Additive Manufacturing Internally Cooled Blisk
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current turbine blisk designs face challenges in weight reduction, manufacturability, and cost due to complex machining requirements and limited cooling capabilities, especially at high temperatures, and existing methods for assembly and repair are cumbersome and prone to errors.
Innovation Solution
The development of an internally cooled blisk manufactured using additive manufacturing processes, which integrates cooling fluid flow passages and a root-ball structure with discrete branches, allowing for weight reduction and efficient cooling, eliminating the need for dovetail structures and reducing stress concentrations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional machining methods are used to manufacture blisk, then manufacturing precision can be achieved, but manufacturing cost and complexity increase substantially
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical machining processes with additive manufacturing technology. The blisk is manufactured by selectively depositing material layer by layer according to digital models, eliminating the need for complex subtractive machining operations. This substitution of manufacturing methodology resolves the contradiction by achieving precise geometric control through digital fabrication while reducing mechanical complexity and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental manufacturing parameters from subtractive (machining) to additive (deposition). By controlling material deposition parameters such as layer thickness, deposition rate, and selective melting/curving, the process achieves high manufacturing precision while simplifying the overall manufacturing system and reducing costs associated with extensive machining operations.
2Temperature
If internal cooling features are added to blisk, then cooling capability improves, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses additive manufacturing to create internal cooling channels and features that would be extremely difficult or impossible to manufacture using conventional machining. The digital modeling and selective deposition processes allow complex three-dimensional cooling passages to be integrated directly into the blisk structure without requiring complex tooling or multi-step machining operations, thus improving cooling capability while managing manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from two-dimensional cooling surface patterns to three-dimensional internal cooling channels embedded within the blisk structure. Additive manufacturing enables the creation of volumetric cooling features that extend through the thickness of the blade and disk, providing superior cooling capability while the digital fabrication process manages the inherent geometric complexity.
3Weight of moving object
If blade/disk structure is made integral, then weight is reduced, but manufacturing cost and risk increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the blade and disk into a single integral blisk structure manufactured in one additive process. This merging eliminates the need for separate manufacturing and assembly operations, reducing total weight by removing fasteners and joint structures while also reducing manufacturing cost and risk by consolidating the production process into a single digital fabrication operation with fewer potential failure points.
4Weight of moving object
If advanced materials such as CMCs are used, then weight reduction is achieved, but manufacturability and interface challenges arise
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the material parameter from conventional metals or complex composites like CMCs to materials that are optimized for additive manufacturing processes. By selecting powders or filaments suitable for selective deposition and melting/curving, the process achieves weight reduction while maintaining ease of manufacture through digital fabrication, avoiding the interface and manufacturability challenges associated with ceramic-matrix composite materials.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach results in a lighter, more efficient turbine blisk with improved cooling capabilities, reduced manufacturing costs, and enhanced reliability through the use of additive manufacturing techniques, enabling weight savings and increased performance.
Implementation Method 1
depositing a powder into a chamber, applying an energy source to the deposited powder and consolidating the powder into a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the defined configuration
Implementation Method 2
one or more cooling fluid flow passages in fluid communication with an input of a cooling fluid flow
Data Source
AI summary
A method of manufacturing an internally cooled blisk by additive manufacturing processes to provide weight reduction and power-to-weight ratio improvement, leading to improved efficiency, a decrease in fuel burn and lifecycle costs in an engine employing the internally cooled blisk. The method of manufacturing including defining a configuration for the internally cooled blisk, the configuration comprising a disk, an annular array of angularly spaced blades extending about a periphery of the disk and one or more internal cooling features defined within the internally cooled blisk. The method further including the step of programming the configuration into an additive manufacturing system. A powder is deposited into a chamber and an energy source is applied to the deposited powder to consolidate the powder into a cross-sectional shape corresponding to the defined configuration. Additionally provided is an internally cooled blisk.