Westinghouse Electric Corporation

Westinghouse Electric Company LLC

John C Matarazzo

Kent Goran Hultgren

David E Boyle

George E Rudd

David H Roarty

Ian L Wilson

A high strength bolt fastens a baffle plate and a former plate of a pressurized water nuclear reactor pressure vessel together. The bolt has a head portion and an integral locking member extending from the head portion for engaging one of the structural members to lock the bolt with the structural member. The integral locking member portion has a lower yield stress than the yield stress of the shank. A lower yield stress may be obtained by selective annealing. The locking member is less susceptible to stress corrosion cracking in high temperature, high pressure water of commercial nuclear power reactors.

Bolt with integral locking member

An apparatus and method are provided for minimizing differential thermal expansion in external cooling air structures formed on the shrouds of the vane segments of a gas turbine. The external cooling air structure is formed from a laminate comprised of two layers joined in sandwich-like fashion. A passageway, which may be of a serpentine arrangement, is formed between the two layers of the laminate. Hot gas flowing over the shroud is directed through the passageway, thereby heating the structure so that its temperature is close to that of the shroud. Cooling air is bled into the hot gas directed to the passageway so as to reduce the temperature of the hot gas flowing through the passageway and prevent overheating of the external cooling air structure.

Apparatus and method for minimizing differential thermal expansion of

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Monroeville, PA, United States of America

John C Matarazzo