Device for de-icing the air intake of a gas turbine
View Patent ↗A de-icer device for de-icing an air inlet of a gas turbine, such as a helicopter turbine engine. The de-icer device includes an essentially metallic enclosure for admitting air into the engine, the enclosure including a first opening for admitting air into the enclosure, the first opening including a first essentially metallic grid, the enclosure further including a second opening for directing the air towards a compression stage of the gas turbine. The de-icer device further includes a wave generator for generating electromagnetic waves in the enclosure at a frequency suitable for causing ice to melt.
1. A de-icer device for de-icing an air inlet of a gas turbine of a helicopter turbine engine, the device comprising:
an essentially metallic enclosure for admitting air into the gas turbine, the enclosure including
a first opening for admitting air into the enclosure, the first opening including a first essentially metallic grid, and
a second opening for directing the air towards an inlet of the engine; and
a wave generator which generates electromagnetic waves in the enclosure at a frequency suitable for causing ice to melt,
wherein the second opening includes a second essentially metallic grid, and
wherein the first and second grids form a de-icing electromagnetic shield.
2. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , wherein the frequency of the waves is substantially equal to the resonant frequency of a water molecule.
3. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , wherein the wave generator comprises a magnetron.
4. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , further comprising a waveguide connecting the wave generator to the enclosure.
5. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the enclosure, the first grid, or the second grid is made of a material coated in a layer of an essentially metallic material.
6. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , wherein the enclosure forms a plenum.
7. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , wherein the enclosure constitutes a confinement zone for the electromagnetic waves.
8. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , further comprising at least one discharge antenna.
9. A helicopter turbine engine comprising an air inlet and a de-icer device according to claim 1 .
10. A helicopter turbine engine according to claim 9 , further comprising pre-rotation blades disposed upstream from the compressor wheel, and wherein the blades are made of a material that is essentially permeable to the electromagnetic waves.
11. A de-icer device according to claim 1 , wherein a length of the first grid in an axial section plane is greater than a length of the second grid in the axial section plane.