• IHI Corporation

• TAGA Norimasa

The Kure Aero-Engine & Turbo Machinery Works manufactures 70-80% of the world's long shafts used in jet engines. The key person who manages the design and execution of the manufacturing line has to create a manufacturing setup that can cater to the advanced demands of global customers, while also remaining sensitive to local needs. His role is like that of an orchestra conductor.

• FURUKAWA Takashi

In order to improve jet engine efficiency, a large number of complexly shaped blades are indispensable. This article spotlights a key person who is very familiar with a broad range of electrical machining technologies used to efficiently and precisely machine these blades, and who oversees the building of production lines and the development of processing technologies.

• SUGAYA Satoru

All new jet engines and those after maintenance are required to be tested before delivery to verify their performance. Mizuho Aero-Engine Works, which handles the maintenance of jet engines, has twelve testing facilities (test cells). The key person who took part in the start-up of the latest test cell and manages all of its operations is just like a family doctor for jet engines.

• IHI Corporation

Titanium aluminide is a new material that will lead to much lighter aircraft engines, and thus lighter aircraft. Net shape precision casting is the latest development in the ancient technique of casting, and is used to mass-produce hundreds of turbine blades accurately and at low cost. By also applying a revolutionary melting technology, the mass production of titanium aluminide blades becomes possible.

• IHI Corporation

In the past, jet engine shafts have been manually coated by skilled workers. In the midst of the current situation in which it is difficult to secure skilled workers, we have put an automated coating system for engine shafts into practical use for the first time in the world. The result has been improved coating quality as well as the establishment of a system to cope with a future increase in demand.

• IHI Corporation

The Soma Works recovered from the Tohoku Earthquake and tsunami and resumed production with extraordinary speed. Now, the facility is transitioning from a disaster recovery phase to an expansion phase, and a variety of lessons learned from the disaster are being implemented. The first major actions are Business Continuity Planning (BCP) and the photovoltaic (PV) solar power generation system introduced as a power-saving measure. This involves a new model of renewable energy utilization.

• Corporate Research & Development
• UCHIDA Hiroyuki

• SATO Atsush, IMAMURA Mitsuo, FUJIMURA Tetsuji

The PW1100G-JM is one of the next-generation turbofan engines selected to power the Airbus A320neo (New Engine Option). IHI participated in the PW1100G-JM program as a member company of the Japanese Aero Engines Corporation (JAEC). The PW1100G-JM adopts the Geared Turbo Fan (GTF) system and delivers improvements in fuel efficiency, emissions, and noise by applying state-of-the-art composite materials and component technologies. This paper presents an overview of the PW1100G-JM.

• NAKAMURA Takeshi, OKA Takashi, IMANARI Kuniyuki, SHINOHARA Ken-ichi,ISHIZAKI Masato

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.

• MORIOKA Noriko, TAKEUCHI Michiya, OYORI Hitoshi

The More Electric Architecture for Aircraft and Propulsion (MEAAP) project aims to improve safety, environmental friendliness, and economic benefits with innovations that integrate electrical power management and thermal management for aircraft. IHI is trying to develop an all-electric system for the engine and aircraft of the future within the next decade or two. This paper introduces an overview of the MEAAP concept and IHI all-electrical system innovations.

• KUROKI Hiroshi, NEZAKI Koji, WAKABAYASHI Tsukasa, NAKAMURA Kenji

In recent aircraft engines, the application of blisks in fan and compressor rotors is increasing to achieve weight reduction and performance improvement. The conventional manufacturing method of blisks is to machine them from a forged material. But with this method, the loss of material is relatively large. Therefore a manufacturing method in which blades are joined to disks with Linear Friction Welding (LFW) is being developed. LFW is a kind of solid state welding technique in which the weld surfaces are rubbed together to cause them to heat up. In the current study, the changes in the micro structure, the structural integrity of the LFW joint, and the results of the manufacturing trial of the compressor blisk are reported.

• IKEDA Shuji, SATOH Shigeyuki, TSUNO Nobuyasu, YOSHINOUCHI Takashi, SATAKE Masayuki

Metal Injection Molding (MIM) is a net-shape process for producing metal parts that combines the design freedom of plastic injection molding with material strength near that of wrought metal. IHI has been developing the MIM process for low-cost manufacture of high pressure compressor vanes which are used in aircraft gas-turbine engines. Material tests have been carried out on the vanes and the test results show good performance. Measurement of the dimensional precision of the prototype compressor vane has shown promising results. This paper describes the status of MIM process development at IHI.

• KATO Dai, PALLOT Guillaume, SUGIHARA Akio, AOTSUKA Mizuho

Higher efficiency and higher pressure ratios are required for compressors of aircraft turbo-fan engines in order to achieve a fuel burn reduction. In addition, technical issues related to a smaller core size must be overcome to realize a higher overall pressure ratio and higher bypass ratio of an engine. This paper summarizes the development of axial compressor aerodynamic design technologies that address these subjects, including validation through rig testing. The development of some key structural design technologies to realize the original intent of an aerodynamic design is also described, including higher accuracy variable stator vane actuation, tip clearance reduction, and blade forced response prediction.

• MURAKAMI Tsutomu, MORITA Hideo, OIKAWA Kazuki

The Composite Fan System R&D Project was created to develop composite structural parts for the fans used in next-generation commercial aero-engines. The technology developed for the composite fan case and composite structural guide vane has been completed and demonstrated. These two parts will be applied to the PW1100G-JM, which powers the Airbus A320neo. This paper gives an outline of the development of the composite fan case and composite SGV.