Patent ID: 8028512

Claim:
A method of operating a gas turbine engine comprising: directing a first amount of fuel into a combustor through a main flow path; directing a second amount of fuel into the combustor through a pilot flow path; combusting the main fuel and the pilot fuel in the combustor; detecting an amplitude of a pressure pulse within a frequency range using a sensor fluidly coupled to the combustor; increasing the pilot fuel to a third amount in response to the detected amplitude being above a threshold value; waiting a predetermined amount of time after the increasing; and decreasing the pilot fuel from the third amount to a fourth amount after the waiting, the fourth amount being an amount of pilot fuel that is greater than the second amount; wherein the detecting includes sensing the pressure pulse using the sensor which is coupled to a tube that fluidly couples the combustor to a coil that is adapted to dissipated the pressure pulse in the tube.