Why don’t jet engines melt?
Doors open: 6.15pm
Lecture starts: 7.00pm
Location: National Cold War Exhibition Lecture Theatre
Admission is free to Members of the Royal Aeronautical Society and Museum Members
Other visitors welcome with a donation – no booking required, just turn up.
This month’s speaker is Professor Paul Withey BSC PhD FIMMM MInstP CEng, Professor of Casting Technology, School of Metallurgy and Materials, University of Birmingham
Turbine blades operate in the heart of the gas turbine and provide the power to keep the engine turning and delivering thrust. Since the invention of the ‘jet engine’, increasing thrust and efficiency has been demanded.
This now requires the high-pressure turbine blades to operate in a gas temperature which is well above the melting point of the materials the blades are made from. This talk will look at the historical development of turbine blades and investigate the current materials and manufacturing technologies which allow the current engines to operate as efficiently as they do.
(c) MOD Crown Copyright Tim Laurence