Rolls

Rolls-Royce has partnered with Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indianapolis, US, to combine resources to form a jet-engine research and development programme to create next-generation aircraft propulsion systems.

The new $33m programme will support research and technology development in thermal management for advanced propulsion systems, compressor and turbine technology, and analytical methods.

Purdue University president Mitch Daniels said: "There is no more fitting or prestigious first step for the university’s aerospace district, which we imagine is a big piece of Purdue’s future."

Rolls-Royce will also assign Purdue as a University Technology Partnership (UTP), which will initially include two research centres in the fields of advanced thermal management systems and advanced compressor systems, expanding the existing University Technology Center (UTC) designation.

Established in 2003, the Rolls-Royce UTC at Purdue studies high-Mach propulsion and now the programme has shifted its focus on systems for advanced thermal management.

Rolls-Royce Defense Aerospace North America president Phil Burkholder said: "Research and development in jet engines is an important objective for Rolls-Royce as we strive to create jet engines that are more energy-efficient and can perform even more effectively.

"There is no more fitting or prestigious first step for the university’s aerospace district, which we imagine is a big piece of Purdue’s future."

"Purdue has always been a great partner with Rolls-Royce and I am confident that our collaborative research will result in strong long-term advances in jet engine development."

Last year, US-based philanthropic foundation Lilly Endowment provided $5m to Purdue University to expand the Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories, as part of a $40m grant to support five transformational projects in the colleges of engineering and technology, as well as Purdue Libraries.

Purdue University chief corporate and global partnerships officer Dan Hirleman said: "The added signature initiative to advance aerothermal processes in compressors will make Purdue the first university outside of Europe to have two such research centers.

"The investment by Rolls-Royce will further support Purdue’s Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories, the nation’s largest university-based propulsion laboratory, which has a storied history of performing research for Nasa, the US Department of Defense and other federal agencies."

Last year, Rolls-Royce announced its move into a research and technology laboratory in the 980 acre Purdue Research Park Aerospace District, which is owned and managed by the Purdue Research Foundation.


Image: Rolls-Royce and Purdue University representatives sign a new research agreement. Photo: courtesy of Rolls-Royce.