General Electric Company

Quang Tue Nguyen Tran

Rodrigo Rodriguez Erdmenger

Nathan Evan McCurdy Gibson

Christopher Edward Wolfe

Antonio Guijarro Valencia

Deepak Trivedi

Rahul Anil Bidkar

Steven Douglas Johnson

Vittorio Michelassi

Christopher Jon Potokar

A seal assembly for a rotary machine is positioned between a rotating component and a stationary component of the rotary machine. The seal assembly includes a seal bearing face that opposes the rotating component and a slide device. The slide device is positioned between different fluid pressure volumes in the rotary machine. The slide device axially moves toward the rotating component responsive to pressurization of the rotary machine. The slide device includes cross-over ports and the seal bearing face includes feed ports. The feed ports extend through the seal bearing face to form an aerostatic portion of a film bearing between the seal bearing face and the rotating component. The seal bearing face and/or the rotating component is a non-planar surface that, during rotating motion of the rotating component, forms an aerodynamic portion of the film bearing between the seal bearing face and the rotating component.

Aspirating face seal assembly for a rotary machine

An aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a seal assembly. The seal assembly includes a fluid bearing wall including a bearing face defining a fluid opening through the fluid bearing wall. The seal assembly further includes a tilt member is extended from and attached to the fluid bearing wall. The tilt member defines a fluid passage therethrough in fluid communication with the fluid opening at the bearing face of the fluid bearing wall. The seal assembly still further includes a seal body surrounding the tilt member. A cavity is defined between the tilt member and the seal body. The seal assembly further includes a spring member coupled to the seal body and the fluid bearing wall. A passage is defined between the fluid bearing wall and the seal body.

Seal assembly for a turbo machine

An aspect of the present disclosure is directed to a seal assembly for a turbo machine. The seal assembly includes a fluid bearing wall including a bearing face in which the bearing face defines a fluid opening through the fluid bearing wall. The seal assembly further includes a seal body extended circumferentially relative to a centerline axis. The seal body defines a cavity extended at least partially circumferentially through the seal body. A fluid passage is defined through the seal body in fluid communication with the fluid opening through the fluid bearing wall.

A seal assembly for a rotary machine includes a seal bearing face that opposes a rotating component of the machine and a slide device coupled with the seal bearing face. The slide device axially moves toward the rotating component responsive to pressurization of the rotary machine. The slide device includes cross-over ports and the seal bearing includes feed ports. The feed ports extend through the seal bearing face to form aerostatic portions of a film bearing between the seal bearing face and the rotating component. The seal bearing face and/or the rotating component has a non-planar surface that, during rotating motion of the rotating component relative to the face of the seal bearing face, forms aerodynamic portions of the film bearing.

An aspirating face seal assembly for a turbo-machine including a rotor assembly having a first radially extending portion defining a rotor surface is disclosed. The aspirating face seal assembly includes a seal body including a second radially extending portion defining a bearing surface and having a plurality of return channels. The second radially extending portion is disposed in the turbo-machine such that the bearing surface is disposed facing the rotor surface. The aspirating face seal assembly further includes an annular ring including one or more openings. The annular ring is concentrically disposed on the second radially extending portion and between the rotor surface and the second radially extending portion and configured to rotate in an event of rub between the first radially extending portion and the annular ring. A turbo-machine including the aspirating face seal assembly and a method for operating an aspirating face seal are also disclosed.

Aspirating face seal assembly and a method of operating the same

An aspirating seal assembly for use in a turbine engine is provided. The aspirating seal assembly includes a face seal and a rotary component. The face seal includes a first annular seal surface, and the rotary component includes a second annular seal surface positioned adjacent the first annular seal surface and defining a seal interface therebetween. The face seal is configured to discharge a flow of air towards the seal interface. The seal assembly also includes a first seal member extending between the first and second annular seal surfaces such that the flow of air induces a back pressure across the seal interface, and a second seal member positioned radially inward from the first seal member and extending between the first and second annular seal surfaces. A length of the second seal member is selected to increase the back pressure induced across the seal interface.

Aspirating seal assembly and method of assembling

Gas bearing for an aspirating seal assembly is disclosed. The gas bearing includes a bearing body having a bearing surface. The gas bearing further includes a first through-hole disposed in the bearing body, and a plurality of second through-holes spaced apart from each other and disposed around the first through-hole. The first through-hole is characterized by a size, and a first central axis. Each second through-hole is characterized by a size, and a second central axis. The second central axis of each second through-hole in the plurality of second through-holes intersects the first central axis at an angle in a range from about 30 degrees to about 150 degrees or at an angle in a range from about &#x2212;30 degrees to about &#x2212;150 degrees. Size of at least one through-hole in the plurality of second through-holes is different from the size of the first through-hole.

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Munich, Germany

Quang Tue Nguyen Tran