Brayton cycle

The Brayton cycle is a thermodynamic cycle that describes the workings of a gas turbine engine. It involves four main processes: air intake, compression, combustion, and expansion. In an open-cycle system, air is compressed, mixed with fuel, and burned at constant pressure. The resulting hot gases expand through a turbine, producing mechanical work. Most of this work powers the compressor, with the remainder available as output. An idealized Brayton cycle has a thermal efficiency of about 48 percent. While simple open-cycle engines are used in aircraft, stationary turbines can improve efficiency through intercooling, reheating, or regeneration, where exhaust heat is used to preheat the air leaving the compressor. The Brayton cycle is also known as Joule's cycle.1234