General Electric Company

William Terence Dingwell

Andrew J Lammas

Wayne Ray Bowen

Thomas Carl Mesing

Daniel Padraic O'Reilly

Robert William Bruce

Andrew Philip Woodfield

Joshua L Miller

Dale Robert Lombardo

James C Przytulski

Jay L Cornell

Michael Jay Brunck

Herbert Halila

Frederic Gardner Haaser

Alberto Luna

James Edward Gutknecht

Sean Joel Corrigan

William Lee Imhoff

Melvin Howard Wilkins

Michael Even-Nur

Paul Moncelle

Donald Charles Slavik

Anthony E Hungler

A method of reducing crack propagation in an airfoil includes: providing an airfoil having a root spaced apart from a tip, spaced-apart leading and trailing edges, a suction side extending from the leading edge to the trailing edge, and an opposed pressure side extending from the leading edge and the trailing edge, supporting the airfoil against bending loads; and burnishing the airfoil using a burnishing element, so as to create at least one burnished section of residual compressive stress, the at least one burnished section being located adjacent the leading edge and spaced from the leading edge by an offset distance selected so as to avoid deformation of the leading edge.

Method for increasing fatigue notch capability of airfoils

A variable stator vane assembly and a bushing thereof. The bushing includes a metal bushing body and a wear-resistant coating. The assembly includes a rotatable trunnion and a first metal bushing. The trunnion is capable of being located in a through hole extending between outer and inner surfaces of a compressor casing of a gas turbine engine. The first metal bushing is capable of being located in the through hole proximate the outer surface to surround a first portion of the trunnion when the trunnion is located in the through hole. The first metal bushing and the first portion have wear-resistant coatings which are in mutual contact, apart from any intervening lubricant, when the trunnion and the first metal bushing are located in the through hole and the trunnion is rotating with respect to the first metal bushing.

Variable stator vane assembly and bushing thereof

A method enables a variable vane assembly for a gas turbine engine including a casing to be assembled. The variable vane assembly includes a seal assembly and at least one variable vane that includes a platform and a trunnion, wherein the platform extends outwardly from the trunnion. The method comprises coupling a seal assembly journal bushing to the variable vane such that the journal bushing is against the trunnion and between the trunnion and the engine casing, and wherein the journal bushing has a substantially constant diameter extending between a first and a second end of the journal bushing, and positioning a substantially flat first washer on the variable vane ledge to prevent contact between the variable vane assembly and the engine casing.

Methods and apparatus for sealing gas turbine engine variable vane assemblies

A torque shaft assembly includes a hollow tube with a central axis disposed between and fixedly connected to first and second crankshafts at first and second distal ends, respectively, of the tube for movement of an array of connecting members such as push rods. A hollow interior of tube between the first and second crankshafts is filled with a sufficient quantity of flowable inertia material or damping media to absorb vibratory energy by friction during operation of the engine. The hollow interior is preferably filled with a quantity of damping media to a level by volume of about 98% and a preferred flowable inertia material is round steel shot. A plurality of spaced-apart clevises are fixedly attached to a tube wall on an outer surface of the tube wall surrounding the hollow interior. Each clevis includes connection means disposed away from the wall outer surface for connection with an actuator for movement of the array of adjustable devices such as variable stator vanes.

Damped torque shaft assembly

A method of repairing a gas turbine engine compressor blade airfoils includes machining away airfoil material along leading and trailing edges and a radially outer tip of the airfoil to form leading edge, trailing edge, and tip cut-backs. Then beads of welding material are welded onto the leading edge, trailing edge, and tip cut-backs. Then some of the weld material is machined away from the weld bead to obtain desired finished dimensions of the leading and trailing edges and radially outer tip. Blade material along only radially outermost portions of the leading and trailing edges extending from the tip towards a base of the airfoil is machined away. A rounded corner is formed between the leading edge and trailing edge cut-backs and unmachined portions of the airfoil between the outermost portions of the leading and trailing edges and the base of the airfoil.

Gas turbine engine compressor blade restoration method

A variable stator vane assembly for a gas turbine engine including a bushing that facilitates extending a useful life of the stator vane assembly is described. The stator vane assembly includes a spacer and a vane secured to an engine casing. The bushing is between the spacer and vane, and prevents the spacer and the vane from contacting the engine casing. The bushing is fabricated from several materials formed in a matrix, such that at least a portion of the bushing is electrically conductive. During engine operation, a conductive path is realized through the bushing that discharges electrical charges.

Variable stator vane bushing

An article and a method for improving an article that results in a reduction or elimination of damage due to fretting from contact of similar metals. The invention specifically reduces wear-related fretting between titanium alloy parts by lowering the stresses between mating parts. An aluminum bronze coating is applied to one of the parts. The aluminum bronze coating provides an improvement over prior art coatings in reducing coefficient of friction between the parts. Additionally, the cumulative stresses at the surface of the parts is reduced by a dual intensity peening treatment. This involves a first peening operation using large peening media that provides a compressive stress to the required depth. This first peening operation is followed by a second peening operation that provides additional compressive stresses closer to the dovetail surface. The combined metallurgical and mechanical improvement results in a system with less susceptibility to fretting damage and corresponding improved fatigue resistance.

Dual intensity peening and aluminum-bronze wear coating surface enhancement

A dovetail of a rotor blade is mounted in a complementary slot in a rotor disk. Life of the dovetail is simulated by providing a specimen dovetail mounted in a complementary slot in a fixture. Relative stiffness of the specimen dovetail and fixture are tailored to simulate the loading profile between the blade dovetail and rotor disk. Load is cycled between the specimen dovetail and fixture for determining life of the dovetail.

Simulated dovetail testing

A rotor blade includes an airfoil, an integral platform, and a dovetail integrally joined to the platform. The dovetail includes a neck extending between a pair of dovetail lobes configured to engage a complementary slot in a rotor disk. The dovetail includes an undercut extending between an outer face of the dovetail lobes and the neck for introducing a stress concentration thereat. The stress concentration relieves stress at the outer face at the expense of the neck for increasing the high cycle fatigue life of the blade.

Growing community of inventors

Lebanon, OH, United States of America

William Terence Dingwell