The Central Institute of Aviation Engine Building named after P.I. Baranov and the Perm design bureau of JSC ODK-Aviation Engine have conducted tests of the gas generator of the advanced engine. The Baranov Central Institute of Aviation Motor Engineering (CIAM) and the Perm-based design bureau of ODK-Aviaadvigatel JSC conducted tests of the gas generator of the promising high-power PD-35 engine. The first launch of the gas generator at the second stage of tests took place at the largest in Russia and Europe complex of CIAM for full-scale tests of aircraft engines in Moscow. The tests of the PD-35 “heart” exceeded expectations, and valuable information was obtained for further work, the press service of Rostec State Corporation reported.
During the tests, the operation of a full-size engine was simulated and more than 1,500 parameters were evaluated. For this purpose, CIAM specialists created special bench equipment and software. “The obtained parameters converge well with the design data. They have given the engine developers valuable information and extensive experience that will be used in the course of further work,” Rostec said.
They added that the power plant being developed by the United Engine Corporation for long-range aircraft will be a real giant – our country has never seen such aircraft engines before. Its fan diameter is 3.1 metres and thrust is 35 tonnes. The developed gas generator will later become the basis for creating engines in the thrust range from 24 to 38 tonnes.
In September 2021, the demonstrator of the PD-35 gas generator was tested in Perm. The demonstrator was installed on a closed test stand and tested under standard atmospheric conditions. Now, as part of the second stage of testing, the operation of the gas generator with pressurised heated air supplied to its inlet has been verified, which simulates the operating conditions of the unit as part of the engine.
The PD-35 engine can be used as a propulsion system for both passenger wide-body airliners, such as the CR929, and heavy transport aircraft with a payload of one hundred tonnes or more. It is assumed that the engine can serve as an impetus for the remotorisation of the passenger Il-96-400M into a twin-engine version, as well as replace the Ukrainian D-18T on the cargo An-124.
According to Deputy Prime Minister and head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov, it is planned that the PD-35 will appear by 2030, while its thrust may be lower than 35 tonnes, the exact decision will be next spring.
“By 2030, an engine with the working name PD-35 should already appear. It is not a fact that it will be 35 tonnes, it will probably be smaller, with a thrust of 26 tonnes to 35 tonnes. We will understand in March next year more precisely in what form the engine will be created. The engine demonstrator is planned to be produced in March 2024,” he said.
Development of the PD-35 engine began in the summer of 2016 at two enterprises: Perm-based ODK-Aviaadvigatel and Rybinsk-based ODK-Saturn. The PD-35 is expected to have 16 tonnes more thrust, unlike the previous PD-14 modification. The total investment in the engine development project amounts to 180 billion roubles.
