Russia Develops Gas Generator for Engine Without Thrust Loss at Hypersonic Speeds

Russian engineers have developed a design for a gas generator for a ramjet engine (ramjet) that ensures uniform mixing of fuel with air throughout the entire cross-section of the combustion chamber. The patent for the innovation has already been registered in the FIPS database.

The development is based on a distribution flange with radial collectors, pylons for continuous fuel supply, and shortened disconnectable pylons.

In the center, the engineers proposed placing a hollow cylindrical body with a wedge-shaped leading edge at an angle of 10–15 degrees. This solution forms a flow deceleration zone and stabilizes fuel supply at high speeds.

The annular collector in this case is coaxial with the flange and has a diameter half the size. It uses centrifugal nozzles that spray fuel into the flow. Jet nozzles are placed on the pylons, operating perpendicular to the air flow. This creates a fuel-air "curtain" that evenly fills the combustion chamber.

The main feature is the ability to disconnect part of the pylons without losing cooling. When fuel consumption decreases, the system shuts off the channels in the shortened pylons, while continuous supply through the annular collector continues to dissipate heat from the leading edge. This increases reliability and prevents the destruction of structural elements.

The authors emphasize that the wedge shape of all edges reduces aerodynamic drag and allows for precise adjustment of fuel consumption. As a result, the engine receives a homogeneous fuel-air mixture and maintains stable thrust over a wide range of speeds.

At the same time, it is unclear from the patent for which engine the new gas generator was developed—existing or prospective—but from the context, it can be concluded that it is a power plant for combat aviation.

High fuel supply accuracy, disconnectable pylons, aerodynamic optimization, stable thrust over a wide range of speeds—all of this is clearly designed for maneuverability and high loads, which is typical for military aircraft.

The most modern Su-57 fighters currently use AL-51F1 second-stage engines. Evgeny Marchukov, General Designer and Director of the A. Lyulka Design Bureau, explained that the aircraft confidently performs pirouettes in the sky due to the threefold safety margin of the power plant.

Andrey Kozlov, General Director of the Central Institute of Aviation Motor Engineering named after P. I. Baranov, stated Russia's leadership in the work on an engine for supersonic civil aviation.

Read more materials on the topic:

• From "balalaika" to the fighter of the future: 90 years of MiG evolution in one video
• The alleged characteristics of the sixth-generation fighter have been revealed: speed up to Mach 4 and a new radar based on the station for the Su-57
• New engine based on the PD-35 gas generator has reached a new stage