The working principle of a jet engine involves the conversion of the fuel’s chemical energy into kinetic energy that drives the aircraft forward.
The jet plane works on the principle of thrust with or without propellers while allowing cold air to enter, ignite, and exit at high temperatures. Jet engines typically have three crucial components – compressor, combustion chamber, and exhaust nozzle.
While the compressor increases the air pressure and temperature of the air intake, a combustion chamber ignites the air-fuel mixture and releases heat energy. The exhaust nozzle powers the plane by increasing the speed of exhaust gases.
The following steps describe how a jet plane works:
Step 1: First, fans situated at the frontal part of a jet engine suck cold air, forcing it through the inlet, thus, slowing the moving aircraft.
Step 2: The compressor squeezes the air from the fans, raising its pressure and temperature.
Step 3: A fuel tank maintains a continuous supply of liquid fuel (usually kerosene) to the engine.
Step 4: The liquid fuel mixes with the compressed air in the combustion chamber and ignites. This reaction produces hot exhaust gases and significantly increases the temperature. The burning mixture attains a temperature of approximately 900 °C.
Step 5: The exhaust gases flow through a set of turbine blades, causing the blades to spin. As the turbine gains rotational energy, the gases lose the same amount of energy; accordingly, the gas cools down moderately and loses pressure.
Step 6: The turbine blades transmit power through an axle running along the length of the engine. Additionally, the compressor and fan are connected to this axle. Hence, the compressor and fan spin in tandem with the turbine blades.
Step 7: An exhaust nozzle oozes the hot exhaust gases and helps the aircraft reach up to 2100kmph. Afterburners in high-performance military jets squirt fuel into the exhaust jet, producing an additional boost to push the plane forward.