Olympus RR

At the time is was developed in the late 1960’s, its use of digital processing to control the supersonic
airflow through the engine allowed it to achieve thermodynamic efficiencies (43%) and specific fuel
consumptions that were previously unheard of, even in Diesel engines.
Its reheat system, or afterburners, were only used on takeoff, and to power through the transonic speed
range up to Mach 1.7, then the Concorde could “supercruise” at Mach 2.0. Its engines developed
phenomenal pressure ratios of about 82:1 in cruise flight, with just over 7:1 coming from an intake system
that used supersonic shockwaves to assist in compression, and just over 11:1 from the engine’s 2
compressor sections.
The 593’s small diameter gave it an advantage over afterburning turbofans, as it allowed the engineers and
designers to build the Concorde with a low drag airframe. The Russians ceded to this advantage by
changing out the afterburning turbofans in their own SST, the Tu-144, with afterburning turbojets.
Its intake system used oblique shockwave formation and isentropic compression to compress the air before
entering the engine’s compressor sections.
A complex exhaust system also greatly contributed to thrust output and overall efficiency throughout the
flight envelope.
Rolls-Royce/Snecma Olympus 593 :
The Concorde's variable geometry intake, designed by BAC , like any jet engine intake, has to
deliver the air to the engine at as high pressure as possible (pressure recovery) and with a pressure
distribution (distortion) that can be tolerated by the compressor. Poor pressure recovery is an
unacceptable loss for the intake compression process and unacceptable distortion causes
engine surging (from loss of surge margin). If the engine is an afterburning turbojet the intake also
has to supply cooling air for the hot afterburner duct and engine nozzle. Meeting all the above
requirements over the relevant parts of the operating envelope was vital for Concorde to become a
viable commercial aircraft. They were met with variable geometry and an intake control system that
did not compromise the operation of the engine nor the control of the aircraft.
Supersonic pressure recovery is addressed by the number of shock waves that are generated by
the intake, the greater the number the higher the pressure recovery. Supersonic flow is compressed or
slowed by changes in direction.
The Concorde intake front ramps changed the flow direction causing oblique external shocks and
isentropic compression in the supersonic flow. The TSR-2 had used a half-cone translating centre-
body to change the direction.
Subsonic pressure recovery is addressed by removal of the boundary layer (at the ramp bleed slot)
and suitable shaping of the subsonic diffuser leading to the engine. The high pressure recovery for
the Concorde intake at cruise gave an intake pressure ratio of 7.3:1.
Shock waves gave rise to excessive boundary layer growth on the front ramp. The boundary layer was
removed through the ramp bleed slot and bypassed the subsonic diffuser and engine where it would
otherwise have caused excessive duct loss and unacceptable distortion at the engine.
Since the ramp bleed slot was in the subsonic diffuser, and downstream of the shock system, changes
in flow demanded by the engine would be accommodated with corresponding changes in the bleed
slot flow without significantly affecting the external shock pattern. Engine flow reductions caused by
throttling or shutting down were dealt with by dump door opening.
The dump doors were closed at cruise to prevent loss in thrust since air leaking from the duct does
not contribute to the pressure recovery in the intake.
At take-off, since the intake area was dimensioned for cruise, an auxiliary inlet was required to meet
the higher engine flow. Distortion of the flow at the engine face also had to be addressed leading to
an aerodynamic cascade with the auxiliary door.
Forces from the internal airflow on the intake structure are rearwards (drag) on the initial converging
section, where the supersonic deceleration takes place, and forwards on the diverging duct where
subsonic deceleration takes place up to the engine entry. The sum of the 2 forces at cruise gave the
63% thrust contribution from the intake part of the propulsion system.
In order to achieve the necessary accuracy in the control of the intake ramp and spill positioning, it
was found necessary to use a digital signal processor in the Air Intake Control Units. This was
developed relatively late in the programme (~1972) by the Electronics and Space Systems division of
the British Aircraft Corporation at Filton, Bristol. The Air Intake Control Units ensured the required fuel
economy for transatlantic flights. The digital processor also accurately calculated the necessary engine
speed scheduling to ensure an adequate surge margin under all engine and airframe operating
conditions.
Concorde's Air Intake Control System also pioneered the use of digital data highways (multiplexed
serial data buses ) which connected the Air Intake Sensor Units that collected aerodynamic data
at the nose of the aircraft (total pressure, static pressure, angle of attack and sideslip) and sent it to
the Air Intake Control Units located nearer the air intakes using screened, twisted pair cables to
replace a much greater weight in aircraft wiring had only analogue signal wiring been used.
The intake control system had the unique ability to keep the powerplants operating correctly and to
aid recovery, whatever the pilots, the aircraft and the atmosphere were doing in combination at the
time.
The overall pressure ratio for the powerplant at Mach 2.0 cruise at 51,000 ft was about 82:1, with
7.3:1 from the intake and 11.3:1 from the 2 engine compressors.
The thermal efficiency with this high pressure ratio was about 43%.
Exhaust nozzle
Concorde's variable geometry exhaust nozzle
Concorde's exhaust system usage when A) taking off B) supersonic C) reverse thrusting
The variable geometry exhaust nozzle, developed by SNECMA , consisted of two "eyelids" which
varied their position in the exhaust flow dependent on the flight regime, for example when fully
closed (into the exhaust flow) they acted as thrust reversers, aiding deceleration from landing to taxi
speed. In the fully open cruise position, together with engine nozzle, they formed an ejector nozzle
to control the expansion of the exhaust. The eyelids formed the divergent passage while the engine
exhaust ejected or pumped the secondary flow from the intake ramp bleed slot.
The expanding flow in the diverging section caused a forward thrust force on the exhaust nozzle, its
29% contribution to the overall propulsion system thrust at cruise.
During cruise at Mach 2.05 each Olympus 593 was producing around 10,000 lb of thrust, equivalent to
36,000 horsepower (~27 MW ) per engine.
The primary exhaust nozzle and jet pipe were designed for a life of 30,000 hours. The TRA (Thrust
Reverser Aft) structure for a life of 40,000 hours.
Engine technology may have advanced considerably since the development of the Olympus 593, but there
is no engine left in existence that match its overall performance, especially in supercruise.

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At the time is was developed in the late 1960’s, its use of digital processing to control the supersonic

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