Patent application number | Description | Published |
20110064340 | METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR STABILIZING A SQUEEZE FILM DAMPER FOR A ROTATING MACHINE - A rotor bearing system for a rotating machine includes a housing having a bore that provides an inner surface. A bearing assembly is disposed within the bore and includes an outer surface. An annular cavity is provided radially between the outer surface and the inner surface. At least one protrusion extends radially outwardly from at least one of the inner and outer surfaces to an apex and into the annular cavity. A radial gap is arranged between the apex and the opposite surface from which the protrusion extends. In the disclosed example, the annular cavity is filled with an oil to provide a squeeze film damper between the housing and the bearing assembly. The protrusions exert a hydrodynamic preload on the bearing assembly, which reduces vibration during operation of the rotating machine. | 03-17-2011 |
20110110765 | INLET GUIDE VANE DRIVE SYSTEM WITH SPRING PRELOAD ON MECHANICAL LINKAGE - A variable vane system includes a plurality of vanes each being pivotal about an axis. A mechanical linkage drives the plurality of vanes to rotate about the axis. The mechanical linkage includes a ring gear to rotate, and in turn drive the plurality of vanes. There is at least one rod to drive the ring gear to rotate. The rod is driven by a hydraulic servo motor. A spring bias force is provided in the mechanical linkage to resist either translational or rotational oscillation. | 05-12-2011 |
20110274537 | BLADE EXCITATION REDUCTION METHOD AND ARRANGEMENT - An impeller shroud is configured to receive an impeller. The impeller shroud establishes a plurality of air-bleed holes configured to communicate air with an impeller. The air-bleed holes are circumferentially distributed about the impeller shroud. The circumferential spacing between some adjacent air-bleed holes within the plurality of air-bleed holes is different than the circumferential spacing between other adjacent air-bleed holes within the plurality of air-bleed holes. A diffuser vane is configured to direct pressurized air to the combustor, the diffuser vanes are circumferentially distributed about the blade exducer. The circumferential spacing between some adjacent diffuser vanes within the plurality of diffuser vanes is different than the circumferential spacing between other adjacent diffuser vanes within the plurality of diffuser vanes. | 11-10-2011 |
20110277573 | Method of Compensating Gear Carrier Bearing Misalignment under Load - A method of compensating for load-induced twisting of a gear assembly under load that includes a gear on a gear shaft, bearings on each side of the gear that support the gear shaft and a carrier fastened to a stationary support surface that mounts a proximal one of the bearings near the stationary support surface and mounts a distal one of the bearings away from the stationary support surface. The method includes the steps of determining the twisting deflection of a distal bearing axis of rotation for the distal bearing relative to a proximal bearing axis of rotation for the proximal bearing and offsetting the position of the distal bearing axis of rotation relative to the proximal bearing axis of rotation in the carrier opposite the determined deflection under no gear loading. | 11-17-2011 |
20110280728 | RADIAL FLOW TURBINE WHEEL FOR A GAS TURBINE ENGINE - A radial-flow turbine wheel for a gas turbine engine includes a Scallop Radius defined between an axis of rotation and the backface between each of the plurality of turbine blades, a Tip Radius defined between the axis of rotation and a tip of each of the plurality of turbine blades such that a Scallop Radius/Tip Radius defines a ratio less than 0.6. This enables a lower temperature scallop region which drives lower transient stresses and increases the Low Cycle Fatigue life of the turbine wheel. | 11-17-2011 |
20120283994 | TURBINE BLADE BASE LOAD BALANCING - An example method of designing blade lobes of a turbomachine blade and corresponding disk lobes includes determining contact areas between the blade lobes on a blade model and the disk loads on a disk model when the turbomachine blade is in a loaded position. The method adjusts the blade lobes, the disk lobes, or both, so that gaps are established between the blade lobes and the disk lobes at the contact areas when the turbomachine blade is in an unloaded position. The size of the gaps varies. | 11-08-2012 |
20120288373 | ROTOR WITH ASYMMETRIC BLADE SPACING - A turbine apparatus comprises a rotor with a hub section defined about a rotational axis and a plurality of blades attached to the hub section. The plurality of blades comprises a first group having a first angular spacing in a first circumferential sector of the rotor, and a second group having a second angular spacing in a second circumferential sector of the rotor. The first angular spacing is different from the second angular spacing, and the rotor blades are asymmetric about the rotational axis. | 11-15-2012 |
20120321451 | Bearing Housing Cooling System - A cooling system for the rear bearing capsule of a turbine in a gas turbine engine supported by an exhaust cone attached to multiple exit guide vanes that extend radially from the exhaust cone to an exhaust housing, comprises: an inlet air flow path through each guide vane between a source of cool ambient air and the rear bearing capsule; and at least one discharge air flow path that receives air from the inlet air flow path through each guide vane and passes the air through the exhaust cone from the rear bearing capsule to a high velocity gas flow path in the exhaust housing. | 12-20-2012 |
20130017090 | SCALLOP CURVATURE FOR RADIAL TURBINE WHEELAANM Duong; Loc QuangAACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Duong; Loc Quang San Diego CA USAANM Hu; XiaolanAACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Hu; Xiaolan San Diego CA USAANM Yang; GaoAACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Yang; Gao San Diego CA USAANM Jones; Anthony C.AACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Jones; Anthony C. San Diego CA US - A turbine wheel is disposed about an axis and has a back face including a plurality of lobes disposed about a periphery of the back face. The lobes define scalloped areas therebetween. The scalloped areas are further defined by a radius BR | 01-17-2013 |
20130017091 | RADIAL TURBINE BACKFACE CURVATURE STRESS REDUCTIONAANM Duong; Loc QuangAACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Duong; Loc Quang San Diego CA USAANM Hu; XiaolanAACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Hu; Xiaolan San Diego CA USAANM Yang; GaoAACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Yang; Gao San Diego CA USAANM Jones; Anthony C.AACI San DiegoAAST CAAACO USAAGP Jones; Anthony C. San Diego CA US - A turbine wheel is disposed about an axis and has a back having a separator disposed thereon, an inner undercut disposed between the separator and the axis, and an outer undercut disposed between the separator and an outer periphery of the back face. The inner undercut is defined by a first radius blending toward the axis and into a first flat section, and further defined by a second radius blending into the first flat section and into the separator. | 01-17-2013 |
20130034446 | TURBINE BLADE POCKET PIN STRESS RELIEF - A turbine blade comprises an airfoil having a pressure side and a suction side, and extending from a leading edge to a trailing edge. The airfoil has a tip remote from a mounting root, and a pocket extending inwardly of the tip. The pocket has spaced walls with one wall associated with the pressure side of the airfoil, and an opposed wall associated with the suction side. A pin extends across the pocket and connects the opposed walls. A slot is formed in the pin at a location intermediate ends of the pin which connect to the opposed walls. A method for identifying a location for the pin along a distance between a leading edge and a trailing edge of the pocket utilizes a modal analysis, and seeks to find a location where both a reaction force and a moment are lower than they might be at other locations. | 02-07-2013 |
20130039770 | GAS TURBINE ROTOR WITH PURGE BLADES - A rotor for a gas turbine engine includes a plurality of turbine blades extending radially outwardly of a rotor body. A plurality of purge blades are positioned to rotate with the rotor body, and to drive air radially outwardly toward the turbine blades. | 02-14-2013 |
20130236325 | BLADE TIP PROFILE - An airfoil includes a blade having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a pressure side, a suction side, a tip, and a scoop. The scoop extends along the tip of the blade. The scoop comprises a difference in a radial height of the blade from a pressure side to a suction side of the blade. The radial height of the blade at the pressure side is less than the radial height of the blade at the suction side. | 09-12-2013 |
20130236326 | BLADE POCKET DESIGN - An airfoil includes a blade having a pocket recess therein and one or more features disposed within the pocket recess. The one or more features are configured to disrupt pressure oscillations within the pocket recess. In another embodiment, a blade is disclosed having a first wall and a second wall. The first wall is disposed on a suction side of the blade and the second wall is disposed on a pressure side of the blade. The second wall is connected to the first wall at a leading edge of the blade. Together the first wall and the second wall form a portion of a pocket recess and the pocket recess is disposed asymmetrically with respect to a camber line of the blade. | 09-12-2013 |
20140017060 | RADIAL COMPRESSOR BLADE CLEARANCE CONTROL SYSTEM - A diaphragm assembly includes a cylinder, a circular flange, and a diaphragm. The cylinder defines an axis and includes a first end and a second end opposite the first end. The circular flange is coaxial with the cylinder and at a greater radial distance from the axis than the cylinder. The diaphragm extends from the second end of the cylinder to the flange. | 01-16-2014 |
20140112760 | REDUCTION OF EQUALLY SPACED TURBINE NOZZLE VANE EXCITATION - A reduction in excitation amplitudes affecting turbine blade durability in a turbine nozzle assembly having a plurality of vanes and turbine blades, includes: identifying a turbine blade design of the turbine nozzle assembly; performing a modal model analysis of at least one of the turbine blades in the turbine blade design; reducing aerodynamic impact by ensuring that each of the turbine blades is free of aero-excitation from an upstream flow at the vanes in an operating speed range; identifying blade natural frequencies with respect to the nozzle vanes; and modifying a trailing edge of at least one of the vanes to reduce the excitation amplitudes. | 04-24-2014 |
20140174098 | TURBINE DISC WITH REDUCED NECK STRESS CONCENTRATION - A disc with two sides includes a hub having a bore and a bore radius, a neck, and a rim. The neck is connected to and radially outward of the hub and has an inner wedge with a curved section on one side of the disc, an outer wedge with a curved section on that same side of the disc, and a center section between the wedges with a flat side on that same side of the disc. The rim is connected to and radially outward of the neck, the rim having a radius that is no more than seven times greater than the bore radius. | 06-26-2014 |