Canted fuel injector assembly for a turbine engine

Abstract

An assembly is provided for a gas turbine engine. This turbine engine assembly includes a combustor and a fuel injector assembly. The combustor includes a combustion chamber that extends axially along and circumferentially about an axial centerline. The fuel injector assembly is configured to direct fuel and air into the combustion chamber. The fuel injector assembly includes a fuel injector nozzle and an air swirler structure. The fuel injector nozzle projects into and is coupled with the air swirler structure. The centerline axis of at least one of the fuel injector nozzle or the air swirler structure is angularly offset from the axial centerline by an offset angle in a circumferential direction about the axial centerline.

1 . An assembly for a gas turbine engine, comprising:
 a combustor comprising a combustion chamber that extends axially along and circumferentially about an axial centerline; and   a fuel injector assembly configured to direct fuel and air into the combustion chamber, the fuel injector assembly including a fuel injector nozzle and an air swirler structure, the fuel injector nozzle projecting into and coupled with the air swirler structure, and a centerline axis of at least one of the fuel injector nozzle or the air swirler structure angularly offset from the axial centerline by an offset angle in a circumferential direction about the axial centerline;   the combustor including an inner wall, an outer wall and a bulkhead connected to and extending radially between the inner wall and the outer wall, the combustion chamber extending radially between the inner wall and the outer wall, and the combustion chamber extending axially along the axial centerline to the bulkhead; and   the centerline axis perpendicular to the bulkhead in a reference plane including the axial centerline.   
     
     
         2 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the centerline axis is angularly offset from the reference plane by the offset angle. 
     
     
         3 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein
 a reference line extends circumferentially about the axial centerline; and   the centerline axis is angularly offset from the axial centerline by the offset angle in a second reference plane tangent to the reference line.   
     
     
         4 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the offset angle is between two degrees and five degrees. 
     
     
         5 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the offset angle is between five degrees and ten degrees. 
     
     
         6 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the offset angle is between ten degrees and fifteen degrees. 
     
     
         7 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the centerline axis is further angularly offset from the axial centerline in a radial direction out from the axial centerline. 
     
     
         8 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the combustion chamber is an annular combustion chamber. 
     
     
         9 . (canceled) 
     
     
         10 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein
 the centerline axis is angularly offset from the bulkhead by a second offset angle in the circumferential direction about the axial centerline; and   the second offset angle is equal to ninety degrees minus the offset angle.   
     
     
         11 . (canceled) 
     
     
         12 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the centerline axis bisects the combustion chamber radially between the inner wall and the outer wall in the reference plane. 
     
     
         13 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein
 the fuel injector assembly further includes a nozzle guide coupling the fuel injector nozzle to the air swirler structure; and   the nozzle guide is configured to engage and move along a surface of the fuel injector nozzle.   
     
     
         14 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein
 the air swirler structure includes an inner bore and an air swirler passage;   the inner bore extends along the centerline axis through the air swirler structure;   the air swirler passage extends into the air swirler structure, towards the centerline axis, to the inner bore; and   the fuel injector nozzle project along the centerline axis into the inner bore.   
     
     
         15 . The assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the air swirler structure includes one or more radial air swirlers. 
     
     
         16 . The assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a second fuel injector assembly configured to direct additional fuel and air into the combustion chamber, the second fuel injector assembly including a second fuel injector nozzle and a second air swirler structure;   the second fuel injector nozzle projecting into and coupled with the second air swirler structure; and   a second centerline axis of at least one of the second fuel injector nozzle or the second air swirler structure angularly offset from the axial centerline by a second offset angle in the circumferential direction about the axial centerline.   
     
     
         17 . The assembly of  claim 16 , wherein the second offset angle is equal to the offset angle. 
     
     
         18 . An assembly for a gas turbine engine, comprising:
 a combustor comprising a bulkhead and a combustion chamber; and   a fuel injector assembly configured to direct fuel and air into the combustion chamber, the fuel injector assembly including a fuel injector nozzle and an air swirler structure, the fuel injector nozzle projecting into and coupled with the air swirler structure, a centerline axis of at least one of the fuel injector nozzle or the air swirler structure angularly offset from a reference plane by an offset angle, the centerline axis perpendicular to the bulkhead in the reference plane, and the reference plane parallel with and projecting radially out from an axial centerline of the combustor.   
     
     
         19 . The assembly of  claim 18 , wherein the offset angle is greater than zero degrees and less than twenty degrees. 
     
     
         20 . An assembly for a gas turbine engine, comprising:
 an annular combustor comprising an annular bulkhead and an annular combustion chamber; and   a fuel injector assembly projecting into an aperture in the annular bulkhead, the fuel injector assembly configured to direct fuel and air into the annular combustion chamber, the fuel injector assembly including a fuel injector nozzle and an air swirler structure, the fuel injector nozzle projecting into and coupled with the air swirler structure, the air swirling structure including a swirler guide wall projecting through the aperture in the annular bulkhead, a centerline axis of at least one of the fuel injector nozzle or the air swirler structure angularly offset from the annular bulkhead by an offset angle in a reference plane, and the reference plane tangent to a circular reference line that extends circumferentially about an axial centerline of the combustor.