Development of CMC Turbine Parts for Aero Engines

摘要

Recently, oil prices have risen creating a need for fuel-efficient aero-engines. New materials that have low density and the ability to withstand high temperatures will contribute to improving fuel-efficiency. Ceramics have such properties but their brittleness limits their fields of application. Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC) — ceramics reinforced with fibers — can solve this issue, and are being developed as next-generation materials for aero-engines. CMCs have been under development for more than 20 years, and will be applied to commercial fields in the near future. IHI has been working on the development of CMCs, mainly for use in turbine nozzles and blades. Through these studies, good results were obtained from spin tests and fatigue tests carried out for prototype components.