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To: Techster
Turboprop = turbine powered propeller

Could you define diff. between turbine and Jet?

52 posted on 04/06/2003 12:01:00 PM PDT by my right
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To: my right
Could you define diff. between turbine and Jet?

Sure thing. Its actually kinda subtle, but important difference.

Both type are technically "turbines" in that they have the "suck, squeeze, burn, blow" cycle all occurring at the same time in approximately the same fashion. Compressor blades bring in the air and compress it, fuel is added and then ignited in the combustor, and the resultant hot gas is expelled through a set of rotating turbine blades to the rear. You have either a turboshaft or turbojet like this.

A turbojet derives all of its power from thrust out the rear of the engine. There is generally one turbine "wheel" in the power turbine section (after the "burn" part of the process) which is mechanically linked to the compressor section to provide a "self-sustaining" engine. But a turbojet's "power" is mostly all going out the back with a Newtonian "equal and opposite reaction" kind of thing going on. These power fighters like F-18s, F-16s, F-15s, etc.. They still power the B-52 and the E-model KC-135 tankers. They suck huge amounts of fuel to give obscene amounts of thrust. :)

A turboshaft is essentially the same concept as a turbojet, but the difference is that there is another power turbine wheel in the power turbine section which drives ANOTHER shaft (inside the compressor/first-stage power turbine's shared shaft) that sticks out of the front of the engine (yeah, yeah, the old T58 series had the power turbine shaft sticking out the back...) and drives either a prop (in the case of, say, a C-130), a large multi-stage compressor-like fan (in the case of a "turbofan" engine like that on the S-3 Viking, the A-10 Thunderbolt, or the C-17), or a transmission of some sort(in the case of all of our helicopters and the M-1 Abrams tanks).

How Stuff Works' explaination of a turbine engine.

My explaination isn't precisely it, but its close. I worked on helicopters for 10 years, so I suppose I know turboshafts pretty well. :)
62 posted on 04/06/2003 12:24:39 PM PDT by DudleyDoright
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