General Electric Company

Mark Anthony Mueller

Timothy James Held

Jun Xu

Michael Louis Vermeersch

Shui-chi Li

Allen Michael Danis

Ahmed Mostafa ELKady

Pradeep Naik

Kwanwoo Kim

Fei Han

Mark David Durbin

Keith Robert McManus

David Albin Lind

Quoc Hoai Nguyen

Jeffrey Michael Martini

John David Bibler

Gerardo Antonio Salazar Lois

Patrick Edward Pastecki

George Eric Moertle

Steven Marakovits

Mark Patrick Kelsey

Nan Zong

Rishikesh Prakash Karande

Shanwu Wang

Lance Kenneth Blakeman

Eric Matthew Roberson

Whitney Epperson

Zhongtao Dai

Venkatraman Ananthakrishnanlyer

John Andrew Konkoly

Zhong-Tao Dai

A system including an annular combustor having a first liner wall disposed circumferentially about an axis, a combustion chamber disposed circumferentially about the first liner wall, and a second liner wall disposed circumferentially about the combustion chamber. The annular combustor is configured to direct a combustion gas flow in a downstream direction through the combustion chamber away from a head end toward a turbine. The system also includes a supply passage configured to supply a fluid flow from a compressor to the combustion chamber. The supply passage has a flow path architecture having a turning portion that turns the fluid flow from a compressor discharge direction to an upstream direction generally opposite the downstream direction of combustion gas flow.

System and method having annular flow path architecture

A system includes a combustor having a combustion chamber and a combustor supply passage configured to supply a fluid flow into the combustion chamber. The system also includes a resonator configured to receive at least a portion of the fluid flow. The resonator comprises a frequency adjuster configured to change an attenuation frequency of the resonator.

System and method for tuning resonators

A gas turbine engine combustor conical-flat heat shield includes an annular conical section extending upstream from and being integral with a flat section with a flat downstream facing surface which may be generally perpendicular to or canted with respect to a centerline. The flat section includes radially outer and inner edges at least one of which is circular and circumscribed about a centerline and circumferentially spaced apart clockwise and counter-clockwise radial edges having an origin on the centerline. A gas turbine engine combustor includes conical-flat heat shields in one or more circular rows arranged in a non-symmetrical or asymmetrical pattern. Two or more groups (A, B, C) of the conical-flat heat shields in the circular rows may be mounted on a domeplate and one or more of the conical-flat heat shields is different in one or more of the groups (A, B, C).

Conical-flat heat shield for gas turbine engine combustor dome

A system and method for flame stabilization is provided that forestalls incipient lean blow out by improving flame stabilization. A combustor profile is selected that maintains desired levels of power output while minimizing or eliminating overboard air bleed and minimizing emissions. The selected combustor profile maintains average shaft power in a range of from approximately 50% up to full power while eliminating overboard air bleed in maintaining such power settings. Embodiments allow for a combustor to operate with acceptable emissions at lower flame temperature. Because the combustor can operate at lower bulk flame temperatures during part power operation, the usage of inefficient overboard bleed can be reduced or even eliminated.

System and method for flame stabilization

A gas turbine engine combustor includes an annulus with one or more circular rows of burners and a means for providing a number of equiangular spaced apart flame temperature nonuniformities around the annulus during engine operation. The number of the flame temperature nonuniformities being equal to a circumferential acoustic mode to be attenuated in the combustor (i.e three, five, or seven). Fuel lines and/or water lines in supply communication with the burners and metering orifices in a portion of the fuel lines and/or the water lines may be used to produce the flame temperature nonuniformities. The annulus of the burners may have an equal number of equiangular spaced apart first and second arcuate segments of the burners and a means for operating the burners in the first segments and operating the burners in the second segments at different first and second flame temperatures respectively.

Gas turbine engine combustor circumferential acoustic reduction using flame temperature nonuniformities

A method for assembling a gas turbine engine combustor is provided. The method includes providing a heat shield defined by a perimeter. The perimeter includes a radially inner edge, a radially outer edge, an axially inner edge, an axially outer edge, and an opening that extends from an upstream side of the heat shield to a downstream side of the heat shield. The method further includes coupling the heat shield to a domeplate such that the perimeter of the heat shield is positioned a distance downstream from an edge of the heat shield defining the opening. The method additionally includes coupling at least one fuel injector to the domeplate such that a portion of the fuel injector extends through the heat shield opening.

Method and apparatus for assembling a gas turbine engine

An apparatus for attenuating acoustic oscillations of a gas flow contained in part by a combustor wall of a gas turbine engine combustor, wherein the combustor includes at least one air/fuel mixer, includes at least one resonating tube with a closed end and an open end and a single cavity between the ends. The tube is located on the combustor wall downstream of the air/fuel mixer.

Acoustic damper

An acoustic dampener comprises a first wall, orifice plate, and second wall. The first wall separates a first fluid source from a second fluid source. The first wall has a hole for allowing fluid communication between the first fluid source and a first cavity of the acoustic dampener. The office plate separates the first cavity of the acoustic dampener from a second cavity of the acoustic dampener. The second wall has a hole for allowing fluid communication between the first cavity of the acoustic dampener in the second cavity of the acoustic dampener. The second wall separates the second cavity of the acoustic dampener from the second fluid source. The second wall has a hole for allowing fluid communication between the second cavity of the acoustic dampener and the second fluid source. In one embodiment, the acoustic dampener is formed in a combustion chamber liner of a gas turbine engine.

Acoustic damping device for use in gas turbine engine

A combustor swirl cup includes coaxial inner and outer swirlers separated by a tubular centerbody. The centerbody includes a bypass inlet surrounding the inner swirler and diverges aft along a perforate inner nozzle to terminate at an annular flameholder. An impingement ring is spaced forward from the flameholder in flow communication with the bypass inlet for receiving cooling air therefrom to impingement cool the flameholder.

Cooled flameholder swirl cup

A method for operating a gas turbine engine including a compressor and a combustor is provided. The method comprises channeling between about 0% to about 8% of the total airflow discharged from a compressor towards a pilot swirler coupled within the burner, wherein the burner includes a main swirler and an annular centerbody extending between the pilot and main swirlers, injecting a portion of the total fuel flow supplied to the burner through a plurality of apertures defined in a hollow pilot centerbody coupled within the pilot swirler, channeling the remaining airflow discharged from the compressor towards the main swirler, and injecting the remaining fuel flow supplied to the burner through at least one main swirler vane coupled within the main swirler, such that the portion of fuel is pre-mixed with a portion of the total airflow.

Apparatus to facilitate decreasing combustor acoustics

A method for operating a combustion system is provided. The method includes coupling the main swirler to the pilot swirler such that the main swirler substantially circumscribes the pilot swirler, supplying fuel to a first fuel circuit defined in the main swirler, and inducing swirling to the supplied fuel via a first set of swirler vanes positioned within the main swirler. The method also includes supplying fuel to a second fuel circuit defined in the main swirler, inducing swirling to the supplied fuel via a second set of swirler vanes positioned within the main swirler, each of the second set of swirler vanes comprising at least one second fuel passage defined therein, and coupling a shroud in flow communication to at least one of the first set of swirler vanes and the second set of swirler vanes, the shroud comprising at least one third fuel passage defined therein.

Methods and apparatus to facilitate decreasing combustor acoustics

A method for operating a gas turbine engine facilitates reducing an amount of emissions from a combustor. The combustor includes a mixer assembly including a pilot mixer, a main mixer, and an annular centerbody extending therebetween. The method comprises injecting at least one of fuel and airflow into the combustor through at least one swirler positioned within the pilot mixer, and injecting fuel into the combustor through at least one swirler positioned within the main mixer, such that the fuel is directed into a combustion chamber downstream from the main mixer.

Method to decrease combustor emissions

Method and apparatus to decrease combustor emissions

A method enables a gas turbine engine including a combustor to be operated. The combustor includes a mixer assembly including an air swirler, a premixer, a dome plate, and a heat shield. The method comprises discharging fluids from the air swirler into the premixer, and directing cooling fluids through a cooling opening defined in at least one of the swirler and the dome plate towards an upstream side of the heat shield for impingement cooling of the heat shield.

Growing community of inventors

West Chester, OH, United States of America

Mark Anthony Mueller