INTRODUCTION

A jet engine is a type of reaction engine discharging a fast-moving jet that generates thrust by jet
propulsion. In modern aviation jet engines play a crucial role. Almost one in every two aircraft flying
today is jet-powered.
In today’s article, we are going to discuss the various types of the jet engine which are in use with the
armed forces.

Types of Jet Engine

All the jet engines that are in active use are airbreathing Jet Engines. These can be further classified
into the following subcategories:-
• Turbofan Jet Engine
• Turbojet Jet Engine
• Turboprop Jet Engine
• Turboshaft Jet Engine

• Turbojet Jet Engine

The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine, typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a
propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and a turbine
(that drives the compressor). The compressed air from the compressor is heated by burning fuel in the
combustion chamber and then allowed to expand through the turbine. The turbine exhaust is then
expanded in the propelling nozzle where it is accelerated to high speed to provide thrust. Two engineers,
Frank Whittle in the United Kingdom and Hans von Ohain in Germany developed the concept
independently into practical engines during the late 1930s.
History of Development

The first patent for using a gas turbine to power an aircraft was filed in 1921 by Frenchman Maxime
Guillaume. His engine was to be an axial-flow turbojet but was never constructed
In 1928, British RAF College Cranwell cadet Frank Whittle formally submitted his ideas for a turbojet to
his superiors. In October 1929 he developed his ideas further.
On 16 January 1930 in England, Whittle submitted his first patent (granted in 1932). The patent showed a
two-stage axial compressor feeding a single-sided centrifugal compressor. In Germany, Hans von Ohain
patented a similar engine in 1935.
On 27 August 1939, the Heinkel He 178 became the world’s first aircraft to fly under turbojet power, with
test pilot Erich Warsitz at the controls, thus becoming the first practical jet plane. The Gloster E.28/39 was
the first British jet-engined aircraft to fly. It was designed to test the Whittle jet engine in flight, leading to
the development of the Gloster Meteor.

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Explained: Types of Jet Engines
Photo of Sheershoo Deb Sheershoo Deb Send an emailSeptember 12, 20200 3,537 5 minutes read
Jet Engine Jet Engine details
A jet engine is a type of reaction engine discharging a fast-moving jet that generates thrust by jet
propulsion. In modern aviation jet engines play a crucial role. Almost one in every two aircraft flying today
is jet-powered.

In today’s article, we are going to discuss the various types of the jet engine which are in use with the
armed forces.

Types of Jet Engine

All the jet engines that are in active use are airbreathing Jet Engines. These can be further classified into
the following subcategories:-

Turbofan Jet Engine

Turbojet Jet Engine
Turboprop Jet Engine
Turboshaft Jet Engine
Turbojet Jet Engine

The turbojet is an airbreathing jet engine, typically used in aircraft. It consists of a gas turbine with a
propelling nozzle. The gas turbine has an air inlet, a compressor, a combustion chamber, and a turbine (that
drives the compressor). The compressed air from the compressor is heated by burning fuel in the
combustion chamber and then allowed to expand through the turbine. The turbine exhaust is then expanded
in the propelling nozzle where it is accelerated to high speed to provide thrust. Two engineers, Frank
Whittle in the United Kingdom and Hans von Ohain in Germany developed the concept independently into
practical engines during the late 1930s.

History of Development
The first patent for using a gas turbine to power an aircraft was filed in 1921 by Frenchman Maxime
Guillaume. His engine was to be an axial-flow turbojet but was never constructed
In 1928, British RAF College Cranwell cadet Frank Whittle formally submitted his ideas for a turbojet to
his superiors. In October 1929 he developed his ideas further.
On 16 January 1930 in England, Whittle submitted his first patent (granted in 1932). The patent showed a
two-stage axial compressor feeding a single-sided centrifugal compressor. In Germany, Hans von Ohain
patented a similar engine in 1935.
On 27 August 1939, the Heinkel He 178 became the world’s first aircraft to fly under turbojet power, with
test pilot Erich Warsitz at the controls, thus becoming the first practical jet plane. The Gloster E.28/39 was
the first British jet-engined aircraft to fly. It was designed to test the Whittle jet engine in flight, leading to
the development of the Gloster Meteor.
Heinkel He 178
The first two operational turbojet aircraft, the Messerschmitt Me 262 and then the Gloster Meteor, entered
service in 1944, towards the end of World War II.
Thus the world entered into a new era of Jet engines.
Messerschmitt Me 262
While the turbojet was the first form of gas turbine powerplant for aviation, it has largely been replaced in
use by other developments of the original concept. Turbojets have been replaced in slower aircraft by
turboprops because they have better specific fuel consumption. At medium speeds, where the propeller is
no longer efficient, turboprops have been replaced by turbofans. The turbofan is quieter and has better
range-specific fuel consumption than the turbojet. Turbojets can be highly efficient for supersonic aircraft.

Turbojets have poor efficiency at low vehicle speeds. Thus Turbojets were used on Concorde and the
longer-range versions of the TU-144 which were required to spend a long period travelling supersonically.
Turbojets are still common in medium-range cruise missiles, due to their high exhaust speed, small frontal
area, and relative simplicity. They are also still used on some supersonic fighters such as the MiG-25,

• Turbofan jet engine

A.Low-pressure spool B.High-pressure spool C.Stationary components

1.Nacelle 2.Fan 3.Low-pressure compressor 4.High-pressure compressor
5.Combustion chamber 6.High-pressure turbine 7.Low-pressure turbine 8.Core
nozzle 9.Fan nozzle
A turbofan engine, also known as a fanjet or bypass engine, is a type jet engine which produces thrust using
a combination of jet core efflux and bypass air accelarated by a ducted fan that is driven by the jet core.
Bypass ratio

The ratio of the mass of air bypassing the engine core versus the mass of the air going through the
core is referred to as the bypass ratio.

A turbofan engine which derives most of its thrust from the jet engine core efflux called as low bypass
engine whereas an engine that derives most of its thrust from the fan is called as a high bypass
engine. In general, low bypass engines are most commonly found in military aircrafts and may be
equipped with an afterburner, whereas high bypass turbofan engines are the prevalent design in
today’s commercial aviation jet engines.

• TURBOPROP JET ENGINE

A turboprop engine is a type of a jet engine that has been optimised to drive a propeller. Turboprop
equipped aircraft are very efficient at lower flight speeds (less than Mach 0.6), burning less fuel per
seat-mile and requiring significantly less runway for takeoff and landing than a turbojet or turbofan-
powered aircraft of the same size. When the aircraft is used over relatively short distances, these cost

and performance benefits offset the lower speed making turboprops the engine of choice for most
commuter and frieght carrier aircraft. Examples of turboprop-powered aircraft include the C130J
Super Hercules, HS 748 Avro etc

A turboprop engine employs the same principles as a turbojet to produce energy, that is, it uses a
compressor, combustor and turbine within the gas generator of the engine. The primary difference
between the turboprop and the turbojet is that additional turbines, a power shaft and a reduction
gearbox have been incorporated into the design to drive the propeller. The gearbox may be driven by
the same turbines and shaft that drive the engine compressor, mechanically linking the propeller and
the engine, or the turbines may be separate with the power turbine driving a concentric, mechanically
isolated shaft to power the gearbox. The turbines extract almost all of the energy from the exhaust
stream using some of it to power the engine compressor and the rest to drive the propeller.

• TURBOSHAFT JET ENGINE

A turboshaft engine is a variant of a jet engine that has been optimised to produce shaft power to
drive machinery instead of producing thrust. Turboshaft engines are most commonly employed in
applications that require a small, but powerful, lightweight engine, inclusive of helicopters
and auxiliary power units (APU often mounted at the tail of aircraft)

A turboshaft engine uses the same principles as a turbojet to produce energy, that is, it uses a
compressor, combustor and turbine within the gas generator of the engine. The primary difference
between the turboshaft and the turbojet is that an additional power section, consisting of turbines
and an output shaft, has been incorporated into the design.

A turboshaft engine is quite similar to a turboprop. The principal difference between the two is that
the turboprop version must be designed to support loads of the attached propeller whereas a
turboshaft engine need not be as robust as it normally drives a transmission which is structurally
supported by the vehicle and not by the engine itself.

CONCLUSION
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