Rolls-Royce purchases CFDRC’s patent for low emission engine fuel injectors
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. November 4 , 2013 – CFD Research Corporation is pleased to announce that Rolls-Royce has purchased CFDRC Patent: “Piloted Airblast Lean Direct Fuel Injector” (US Patent No. 6,272,840). The underlying technology enables significantly lower emissions (both NOx and CO2) in aircraft gas turbine engines and has contributed to various Rolls-Royce test programs towards this goal. The new design modifies the mixing pattern of fuel and air streams in such a way that the production of emissions is minimized right at the source location, rather than having to devise post treatments for mitigation of emissions.
The fuel injector was first conceived and reduced-to-practice by CFDRC under a Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) project, funded by NASA Glen Research Center. CFDRC investors and lead developers for this technology are: Cliff Smith, David Crocker, and Dan Nickolaus. “We are proud of the ingenuity of our engineers and of the use and purchase of this patent by Rolls Royce. Furthermore, we very much appreciate the opportunities for exploratory developments and early-stage demonstrations, availed to small businesses via SBIR projects”, said Dr Ashok Singhal, Chairman of CFDRC.
The SBIR program is led by Small Business Administration and supported by all US federal agencies. The SBIR program is highly competitive (~10% awards) and its key goals are to enable development of innovative technologies and to encourage their practical applications and commercialization. With growing economic pressures, the Department of Defense (DoD) and other U.S agencies are also encouraging large businesses to take more active interest in integrating the promising SBIR-funded technologies, and thus develop better products and systems at considerably lower costs.
About CFDRC
CFD Research Corporation develops and commercializes cutting-edge technologies for Aerospace, Biomedical, Energy, Materials and other industries. CFDRC is a two-time recipient of the prestigious national Tibbetts Award for effective applications and commercialization of innovative technologies. CFDRC works closely with the prime contractors for integration of new technologies into relevant products and systems.
For mor information, Contact:
Dr. Vincent Harrand, VP/Technology Commercialization, vjh@cfdrc.com, 256 726 4814, www.cfdrc.com.
