INFLUENCE OF MANUFACTURING METHOD ON UNEVENNESS OF AIR FLOW, RELIABILITY, AND LIFE OF THE SWIRLER OF THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER OF AN AVIATION GAS TURBINE ENGINE

Dmytro Kuts, Volodymyr Yefanov, Oleksiy Omelchenko, Oleh Kalinichenko, Oleksandr Ovchynnykov, Radomir Osipchuk

Abstract


The subject matter of the article is the flow characteristics of the combustion chamber swirler of an aircraft gas turbine engine, as well as the reliability and service life of the unit. The aim of the study is to determine the influence of the manufacturing method on airflow non-uniformity in the swirler circuits and to define the role of this factor in the formation of swirler reliability and service life under real thermogasdynamic loading conditions. The tasks to be solved are: to perform a comparative analysis of cast and additively manufactured swirlers; to assess the influence of the manufacturing method on geometric accuracy, surface roughness, and airflow non-uniformity; to establish the relationship between airflow non-uniformity, the nature of the temperature field, and service-life-related risks of the unit; and to substantiate the feasibility of transitioning to an additively manufactured monolithic component. The methods used include 3D scanning, profilometric roughness control, flow testing of the air and fuel-air circuits, CFD analysis, and comparison with production data. The following results were obtained. For additively manufactured swirlers, the roughness of internal cavities ranges from Ra 1.5 μm to 3.9 μm, whereas for cast swirlers it ranges from Ra 3.3 μm to 7.9 μm; in addition, the geometric reproduction accuracy increased twofold. According to the flow test results, the airflow non-uniformity coefficient decreases from 12.1% to 4.9% in the air circuit, from 11.6% to 4.1% in the fuel-air circuit, and from 3.90% to 2.29% in the combined assessment of both circuits. For the cast batch, the rejection rate was 10%, which confirms the lower repeatability of flow characteristics when the conventional manufacturing technology is used. It is shown that improved geometric reproducibility and reduced roughness of the flow channels lead to lower hydraulic resistance scatter and a more stable air distribution among the circuits. Conclusions. The scientific novelty of the obtained results is as follows: 1) it has been established that the swirler manufacturing method directly affects airflow non-uniformity and, through it, the temperature field, reliability, and service life of the swirler; 2) it has been shown that better geometric reproducibility and lower roughness of the internal surfaces reduce the probability of local overheating, which is the decisive factor in reducing the service life of hot-section engine components. The obtained results are of practical importance for swirler matching and assembly, prediction of service-life-related risks, and improvement of manufacturing processes for critical combustion chamber components of aircraft gas turbine engines. 


Keywords


swirler, combustion chamber, aircraft gas turbine engine, L-PBF, airflow non-uniformity, reliability, service life.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.32620/aktt.2026.3.06