摘要 |
The invention provides a micro-gas turbine engine and associated microcomponentry. The engine components, including, e.g., a compressor, a diffuser having diffuser vanes, a combustion chamber, turbine guide vanes, and a turbine are each manufactured by, e.g., microfabrication techniques, of a structural material that can be common to all of the elements, e.g., a microelectronic material such as silicon or silicon carbide. Vapor deposition techniques, as well as bulk wafer etching techniques, can be employed to produce the engine. The engine includes a rotor having a shaft with a substantially untapered compressor disk on a first end, defining a centrifugal compressor, and a substantially untapered turbine disk on the opposite end, defining a radial inflow turbine. The rotor is preferably formed of a material characterized by a strength-to-density ratio that enables a rotor speed of at least about 500,000 rotations per minute. An annular, axial-flow combustion chamber is provided that is located axially between the compressor and turbine disks and that has a ratio of annular height to axial length of at least about 0.5. The micro-gas turbine engine can be configured with an integral microgenerator as a source of electrical power, and can be employed for a wide range of power, propulsion, and thermodynamic cycle applications.
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申请人 |
MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY |
发明人 |
JACOBSON, STUART A.;BREUER, KENNETH S.;EHRICH, FREDRIC F.;LANG, JEFFREY H.;SENTURIA, STEPHEN D.;NAGLE, STEVEN F.;EPSTEIN, ALAN H.;ANANTHASURESH, G. K.;WAITZ, IAN A.;SCHMIDT, MARTIN A.;SPEARING, MARK S. |