I get that the electric motor removes the gear/transmission issue to allow the compressing blades to run at any speed, but it does require conversion of the turbine engine to electric at sufficient quantities to also operate the compression. I can see how this is not a perpetual motion machine, because the turbine still uses fuel air mixture. I just wonder how much more efficiency gain from the compression cycle for the loss of the energy conversion.
Also, is he slowing down the compression blades at higher speeds such that they brake the air coming into the turbine?
One of the things about jet engines is the large fraction of the power generated by the turbine being fed back into driving the compressor. The practical efficiency of a jet engine has to do with having high mechanical efficiency of both the turbine and the compressor so that all of the power input into the turbine isn’t soaked up driving the compressor, leaving some power to propel the airplane.
An electric drive of the compressor (and propulsive fan in this application) has to be highly efficient for this to work, and it needs to transmit gobs of horsepower in relation to the horsepower doing propulsive work, too.
So it’s basically a big APU that uses an electric compressor.
It’ll work, sure, but is it compelling? Not so sure.
Might be interesting if one wants to locate the fan in a different location to the core.
Interesting.
But all internal combustion engines utilize the SSBB cycle
I get that the electric motor removes the gear/transmission issue to allow the compressing blades to run at any speed, but it does require conversion of the turbine engine to electric at sufficient quantities to also operate the compression. I can see how this is not a perpetual motion machine, because the turbine still uses fuel air mixture. I just wonder how much more efficiency gain from the compression cycle for the loss of the energy conversion.
Also, is he slowing down the compression blades at higher speeds such that they brake the air coming into the turbine?
One of the things about jet engines is the large fraction of the power generated by the turbine being fed back into driving the compressor. The practical efficiency of a jet engine has to do with having high mechanical efficiency of both the turbine and the compressor so that all of the power input into the turbine isn’t soaked up driving the compressor, leaving some power to propel the airplane.
An electric drive of the compressor (and propulsive fan in this application) has to be highly efficient for this to work, and it needs to transmit gobs of horsepower in relation to the horsepower doing propulsive work, too.
So it’s basically a big APU that uses an electric compressor.
It’ll work, sure, but is it compelling? Not so sure.
Might be interesting if one wants to locate the fan in a different location to the core.