General Electric Company

Qiang Li

Nicholas Joseph Kray

Toby George Darkins, Jr

Tod Winton Davis

Scott Roger Finn

Gerald Alexander Pauley

Daniel Allen Wilkin, Ii

Jorge Orlando Lamboy

Anthony Joseph Maurer

Michael W Peretti

Aaron Phillip King

Toby George Darkins Jr

A method for making a metallic leading edge guard of the type having a nose with first and second wings extending therefrom is disclosed. The method includes machining from a metallic blank a first half comprising a first portion of the nose and one of the wings, wherein the first portion of the nose includes an interface surface; and electroforming a second half comprising a second portion of the nose and the second wing, wherein the second half is joined to the first half at the interface surface.

Method for manufacturing leading edge guard

A gas turbine engine blade root shim for use between a composite blade root and a wall of a slot in a rotor includes a longitudinally extending base having distal first and second transversely spaced apart ends, first and second longitudinally extending legs acutely angled inwardly towards the base from the first and second ends, and one or more apertures disposed through each of the longitudinally extending first and second legs. Apertures may include rectangular slots having rounded edges along the first and second outwardly facing surfaces of the first and second legs respectively and/or rounded corners between the first and second outwardly facing surfaces and the first and second inwardly facing surfaces of the first and second legs. Low coefficient of friction coatings may be disposed on outwardly facing surfaces, of the legs. Coatings may include polytetrafluoroethylene powder dispersed in a resin binder and other coatings having polytetrafluoroethylene.

Composite blade root stress reducing shim

A composite airfoil comprises a leading edge and a trailing edge, a pressure side and a suction side extending between the leading edge and the trailing edge, a tip at a radial outer end of the airfoil, a shank at a radial inner end of the airfoil, a dovetail connected to the shank, and a metal patch disposed between the dovetail and the shank.

Composite airfoil metal patch

A system includes a turbomachine with a plurality of blades, a casing disposed about the rotor and the plurality of blades, an access opening disposed in the casing, and an access panel selectively coupled to the access opening, such that the access opening is sized to enable repair or replacement of at least one blade of the plurality of blades.

System and method for blade access in turbomachinery

A gas turbine engine compressor blade includes an airfoil and a root section connected to a blade platform therebetween and an at least partially curved cropped corner of the blade platform. The corner shape and size may avoid resonance of blade during engine operation. The corner may be J-shaped including a straight section extending from the pressure side edge towards the suction side edge of the platform and a curved section extending from the straight section to an uncropped portion of the platform trailing edge of the platform. A method of designing the cropped corner includes choosing shapes and sizes of the cropped corner for numerically analyzing and determining shape and size for the cropped corner using a numerical model to iteratively numerically analyze aerodynamically the cropped platform with different shapes and sizes of the cropped corner. The numerical model may be validated with engine or component testing of the blade having a cropped platform with at least one of the shapes and sizes.

Gas turbine engine blade platform modification

A composite blade includes a composite airfoil section having airfoil pressure and suction sides extending chordwise between airfoil leading and trailing edges, a dovetail root attached to airfoil section and a blade shank therebetween, and a metallic leading edge shield covering an axially extending portion of airfoil section including at least a portion of airfoil leading edge and a radially and chordwise extending portion of a leading edge portion of the blade shank. Leading edge portion may be cut back from airfoil leading edge and a shank leading edge aft or downstream of airfoil leading edge. A nose may extend along a shield leading edge of the metallic leading edge shield with pressure and suction side legs extending aftwardly from nose along airfoil pressure and suction sides. Light weight insert may be located between nose and airfoil leading edges.

Metal leading edge on composite blade airfoil and shank

A fan blade for a gas turbine engine includes: a straight axial dovetail, an airfoil, and a transition section disposed between the dovetail and the airfoil, the fan blade having opposed pressure and suction sides, and further including at least one shoulder protruding from a nominal surface of a selected one of the pressure and suction sides, wherein the at least one shoulder includes a boss defining a side face, and an upper section extending radially outward from the boss and tapering inward to join a nominal surface of the selected side.

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Mason, OH, United States of America

Qiang Li