Lubrication Systems

Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Wet Sump System
3. Dry Sump
4. Oil Tanks
5. Oil Pumps
6. Oil Filters
7. Bearing Chamber (may be deleted)
8. Oil System Valves
9. Other Oil Components
10. Spectrometric Oil Analysis Program (SOAP)
11. Trouble Shooting & Maintenance
1- Introduction
The primary function of a lubrication
system is to provide oil to the various parts
of the engine which are subject to friction
loads from engine rotation and heat loads
from the gas path.
The lubrication system can be divided into
two sections:
The Pressure side
The Scavenge side.

There are two basic classifications of gas
turbine lubrication systems:

Wet Sump
Dry Sump
2-Wet Sump System

A wet sump lubrication system was used on early gas
turbine engines and is now more often found on smaller
engines or APU's.

A wet sump system is a lubrication system where the oil
supply is carried within the engine itself or accessory
gearbox.
Pressurized oil is used to lubricate the main engine
bearings but the accessory gearbox is splash lubricated
by oil carried in the gearbox housing that also acts as a
oil reservoir


3-Dry Sump

A dry sump lubrication system carries its
oil supply in a tank separate from the
engine.
This now the most common type of
lubrication system in modern gas turbine
engines.

Dry sump cont
Dry sump lubrication systems are divided
into two categories;
hot-tank system and


the cold-tank systems.


-Hot-Tank Lubrication System
Has the oil cooler placed in the pressure
side of the system, and the oil is returned
'hot' to the oil tank.
An advantage of this type of system is that
a maximum heat exchange occurs
because the oil has less entrained air in
the pressure side of the system and this
allows a smaller oil-cooler to be used.

Cold-Tank Lubrication System

A cold tank system is essentially the same
as the hot-tank system except that the oil
cooler is located in the scavenge side of
the lubrication system and the oil is cooled
before being returned to the oil tank.
In engines that have higher oil
temperatures this is an advantage, as high
oil temperatures affect oil service life.

5-Oil Tanks
A gas turbine engine oil reservoir is
usually mounted on the engine or nearby
airframe.
They are usually constructed of aluminum
or stainless steel and are designed to
provide a constant supply of oil to the
lubrication system.

Oil tanks cont
Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR's) require that the
tanks have an oil tight filler cap and an expansion space
of 10%.
The expansion space is to make allowance for an
increase in oil volume due to thermal expansion and
entrapped air when the engine is operating.

Most tanks are pressurized to approximately 4 psi, this
has two purposes:

Positive flow of oil
Suppresses foaming and pump cavitations.


Oil tanks cont
The tanks can contain:

A venting system
Filler cap and strainer
De-aerator to remove air
Oil pick up
Dip stick
Sight gauge
Oil quantity transmitter

Oil Pumps
Vane Pump

Vane pumps are a constant displacement
pump more often found in the scavenge
side of the lubrication system as they are
more tolerant of debris and have a high
volume and relatively low pressure.



Gerotor Pump

Gerotor pumps are a constant
displacement pump and are used in both
the pressure side and the scavenge side
of the engine.



Oil pumps cont
Gear Pump

Gear pumps are the most commonly used
constant displacement pump and can be
found in the either the scavenge side or
the pressure side.



6- Oil Filters
It is extremely important that the oil used in a gas turbine
engine is free from foreign particles as these particles
can cause severe bearing damage.
To keep the oil clean filters are used as the oil leaves the
pressure pump and again in what are called the 'last
chance' filters just before the oil is sprayed from the oil
jet nozzle.

There are three common types of filter used in gas
turbine engines:


Woven Wire Mesh Filter
Easy to clean, but can generally only
remove particles larger than 40 microns.


Disk-type / Wafer Type Filter
Made up of a series of screen type filters
with spacers in between each screen to
form a chamber which is ported to the
central collection tube.
This type of filter is easily cleaned and
provides better filtration than a wire mesh
filter.


Pleated Fiber Filter
Can remove particles as small as 15
microns. Can be cleanable or disposable
Bearing Chambers

8-Oil System Valves
Relief Valve

Relief valves are designed to maintain a constant
pressure in the lubrication system and prevent over
pressurization and damage.
The relief valves are situated on the discharge side of
the pump, when the oil pressure exceeds the valve
setting the valve opens and ports oil to the inlet side of
the pump.
Some valve pressure settings can be adjusted by a
screw.


Bypass valves
normally found in oil system components
and are designed to allow oil to bypass a
component should the component fail and
oil is prevented flowing through it.
Check Valve
A one-way valve that ensures that oil flows
in one direction only
9-Other Oil Components
Chip Detectors

Magnetic chip detectors are installed in
scavenge side of the lubrication system
used to determine the level of metallic wear
occurring in the engine.
Some chip detectors are easily removed for
visual inspections while other may include an
electrical circuit that illuminates a warning light in
the flight deck when enough metal chips have
accumulated to close the gap in the detector.

Heat exchanger

The oil in a gas turbine engine gathers a
great deal of heat from the main bearings
and this heat maybe transferred to either
fuel or air.
Most modern gas turbine engines transfer
the heat to the fuel to prevent the
formation of ice crystals.
Air-Oil Separator
The oil that is picked up by the scavenge pump
contains a lot of air.
Oil tanks contain dwell chambers which allow
the air to separate and the air-free oil to enter
the tank.
Some engines also utilize a gear driven
centrifugal air-oil separator.
As oil laden air enters the rotating slinger
chamber, centrifugal action throws the oil
outwards to collect on the walls and drain down
into the tank

Breather system
The breather system is used to keep the
air in the oil tank at the same pressure as
the air in the bearing housing.
This ensures that there is a positive flow of
oil to the inlet of the main pump and
prevents cavitations.

After lubricating the bearing the oil drains down into the sump and is
collected by the scavenge pump and returned to the oil tank.
The scavenge pump not only collects all the oil, but also collects
some air as well.
This air is transferred to the tank and is separated from the oil by the
deaerator and is used to pressurize the tank.
The bearing chamber is vented to the oil tank by the vent line and a
check valve.

The oil tank is also vented to ambient air through the pressurizing
valve which maintains the tank at approximately 3-4 psi.

If the scavenge pump lowers the pressure in the bearing chamber,
the vacuum valve opens and allows air to enter the chamber

10-Spectrometric Oil Analysis
Program (SOAP)
Oil sampling should be done at regular
intervals just after an engine has been run.
The contaminants in the oil provide an
indication of engine wear.
Oil samples taken are passed through a
spectrometer which precisely burns the oil
and measures the wavelength of the
emitted light to determine the type and
quantity of contaminates in the oil.
The spectrometer can detect contaminants
at 2-3 parts per million of oil

The contents of the filters can be
examined for evidence of metal particles,
but by the time particles large enough to
be visible are discovered serious engine
damage has already occurred