Numerical Simulation of a Complete Gas Turbine Engine With Wet Compression

Abstract

In this paper, a thorough flow simulation of a small turbojet engine has been carried out to predict the engine performance as a result of water injected at the compressor inlet. Wet compression will not only change compressor performance characteristic map, but also has effects on both the combustor and the turbine sections. The match between the turbojet engine components, that is the compressor, combustor and turbine, will shift to a new operating point. In this paper, we present a steady-state numerical simulation of the entire gas turbine with wet compression in order to evaluate the effects on the gas turbine performance. Compared with the dry case, the results of wet cases show increased values of compressor compression ratios, turbine expansion ratios, intake mass flowrates, and engine thrusts including a decreased amount of specific fuel consumption. The wet compression reduces NOx production in the combustor, which is also simulated and with results presented. The study also indicates that the water mass flow rate and droplet diameter are key factors impacting the engine performance.