A new probe has been developed to measure the time averaged stagnation temperature, stagnation pressure and gas composition. This probe can be used in the high temperature regions of gas turbines, including downstream of the combustor and in the first stages of the high pressure turbines, as well as in other environments. The principal benefits of the new probe are that it overcomes the limitations of the standard methods that are used to measure temperature in high temperature environments and that it replaces three separate probes, for the three quantities mentioned above, with one single probe. A novel method of measuring temperature is used, which improves upon the accuracy of thermocouples and increases the temperature operating range. The probe consists of a choked nozzle placed in the hot flow at the point of interest. The working principle is based on the theory that for a choked nozzle, there is a fixed relationship between the stagnation quantities, the gas characteristics and the mass flow rate through the nozzle. The probe has an aspirated phase, where the gas composition and the mass flow rate are measured and a stagnated phase, where the stagnation pressure is measured. The stagnation temperature is determined from the above quantities. The operating principle has been proven valid through laboratory and rig tests. The probe has been successfully tested in a Rolls-Royce Viper engine up to 1000K and 2 bar and in a combustor rig up to 1800K and 4 bars. Measurements of stagnation temperature, stagnation pressure and gas compositions for these tests are presented in the paper and are compared with reference measurements. The accuracy of stagnation pressure and gas composition measurements is equal to the accuracy achievable with techniques that are commonly used in gas turbines. The estimated achievable accuracy of the aspirated probe in terms of temperature measurements is ±0.6%, i.e. ±10K at 1800K, which improves upon the accuracy of temperature measurements performed with standard thermocouples at the same temperatures, the uncertainty of which could be as high as ±2%.
Time-Resolved On-Axis Spectroscopic Stagnation Temperature Measurements in Shock Tunnel Flows
