Improvements to Naval Ship Engines Through Water Addition

Sea water purification technologies have been improved and available to the point that to have water or steam injected gas turbine technology as the Navy ship propulsion system is now a very feasible and attractive technology to meet future Navy mission. These missions would include: high thermodynamic efficiency, low pollution, low noise, low infrared signature with fast start-up for improved mobility and increased survivability. This program integrates all the known ground-based water spray and steam injected experience and technology on a component by component study to arrive at a new thermal cycle tailored for Navy missions. The Phase I study will be a computerized study on the interactive behavior of major components with water spray or steam injected systems, which will conclude in the selection of optimized configurations for the engineering design (Phase II). The study is linked to the hardware test and commercialization program. Phase I will be meticulously performed with the use of the GATE program when applicable, the company's own program where necessary and interactions with major component suppliers to obtain their databases and assistance to assure the success of the program. Interfacing with Navy officials for mission definition and desired performance is recommended as a major key to the program.