General Electric Company

Maurice David Fournier

Mark Edward Burnett

George Ernest Reluzco

Daniel Randolph Trembley

Kenneth James Robertson

Gregory Lee Landry

David C Gonyea

Gregory Norman Fournier

John Patrick McGrane

David Elliott Shapiro

Charles Byron Adams

Robert Hugh Johnson

Steven Kerry Williams

Robert Blair Wilson

Airfoils and grooves on the rotor or carrier for the airfoils have generally complementary dovetail shapes. The airfoils are installed in the grooves by sliding the bases of the airfoils along the circumferential grooves into final circumferential positions. At each circumferential position, a pin is driven between the base of the airfoil and the bottom of the groove to displace the airfoil radially into a final radially secured position taking up the clearance necessary to enable sliding movement of the airfoils about the groove. A first tool is used to drive each pin in a generally tangential direction by hammering on the end of the tool, transmitting an axial force to the pin. When the circumferential clearance of the last installed airfoil is insufficient to permit further use of a tangentially oriented tool to install additional airfoils, a second tool having an angled head is disposed into the groove to engage the pin. By hammering on the second tool, a component of the applied force drives the pins between the airfoil bases and the bottom of the groove to finally secure the remaining airfoils in a fixed radial position.

Methods of assembling airfoils to turbine components and assemblies thereof

Steam turbine buckets have radially projecting tenons received in openings of covers. The covers are provided with a profiled surface, with recesses or radially outwardly projecting teeth, or both, to form a gap between the cover and a stationary component having increased pressure drop with resulting decreased leakage flow and reduced potential for solid particle erosion. In the profiled cover surface, the outer surface of the tenon and outer surface of the cover are machined to form the recesses or teeth, affording a flush cover/tenon design with improved sealing efficiencies and reduced solid particle erosion.

Flush tenon cover for steam turbine blades with advanced sealing

A bucket cover to be attached to the tip of a turbine bucket has an aperture with an engageable geometry for receiving a tenon extending from the bucket and retaining the bucket cover to the bucket. The cover has an outer planar surface, an inner planar surface to abut against the bucket and an aperture extending between its surfaces. The aperture is defined by a sidewall that has multiple surfaces of varying cross-sectional size so as to structurally engage a tenon that is deformed during assembly. The sidewall of the aperture has a concave curved portion adjacent the outer planar surface leading to a narrow throat portion that corresponds generally to the size and shape of an undeformed tenon. In a method of making a turbine blade attached to a bucket cover, after a tenon is received in the aperture, the tenon is deformed by application of compressive force so that the tenon fills the aperture of the cover. The deformed tenon engages the various surfaces of the aperture sidewall to secure the cover on the bucket. The button head that is formed on the outer planar surface of the cover by excess tenon material is removed along with a thin layer of the outer planar surface of the bucket in order to provide a smooth, flush outer surface.

Flush bucket cover

The turbine nozzle diaphragm includes nozzle diaphragm segments formed of a subassembly including inner and outer spacer bands with airfoil-shaped partitions circumferentially spaced one from the other secured to the inner and outer spacer bands. Inner web and outer ring segments are secured to the inner and outer spacer band segments, respectively, to form nozzle diaphragm segment halves. End surfaces of the inner webs and outer rings lie in a plane passing through the axis of the nozzle diaphragm. The spacer bands have flanges projecting from the ends of the segments with weld material built up behind the flanges to provide additional support for the trailing edge portions of the partition adjacent the joint. Complementary recesses are formed in the opposed ends of the opposite segment whereby a Z-joint requiring limited material and labor is formed.

Turbine nozzle diaphragm joint

The turbine includes inner and outer rings and partitions mechanically connected therebetween. In one form, the partitions have connecting elements at tip and root portions of the vanes which are received in complementary grooves in the outer and inner rings, respectively. The partitions in one form are stacked against one another and secured by end lugs at the diaphragm joints. In another form, the partitions are pinned to the outer and inner rings with spaces between the connecting elements to avoid accumulation of tolerances. In a third form, the partitions are applied against the outer and inner rings in an axial direction and retainer plates are bolted to the outer and inner rings to secure the partitions in the diaphragm assembly. In all cases, the diaphragm is formed without welding.

Mechanically assembled turbine diaphragm

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Hermon, ME, United States of America

Maurice David Fournier