US 12,416,408 B2
Combustor size rating for a gas turbine engine using hydrogen fuel
Michael A. Benjamin, Cincinnati, OH (US); and Manampathy G. Giridharan, Mason, OH (US)
Assigned to General Electric Company, Evendale, OH (US)
Filed by General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US)
Filed on May 24, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/673,532.
Application 18/673,532 is a continuation in part of application No. 17/457,559, filed on Dec. 3, 2021, granted, now 12,078,100.
Prior Publication US 2024/0310048 A1, Sep. 19, 2024
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. F02C 3/22 (2006.01); F23R 3/14 (2006.01)
CPC F23R 3/14 (2013.01) [F02C 3/22 (2013.01)] 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A gas turbine engine comprising:
a hydrogen fuel delivery assembly configured to deliver a hydrogen fuel flow;
a compressor section configured to compress air flowing therethrough to provide a compressed air flow; and
a combustor section including a fuel nozzle assembly and a combustor configured to operate without diluent and including an inner liner, outer liner, and a combustion chamber, and the combustion chamber characterized by a combustor size rating between one inch and seven inches at a core air flow parameter between two and one half kN and sixty kN,
wherein the combustor size rating is a function of the core air flow parameter, and
wherein the combustor size rating is defined by:

OG Complex Work Unit Math
wherein H is a maximum height of the combustion chamber measured by a forward line extending from an inner surface of the outer liner to an inner surface of the inner liner and L is a length measured from a midpoint of the forward line to a midpoint of an aft line, the aft line extending from the inner surface of the inner liner to the inner surface of the outer liner at a leading edge of a turbine nozzle,
and, wherein the core air flow parameter is defined by:

OG Complex Work Unit Math
and, the fuel nozzle assembly comprising:
a fuel nozzle defining a longitudinal axis and a radial axis orthogonal thereto, and the fuel nozzle including a fuel passage terminating at an outlet, the fuel nozzle including a nozzle tip; and
a nozzle cap including a set of openings and provided within the fuel passage, wherein at least one opening of the set of openings has a centerline oriented at a tangential angle relative to the radial axis.