Early Jet Engines and the Transition from Centrifugal to Axial Compressors: A Case Study in Technological Change
Abstract
The transition from centrifugal-flow compressors to axial-flow compressors in the jet engines of the late 1940's and early 1950's provides an illuminating case study of the evolutionary nature of technological change. A look at the development of the turbojet in light of engineering design reveals that incremental changes came about in response to changing needs. The iterative nature of engineering design, whereby a designer repeats a step until he arrives at an acceptable solution, allows the designer to take into account new needs and new information. The first two turbojets, invented independently in England and Germany in the mid-1930's, both used centrifugal compressors. The inventors built upon the two hundred year-old tradition of centrifugal-flow turbomachinery to design a successful turbojet compressor. In contrast, all attempts at designing and building an axial-flow compressor prior to the twentieth century failed. Yet, researchers in four different countries persisted in their efforts because of their faith in the potential of the axial compressor to produce a higher pressure ratio at a better efficiency than the centrifugal compressor. Theses.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1988
- Accession Number
- ADA198775
Entities
People
- Brian J. Nichelson
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology