US3271947A - Continuous pressure jet propulsion engine - Google Patents

Description

Sept. 13, 1966 M. KEMENCZKY CONTINUOUS PRESSURE JET PROPULSION ENGINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 12 19 4 Sept. 13, 1966 M. KEMENCZKY CONTINUOUS PRESSURE JET PROPULSION ENGINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 12, 1964 United States Patet 3,271,947 CONTINUOUS PRESSURE JET PRQPULSIDN ENGINE Miirlos Kerneuczky, Point Pleasant, N..l., assignor to Kernenczky Establishment, Vaduz, Liechtenstein, a corporation Filed May 12, 1964, Ser. No. 366,793 6 Claims. (Cl. 60-3545) The present invention relates to a jet propulsion engine for watercraft, and it is the primary object of the invention to provide a continuous pressure jet propulsion engine which is designed according to entirely new principles.

The engine according to the invention is a jet propulsion engine of the general type in which charges consisting of a mixture of air and an easily combustible fuel are drawn into a combustion chamber and are then ignited therein in successive explosions, and in which the combustion gases are employed to act upon a column of fluid within a thrust tube in a manner similar to a piston, whereby the fluid is ejected from the thrust tube and to produce a jet reaction. The jet reaction can then be used to pump the fluid or, in the case wherein the engine is attached to a watercraft, to propel the watercraft through the Water.

The jet propulsion engines of this type which are presently known only develop a relatively low output because the compression attained by them is insufiicient, and the starting of the engine and the ejection of the water from the thrust tube causes resistances of such a magnitude as to render the engines rather ineflicient.

In one of these prior jet propulsion engines as disclosed, for example, in the U.S. Patents Nos. 2,644,297 and 2,714,800, the combustion chamber extends from the ignition point directly to the opening into the thrust tube which is controlled by a flap valve, and the thrust tube is provided at its front end with a flap valve assembly which operates as a check valve. This valve assembly gives the thrust tube an extremely great front resistance since it consists of a large number of long lamellar blades which cause a considerable flow resistance along their entire length, and the structure of this assembly is also not adapted to comply with the requirements of operation of such a pulsating drive since these valve blades cannot open and close as radily as necessary.

Another known type of jet propulsion engine for watercraft as disclosed, for example, in the French Patent No. 1,043,920, requires a separate compressor and is already for this reason unsuitable to form a light propulsion unit which may be used independently of any additional driving means. The requirement of a jet propulsion engine for boats and similar watercraft of being easily manipulatable and very economic in operation is also not fulfilled by a type of engine as disclosed, for example, in the US. Patent No. 2,412,825, in which the discharge part of the thrust tube operates according to the Venturi principle, while the inlet side of the thrust tube is not provided with any valve. Jet propulsion engines of this type, which also require separate driving means for starting the engine, operate very inefliciently. Because of the almost complete absence of a compression within the combustion chamber, this lack of elficiency also applies to another type of jet propulsion engine for watercraft as disclosed, for example, in the German Patent No. 841,552, in which the upper part of a tubular work chamber forms a combustion chamber, while the lower part thereof which forms a direct continuation of the upper part is provided with a water inlet opening which is controlled by a flap valve and an opening at its rear end for ejecting the water. This type of water inlet will only permit a very slow succession of explosions, and has been found entirely inadequate in actual practice. Similar disadvantages are inherent in a pump of the type as disclosed, for example, in the German Patent No. 878,599, which operates according to the jet propulsion principle and may also be used for propelling ships. In this apparatus, the combustion chamber which is provided with a baifle plate which covers only a part of this chamber terminates directly without any intermediate check valve into a thrust tube, the front end of which is provided with a flap valve for controlling the water inlet, and the rear end of which is likewise provided with a valve which is intended to close the discharge opening to prevent any water from entering in the opposite direction. This rear valve, however, destroys almost the entire energy which is developed by the engine. Consequently, the efliciency of this pump, particularly when it is used as a propulsion unit for a boat, is very poor.

In accordance with the invention set forth in my Patent 3,060,682, many of the deficiencies of the known jet propulsion engines for watercraft and especially small boats are overcome by providing such an engine with a combustion chamber which is divided into at least two compartments which are separated from each other by check valves and the last compartment of which extends into the thrust tube, and by designing the valve which controls the water inlet opening of the thrust tube in the form of a low-inertia, quickly reacting check valve which operates in a manner similar to a turbine wheel and is provided with closing flaps in the form of blades which are pivotable about radial axes and are mounted on a freely rotatable wheel hub which is driven by the flow of water passing through this valve.

A jet propulsion engine which is designed in this manner will attain a high output even though it is not provided with a special compressor. However, such engines are still not completely satisfactory, especially when the horsepower requirements for such an engine are high.

The present invention is an improvement over all of the above described jet engines for watercraft.

In accordance with the present invention, the deficiencies of all of the above-described jet propulsion engines for watercraft are overcome by providing a jet engine which is constructed employing a principle which is completely different from that which is employed in jet engines of this type.

The jet engine of the present invention is simpler to construct than any such engine heretofore known and involves a minimum of moving parts. Furthermore, the engine can be made primarily of inexpensive materials, if desired, and can be constructed to generate power varying from a few horsepower, for a very small and lightweight engine, to power in the order of 20,000 to 30,000 horsepower or more. In addition, the present engines are so constructed that they are much more eflicient than engines which have been heretofore suggested.

These and still further objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description thereof, particularly when the same is read with reference to the ac companying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a diagrammatic longitudinal partially cut away section of the jet propulsion engine of the present invention. The jet propulsion engine is shown in FIG. 1 with the upper portion completely sectioned along a center line and with the lower portion having jacket 1 removed from the side being viewed to reveal the inner components.

FIG. 2 shows a sectional view of the jet propulsion engine of FIG. 1, taken along the line 2-2.

FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of the jet propulsion engine of FIG. 1, taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 shows a sectional view of the forward portion of the jet propulsion engine of FIG. 1, taken along the line 44.

FIG. 5 shows a partial sectional view of the jet propulsion engine of FIG. 1, taken along the line 5-5.

Referring to FIGURES 1 to 5 of the drawings, which illustrate the preferred embodiment of the invention diagrammatically, the engine consists of a generally cigarshaped outer jacket 1, which in this embodiment consists of forward section 2, aft section 3, and central section These three sections may be joined together by suitable threading or may be welded or otherwise adhered to each other. Preferably, as will be discussed later in this specification, these sections are joined by a central shaft which is suitably threaded, so that they can be disassembled for cleaning and for repair, when necessary.

Aft section 3 is constructed with an extension 5 which can serve as a mounting for the engine or which can be connected to a suitable mounting for the engine. The actual mounting arrangement which may be employed is not shown in the figures. Suitable mountings may be of the type generally known for such engines, for example, mountings of the type which are illustrated with regard to my earlier filed application Seriai No. 40,452, which issued as United States Patent 3,060,682 on October 30, 1962.

Mounting 5 contains a passageway through which air may pass. The passageway 6 contains Within it fuel line 7 and ignition line 8.

Forward section 2 has a generally cylindrical shape, the rear or aft portion of which engages central section 4, which also has a generally cylindrical shape. The forward portion of forward section 2 forms three streamlined shape wings or spiders 9 which terminate in generally conic shaped nose 10. The circular front edge 2a of forward section 2 and wings 9, together with nose 10, define three openings 11 through which water can pass. As shown, wings 9 are disposed at an angle of 120 to each other, but may be disposed at a different angle or may be employed in greater or fewer number, so long as they rigidly support nose it) within forward section 2. Nose has an opening 12 which is adapted to hold shaft 13. As shown, shaft 13 and opening 12 are threaded so that shaft 13 can be screwed into or otherwise be held by opening 12 in such a manner that it is concentrically mounted within forward section 2.

Aft section 3 has mounted on it, at its inner mounting 14, shaft supporting unit which is in the form of a hollow truncated cone. Shaft supporting unit 15 can be mounted on inner mounting 14 by means of suitable threading or by Welding or adhesives or, as is preferred, can be held in place by means of central shaft 13 and conic nut 16. Conic nut 16 is mounted on shaft supporting unit 15 by means of suitable threading or, less desirably, by welding or an adhesive. Conic nut 16 contains opening 17 which is adapted to hold the aft portion of shaft 13. The inner mounting 14, shaft supporting unit 15 and conic nut 16 are so positioned within aft section 3 and with relationship to central section 4 and forward section 2 that shaft 13 is mounted concentrically within forward section 2, central section 4 and aft section 3.

Central section 4 has mounted on its inner walls a plurality of inwardly directed dividing walls 18 which form a plurality of work chambers 2ft. Work chambers 20 are mounted in such a manner that their front openings 19 form a radial array about the periphery of central section 4, as can best be seen from FIG. 2, and their dividing walls 18 extend at an angle from the central axis of the engine, i.e. at an angle from the axis of shaft 13, which can best be seen from the lower half of FIG. 1. Work chambers 26 terminate in rear openings 21.

Shaft supporting unit 15 is held in place within aft section 3 by means of two stream-lined shaped solid aft ing 24. Fuel line 7 and ignition line 8 pass from passage 7 way 6 through opening 24 to passageway 25.

Rotating unit 50 consists of centrifugal pump 51 hav ing blades 52, air centrifugal pump 53 having blades 54, partially closed areas 55 which are defined by walls 56 and 57; turbine wheel 58 having blades 59; and a generally cylindrical core member fit) havinginner wall 61 which defines a generally cylindrical conduit 87 which is coaxial with shaft 13.

Rotating unit 50 is rotatably mounted, by means of ball bearings 62 and bearing surfaces 63, on shaft 13. Centrifugal pump 51, air centrifugal pump 53 and walls 56 and 57, and turbine wheel 58 are integral with core member db and capable of rotation therewith.

Shaft 13 contains rigidly attached thereto baffles 55. Dividing wall 65 is rigidly attached to the outer wall 67 of centrifugal pump 51 and contains peripheral openings 68 which connect the chamber occupied by the air centrifugal pump 53 with the inner chamber 69 of centrifugal pump 51. Wall 67 of centrifugal pump 51 is provided with slots 'ltl which connect inner chamber 69 of centrifugal pump 51 with chamber 71 which is formed by inner walls 72 of forward section 2 and the walls 67 of centrifugal pump 51.

Chamber 75 which is occupied by air centrifugal pump 53, may, if desired, be employed Without air centrifugal pump 53. Wall 76, which forms a side of chamber 75 and wall 77, which forms a wall of partially closed area 55, define, with a wall of core member 60 a chamber '73. Chamber 78 can be provided, if desired, with openings 79 and 80 to provide for the passage through chamber 78 of a stream of cooling air. Core member 60, wall 57 and the inner surface 81 of turbine wheel 58 define chamber 82.

Shaft 13, aft section 3 and shaft supporting unit 15 define chamber 83.

Chambers 82 and 83 have no fluids passing therethrough and may be employed, if desired, for holding starting equipment, electrical equipment and the like.

Pump 34 is mounted on wall 85, which is mounted on aft section 3. Pump 84 is actuated by gearing (not shown) which is attached to rotating unit 59.

Core member 60 contains at its aft end slots 86 which connect passageway 25 with passageway 87.

Fuel nozzles 90 which are fastened on inner wall 91 of chamber 55 are connected to fuel line 7. Spark plug 92 is mounted on wall 57 of chamber 55 and is connected to ignition line 8. The engine can thus be seen to have inlet openings 11 for the water or other fluid to be pumped or pushed therethrough. As will be de scribed in greater detail hereinafter, the water passes through openings 11, centrifugal pump 51, chamber 71, work chambers 20, turbine 58, aft chamber and out rear opening .111.

Air enters the engine through a passageway and travels through passageway 25, slots 85, passageway 87, chamber 75, where it optionally passes through air centrifugal pump 53, openings 68, past baffles 65, inner chamber 69, slots 70 and slots 9:: into centrifugal pump 51, where it mixes with the water entering openings 11. Part of the air can, if desired, pass through chamber 78 for cooling purposes. The resulting air water mixture will pass through the engine in a manner to be described later.

Fuel enters the engine through line 7 and is pumped by pump 84 through line 7 to injection nozzles 9t).

Ignition wires pass through ignition line 8 and connect with spark plug 92.

In operation as a jet motor for watercraft, the entire motor will normally lie under water and only the mounting portion of aft section 3 will extend about the surface of the water.

To start the motor, rotating unit 50 can be rotated by a hand mechanism (not illustrated) which may be a crank connected to rotating unit 50 by suitable gearing devices or by a suitable starter of the type employed for outboard motors. Such a hand rotating device will be suitable when the jet engines of the present invention are small. When the jet engines of the present invention are relatively large, for example, 100 horsepower or more, it is preferable to start the motor by means of an electric motor (not shown) which can be mounted in chamber 33 or chamber 82 and suitably geared to cause rotating unit 50 to rotate with respect to shaft 13. R0- tating unit 50 may also be caused to rotate by moving the entire motor through the water.

Once the rotating unit 50 has begun to rotate, centrifugal pump 51 pumps water, which enters through openings 11, through chamber 71. The angle of the blades of blades 52 of centrifugal pump 51 causes the incoming water to swirl spirally through chamber 71. The water mass entering the engine through opening 11 carries with it, by a Venturi effect, air from inner slots 9a of wings 9 and from slots 70 and thereby pulls the air from inner chamber 69 of centrifugal pump 51 to chamber 71.

Simultaneously with the entry of water through openings 11, air is drawn through passageway 6, passageway 25, slots 86, passageway 87, chamber 75, openings 68 and chamber 69 from which it passes through slots 70 and 9a and admixes with the water entering openings 11.

A portion of the air passing through passageway 87 passes from openings 79, chamber 75 and opening 80, whereby chamber 75 can be cooled by said air.

The air is also passed through air centrifugal pump 53 which may, if desired, be geared, by conventional means, to accelerate the passage of air through chamber 75.

The mixture of air and water which is introduced through the forward portion of chamber 71 is accelerated in a spiral direction by the rotation of the centrifugal pump 51 and the speed of this mixture is further increased, after the motor starts moving through the water. by the dynamic pressure of the water entering openings 11. It is also increased by the air which enters through slots 70 and slots 90. The fast moving body of air and water forms air-water mass 99 in chamber 71, which rapidly separates, due to centrifugal force, into a hollow cylinder of water 100 which forms an inner space or chamber 101. The inner surface of the hollow cylinder of water 100 is generally indicated by the line 102 in FIG. 1.

Hollow water cylinder 100 is formed when a sufficiently high centrifugal force is applied to the accelerating mass of water and air, such a force generally being in the order of 9 g., i.e. about 81 meters per second square, or greater. The inner space 101 which is defined by the inner walls 102 of hollow water cylinder 100 and by walls 77, 91, 57 and the outer surface 56a of channels 56, functions as and can be called a combustion chamber. It will hereinafter be referred to as a combustion chamber 101. It is to be understood that when no hollow water cylinder has been formed in chamber 71, said combustion chamber 101 does not exist.

Air which is separated from air/water mass 99 enters combustion chamber 101. Thus, hollow water cylinder 100 is substantially free of air and gases due to the centrifugal force which is applied thereto and combustion chamber 101 is substantially free of water. The nature of the centrifugal action taking place in chamber 71 is such that the air in combustion chamber 101 is under compression.

A liquid fuel, for example oil, which is under high pressure due to the action of pump 84, is injected in vaporized form through nozzles 90 into combustion chamber 101, where it mixes with the air which is separated from air/water mass 99 to form a combustible mixture. The resulting combustible mixture is ignited by spark plug 92 which is actuated by periodic spark impulses. The resulting explosion causes an increase in the gaseous volume, that is an increase in pressure, in combustion chamber 101.

The hot combustion gases in combustion chamber 101 completely fill channels 56 and leave channels 56 through openings 56b, which are defined by channels 56 and portions of Wall 57. The cross-sectional area of openings 56b corresponds to the cross-sectional area of openings 19 of work chambers 20.

During the rotation of the rotating unit 50, the solid mass of water 100 leaves chamber 71 and enters work chambers 20 through front openings 19. At any one instant when the two openings 56b are aligned with front openings 19 of two work chambers 20, the hollow cylindrical water mass 100 will enter front openings 19 of the remaining ten work chambers 20, which are not cover by openings 56a.

The two work chambers 20 which have their front openings aligned with openings 56b of channels 56 receive the hot expanded combustion gases which are traveling from combustion chamber 101 through channels 56.

Since rotating unit 50 rotates rapidly during the operation of the jet engine, channels 56 are constantly being moved with reference to the fixed work chambers 20 so that successive work chambers 20 are successively filled with the hot combustion gases passing through channels 56. The pressure of the hot combustion gases from channels 56 forces the water in work chambers 20 through said chambers and greatly increases the speed of flow of the water through work chambers 20. As soon as channels 56 have passed any particular work chamber 20, the work chamber 20 is again filled with water from the hollow cylinder of water 100 which is passing through chamber 71.

It can thus be seen that channels 56a serve as distributors of the hot combustion gases which are generated in combustion chamber 101. Channels 56a thus provide gases under high pressure to push the water through work chambers 20 and result in a progression through each of the work chambers 20 of alternating units or plugs of water and hot gases.

The spiral shape of work chambers 20 not only serve to continue the centrifugal action of the gases and water passing therethrough but also serve to effect a minimal area of contact between the adjacent faces of succeeding plugs of water and gases.

The alternating plugs of water and gas passing through work chambers 20 leave work chamber 20 through rear openings 21 and enter turbine wheel 58 having blades 59.

The alternating plugs of water and gas give up some of their energy to drive the blades 59 of turbine wheel 58. The rotation of turbine wheel 58 resulting from the driving of blades 59 is employed as power to drive rotating unit 50, of which turbine wheel 58 is an integral part. Turbine wheel 58 also serves to drive air centrifugal pump 53, when such pump is employed, either by direct driving when said air centrifugal pump 53 is an integral part of rotating unit 50 or by suitable gearing (not shown) when said air centrifugal pump 53 is geared to rotate more rapidly than rotating unit 50. Turbine wheel 58 also serves to drive fuel pump 84-.

The plugs of gas and water passing through turbine wheel 58 begin to mix in turbine wheel 58 to form a water-gas mixture which leaves turbine wheel 58 and enters aft chamber 110, which is formed by the walls of aft section 3, shaft supporting unit 15, conic nut 16, and which is penetrated by aft wings 22 and 23, said aft wings 22 and 23 serving to hold shaft supporting unit 15 in place within aft section 3.

In aft chamber 110, the gas-water mixture rapidly cools and results in a reduction in pressure and the resulting mixture, which still has a swirling motion, pushes out of rear opening 111 of aft chamber 110. The resulting force can be employed to drive a Watercraft at high speed in a silent and vibration-free manner.

The jet propulsion engine of the present invention employs only a fraction of the parts which are required for conventional propeller-type engines. In addition, the engine of the present invention can be constructed primarily of light-weight and inexpensive materials. Only the combustion chamber walls 91, 77, 57 and the channels 56 need be made of heat-resistant material, for example, heat-resistant stainless steel. All other parts of the engine are water-cooled and thereby protected from the heat of the combustion chamber, and can be made of such plastic materials as melamine and the like.

The jet propulsion engine of the present invention may be made to be extremely light in weight and can be made to give a weight per horsepower ratio which is lower than ratios which have heretofore been obtained.

Obviously, the design and construction of the jet engine of the present invention can vary considerably from that shown in the figures. For example, any number of work chambers may be employed, so long as there are a plurality of work chambers and any number of distributing channels may be employed so long as there are fewer distributing channels than Work chambers and so long as the configuration of distributing channels is such that they will be properly aligned with selected work chambers during their rotation. For example, four channels 56 could be employed spaced 90 degrees apart to operate with a total of, for example, 8 or 16 work chambers so that at any one time when the rear opening 56b of any one channel 56 is aligned with the front opening 19 of any one work chamber 20, the remainder of said channels are properly aligned with corresponding work chambers, leaving the remainder of the work chambers open for the introduction of fluid. For example, the centrifugal pump 51 could be replaced by a suitable turbine wheel having differently shaped blades. In addition, different arrangements of fuel injection and ignition may be employed in the combustion chamber and various starting mechanisms and pumps may be employed without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

Thus, although my invention has been illustrated and described with regard to the preferred embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that it is in no way limited to the details of said embodiments but is capable of numerous modifications within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A jet propulsion engine comprising a thrust tube having a fluid inlet opening and a fluid discharge opening, a plurality of work chambers arranged about the periphery of the inner surface of a central portion of said thrust tube, said work chambers having inlet openings and outlet openings, a rotating unit comprising a centrifugal pump mounted within said thrust tube at said fluid inlet opening, said centrifugal pump comprising a plurality of blades adapted to pump fluid entering said fluid in let opening into said thrust tube and to cause said fluid to rotate within said thrust tube in a generally spiral manner, at least one channel rigidly attached to said rotating unit and having an outlet opening at one end, said outlet opening being of substantially the same size as an inlet opening of any one of said work chambers, and a turbine wheel rigidly connected to said rotating unit and located downstream of said work chambers, a fuel injection means and ignition means and air inlet means mounted within said thrust tube, said centrifugal pump being adapted to direct a mixture of fluid from said fluid inlet opening and air from said air inlet means about the periphery of the inner portion of said thrust tube, whereby a hollow cylinder of water is formed therein, which cylinder of water defines an inner combustion chamber containing said fuel nozzle and said ignition means, said combustion chamber being fed by air which is removed from said fluid-air mixture by the centrifugal action exerted on said mixture, said channel being adapted to carry hot combustion gases from said combustion chamber whereby, during rotation of said channel, said work chambers are alternately fed by said fluid and by said hot combustion gases said turbine wheel receiving said fluid and said gases and said discharge opening located downstream of said turbine.

2. A jet propulsion engine comprising a thrust tube having a water inlet opening and a water discharge opening, a plurality of work chambers arranged about the periphery of the inner surface of a central portion of said thrust tube, said work chambers having inlet openings and outlet openings, a rotating unit comprising a centrifugal pump mounted within said thrust tube at said water inlet opening, said centrifugal pump comprising a plurality of blades adapted to pump water entering said water inlet opening into said thrust tube and to cause said water to rotate within said thrust tube in a generally spiral manner, at least one channel rigidly attached to said rotating unit and having an outlet opening at one end, said outlet opening being of substantially the same size as an inlet opening of any one of said work chambers, and a turbine wheel rigidly connected to said rotating unit and located dowstream of said work chambers, a fuel injection means and ignition means and air inlet means mounted within said thrust tube, said centrifugal pump being adapted to direct a mixture of water from said water inlet opening and air from said air inlet means about the periphery of the inner portion of said thrust tube, whereby a hollow cylinder of water is formed therein, which cylinder of water defines an inner combustion chamber containing said fuel nozzle and said ignition means, said combustion chamber being fed by air which is removed from said water-air mixture by the centrifugal action exerted on said mixture, said channel being adapted to carry hot combustion gases from said combustion chamber whereby, during rotation of said channel, said work chambers are alternately fed by said water and by said hot combustion gases said turbine wheel receiving said fluid and said gases and said discharge opening located downstream of said turbine.

3. The engine of claim 1 wherein said centrifugal pump is mounted concentrically within said thrust tube.

4. The engine of claim 2 wherein said centrifugal pump is mounted concentrically Within said thrust tube. 5. The engine of claim 1 wherein said rotating unit is mounted in a hollow core which provides passageway for fuel and ignition means to said combustion chamber and which provides passageway for air from said air intake means through said engine and through the interior of said centrifugal pump to mix with incoming fluid entering the forward openings of said thrust tube.

6. The engine of claim 2 wherein said rotating unit is mounted in a hollow core which provides passageway for fuel and ignition means to said combustion chamber and which provides passageway for air from said air intake means through said engine and through the interior of said centrifugal pump to mix with incoming water entering the forward openings of said thrust tube.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,117,351 11/1914 Edlin 60--35.6 2,461,186 2/1949 Seippel 60-39.45 X 3,046,732 7/1962 Foa 6039.45 X 3,060,682 10/1962 Kemenczky 6035.6

MARK NEWMAN, Primary Examiner.

C. R. CROYLE, Assistant Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. A JET PROPULSION ENGINE COMPRISING A THRUST TUBE HAVING A FLUID INLET OPENING AND A FLUID DISCHARGE OPENING, A PLURALITY OF WORK CHAMBERS ARRANGED ABOUT THE PERIPHERY OF THE INNER SURFACE OF A CENTRAL PORTION OF SAID THRUST TUBE, SAID WORK CHAMBERS HAVING INLET OPENINGS AND OUTLET OPENINGS, A ROTATING UNIT COMPRISING A CENTRIFUGAL PUMP MOUNTED WITHIN SAID THRUST TUBE AT SAID FLUID INLET OPENING, SAID CENTRIFUGAL PUMP COMPRISING A PLURALITY OF BLADES ADAPTED TO PUMP FLUID ENTERING SAID FLUID INLET OPENING INTO SAID THRUST TUBE AND TO CAUSE SAID FLUID TO ROTATE WITHIN SAID THRUST TUBE, IN A GENERALLY SPIRAL MANNER, AT LEAST ONE CHANNEL RIGIDLY ATTACHED TO SAID ROTATING UNIT AND HAVING AN OUTLET OPENING AT ONE END, SAID OUTLET OPENING BEING OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME SIZE AS AN INLET OPENING OF ANY ONE OF SAID WORK CHAMBERS, AND A TURBINE WHEEL RIGIDLY CONNECTED TO SAID ROTATING UNIT AND LOCATED DOWNSTREAM OF SAID WORK CHAMBERS, A FUEL INJECTION MEANS AND IGNITION MEANS AND AIR INLET MEANS MOUNTED WITHIN SAID THRUST TUBE, SAID CENTRIFUGAL PUMP BEING ADAPTED TO DIRECT A MIXTURE OF FLUID FROM SAID FLUID INLET OPENING AND AIR FROM SAID AIR INLET MEANS ABOUT THE PERIPHERY OF THE INNER PORTION OF SAID THRUST TUBE, WHEREBY A HOLLOW CYLINDER OF WATER IS FORMED THEREIN, WHICH CYLINDER OF WATER DEFINES AN INNER COMBUSTION CHAMBER CONTAINING SAID FUEL NOZZLE AND SAID IGNITION MEANS, SAID COMBUSTION CHAMBER BEING FED BY AIR WHICH IS REMOVED FROM SAID FLUID-AIR MIXTURE BY THE CENTRIFUGAL ACTION EXERTED ON SAID MIXTURE, SAID CHANNEL BEING ADAPTED TO CARRY HOT COMBUSTION GASES FROM SAID COMBUSTION CHAMBER WHEREBY, DURING ROTATION OF SAID CHANNEL, SAID WORK CHAMBERS ARE ALTERNATELY FED BY SAID FLUID AND BY SAID HOT COMBUSTION GASES SAID TURBINE WHEEL RECEIVING SAID FLUID AND SAID GASES AND SAID DISCHARGE OPENING LOCATED DOWNSTREAM OF SAID TURBINE.

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