Hi gums,
Thanks for the ADVENT video, it is indeed rather interesting. IMO, It is the wave of the future for military combat aircraft engines.
GE Aviation completed testing its engine core for the ADaptive Versatile ENgine Technology (ADVENT) program with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory on Feb. 6, achieving the highest combination of compressor and turbine temperatures ever recorded in aviation history.
The accomplishment is a result of GE's most advanced core propulsion technologies including lightweight, heat-resistant ceramic matrix composite (CMC) materials. These core technologies, along with an adaptive low pressure spool, result in a 25 percent improvement in fuel efficiency, a 30 percent increase in operating range and a five-to-10 percent improvement in thrust compared to today's fixed-cycle engines.
I do want to point out this technology is not new and has been in the works for a long time. Following initial studies by Gerhard Neumann in the 1960s, GE's YJ101 was the first full engine to demonstrate variable cycle capabilities in 1976 (see report below). The YJ101 was the forerunner of the F404 engine for the Navy's F-18 fighter.
Access forbidden!
The next engine to use the variable technology was the GE YF120 engine under a demonstration contract for the Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF). An engine is on display at the USAF Museum and was one of two YF120 engines installed on the YF-23, Northrop-McDonnell Douglas' entry to what is the F-22 Raptor fighter. The contest was lost to Lockheed YF-22 and P&W's F119 engine.
The technology then carried over to the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)(F-35) program where a collaboration between GE Aircraft Engines, Allison Advanced Development Company, and Rolls-Royce. Allison provided components and some technology for the engine core and low pressure turbine; Rolls-Royce designed and manufactured the fan module, but the overall design was based on the variable cycle YF-120 engine. Again though, P&W was awarded the engine contract using the F119 engine.