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The Shenyang WS-10 (Chinese: 涡扇-10; pinyin: woshan-10; lit. 'turbofan-10'), codename Taihang, is a turbofan engine designed and built by the People's Republic of China.

The WS-10A reportedly powers the J-11B and the J-16. Unconfirmed reports claim the WS-10A powers some J-10Bs. Unconfirmed reports also claim an improved WS-10A powers the J-11D.

Chinese media claimed 266 engines were manufactured from 2010 to 2012 for the J-11 program. Unofficial estimates placed production at more than 300 units by May 2015.

Description

The WS-10A is advertised as 120–140 kilonewtons (27,000–31,000 lb_f) thrust engine. It has Full Authority Digital Engine Control.

Development

The WS-10 was derived from the WS-6 turbofan, which was abandoned at the start of the 1980s. The WS-10 project was reportedly started by Deng Xiaoping in 1986 to produce an engine comparable to the AL-31. The work was given to the Shenyang Aeroengine Research Institute (606 Institute) of Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The WS-10 may have been based on the core of the CFM-56II (itself based on the General Electric F101); China purchased two CFM-56IIs in the 1980s. China may have spent nearly 20 years developing source code, after being unable to purchase code from Salyut.

The WS-10A, targeted for 130 kilonewtons (29,000 lb_f) of thrust, was already in development in 2002. An early version was flown on an J-8II in 2002. In 2004, Russian sources familiar with project reported problems meeting the thrust target; in 2005, they reported problems reducing the weight of the primary and secondary compressors, in addition to problems meeting thrust requirements. Engine testing on the J-11 had already started by 2004, and testing using one engine on the J-11 may have occurred as early as 2002.

A full-scale WS-10A engine was first seen at the 2008 China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition.

In 2009, Western media reported that the WS-10A approached the performance of the Saturn AL-31, but took much longer than the AL-31 to develop thrust. Furthermore, reportedly the engine only generated 110–125 kilonewtons (25,000–28,000 lb_f) of thrust. In April 2009, Lin Zuoming, head of AVIC, reported that the engine's quality was unsatisfactory. In 2010, it was reported that reliability was also poor; the WS-10A lasted only 30 hours, while the AL-31 needed refurbishing after 400 hours. The quality problems encountered with the WS-10A reflected the state of the Chinese aerospace industry; AVIC initiated a general effort to improve quality control throughout its production chain in 2011.

The WS-10A reportedly matured enough after 2009 to power the J-11B Block 02 aircraft. A WS-10A-powered J-10B was seen in July 2011, but the engine did not power the initial J-10B production batch, possibly because of production or performance issues.

Unconfirmed reports claimed the first flight of the J-11D was powered by a new WS-10 variant; the variant reportedly had improved reliability, and a thrust of more than 137 kilonewtons (31,000 lb_f). The flight was revealed in early May 2015.

WS-20

The WS-20 is a high-bypass engine reportedly producing 14 tons of thrust. It is believed to be based on the core of the WS-10A.

The WS-20 was first seen in January 2014 while being tested on an Il-76, and is believed to be intended for the Y-20 strategic airlifter.

Variants

• WS-10
• WS-10A – improved variant; advertised to have 120–140 kilonewtons (27,000–31,000 lb_f) of thrust
• WS-10G – thust vectoring variant for the J-20 fighter; 152–155 kilonewtons (34,000–35,000 lb_f) of thrust
• WS-20 – high-bypass derivative for the Y-20 transport; 138 kilonewtons (31,000 lb_f) of thrust

Specifications (WS-10A)

General characteristics

• Type: Afterburning turbofan
• Length:
• Diameter:
• Dry weight:

Components

• Compressor:

Performance

• Maximum thrust: 120–140 kilonewtons (27,000–31,000 lb_f)
• Thrust-to-weight ratio: 7.5

See also

Comparable engines

• Saturn AL-31
• Pratt & Whitney F100
• General Electric F110

Related development

• CFM International CFM56
• General Electric F101
• General Electric F110

Related lists

• List of Chinese aircraft engines
• WS-15

References

1. ^ Fisher, Richard (27 May 2015). "ANALYSIS: Can China break the military aircraft engine bottleneck?". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 5 August 2015.
2. Fisher, Richard D. Jr. (26 August 2014). "Chinese J-11BH 'aggressive' with USN P-8A, says DoD". janes.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
3. Weening, Alexander; Hardy, James (9 October 2014). "New pictures of J-10B revealed". janes.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
4. ^ Fisher, Richard D. Jr. (5 May 2015). "Images show J-11D variant with possible new radar". janes.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015. Cite error: The named reference "janes_2015-05-05" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
5. "美称中国近三年内共生产约266台太行发动机". mil.news.sina.com.cn (in Chinese). 20 December 2012. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
6. ^ Fisher, Richard, Jr. (30 December 2009). "October Surprises In Chinese Aerospace". International Assessment and Strategy Center. Retrieved 25 May 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
7. "LM WS10A Tai Hang (China), Aero-engines - Turbofan". janes.com. 26 January 2010. Archived from the original on 18 February 2010. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
8. "Liming WS10A Taihang Engine". globalsecurity.org. 28 September 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
9. ^ Fisher, Richard D., Jr. (7 October 2003). "New Developments In Russia-China Military Relations: A Report On The August 19-23 2003 Moscow Aerospace Salon (MAKS)". uscc.gov. United States-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Archived from the original on 12 January 2005. Retrieved 25 May 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
10. ^ Fisher, Richard, Jr. (13 December 2004). "Report on the 5th Airshow China: Zhuhai, PRC, November 1-7, 2004". International Assessment and Strategy Center. Retrieved 25 May 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
11. Fisher, Richard, Jr. (12 September 2005). "Chinese Dimensions of the 2005 Moscow Aerospace Show". United States: International Assessment and Strategy Center. Retrieved 25 May 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
12. Saunders et. al: p.37
13. Saunders et. al: p.44
14. Pomfret, John. "Military strength is eluding China." Washington Post, 25 December 2010.
15. Collins, Gabe; Erickson, Andrew (27 June 2011). "Jet Engine Development in China: Indigenous high-performance turbofans are a final step toward fully independent fighter production". chinasignpost.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
16. Rupprecht, Andreas (December 2011). "China's 'Flanker' gains momentum. Shenyang J-11 update". Combat Aircraft Monthly. 12 (12): 40–42.
17. ^ Fisher, Richard D. Jr. (4 September 2014). "China's Y-20 'enters second phase of testing'". janes.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
18. Lin, Jeffrey; Singer, P.W. (20 February 2015). "China's most powerful aircraft engine ever takes to the sky: Presenting the WS-20". popsci.com. Retrieved 25 May 2015.
19. Saunders et. al: p.45

Bibliography

• Saunders, Phillip C.; Wiseman, Joshua K. (December 2011). "Buy, Build, or Steal: China's Quest for Advanced Military Aviation Technologies" (PDF). Chinese Strategic Perspectives (4). National Defense University. Retrieved 25 May 2015.

• Use dmy dates from February 2013
• Low-bypass turbofan engines
• Turbofan engines 1990–1999