Snecma Silvercrest
| Silvercrest | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| The engine on display at Paris Air Show 2013 | |
| Type | Turbofan |
| National origin | France |
| Manufacturer | Snecma |
| First run | September 2012 |
| Major applications |
Cessna Citation Hemisphere Dassault Falcon 5X |
| Number built | 7 (as of Summer 2014) |
| Program cost | US$ 500-600 million (2008 information) |
The Snecma Silvercrest is a French turbofan currently under development which will be manufactured by Snecma.
Announced at the 2006 NBAA convention, the engine was originally designed as an 8,500- to 10,500-pound thrust turbofan to power super mid-size to large cabin business jets or 40 to 60-seat regional jets with a MTOW between 45,000 and 60,000 lb. Lately, thrust range has been quoted to 10,000 to 12,000 pounds.
The two-shaft engine architecture includes a 42.5-inch (1.08 m) fan with solid wide-chord swept blades, followed by 4 boost stages, all driven by a 4-stage low pressure turbine. The HP spool has 4 axial compressor stages and 1 centrifugal stage, driven by a single-stage turbine. An axi-centrifugal compressor is unusual for an engine in this 10,000-to-12,000-pounds-thrust range.
Turbomeca, which like Snecma is a part of the SAFRAN Group, participates in the design of the centrifugal compressor stage.
Early design featured a smaller 40-inch fan, no booster, one more high-pressure compressor stage, one low-pressure turbine stage less and a lower 4.5 bypass ratio. At an early stage of the project, the overall pressure ratio was 27:1 with a core pressure ratio of "over 17".
The high pressure spool and combustor have been run in a US$120 million core-demonstrator called SM-X, reaching the take-off speed of 20,300rpm. While a full engine demonstrator was due to run towards the end of 2008, the FETT (First Engine To Test) started ground-based testing in September 2012. After a 6+ month delay, the in-flight tests started mid-2014 on a Grumman Gulfstream II and should take place in Istres.
Engine certification, originally pencilled in for the end of 2010 or early 2011, has been re-scheduled for late in 2016. Availability was planned towards 2012.
Data from Snecma.
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