Patent ID: 11859543
Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
Field: Engines, pumps, turbines (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC F | IPC F

Claim 7:
8. A gas turbine engine having a center axis, comprising:
a combustor section; and
a centrifugal compressor having an impeller configured for rotation the center axis, and a plurality of diffuser pipes positioned around an outer circumference of the impeller and configured to receive fluid flow exiting the impeller, each diffuser pipe including a tubular body having:
an open inlet end and an open outlet end;
a first portion, a second portion, and a bend portion, the first portion extending in a generally radial direction relative to the impeller axis of rotation between the inlet end and the bend portion, and the second portion extending in a generally axial direction between the outlet end and the bend portion;
a center axis that extends along a length of the tubular body between the inlet end and the outlet end;
wherein the tubular body has an interior cross-sectional area defined by a plane normal to the center axis, and the interior cross-sectional area at the outlet end is equal to an outlet end area (OEA); and
wherein the interior cross-sectional area of the tubular body increases linearly at a first rate for about eighty percent (80%) of the length of the tubular body starting at the inlet end; and
wherein in a remaining about twenty percent (20%) of the length of the tubular body, the interior cross-sectional area of the tubular body increases by an amount equal to or greater than about thirty-three percent (33%) of said OEA;
wherein the second portion of each of the plurality of diffuser pipes is oriented to direct the fluid flow axially into the combustor section.