Turbo-electric compressor/generator using Halbach arrays

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9494044-B1
Application number	US-201414243576-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Apr 2, 2014
Priority date	Apr 2, 2014
Publication date	Nov 15, 2016
Grant date	Nov 15, 2016

Abstract

The present invention is a turbojet design that integrates power generation into the turbojet itself, rather than use separate generators attached to the turbojet for power generation. By integrating the power generation within the jet engine, the weight of the overall system is significantly reduced, increasing system efficiency. Also, by integrating the power generating elements of the system within the air flow of the jet engine, the present invention can use the heat generated by the power generating elements (which is simply expelled waste heat in current designs) to increase the engine performance.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A jet engine system, comprising:
a fan section, having a fan shroud covering the fan section;
a power generation system adjacent to the fan section, comprising:
a rotatable shaft;
a stationary, circular outer rim surrounding the shaft;
a plurality of compressor rotor blades attached around the shaft, rotatable within the outer rim as the shaft rotates, comprising:
at least one permanent magnet Halbach array arranged on each rotor blade wherein an electro-magnetic flux is present and directed to a first side of the rotor blades;

a plurality of stator blades having top sides attached to the outer rim and adjacent to the first side of the rotor blades, comprising a plurality of electro-magnetic conductive media arranged thereon;
a sleeve surrounding a portion of the shaft, adjacent to the first side of the rotor blades wherein a bottom side of the stator blades are connected thereto so that the shaft is rotatable within the sleeve and the stator blades are stationary;
wherein rotation of the shaft and rotor blades relative to the stationary stator blades creates an electro-magnetic flux in the stator blade electro-magnetic conductive media, generating current;

a high pressure compressor adjacent to the power generation system;
a bypass air duct adjacent to the high pressure compressor having a bypass shroud covering the bypass air duct;
a burner section adjacent to the bypass air duct; and,
a turbine section adjacent to the burner section.

2. The jet engine system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of compressor rotor blades comprises twenty and the plurality of stator blades comprises twenty.

3. The jet engine system of claim 1 , wherein the permanent magnet Halbach array comprises a material selected from neodymium-iron-boron or samarium-cobalt.

4. The jet engine system of claim 1 , wherein the electro-magnetic conductive media is selected from enameled copper coils, enameled copper bars, or Litz wire.

5. The jet engine system of claim 1 , wherein heat generated by the system operation is regenerated into the system.

Assignees

• Nasa
• Nasa

Inventors

• Kloesel Kurt J

Classifications

• F05D2220/768

  equipped with permanent magnets · CPC title

• F02K1/06

  Varying effective area of jet pipe or nozzle (by using fluid jets to influence the jet flow F02K1/30) · CPC title

• F01D15/10 Primary

  Adaptations for driving, or combinations with, electric generators · CPC title

• F04D29/324

  Blades · CPC title

• F02C7/36

  Power transmission arrangements between the different shafts of the gas turbine plant, or between the gas-turbine plant and the power user ({F02C3/107 - F02C3/13 and} F02C7/32 take precedence; couplings for transmitting rotation F16D; gearing in general F16H) · CPC title