Fundamentals of Jet Propulsion with Power Generation Applications

As discussed in Chapters 1–4, the purpose of the turbine is to extract energy from the fluid to drive the compressive devices. The actual operation of the turbine is in some respects similar to, but opposite that, of the compressor. That is, energy is extracted from the fluid and the pressure and temperature drop through the turbine. Typically, 70–80 percent of the enthalpy increase from the burner is used by the turbine to drive the compressor. For jet propulsion the remainder is used to generate thrust in the nozzle, while for a power generation unit the remainder is used to generate auxiliary power.