General Electric Company

Jeffrey Howard Nussbaum

John Alan Manteiga

Seetharamaiah Mannava

William D Cowie

Michael Macrorie

Joseph Capozzi

Bernard Joseph Anderson

John Lawrence Noon

Juan Mario Gomez

Tara Chaidez

Paul Stephen Manicke

Albert E McDaniel

Jeffrey Francis Wessels

Gary Edward Trewiler

Peter J Rock

Alan Glen Turner

James A Huffman

Robert A Walter

Kenneth Allen Loehle

David K Christensen

Abraham S Assa

Caroline Curtis Granda

Charles Kammer Christopherson

Leslie M Pommer

Xin Wei

Andrea G M Cox

James R Zisson

Anna Wei

David Christensen

Including a disk, a plurality of circumferentially spaced apart airfoils extending radially outwardly from the disk, a plurality of shroud segments being disposed circumferentially between the plurality of airfoils and configured to attach to a corresponding airfoil of the plurality of airfoils and a plurality of wear surfaces, where at least one wear surface of the plurality of wear surfaces is configured and disposed to prevent excessive wear between the adjacent shroud segments. Each shroud segment of the plurality of shroud segments may be attached to a corresponding airfoil by weld connections to permit clearance during translation friction welding of the airfoil to the disk hub are located to avoid high stress areas.

Part span shrouded fan blisk

Methods and apparatus for fabricating a rotor blade for a gas turbine engine are provided. The rotor blade includes an airfoil having a first sidewall and a second sidewall, connected at a leading edge and at a trailing edge. The method includes forming the airfoil portion bounded by a root portion at a zero percent radial span and a tip portion at a one hundred percent radial span, the airfoil having a radial span dependent chord length C, a respective maximum thickness T, and a maximum thickness to chord length ratio (T/C ratio), forming the root portion having a first T/C ratio, forming the tip portion having a second T/C ratio, and forming a mid portion extending between a first radial span and a second radial span having a third T/C ratio, the third T/C ratio being less than the first T/C ratio and the second T/C ratio.

Methods and apparatus for reducing vibrations induced to airfoils

A method enables a rotor blade for a gas turbine engine to be fabricated. The method comprises forming an airfoil including a first side wall and a second side wall that each extend in radial span between an airfoil root and an airfoil tip, and wherein the first and second side walls are connected at a leading edge and at a trailing edge, and forming a winglet that extends outwardly from at least one of the airfoil first side wall and the airfoil second side wall, such that a radius extends between the winglet and at least one of the airfoil first side wall and the second side wall.

Methods and apparatus for reducing vibrations induced to compressor airfoils

A method for laser shock peening rotor blade leading and trailing edges of gas turbine engine integrally bladed rotors and disks that are not blocked by other rows of blades. The method includes continuously firing a stationary laser beam, which repeatable pulses between relatively constant periods, along at least a portion of leading or trailing edges of the blade, with the laser beam aimed at an oblique angle with respect to a surface of the edge such that laser pulses form overlapping elliptical shaped laser spots. In the exemplary embodiment of the invention, the elliptical shaped laser spots have an overlap of about 50% and are on the order of 11.7 mm by 4 mm in diameter. Another method is for laser shock peening rotor blade leading and trailing edges of gas turbine engine integrally bladed rotors and disks that are blocked by other rows of blades. The method includes continuously firing the stationary laser beam, which repeatable pulses between relatively constant periods, along at least a portion of leading or trailing edges of the blade, with the laser beam compoundly angled such that it is aimed at a first oblique angle with respect to a surface of the edge and at a second oblique angle with respect to an axis about which the rotor is circumscribed. Laser pulses form the elliptical shaped laser spots that are angled from the leading edge radially inwardly towards the axis. In the exemplary embodiment, the elliptical shaped laser spots have an overlap of about 50%.

Laser shock peening integrally bladed rotor blade edges

A fan blade includes perforated anchor tangs, one with inboard corners and the remainder without. The corners are disposed in a complementary seat in a rotor disk for limiting blade pivoting during assembly.

Corner tang fan blade

A fan outlet guide vane includes integral outer and inner platforms conforming to arcuate sides thereof, and multiple mounting bosses on the platforms. The platform sides are arcuate to conform with the vane sides for improving aerodynamic efficiency. The multiple mounting bosses improve mounting of the vanes to corresponding supporting rings.

Conforming platform guide vane

A stator vane frame assembly including an outer structure ring, an inner structure ring, a set of discrete vanes each connecting the outer structure ring and the inner structure ring forming an inner and outer platforms with neighboring vanes defining a set of flow paths, a set of sealing members contoured to a set of gaps between the set of vanes disposed to sealing the gap. A method for applying a sealing member to the gaps between a platform formed resulting from the coupling between vanes including affixing a set of stator vanes on an inner frame and an outer frame, and sealing a set of sealing members on the backside surface of a stator vane frame. The discrete nature of individual vane blade sealed by the sealing members renders the stator vane frame assembly to add a damping effect which increases the fatigue life of the vane, and permits the use of lower strength, lighter, and less expensive material.

Gas turbine or jet engine stator vane frame

The present invention is a method for operating a gas turbine engine airfoil having leading and trailing edges subject to FOD (foreign object damage) damage. The method includes inspecting the airfoil along at least a first one of the edges having at least a first laser shock peened patch along the first one of the edges, ascertaining FOD lengths of foreign object damage (FOD) extending from the first one of the edges into the airfoil within the patch, and allowing the airfoil to remain in service without repair if the FOD lengths are up to a maximum length of about one-half of a width of the laser shock peened patch, as measured from the edge.

FOD inspection of laser shock peened gas turbine engine airfoils

A fan blade includes an airfoil having a root and an integral platform. The platform includes forward and aft ends and arcuate first and second sides therebetween. The airfoil root is laterally offset closer to the platform first side than the second side. Impact loads with a trailing blade during a blade-out failure are accordingly distributed for reducing peak loading in the trailing blade and damage thereto.

Conforming platform fan blade

Growing community of inventors

Wilmington, MA, United States of America

Jeffrey Howard Nussbaum