General Electric Company

Robert Charles Groves, Ii

Ronald Scott Bunker

Kirk Douglas Gallier

David Scott Stapleton

Kevin Robert Feldmann

Charles William Craig, Iii

Aaron Ezekiel Smith

Robert Proctor

Darrell Glenn Senile

Robert Alan Frederick

Jason Randolph Allen

Timothy Francis Andrews

Benjamin Scott Huizenga

Features and methods for modulating a flow of cooling fluid to gas turbine engine components are provided. In one embodiment, an airfoil is provided having a flow modulation insert for modulating a flow of cooling fluid received in a cavity of a body of the airfoil. In another embodiment, a shroud is provided comprising a cooling channel for a flow of cooling fluid and an insert that varies in position to modulate the flow of cooling fluid through the cooling channel. In yet another embodiment, a method for operating a gas turbine engine having a cooling circuit for cooling one or more components of the gas turbine engine comprises increasing power provided to the engine and decreasing power provided to the engine to modulate a position of a flow modulation insert located in the cooling circuit and thereby modulate the flow of cooling fluid through the cooling circuit.

Modulated turbine component cooling

An assembly for a turbine engine comprising a plurality of circumferentially arranged segments having first and second confronting end faces. The first and second confronting end faces include a multi-channel spline seal assembly. The multi-channel spline seal assembly includes at least a first and second channel wherein confronting first or second channels can receive at least one spline seal.

Spline for a turbine engine

A gas turbine engine turbine blade includes internal structural support radially supporting aerodynamic fairing. Strut radially extends away from root of support. Fairing includes hollow fairing airfoil surrounding strut and extending from fairing platform to blade tip shroud at tip of the fairing airfoil. A support cap attached to radially outer end of strut outwardly restrains fairing. Seal teeth may extend outwardly from the support cap. Internal cooling air flow path may extend radially through support. Fairing may be made from material lighter in weight than the support. Fairing material may be ceramic matrix composite and support material may be metallic. Blades may be mounted in rim of disk by roots disposed in slots through rim. Annular plate mounted to, upstream of, and proximate web of disk defines in part cooling airflow path to slot.

CMC blade with internal support

Shrouds and methods for forming turbine components are provided. A shroud includes a shroud body which includes a forward surface, a rear surface axially spaced from the forward surface, an inner surface extending between the forward surface and the rear surface, and an outer surface extending between the forward surface and the rear surface and radially spaced from the inner surface. The shroud further includes a forward flange extending from the outer surface of the shroud body, and a rear flange extending from the outer surface of the shroud body, the rear flange axially spaced from the forward flange. The shroud further includes a cooling passage defined in the shroud, the cooling passage extending generally circumferentially through the shroud.

Shrouds and methods for forming turbine components

A shroud assembly for a turbine engine comprising a plurality of circumferentially arranged shroud segments having confronting end faces defining first and second radially spaced surfaces. The shroud assembly includes a forward edge spanning to an aft edge to define an axial direction and a set of confronting seal channels formed in each of the confronting end faces with a spline seal located within the confronting seal channels.

A method for cooling a component of a gas turbine engine includes flowing a cooling airflow through a cooling passage of a turbine rotor blade, wherein the cooling passage includes an inlet and an outlet formed on a blade tip of the turbine rotor blade. The method further includes receiving at least a portion of the cooling airflow exiting the outlet of the cooling passage with an aperture defined in a casing of the gas turbine engine, wherein the casing is spaced from the blade tip along the radial direction. In addition, the method includes providing the cooling airflow received with the aperture defined in the casing to the component of the gas turbine engine through a coolant duct assembly of the gas turbine engine.

System and method for cooling components of a gas turbine engine

An airfoil having a radial direction extending away from an engine axis is provided. The airfoil includes an airfoil wall having an airfoil outer surface and an airfoil inner surface, with the airfoil extending radially from a first end to a second end. The airfoil defines a cooling channel interior to the inner surface with a thickness being defined between the airfoil outer surface and the airfoil inner surface. The thickness varies in the radial direction from the first end to the second end along at least one radial cross-section of the airfoil. A turbine nozzle of a turbine engine is also provided, which may include an outer band, an inner band, and the airfoil.

Radial CMC wall thickness variation for stress response

Engine components are provided for a gas turbine engines that generate a hot combustion gas flow. The engine component can include a substrate constructed from a CMC material and having a hot surface facing the hot combustion gas flow and a cooling surface facing a cooling fluid flow. The substrate generally defines a film hole extending through the substrate and having an inlet provided on the cooling surface, an outlet provided on the hot surface, and a passage connecting the inlet and the outlet. The engine component can also include a coating on at least a portion of the hot surface and on at least a portion of an inner surface defined within the passage.

Thermal management of CMC articles having film holes

A stator component of a turbine engine having an airfoil defining a radial cooling channel, the airfoil having an airfoil outer surface and an airfoil inner surface. The airfoil outer surface defines a leading edge portion, a trailing edge portion, a pressure side wall, and a suction side wall. The airfoil inner surface defines a series of alternating peaks and valleys in the leading edge portion such that the airfoil has a varying cross-sectional thickness defined between the airfoil inner surface and the airfoil outer surface in the leading edge portion. A strut is disposed within the radial cooling channel and defines an inner radial cooling passage. The strut has an outer surface that defines a plurality of apertures that provide for fluid communication from the inner radial cooling passage to a radial cooling gap defined between the airfoil inner surface and the outer surface of the strut.

Cooled CMC wall contouring

A gas turbine engine arcuate leaf seal assembly includes arcuate leaf seal extending radially and circumferentially between adjacent first and second turbine components. Upper and lower leaf seal portions of leaf seal are in radially spaced apart arcuate upper and lower grooves in the first and second turbine components respectively. The seal includes an arcuate body and a circumferential retention tab extending radially away from body and disposed in a notch in a wall of grooves. Seal may have a thickness between 3 mils and 35 mils and/or torsional stiffness between 0.015 and 0.15 lb/in. Turbine components may be radially adjacent turbine nozzle upper and lower components. The upper or lower component may be made of a ceramic matrix composite material. Annular cooling air plenum including flow cavities in inner support ring segments may be in lower component and in flow communication with hollow fairing airfoils.

Turbine slotted arcuate leaf seal

A hot gas path component for an engine may generally include a substrate extending between an outer surface and an inner surface opposite the outer surface. The outer surface may be configured to be exposed to a hot gas path of the engine. In addition, the substrate may be formed from a non-metallic composite material. The hot gas path component may also include a thermal coating disposed on the inner surface of the substrate. The thermal coating may be applied to the inner surface so as to have a non-uniform distribution along at least a portion of the inner surface, wherein the non-uniform distribution provides for change in a thermal gradient experienced across the hot gas path component between the outer and inner surfaces of the substrate.

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West Chester, OH, United States of America

Robert Charles Groves, Ii