Rolls-Royce Trent 800

Trent 800
Rolls-Royce Trent 800 on a British Airways 777
Type Turbofan
National origin United Kingdom
Manufacturer Rolls-Royce plc
First run September 1993
Major applications Boeing 777
Produced 1996-present
Developed from Rolls-Royce RB211

The Rolls-Royce Trent 800 is a high-bypass turbofan aircraft engine, developed from the RB211 and is one of the family of Trent engines. It was designed to be used on the Boeing 777.

Design and development

In the late 1980s, Boeing was investigating an enlarged development of its 767 model dubbed the 767X, for which Rolls-Royce proposed the Trent 760. By 1990 Boeing abandoned its planned 767X and instead decided to launch a new, larger aircraft family designated 777 with a thrust requirement of 80,000 lbf (360 kN) or more. The Trent 700's 2.47 m (97 in) diameter fan would not be big enough to meet this requirement, so Rolls proposed a new version with a 2.80 m (110 in) fan diameter, designated as the Trent 800. Rolls brought in Kawasaki Heavy Industries and Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries as risk and revenue sharing partners who between them took an 11 per cent stake in the Trent 700 and 800 programmes.[1]

Testing of the Trent 800 began in September 1993, and certification was achieved in January 1995.[2] The first Boeing 777 with Trent 800 engines flew in May 1995, and entered service with Thai Airways International on 31 March 1996.[3] 180 minutes ETOPS approval was granted by the FAA on 10 October 1996.[4]

A Rolls Royce Trent 884 mounted on an Singapore Airlines 777-200

Initially Rolls-Royce had difficulty selling their engine: British Airways, traditionally a Rolls-Royce customer, submitted a large order for General Electric's competing GE90 engine. The breakthrough came when the company won orders from Singapore Airlines, a staunch Pratt & Whitney customer, for its 34 Boeing 777s; this was soon followed by large North American orders from American Airlines and Delta Air Lines for their 777 fleets. British Airways announced in September 1998 that it was returning to Rolls-Royce for its second batch of 777s, and did so again in April 2007. The Trent 800 has a 41% share of the engine market on the 777 variants for which it is available. Rolls-Royce Trent 800s are now commonly used on the Boeing 777 series. Many major airlines such as Air New Zealand, British Airways, American Airlines, and Kenya Airways now operate Boeing 777s with Trent 800s on a regular schedule.[5]

As of 2014 Rolls-Royce is offering an upgraded version of the engine, known as the Trent 800EP. It incorporates technology from Trent 1000 and Trent XWB engines including elliptical leading edges on intermediate- and high-pressure compressor blades. Rolls-Royce claims that it provides a 0.7% fuel-burn benefit.[6]

Accidents and incidents

On 17 January 2008, British Airways Flight 38, flying from Beijing to London, crash-landed at Heathrow after both Trent 800 engines lost power during the aircraft's final approach, with no fatalities. The subsequent investigation found that the cause was ice released from the fuel system which accumulated on the fuel-oil heat exchanger leading to a restriction of fuel flow to the engines.[7] Rolls-Royce has developed a modification to prevent the problem recurring.[8]

Applications

The Trent 800 family powers the Boeing 777. It was available on the 777-200 and 777-300 variants and is currently available on the long-range 777-200ER, with thrust ratings spanning 75,000 to 93,400 lbf (334 to 415 kN). Rolls-Royce claims that the engine is the lightest in its class, citing a 3.6-tonne weight saving over General Electric and Pratt & Whitney-powered versions.

However, the -200 and -300 variants were discontinued by 2006, leaving the -200ER as the only one available with the Trent 800. The others currently in production (-200LR, -300ER, Freighter, -8, and -9) are powered exclusively by General Electric's GE90 and GE9X engines.

Specifications (Trent 800)

General characteristics

  • Type: Three-shaft high bypass ratio (6.2–5.7) turbofan engine
  • Length: 4.37 m (172 in)
  • Diameter: 2.79 m (110 in)
  • Dry weight: 7,484 kg (16,500 pounds)

Components

  • Compressor: Eight-stage IP compressor, six-stage HP compressor
  • Combustors: Single annular combustor with 24 fuel injectors
  • Turbine: Single-stage HP turbine, single-stage IP turbine, five-stage LP turbine

Performance

See also

Related development

Comparable engines

Related lists

References

Notes

  1. ↑ "Powerful partner in Japan". Archived from the original on 20 May 2007. Retrieved 2 February 2007.
  2. ↑ "Aero-Engines – Rolls-Royce Trent". Jane's. 13 February 2001. Archived from the original on 2007-11-10. Retrieved 2007-07-26.
  3. ↑ Boeing 777
  4. ↑ "Chronology Of The Boeing 777 Program". Archived from the original on 2007-06-09. Retrieved 2007-07-26.
  5. ↑ "Rolls-Royce Trent 800". Retrieved 2009-02-15.
  6. ↑ Thierry Dubois (15 July 2014). "Rolls-Royce Upgrades In-service Trent Engines". AINonline. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  7. ↑ "Rolls-Royce to modify Trent as tests replicate BA 777 icing". Flight International. 12 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
  8. ↑ "Rolls-Royce: Trent 800 fix only part of broader icing issue". Flight International. 12 March 2009. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
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