General Electric Company

General Electric Technology Gmbh

Stephen William Tesh

Benjamin Paul Lacy

Victor John Morgan

Brian Peter Arness

John Ernest Tourigny

David Wayne Weber

James Michael Storey

Gunnar Leif Siden

Bradley Taylor Boyer

Iain Robertson Kellock

Tagir Nigmatulin

Wei Ning

Charles Alan Bulgrin

A hot gas path (HGP) component of an industrial machine includes primary and secondary cooling pathways. A body includes an internal cooling circuit carrying a cooling medium. A primary cooling pathway is spaced internally in the body and carries a primary flow of a cooling medium from an internal cooling circuit. A secondary cooling pathway is in the body and in fluid communication with an internal cooling circuit. The secondary cooling pathway is fluidly incommunicative and spaced internally from the primary cooling pathway. In response to an overheating event occurring, the secondary cooling pathway opens to allow a secondary flow of cooling medium through to the outer surface of the body and/or the primary cooling pathway. The primary flow flows in the primary cooling pathway prior to the overheating event, and the secondary flow of cooling medium does not flow until after an opening of the secondary cooling pathway.

Adaptively opening backup cooling pathway

A hot gas path component of an industrial machine includes a cooling pathway. The component includes a body including an outer surface; a thermal barrier coating (TBC) over the outer surface, the TBC exposed to a working fluid having a high temperature; and an internal cooling circuit in the body carrying a cooling medium. A cooling pathway is in the body and in fluid communication with the internal cooling circuit. The cooling pathway includes a terminating end in the body and a length extending along and spaced internally from the outer surface by a first spacing. In response to a spall in the TBC occurring at a location over the cooling pathway and the high temperature reaching or exceeding a predetermined temperature of the body, the cooling pathway opens at the location through the first spacing to allow a flow of the cooling medium therethrough.

Adaptively opening cooling pathway

The present embodiments are generally directed toward systems and methods for cooling one or more shroud segments of a gas turbine engine. For example, in a first embodiment, a shroud segment is provided that is configured to at least partially surround a turbine blade of a turbine engine. The shroud segment includes a body and a microchannel disposed in the body. The microchannel is configured to flow a cooling fluid through the body.

Turbine shroud segment cooling system and method

An exemplary embodiment of the invention is directed to a turbine engine having a first, rotatable turbine rotor assembly, a second, stationary nozzle assembly disposed adjacent thereto and a wheel space which is defined between the first, rotatable turbine rotor assembly and the second, stationary nozzle assembly. The wheel space is operable to receive cooling air therein and includes a sealing feature located on the first rotatable turbine rotor assembly that extends axially into the wheel space to terminate adjacent to a sealing land positioned on the second, stationary nozzle assembly. The sealing feature and the sealing land operate to control the release of cooling air from within the wheel space and the sealing land is constructed of shape memory alloy.

Apparatus for turbine engine cooling air management

An exemplary embodiment of the invention is directed to a turbine engine having a rotatable turbine rotor assembly, a stationary nozzle assembly disposed adjacent thereto and a wheel space defined therebetween. The wheel space receives cooling air therein and includes a sealing feature located on the first, rotatable turbine rotor assembly and extending axially into the wheel space and a sealing land assembly having a sealing land associated with a moveable member installed in an opening in the second, stationary nozzle assembly. A biasing member constructed of shape memory alloy is associated with the moveable member and operates to bias the moveable member, and associated sealing land, axially into the wheel space towards the sealing feature as the turbine engine transitions from a cold state to a hot state to reduce the release of cooling air from within the wheel space.

A method of operating a turbine engine, wherein the turbine engine includes a compressor, a combustor, a turbine, a plurality of successive axially stacked stages that include a row of circumferentially spaced stator blades and circumferentially spaced rotor blades, and a plurality of circumferentially spaced injection ports disposed upstream of a first row of stator blades in the turbine; the injection ports comprising a port through which cooling air is injected into the hot-gas path of the turbine, the method comprising: configuring the stator blades in the first row of stator blades such that the circumferential position of a leading edge of one of the stator blades is located within +/&#x2212;15% pitch of the first row of stator blades of the circumferential location of the injection port midpoint of at least a plurality of the injection ports.

Methods, apparatus and systems concerning the circumferential clocking of turbine airfoils in relation to combustor cans and the flow of cooling air through the turbine hot gas flowpath

A closed loop inner shroud assembly for a gas turbine. The shroud assembly may include a shroud body, a cover plate, an inlet though the cover plate to the shroud body, a serpentine passageway through the shroud body, and an outlet from the shroud body to the cover plate.

Closed loop, steam cooled turbine shroud

Turbine stator vane segments have inner and outer walls with vanes extending therebetween. The inner and outer walls have impingement plates. Steam flowing into the outer wall passes through the impingement plate for impingement cooling of the outer wall surface. The spent impingement steam flows into cavities of the vane having inserts for impingement cooling the walls of the vane. The steam passes into the inner wall and through the impingement plate for impingement cooling of the inner wall surface and for return through return cavities having inserts for impingement cooling of the vane surfaces. A skirt or flange structure is provided for shielding the steam cooling impingement holes adjacent the inner wall aerofoil fillet region of the nozzle from the steam flow exiting the aft nozzle cavities. Moreover, the gap between the flash rib boss and the cavity insert is controlled to minimize the flow of post impingement cooling media therebetween. This substantially confines outflow to that exiting via the return channels, thus furthermore minimizing flow in the vicinity of the aerofoil fillet region that may adversely affect impingement cooling thereof.

Growing community of inventors

Simpsonville, SC, United States of America

Stephen William Tesh