AEROSPACE ENGINEERING

Abstract

With the global energy trends shifting toward renewables, Gas Turbine Engines became the core solution to support current energy demands because of their lower emissions. However, designing large engines with higher efficiency, higher performance, and lower emissions poses challenges that push the limit of current technology. This presentation presents an overview of the challenges encountered in the design of the combustion system and highlights the impact of research advancements on real-world challenges. The seminar focuses on breakthroughs in the design of combustors to target lower emissions while maintaining performance, efficiency, and stability.

Speaker

Dr. James Blust

He works in the Combustion Engineering Department at Solar Turbines Incorporated. He graduated from the University of Dayton with a Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering in 1992, an MS in Mechanical Engineering in 1993, and a PhD in Mechanical Engineering in 1998 with Dilip Ballal as advisor. He joined Solar Turbines Incorporated in 1998. As part of the combustion engineering department, he contributed to the design of the most modern low emissions combustors, developed the fuel injector cleaning process, and led the combustion-induced oscillations abatement program. He holds 4 patents, one of which was honored at the 2015 Innovation Festival at the Smithsonian.