Design Study and Concept Development of Structural Components in a Turbofan Aero Engine

Sammanfattning: This Master Thesis was performed within Research & Technology at GKN Aerospace, Trollhättan. GKN Aerospace is participating in the Clean Sky 2 program, delivering the ICC to the UltraFan demonstrator. On this demonstrator, the split and load paths of three components in the compressor module are similar to earlier engine configurations, but GKN wanted to investigate if there are other, more efficient ways of building this structure. The aim of this thesis was therefore to investigate if there is a more efficient architecture and design of the static components in the compressor module for the UltraFan engine. Utilizing a more efficient architecture and design GKN can, in exchange of undertaking a larger part of the engine, provide engine manufacturers a more lightweight solution. This goes accordingly with GKN’s aim to undertake a larger total share of aero engines. The approach for concept development during this thesis has been based on a five-step concept generation method. First knowledge about different engine architectures and component designs was gathered through qualitative interviews with experts. This was followed by the creating of a simplified baseline, or reference, model based on the UltraFan compressor module. A Finite Element Analysis, FEA, of the baseline was performed which generated further understanding about the current design. The knowledge gathered, both in the interviews and by evaluating the baseline, was used as a basis when generating concepts. Four concepts were evaluated using a screening matrix, where the concept that best satisfied the set requirements was further developed. The refined concept was then compared to the baseline, by analyzing stiffness and ovalization for both designs. The results from the concept evaluation indicated that possible weight savings can be made, but further investigation and refinements are required to ensure fulfillment of the set stiffness and deformation requirements. A further refined version of the baseline simulation model and associated methods could be used to evaluate how different designs affect the performance in terms of weight, stiffness and ovalization.