General Electric Company

Joseph Anthony Cotroneo

John David Stampfli

Philip Lynn Andrew

Chung-Hei Yeung

Steven Mark Schirle

Hua Zhang

Rohit Chouhan

David Allen Eldredge

Laxmikant Merchant

Xiuzhang James Zhang

Gunnar Leif Siden

Sylvain Pierre

Mehdi Milani Baladi

Deepesh Dinesh Nanda

Paul Thomas Marks

James Tyson Balkcum, Iii

Santhosh Kumar Vijayan

Harold Edward Miller

Francesco Soranna

Ian Darnall Reeves

Daniel Robert Dwyer

Abdus Shamim

Ronald Richard Wesorick

Anthony Donnaruma

James Michael Hill

Gunnar Leaf Siden

James Tyson Balkcum Iii

A system includes a fluid distribution system. The fluid distribution system includes multiple spray rings disposed upstream of an inlet of a compressor. The multiple spray rings include a first spray ring disposed about an axis of the compressor in a first plane substantially perpendicular to the axis. The first spray ring includes a first set of nozzles disposed about the axis and configured to spray a first fluid flow toward the compressor inlet. The multiple spray rings further include a second spray ring disposed about the axis of the compressor in a second plane substantially perpendicular to the axis. The second spray ring includes a second set of nozzles disposed about the axis and configured to spray a second fluid flow toward the compressor inlet. The first plane is different than the second plane.

Compressor circumferential fluid distribution system

A system includes a turbine with an expansion section configured to expand an exhaust flow in a downstream direction, such that the expansion section includes a plurality of stages and a diffuser section coupled downstream of the expansion section. The diffuser section receives the exhaust flow along an exhaust path and an energizing flow along a wall, and the diffuser section includes the wall comprising an inner surface, so the wall is disposed about the exhaust path, and an energizing port disposed in the wall at or downstream of a last stage of the plurality of stages of the expansion section. The energizing port is configured to direct the energizing flow along the inner surface of the wall to energize a boundary layer along the wall, and a first pressure of the energizing flow is greater than a second pressure of the exhaust flow at the energizing port.

System and method for improving exhaust energy recovery

A turbine blade includes a tip shroud having a seal rail. The seal rail includes a tangential surface extending between tangential ends. The turbine blade includes a root portion configured to couple to a rotor and an airfoil portion extending between the root portion and the tip shroud. The seal rail includes a cooling passage extending along a length of the seal rail. The cooling passage is fluidly coupled to a cooling plenum to receive a cooling fluid via an intermediate cooling passage extending between the cooling passage and a cooling plenum. The seal rail includes cooling outlet passages fluidly coupled to the cooling passage. The cooling outlet passages are disposed within the seal rail and extend between the cooling passage and the tangential surface of the seal rail. The cooling outlet passages are configured to discharge the cooling fluid from the tip shroud via the tangential surface.

System for cooling seal rails of tip shroud of turbine blade

Embodiments of the present disclosure include a turbomachine having a turbomachine blade and a stationary structural component. The turbomachine blade includes a tip shroud having a leading edge portion where the leading edge portion has a first surface. The stationary structural component is disposed about the turbomachine blade and includes a corresponding portion corresponding to the leading edge portion of the tip shroud, where the corresponding portion has a second surface, where the first surface and the second surface have generally parallel contours.

Turbomachine blade tip shroud with parallel casing configuration

A system includes multiple blades coupled to a rotor, a stationary shroud disposed about the multiple blades, and a clearance between the stationary shroud and each blade end of the multiple blades, wherein the clearance is configured to enable over tip leakage flow. The system also includes a diffuser section that includes an outer wall defining an expanding flow path downstream from the multiple blades. The outer wall includes a first wall portion having a first angle relative to a rotational axis of the multiple blades, and the clearance is configured to enable an increase in the first angle by maintaining the boundary layer along the outer wall with the over tip leakage flow.

Turbine exhaust diffusion system and method

A method is provided for evaluating stall/surge margin of a machine of interest. The method includes identifying a vital factor where each the vital factors corresponds to operation of the machine of interest. Raw data relating to the vital factor is provided. A contribution of the vital factor to the stall/surge margin is determined from at least the provided raw data. The contribution of the vital factor to the stall/surge margin is statistically analyzed. A stall/surge margin is allocated based on the statistical analysis of the contribution of the vital factor. An operating limit line is defined based on the allocation of the stall/surge margin.

Method for evaluating compressor stall/surge margin requirements

An blade row for use in a compressor is provided. The blade row has a plurality of inlet guide vanes. Each inlet guide vane has a meanline approximately equal to NACA standard A4K6 meanline, a thickness distribution approximately equal to NACA standard SR 63 thickness distribution, a stagger angle, and a lift coefficient between 0.0 and 0.8.

Inlet guide vane for axial compressor

A method is disclosed for monitoring and controlling a compressor including (a) monitoring at least one compressor parameter; (b) storing data indicative of the monitored parameter in a database system; (c) processing the collected data using a stall precursor detection algorithm to determine a stall precursor; (d) comparing the stall precursor with at least one of a corresponding average compressor value, and a corresponding unit specific value to determine the level of compressor operability, and (e) if the stall precursor varies from at least one of the average compressor value and the unit specific value, performing corrective actions to vary the level of compressor operability to prevent a surge condition.

Method and apparatus for detecting and compensating for compressor surge in a gas turbine using remote monitoring and diagnostics

A transfer function between the inlet air-flow consumed by a Gas Turbine engine, and the engine parameters of speed, pressure ratio, and Inlet Guide Vane (IGV) angle is described. An active compressor Operating Limit Line (OLL) management strategy that leverages this improved flow measurement transfer function is also described. The improved flow measurement capability afforded by the transfer function permits a deterioration in flow rate caused by compressor fouling to be detected. Using the deterioration in flow rate as a proxy for compressor fouling, a degraded surge boundary associated with fouling can be predicted, using a transfer function between degradation of air-flow along operating line and degradation of surge line. In combination, the inventive improvements in flow measurement and operating line management afford added compressor surge protection across the operating range, while permitting the attainment of elevated pressure ratios associated with high thermodynamic efficiency and output.

Method of air-flow measurement and active operating limit line management for compressor surge avoidance

A gas turbine operational strategy is provided for the optimization of ISO-Day rated performance. The invention is realized by setting the nominal operating line equal to or slightly below the operating limit line, so that ISO full load performance is maximized. Thus, the first stage turbine nozzle throat area is sized such that, without inlet bleed heat addition, and at Base-Load pressure ratio and firing temperature, the compressor operates within its operational limits on a ISO day. As ambient conditions change, levels of inlet bleed heat and firing temperature are controlled and the inlet guide vane angle is set whereby the nominal operating line is equal to or slightly below the operating limit line.

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Clifton Park, NY, United States of America

Joseph Anthony Cotroneo