flow through and sequentially cause the HPT rotor 44 and the LPT rotor 45 to rotate. The rotation of the HPT rotor 44 drives rotation of the compressor rotor 43 and, thus, compression of the air received from the airflow inlet 38. The rotation of the LPT rotor 45 drives rotation of the propeller rotor 42. The rotation of the propeller rotor 42 generates forward aircraft thrust by propelling additional air (e.g., outside of the engine core 34 and the nacelle 26 of
The engine 22 is described above as the turboprop gas turbine engine for ease of description. The present disclosure, however, is not limited to such an exemplary engine. The engine 22, for example, may alternatively be configured as another type of open rotor gas turbine engine, or alternatively a ducted gas turbine engine such as a turbofan or turbojet gas turbine engine. Furthermore, it is also contemplated the engine core 34 may be replaced with another engine powerplant such as, but not limited to, a reciprocating piston engine, a rotary engine or another type of internal combustion engine.
Referring to
Referring to
The duct structure 60 may be constructed from or otherwise include a polymer material. This polymer material is structurally reinforced with fiber reinforcement. The fiber reinforcement, for example, may be embedded within a matrix of the polymer material. The polymer material may be a thermoplastic such as, but not limited to, polyether ether ketone (PEEK), polyaryletherketone (PAEK), polyether ketone ketone (PEKK) or polyphenylene sulfide (PPS). The polymer material may alternatively be a thermoset such as, but not limited to, epoxy or toughened epoxy. The fiber reinforcement may be or otherwise include fiberglass fibers, carbon fibers, aramid (e.g., Kevlar®) fibers, or some combination therewith. The present disclosure, however, is not limited to the foregoing exemplary duct structure materials.
The inlet duct 66 of
The inlet duct 66 of
Referring to
The transition duct 67 and its flowpath 86 extend longitudinally along the longitudinal centerline 72 (e.g., of the transition duct 67 and/or its flowpath 86) from the transition duct inlet 76 to the transition duct second outlet 84. At least a portion or an entirety of the longitudinal centerline 72 along the transition duct 67 may follow a straight trajectory when viewed, for example, in one or more the reference planes. The present disclosure, however, is not limited to such an exemplary arrangement. For example, in other embodiments, at least a portion or the entirety of the longitudinal centerline 72 along the transition duct 67 may follow a non-straight trajectory (e.g., a curved trajectory, a splined trajectory, etc.) in one or more of the references planes.
The transition duct first outlet 82 is arranged longitudinally along the longitudinal centerline 72 between the transition duct inlet 76 and the transition duct second outlet 84. The transition duct first outlet 82, for example, may be a port 88 formed by and/or in a sidewall 90 of the duct structure 60. With this arrangement, the transition duct first outlet 82 and the transition duct second outlet 84 are fluidly coupled in parallel with, and downstream of, the transition duct inlet 76 through the transition duct flowpath 86.
The transition duct first outlet 82 and its port 88 extend along a centerline axis 92 of the transition duct first outlet 82 through the structure sidewall 90 to the transition duct flowpath 86. The first outlet centerline axis 92 is angularly offset from the longitudinal centerline 72 by an included angle 94 when viewed, for example, in the first reference plane (e.g., the plane of
The transition duct first outlet 82 is arranged with a transition duct flange 96 or any other type of mount. This transition duct flange 96 is configured to facilitate connecting the duct structure 60 and its transition duct 67 to the engine 22 and its airflow inlet 38 (see
Referring to
The upstream bypass duct 68 of
The upstream bypass duct 68 is arranged with an upstream bypass duct flange 110 or any other type of mount. This upstream bypass duct flange 110 is configured to facilitate connecting the duct structure 60 and its upstream bypass duct 68 to the downstream bypass duct 62. This upstream bypass duct flange 110 projects outward from (e.g., in a direction away from the longitudinal centerline 72) the upstream bypass duct 68 to a distal outer end of the upstream bypass duct flange 110. The upstream bypass duct flange 110 extends longitudinally along the longitudinal centerline 72 (and the upstream bypass duct 68) between opposing longitudinal sides of the upstream bypass duct flange 110, one of which upstream bypass duct flange sides may be on (or towards) the upstream bypass duct end 108. The upstream bypass duct flange 110 extends circumferentially about (e.g., completely around) the upstream bypass duct 68. The upstream bypass duct flange 110 may thereby be an annular (e.g., full hoop) mounting flange for the upstream bypass duct 68.
A face plane 112 formed by the upstream bypass duct 68 and/or the upstream bypass duct flange 110 at its distal end 108 may be angularly offset from the longitudinal centerline 72. The upstream bypass duct face plane 112 of
Referring to
The downstream bypass duct 62 is arranged with a downstream bypass duct flange 122 or any other type of mount. This downstream bypass duct flange 122 is configured to facilitate connecting the downstream bypass duct 62 to the duct structure 60 and its upstream bypass duct 68. The downstream bypass duct flange 122 of
Referring to
In step 602, referring to
Referring to
Referring to
Referring to
During the provision of the overbraided mandrel 132 of
In step 604, referring to
The annular insert 150 is inserted into an annular gap 154 (see also
The overbraided mandrel 132 with the annular insert 150 of
In step 606, the polymer material is disposed with the woven fiber sleeve 128 to provide the duct structure 60. The polymer material, for example, may be infused into the fiber reinforcement of the woven fiber sleeve 128 following the provision of the mount sections 134, 136 and 144. The polymer material may be infused, for example, following (or during) the step 604. Liquid polymer material, for example, may be injected into the exterior mold 152 until the fiber reinforcement of the woven fiber sleeve 128 is embedded within a matrix of the polymer material. The polymer material may then be set (e.g., solidified) under pressure between the molding members 130, 150 and 152.
In step 608, the molding members 130, 150 and 152 are removed to liberate the formed duct structure 60.
One or more of the ducts 66-68 may be partially or completely formed by the base section 138 of the woven fiber sleeve 128 (embedded in or otherwise infused with the polymer material). The inlet duct flange 78 may be partially or completely formed by the inlet end mount section 134 (embedded in or otherwise infused with the polymer material). The upstream bypass duct flange 110 may be partially or completely formed by the outlet end mount section 136 (embedded in or otherwise infused with the polymer material). The transition duct flange 96 may be partially or completely formed by the intermediate mount section 144 (embedded in or otherwise infused with the polymer material). More particularly, the transition duct first outlet 82 and its port 88 may be formed from the port portion 156 of the intermediate mount section 144. The transition duct flange 96 may be formed from the flange portion 158 of the intermediate mount section 144.
In some embodiments, referring to
In some embodiments, the mandrel 130 may be formed from a relatively compliant material to facilitate removal during the step 608. The mandrel 130, for example, may be constructed from or otherwise include thermoplastic or low melt metallic material. The mandrel may alternatively be constructed from a washout sand, where the washout sand may be removed by a dissolvable material. Of course, various other techniques may also or alternatively be employed to facilitate removal of the mandrel 130 from an interior of the duct structure 60.
While various embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many more embodiments and implementations are possible within the scope of the invention. For example, the present invention as described herein includes several aspects and embodiments that include particular features. Although these features may be described individually, it is within the scope of the present invention that some or all of these features may be combined with any one of the aspects and remain within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not to be restricted except in light of the attached claims and their equivalents.
