Patent ID: 6089855
Filing Date: 2000-07-18
Classification: F23C,F23M,F24H

Abstract:
A combustor for burning a mixture of a fuel and an oxidant, comprising:a first combustion chamber, including an upstream end, a downstream end, and a longitudinal wall joining the ends, the wall having a longitudinally extending central axis;at least one gas inlet arranged to introduce a flow of the oxidant to the upstream end to create a vortical flow from the upstream end to the downstream end;a fuel inlet arranged to introduce the fuel to the upstream end to flow in a mixture with the vortical flow;at least one recirculation channel, each including a recirculation channel inlet downstream of said gas inlet and a recirculation channel outlet upstream of the recirculation channel inlet, wherein the recirculation channel inlet is at a greater distance from the central axis than the recirculation channel outlet, the vortical flow causing a recirculated portion of the vortical flow to be extracted through the recirculation channel inlet and reintroduced through the recirculation channel outlet, the recirculation channel outlet arranged to reintroduce at least part of the recirculated portion of the vortical flow into the combustion chamber at a position a distance from the central axis;an igniter upstream of the recirculation channel inlet for igniting the fuel and oxidant mixture in the first combustion chamber;a second combustion chamber;a combustion nozzle protruding into the second combustion chamber and communicating the downstream end of the first combustion chamber with the second combustion chamber;a cooling jacket associated with the at least one recirculation channel to extract heat from the recirculated portion of the vortical flow, the cooling jacket including an inlet and an outlet for flowing a coolant through the cooling jacket;a secondary air nozzle communicating secondary air to the second combustion chamber, the secondary air nozzle arranged to provide a flow of the secondary air in a substantially annular pattern from around and upstream of the combustion nozzle orifice and allowing combustion gases in the second combustion chamber to mix with the secondary air.