High Efficiency Rotating Detonation Combustor for Augmentors

Physical Sciences Inc. (PSI) and University of Michigan will design, develop, and demonstrate a rotating detonation combustor (RDC) for gas turbine engine augmentors. This program advances a novel combustor design based on a unique geometric approach that addresses the stability and efficiency issues that have prevented RDCs from reaching performance metrics predicted by theory. Flow uniformity is improved in the combustor and the combustor exit by decreasing pressure fluctuations and discontinuities. The integrated combustor and combustor exit geometry allows this innovation to be used for RDC-based pilot detonation for augmentors or for a full detonation RDC-based augmentor. PSI achieves these benefits using low mean chamber pressures to capitalize on the pressure-gain nature of detonation engine cycles. These benefits will significantly reduce the size of augmentors. In Phase I, University of Michigan evaluated the technology using computational evaluations of RDCs in multi-fidelity simulations, while PSI completed more than 150 hot fire tests of several RDC design configurations using gaseous hydrogen fuel. In Phase II, these designs will be evaluated using JP-5 fuel and high-temperature, oxygen-deprived air in order to simulate augmentor inlet conditions, creating a performance data package for Navy Program Offices and OEMs pursuing performance enhancement of future systems.