Prospects for Application of Ship’s Multi-Module Gas Turbine Engines on the Basis of Ceramic Tunnel Turbomachines

Analysis of thermodynamic and thermal-engineering parameters of GTE for mercantile and naval marines was conducted. A conclusion was made that GTEs designed specially for application under sea conditions have the highest efficiency. This is the 36–37% efficiency for simple cycle GTEs. With application of the complex cycle, a notable increase in the engine efficiency could be attained, particularly, by use of structural ceramics (SCMs) on the basis of innovative materials and some novel technological and design concepts. It permits to raise the engine efficiency up to 50% even with the net power of 300–500 kW. Results of numerical calculations for single unit and thirty two module GTEs demonstrated as follows. With the same baseline conditions, a multi-module unit has the volume which is more than twice less and the mass more than five times lower. Though when the number of GTE modules still further increases, decreasing of the turbomachine efficiency becomes a negative factor. To compensate it, it is required to increase the air heater regeneration ratio, to apply helical-channel turbomachines made of heat resistant SCMs, etc. Advantages of multi-module GTEs are evident. Thus, the mean efficiency of a machine during its lifetime increases. The handling independency increases, too. A need in outages to repair machines is eliminated. The control, governing and protection systems become simpler. The fire- and explosion safety increases. In fact, all the designing procedure now reduces to identification of the module number under conditions specified and within a space targeted. As opposed to a conventional ship’s GTE design with the engine having only a single electric net power generator, the multi-module design allows a fast implementation of the entire wide spectrum of operation duties required.