The impact load on containment rings during a multiple blade shed in aircraft gas turbine engines

Abstract

In the event of a multiple blade shed in an aircraft gas turbine engine, the impact load upon the containment ring is critical. A complete understanding of this load is necessary to design optimal rings, which are strong enough to contain blade fragments without incurring excess weight penalties. In this study a description of a multiple blade shed and subsequent ring failure is given. A finite element analysis of actual engine experiments is then used to determine the impact load on containment rings during a multiple blade shed. The situation modeled here is one where the initial blade fragments are contained but subsequent blade failures create large hoop stresses that result in brittle tensile failures in the ring.