Heat exchanger(s) for recovering water and/or heat energy from turbine engine combustion products

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12203392-B2
Application number	US-202318117919-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 6, 2023
Priority date	Mar 6, 2023
Publication date	Jan 21, 2025
Grant date	Jan 21, 2025

Abstract

A turbine engine with an axis is provided. This turbine engine includes a fan section, a turbine engine core, a bypass flowpath, an engine housing, an evaporator, a condenser and a core flowpath. The turbine engine core is configured to power the fan section. The turbine engine core includes a core compressor section, a core combustor section and a core turbine section. The bypass flowpath is fluidly coupled with and downstream of the fan section. The engine housing includes a cavity radially outboard of and axially overlapping the fan section and/or the bypass flowpath. The evaporator module is within the cavity. The condenser module is within the cavity. The core flowpath extends sequentially through the core compressor section, the core combustor section, the core turbine section, the evaporator module and the condenser module.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A turbine engine with an axis, comprising:
a fan section;
a turbine engine core configured to power the fan section, the turbine engine core including a core compressor section, a core combustor section and a core turbine section;
a bypass flowpath fluidly coupled with and downstream of the fan section;
an engine housing comprising a cavity radially outboard of and axially overlapping at least one of the fan section or the bypass flowpath;
an evaporator module within the cavity;
a condenser module within the cavity; and
a core flowpath extending sequentially through the core compressor section, the core combustor section, the core turbine section, the evaporator module and the condenser module;
wherein the condenser module projects axially away from the fan section towards a forward end of the engine housing.

2. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein the evaporator module extends radially across the bypass flowpath.

3. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein the evaporator module extends circumferentially about the axis within the cavity between thirty degrees and one-hundred and sixty degrees.

4. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein
the core flowpath extends axially in a first axial direction along the axis into the evaporator module; and
the core flowpath extends axially in the first axial direction along the axis out of the evaporator module.

5. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein the condenser module extends circumferentially about the axis within the cavity between thirty degrees and one-hundred and sixty degrees.

6. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein the condenser module includes a water separator disposed at a gravitational bottom side of the turbine engine.

7. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein an exhaust out from the core flowpath is disposed radially outboard of the bypass flowpath.

8. The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising:
a recovery system including the condenser module and the evaporator module;
the condenser module configured to condense water vapor flowing through the core flowpath into water, and the recovery system configured to collect the water; and
the evaporator module configured to evaporate at least some of the water into steam, and the recovery system configured to provide the steam to the turbine engine core.

9. The turbine engine of claim 8 , wherein the recovery system is configured to provide the steam to the core combustor section.

10. The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising a fuel system configured to inject hydrogen fuel into a combustion chamber of the core combustor section for combustion.

11. The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising:
a flow circuit including the condenser module and a second condenser module, the flow circuit configured to circulate a working fluid through the condenser module and the second condenser module;
the second condenser module arranged radially inboard of the bypass flowpath.

12. The turbine engine of claim 11 , further comprising:
a second bypass flowpath fluidly coupled with and downstream of the fan section;
the second bypass flowpath radially inboard of the bypass flowpath and extending through the second condenser module.

13. The turbine engine of claim 11 , wherein
a port extends radially through the second condenser module; and
the evaporator module projects radially through the port.

14. The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising:
a second evaporator module;
a second condenser module;
the core flowpath including a first heat exchange leg, a second heat exchange leg and a base leg;
the first heat exchange leg branching off from the base leg and extending sequentially through the evaporator module and the condenser module; and
the second heat exchange leg branching off from the base leg and extending sequentially through the second evaporator module and the second condenser module.

15. The turbine engine of claim 1 , wherein the core turbine section is arranged axially between the fan section and the core compressor section.

16. The turbine engine of claim 1 , further comprising:
a power turbine section arranged axially between the fan section and the turbine engine core; and
a rotating structure including a fan rotor and a power turbine rotor, the fan rotor within the fan section and the power turbine rotor within the power turbine section.

17. A turbine engine with an axis, comprising:
a fan section;
a turbine engine core configured to power the fan section, the turbine engine core including a core compressor section, a core combustor section and a core turbine section;
a bypass flowpath fluidly coupled with and downstream of the fan section;
an engine housing comprising a cavity radially outboard of and axially overlapping at least one of the fan section or the bypass flowpath;
an evaporator module within the cavity;
a condenser module within the cavity; and
a core flowpath extending sequentially through the core compressor section, the core combustor section, the core turbine section, the evaporator module and the condenser module;
wherein the core flowpath extends axially in a first axial direction along the axis into the condenser module; and
wherein the core flowpath extends axially in a second axial direction along the axis out of the condenser module.

18. A turbine engine with an axis, comprising:
a fan section;
a turbine engine core configured to power the fan section, the turbine engine core including a core compressor section, a core combustor section and a core turbine section;
a bypass flowpath fluidly coupled with and downstream of the fan section;
an evaporator module including an inner section, an outer section and an intermediate section fluidly coupled with and extending radially between the inner section and the outer section, the inner section radially inboard of and axially overlapped by the bypass flowpath, and the outer section radially outboard of and axially overlapping at least one of the fan section or the bypass flowpath;
a condenser module; and
a core flowpath extending sequentially through the core compressor section, the core combustor section, the core turbine section, the evaporator module and the condenser module.

19. A turbine engine, comprising:
a first rotating structure rotatable about an axis, the first rotating structure including a propulsor rotor and a power turbine rotor;
a turbine engine core including a second rotating structure and a combustor, the second rotating structure including a core compressor rotor and a core turbine rotor, and the power turbine rotor arranged axially between the propulsor rotor and the second rotating structure;
a recovery system including an evaporator module and a flow circuit, the flow circuit including a first condenser module and a second condenser module with a port extending through the second condenser module, and the flow circuit configured to circulate a working fluid through the first condenser module and the second condenser module; and
a core flowpath extending sequentially across the core compressor rotor, the combustor, the core turbine rotor, the power turbine rotor, the evaporator module and the first condenser module, and a portion of the core flowpath crossing the second condenser module through the port.

Assignees

• Raytheon Tech Corp
• Rtx Corp

Inventors

• Sobanski Jon E

Classifications

• F02C7/224

  Heating fuel before feeding to the burner · CPC title

• F02C7/141

  of working fluid · CPC title

• F02C3/30

  Adding water, steam or other fluids {for influencing combustion, e.g. to obtain cleaner exhaust gases (F02C7/141, F02C7/30, F01D21/00, F01K21/04, F23D11/10 take precedence)} · CPC title

• F02C3/22 Primary

  the fuel or oxidant being gaseous at standard temperature and pressure (F02C3/28 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F01D25/32

  Collecting of condensation water; Drainage {; Removing solid particles} · CPC title