Siemens Energy, Inc.

Siemens Westinghouse Power Corporation

Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Siemens Power Generation, Inc.

Siemens Energy Global Gmbh & Co. Kg

Kevin Michael Light

Jiping Zhang

Randy Edward Whitener

Manish S Gurao

William Cannon Gardner

Ryan Patrick Murphy

Christopher W Ross

Zafir A M Abdo

Brian Harry Terpos

Kok-Mun Tham

David Allen Little

Kazim Ozbaysal

Todd A Ebert

John E Wilber

Raul Ricardo Rico

Abdullatif M Chehab

Hubertus Edward Paprotna

Larry L Zeller

Robert L Murphy

Zhengxiang Pu

Yan Yin

Stephen Thomas Soto

Robert W Sunshine

Richard B Chianese

Robert Watson Spitzer

Keith B McLaurin

Neil Leslie Kilpatrick

Harshawardhan S Bhide

Ernie B Campbell

David M Shaefer

Rene Echevarria

Eric Joseph Oberson

Jason T Silverman

Rimal K Patel

David M M Griffiths

Paul A Uhran

Matthew J LaGrow

Scott T Waechter

Dan Guinan

Bern Luneburg

Zafir AM Abdo

A cooling system configured to cool aspects of the turbine engine between a compressor and a turbine assembly is disclosed. In at least one embodiment, the cooling system may include one or more mid-frame cooling channels extending from an inlet through one or more mid-frame torque discs positioned downstream of the compressor and upstream of the turbine assembly. The inlet may be positioned to receive compressor bleed air. The mid-frame cooling channel may be positioned in a radially outer portion of the mid-frame torque disc to provide cooling to outer aspects of the mid-frame torque disc such that conventional, low cost materials may be used to form the mid-frame torque disc rather than high cost materials with capacity to withstand higher temperatures. The cooling fluid routed through the mid-frame cooling channel in the mid-frame torque disc may be exhausted into a cooling system () for the downstream turbine assembly.

Compressor bleed cooling system for mid-frame torque discs downstream from a compressor assembly in a gas turbine engine

A rotor disc configured to reduce the likelihood of fractures developing in spindle bolts in gas turbine engines is disclosed. The spindle bolts extend axially through the rotor disc to retain the rotor assembly in place in the gas turbine engine. The rotor disc may be formed from a rotor disc body having a plurality of circumferentially positioned spindle bolt holes sized to house a spindle bolts within each spindle bolt hole. One or more relief channels, which also may be referred to as scallops, may extend radially outward from one of the spindle bolt holes. The relief channels may foster removal of condensation and debris from the space between the spindle bolt and the surface forming the spindle bolt hole and may be configured to discourage the ingress of air through the relief channel and into space between the spindle bolt and the surface forming the spindle bolt hole.

Rotor disc with fluid removal channels to enhance life of spindle bolt

A gas turbine engine rotor (), including: a rotor disk () comprising a bolt hole () there through and a counterbore (); a bolt () configured to fit in the bolt hole and when so disposed to define an end () protruding beyond the counterbore; and a nut () configured to be disposed in the counterbore and to engage the protruding end. The counterbore is configured to permit limited eccentricity between the nut and the protruding end.

Turbine rotor nut and bolt arrangement with improved fatigue resistance under centrifugal load

A spindle bolt structure is provided in a gas turbine engine, and includes a pilot region located within a bolt hole extending through a seal disk. The pilot region includes a circumferential pilot ridge located adjacent to a downstream axial face of the seal disk and a circumferential trough portion located between a bolt shoulder and the pilot ridge. The trough portion defines a trough diameter that is less than a diameter of the bolt shoulder and less than a diameter of the pilot ridge. The bolt shoulder and pilot ridge are formed with an applied compressive residual stress and are positioned for engagement with the seal disk.

Gas turbine spindle bolt structure with reduced fretting fatigue

Broken remnants of turbine engine rotor thru-bolt/nut interfaces are enveloped in a housing that is coupled to the rotor, so that the remnant does not migrate to other portions of the engine. In exemplary embodiments the housing directly mates with and engages the thru-bolt stud male threaded portion that projects outwardly from the nut, such as by a female threaded sleeve that is engaged with the male threads. The sleeve is in turn coupled to and/or supported by the rest of the housing. Some housing embodiments surround one or more of the threaded stud/nut interfaces. Housing embodiments of the invention are installed in situ without removing the rotor structure from the engine.

Method and apparatus for turbine engine thru bolt stud and nut retention

A sealing band located in opposing seal band receiving slots of adjacent turbine disks to seal an annular gap therebetween. An anti-rotation body including a base portion is located between edges of the sealing band within the annular gap, and a pin portion extends axially from the base portion for engagement with a cut-out portion of at least one of the disks. A pair of spaced projections extend from the base portion and into through openings in the sealing band at a location within the annular gap. The projections define an attachment structure attaching the anti-rotation body to the sealing band.

Gas turbine including belly band seal anti-rotation device

A power turbine receiving cooling fluid from compressor apparatus is provided. The turbine comprises: fixed housing structure; a support shaft rotatably supported in the housing structure; at least one disk overhung on the support shaft and coupled to the support shaft so as to rotate with the support shaft; and cooling fluid structure. The at least one disk is formed from a low-alloy-content steel. The cooling fluid supply structure extends through the support shaft and the at least one disk so as to supply cooling fluid to the at least one disk.

Gas turbine engine

A spindle bolt structure is provided in a gas turbine engine. The gas turbine engine includes a rotor including a plurality of turbine disks for supporting rows of blades, a torque tube located on a compressor side of the turbine disks, and a seal disk located between the torque tube and a first stage turbine disk. The spindle bolt structure includes a plurality of spindle bolts extending through the turbine disks and disposed offset from a rotational axis of the turbine disks. The spindle bolts include a first terminal end located adjacent to the compressor side of the turbine disks, and a sleeve member is provided extending over a portion of the first terminal end of each spindle bolt and embedded within a compressor side of the seal disk for effecting a reduction in fretting movement of the spindle bolt relative to the seal disk.

Gas turbine spindle bolt structure with reduced fretting motion

A combustion turbine includes a compressor section, a combustion section downstream from the compressor section, and a turbine section downstream from the combustion section. A diffuser section is downstream from the turbine section and has an outer wall, an inner wall, and at least one strut member extending therebetween. The outer wall has at least one first gas passageway therein, the inner wall has at least one second gas passageway therein, and the at least one strut member has at least one third gas passageway therein. The at least one first, second and third gas passageways deliver gas therethrough to assist attachment of a boundary layer to adjacent surfaces of the outer wall, the inner wall, and the at least one strut, respectively.

Combustion turbine including a diffuser section with cooling fluid passageways and associated methods

An inner mounting ring () for gas turbine flow path components such as shroud ring segments (). The inner ring () may be mounted to an outer ring () on radially slidable mounts () that maintain the two rings () in coaxial relationship, but allows them to thermally expand at different rates. This allows matching of the radial expansion rate of the inner ring () to that of the turbine blade tips (), thus providing reduced clearance () between the turbine blade tips () and the inner surface of the shroud ring segments () under all engine operating conditions. The inner ring () may be made of a material with a lower coefficient of thermal expansion than that of the outer ring ().

Inner ring with independent thermal expansion for mounting gas turbine flow path components

Aspects of the invention are directed to an interface between an exhaust cylinder and an exhaust diffuser in a turbine engine. The interface allows relative radial movement of the exhaust diffuser and the exhaust cylinder. According to aspects of the invention, the diffuser and the cylinder are operatively connected about their peripheries by a plurality of connecting members, which can be tie rods. Each connecting member can be pivotally connected at a first end to a joint bolt affixed to the exhaust cylinder and at a second end to an exhaust diffuser. Thus, the connecting members can join the cylinder and the diffuser in the axial direction, while allowing for the differential thermal expansion of the two components. Relative circumferential movement between the cylinder and the diffuser can be reduced by positioning neighboring connecting members at opposing angles in relation to one another.

Radially expanding turbine engine exhaust cylinder interface

An oil lift pocket for a bearing surface having a plurality of channels in communication with a supply port. The plurality of channels may be formed in a substantially bow shaped configuration. Each channel may extend from a supply port and terminate at an end and away from the supply port. The oil lift pocket greatly reduces friction in slow turning operations and reduces babbitt delamination, dead zones, and nonuniform support and lift as well.

Bearing oil lift pocket

An improved generator rotor () and a method of repairing an existing generator rotor () are disclosed. Methods consistent with the present invention provide techniques for repairing existing stress-damaged rotors () to remove stress-induced cracks (), without requiring new retaining rings (), to significantly extend the useful life of a generator without the cost and complexity of conventional repair techniques. Improved generator rotors () consistent with the present invention provide a tooth-top design that is more resistant to stress-induced cracking than conventional designs, resulting in new generators with longer useful lives.

Generator rotor

Method for repairing generator rotor

A wedge () and methods of using the wedge () for a power generator () are provided. The wedge () preferably has a wedge body () and at least one substantially hollow cavity () formed in the wedge body () so that the at least one hollow cavity () is substantially evenly distributed about a neutral axis of stress applied to the wedge body () when in use and so that the neutral axis of stress of the wedge body () having the hollow cavity () is substantially the same neutral axis of stress of a wedge body () having substantially the same shape as the wedge body () without a hollow cavity. A method of using a wedge () preferably includes increasing the mass of the contents of a slot () of a power generator () and positioning a wedge () having at least one longitudinally extending and substantially hollow cavity () formed therein and extending throughout major portions of the wedge () to overlie the slot () and retain the slot contents therein.

Low mass generator wedge and methods of using same

Growing community of inventors

Maitland, FL, United States of America

Kevin Michael Light