General Electric Company

Gregory Lee Landry

David Orus Fitts

Robert James Bracken

Anil Kumar Tolpadi

Maurice David Fournier

Christopher Walter Sullivan

Gregory Norman Fournier

David Elliott Shapiro

Boris I Frolov

Charles Byron Adams

Steven Kerry Williams

A wedge-like nozzle radial loading pin, preferably formed from steel, that contacts the bottom of a reaction nozzle along a graduated, that is inclined or stepped, surface. This contact will secure the reaction nozzle radially inward against the retaining surface of the carrier dovetail with sufficient force to maintain the designed airfoil pre-twist.

Method of installing stationary blades of a turbine and turbine structure having a radial loading pin

Airfoils and grooves on the rotor or carrier for the airfoils have generally complementary dovetail shapes. The airfoils are installed in the grooves by sliding the bases of the airfoils along the circumferential grooves into final circumferential positions. At each circumferential position, a pin is driven between the base of the airfoil and the bottom of the groove to displace the airfoil radially into a final radially secured position taking up the clearance necessary to enable sliding movement of the airfoils about the groove. A first tool is used to drive each pin in a generally tangential direction by hammering on the end of the tool, transmitting an axial force to the pin. When the circumferential clearance of the last installed airfoil is insufficient to permit further use of a tangentially oriented tool to install additional airfoils, a second tool having an angled head is disposed into the groove to engage the pin. By hammering on the second tool, a component of the applied force drives the pins between the airfoil bases and the bottom of the groove to finally secure the remaining airfoils in a fixed radial position.

Methods of assembling airfoils to turbine components and assemblies thereof

A bucket cover includes circumferentially disposed arcuate cover segments each having discrete arcuate inner, intermediate and outer cover elements for spanning the tips of a plurality of turbine buckets. Each segment includes circumferentially spaced radial openings through the elements for receiving the tenons at the bucket tips. The intermediate element has a cavity or recess formed between circumferentially spaced webs which define the openings through the intermediate element for weight reduction purposes. In final assembly, the tips of the tenons are automatically peened to retain the elements on the buckets and excess material is machined to provide a smooth, continuous arcuate, circumferentially extending outer surface. The cavities are bounded by the webs, forward and rear end walls and the inner and outer surfaces of the outer and inner elements, respectively.

Covers for turbine buckets and methods of assembly

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Glenburn, ME, United States of America

Gregory Lee Landry