General Electric Company

Mark S Zlatic

Ambrose A Hauser

James Thompson

John Alan Manteiga

Kenneth L Johnson

James Michael Hoffman

Patrick John Lonneman

Larry Dean Cline

Leonard Paul Grammel, Jr

Dennis Robert Jonassen

James E Sidenstick

Jeffrey Ryan Trimmer

John C Lake

A gas turbine engine that includes a turbomachinery core operable to produce a core gas flow and that includes a combustor. A first duct is positioned downstream of and in flow communication with the combustor. A component is positioned within the first duct and extends between radially outward and radially inward walls of the first duct. The component that includes a first cooling passageway formed therein. The first cooling passageway extends between an inlet communicating with the first duct and positioned facing towards the turbomachinery core, and an outlet communicating with a pressure sink.

Cooling structure for a turbomachinery component

A thrust augmentor heat shield for enclosing radially extending fuel pipes which can be attached to and removed from the outer duct wall from within the augmentor. The heat shield includes a hollow, elongate housing extending substantially entirely along the length of the fuel pipe, a nose projecting forwardly from the housing and received within a slot formed in the duct wall and a bolt for clamping the housing to the duct wall and urging the nose of the housing into the slot. The housing includes an opening between the outer duct wall and the diffuser wall for conveying cooling air radially inwardly along the housing, and openings along lateral sides of the housing in registry with the fuel discharge ports of the fuel tube. The housing includes a diffuser flowpath segment such that, when the housings are arranged in a spoke pattern, the segments form a continuous annular wall joined by splined connections. In an alternate embodiment, the outer duct wall includes a strut which extends from the duct wall to the diffuser wall and the housing is connected to it by a bolt and nose connection. With other embodiments, the housing connection includes a wedge-shaped cam mounted on the diffuser wall which jams against a correspondingly-shaped flared upper end of the housing. Another embodiment includes a collar contiguous with the diffuser wall and extended shank shoulder bolts for installation from inside the augmentor through the collar.

Thrust augmentor heat shield

A system is provided inside a turbomachine for controlling operational clearance between a turbine rotor and a surrounding turbine shroud. The system comprises a plurality of control rings, integrated into the turbine casing, that are thermally expanded and contracted to control radial positioning of the turbine shroud. Compressor air is directed through internal passages in the rings to cause the expansion and contraction. The system utilizes the pressure and temperature of compressor air, in combination with size, location, and structure of the control rings to match thermal growth of the control rings and turbine shroud to thermal growth of the turbine rotors, thereby controlling clearance.

Clearance control

An apparatus is provided in a gas turbine engine for eliminating air leakage-induced vibration at natural frequencies in a type of flexible annular seal structure sometimes referred to as a floating fishmouth seal. A floating fishmouth seal has male and female sections arranged to permit axial and radial movement and still maintain a sealing relationship. In a preferred form, the apparatus for eliminating air leakage-induced vibration includes two structures that interact with the male and female sections of the fishmouth seal during engine operation. The first structure is an annular leaf spring assembly that presses a radial flange of the male section of the seal against a stationary wall to obtain frictional damping. The second structure is an annular member attached to an outer surface of the female section of the seal forming a closed-in structure to provide stability and damping. The combined effect of the two structures is to increase the operational life of the fishmouth seal.

Seal vibration-reducing apparatus

Growing community of inventors

West Chester, OH, United States of America

Mark S Zlatic