Posted on 04/29/2024 12:01:53 PM PDT by Red Badger
A small-scale jet engine compact enough to fit on a tabletop is helping to make the future of aviation more sustainable, according to NASA engineers currently involved in tests that could help pave the way toward new aircraft propulsion systems of the coming decades.
The DGEN380 Aero-Propulsion Research Turbofan (DART) is less than 4.5 feet in length, making it half the size of engines on moderately sized aircraft, and NASA engineers are now using the miniature engine to help to reduce costs associated with using a full-sized jet engine for research and testing purposes.
Currently, experiments with the small jet engine are being undertaken at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, within the facility’s Aero-Acoustic Propulsion Laboratory. Home of the Nozzle Acoustic Test Rig (NATR) developed for tests involving acoustic and aerodynamic aspects of advanced nozzle concepts, the facility also employs the Small Hot Jet acoustic Rig (SHJAR) which employs lasers to test turbulence studies and gauge thrust performance.
Although it shares a similar name with NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test, the entirely separate DART engine was assembled by French aerospace company Akira (formerly known as Price Induction), and since its acquisition by NASA seven years ago, has become a key component alongside several new technologies NASA is employing to aid in making the aviation industry more sustainable.
In addition to the benefits of its compact size, DART allows an accessible way to gauge new technologies that aren’t yet at full-scale operation, according to NASA Glenn engineer Dan Sutliff, who is currently the coordinator for research with the DART engine program.
DART has already proven useful during studies involving several components of NASA operations, which include the space agency’s ongoing efforts to reduce the noise produced by aircraft engines that will make future airliners quieter.
In addition to cutting back on noise pollution, NASA engineers are also looking ahead toward developing highly efficient next-generation airliners that will be used in the decades ahead, with current timelines aiming for their institution by the 2030s.
Before testing these ultra-efficient aircraft engines in NASA’s larger facilities, initial experiments with the DART engine could pave the way toward meeting those intended goals.
“DART is a critical bridge between a design and a wind tunnel test,” Sutliff recently said in a statement, adding that technologies that have been tested at Glenn’s Aero-Acoustic Propulsion Laboratory in the past have shown to have a better shot at being implemented on new types of aircraft engines.
Capable of generating 570 lbs of thrust, DART’s DGEN 380 engine contains five main turbo machinery components. The unit’s high-pressure turbine is connected by a high-pressure compressor through a high-speed shaft, all of which are complemented by a corresponding low-pressure turbine and shaft that drives the engine’s fan with help from a speed reducer gearbox. The DGEN 380 also employs a 14-inch fan which can attain maximum speeds in subsonic ranges.
However, part of what makes the DART engine particularly useful in the testing environment is its ability to measure the amount of air that passes through the main core engine’s turbofan, as opposed to actually going into it. This is referred to as its bypass ratio, and having a higher ratio makes DART’s functionality similar to the ratios on many current aircraft engines in use.
Higher bypass ratios help engines maintain fuel efficiency and allow DART to be an ideal starting point for experiments with new varieties of propulsion. Additionally, the small engine’s efficiency makes it ideal for tests in advance of the development of small-core jet engines that will likely begin to power aircraft by the next decade.
Further benefits of DART’s economical operation allow studies involving a range of other aviation technologies, which include engine control development, sensors, and instrumentation studies, installation effects of various components, as well as special coatings used to protect engine components and a range of other tests.
“The test rig helps NASA save resources and contribute to protecting our environment,” Sutliff said.
Micah Hanks is the Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder of The Debrief. He can be reached by email at micah@thedebrief.org. Follow his work at micahhanks.com and on X: @MicahHanks.
Aviation Ping!......................
The aliens are giving us the good tech.
But what do they get in return?
This engine is a miniature used for testing designs more cheaply than putting them into a full-size engine.
ingredients for a casserole.......................
So basically, NASA has brought us right in the 1958? Look at the T 58 engine used in the CH 46 helicopter. It’s 55 inches long, 16 inches wide and weighs 250 pounds. This breakthrough engine they have now isn’t much different.
But this one will be the product of diversity and not old white guys!................
NASA?
Take lessons from Elon Musk.
Promises that we will never travel in their direction.
There are thousands of “pint sized “ T-700 General Electric turbo shaft engines flying in thousands of helicopters.
A fact which will be lost on the majority of posters on this thread.
bravo sir well played
LOL.... I only hope it help the self esteem of the moslems and female engineers.
There is nothing special about that size of a jet engine. Ones that size have been around for at least 65 years. And we are all well aware of scalability.
Ask anyone who has experienced an anal probe.
But it is a fossil fuel that makes it possible.
You're missing that this particular engine is used for testing design concepts, not for powering aircraft.
And we are all well aware of scalability.
And that is the whole point of using this small-scale TEST engine to develop engine design concepts that can be scaled up to airliner size engines.
570 lbs of thrust? Typical jet engine produces 10,000 lbs thrust. So I can see why it’s quiet.
This engine is the same size as the Williams FJ44 that can be found on several small jets today.
Not enough to launch Rob Reiner into the Sun, so that's a bit of a disappointment.
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