Rolls-Royce completes HiSTED YJ102R engine test

By Rob Coppinger

Rolls-Royce has completed an initial test of its YJ102R engine for the US military's High Speed Turbine Engine Demonstration (HiSTED) programme.

HiSTED is a joint Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) initiative to design, fabricate and ground test a "high Mach expendable turbine". The HiSTED engine is a high-temperature, moderate-pressure-ratio, single-spool, non-afterburning turbojet. It incorporates Rolls-Royce's "Lamilloy technology", which is designed to enable engines to run at higher temperatures allowing greater fuel economy.

Additional engine testing is scheduled to demonstrate its ability to achieve transonic acceleration and Mach 3-plus cruise speed. The engine could be used to propel the US Office of Naval Research's Revolutionary Approach to Time-critical Long Range Strike vehicle, a supersonic, science and technology missile flight demonstrator.

"The HiSTED programme is a classified US programme and we are unable to share any additional information," R-R told Flight International. The YJ102R engine test was carried out at its Indianapolis, Indiana facility by the Rolls-Royce North American Technologies research unit, also known as LibertyWorks.

Other USAF programmes R-R is involved in include Highly Efficient Embedded Turbine Engine (HEETE) and Adaptive Versatile Engine Technology (Advent). In September 2007 R-R was awarded $19.6 million for HEETE, which is part of the USAF's Versatile Affordable Advanced Turbine Engines programme. And in August of that year the company was awarded a $296 million USAF contract for Advent. Advent will focus on the development of variable cycle features that will enable a high-thrust capability and a separate loiter operation with reduced fuel consumption.

© Reed Business Information 2009