Adjustable Mixing Housing for Gas Turbine Combustor Alignment

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Solution Overview

Problem

The assembly of mixing housings in gas turbines is hindered by significant dimensional, shape, and positional variances between the mixing housing and the inner housing of the skeleton turbine, necessitating the production of specific combustors and complex alignment processes.

Innovation Solution

An adjustable mixing housing arrangement with a bolt, pressure plate, and wedge washer adjustment device, allowing for spherical movement and maintaining concentric position with the flame tube, enables alignment with the inner housing without individual template transfer, facilitating the use of standardized combustors and retrofitting existing machines.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If a specific combustor is manufactured for each gas turbine to accommodate dimensional and positional variances, then alignment precision is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvealignment precisionVSAvoidcombustor customization
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The mixing housing is designed with adjustable positioning relative to the outer housing, allowing dynamic adaptation to different inner housing positions. The adjustment device enables the mixing housing to be shifted radially by approximately 4 mm to compensate for production variances, eliminating the need for individual template transfer and custom combustor manufacturing for each gas turbine.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Manufacturing precision

If individual template transfer is used to adapt mixing housing to inner housing position, then alignment accuracy is improved, but loss of time and productivity decrease

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvealignment accuracyVSAvoidassembly time
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The adjustment device is pre-installed on the mixing housing, allowing for quick and easy positioning adjustments during assembly. This eliminates the time-consuming process of individual template transfer and manual alignment, while still achieving the required alignment accuracy between the mixing housing and inner housing.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

3Ease of manufacture

If standardized combustors are used without adjustment capability, then ease of manufacture is improved, but adaptability to positional variances worsens

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovestandardizationVSAvoidadaptability to positional variances
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The mixing housing incorporates an adjustment device that enables standardized combustors to adapt to positional variances in the inner housing. The adjustable positioning mechanism allows the mixing housing to be shifted radially to accommodate production tolerances, maintaining both standardization benefits and adaptability to individual gas turbine configurations.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

Data Source

PatentEP1994260B1Combustion chamber for a gas turbine with a positioning system
Publication Date: 2017.09.20 SIEMENS AG
  • EP1994260B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP1994260B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP1994260B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Disclosed is a method for mounting a mixing housing in a gas turbine comprising a flame tube (2), an interior housing (8), and a mixing housing (4) which is disposed between the flame tube (2) and the interior housing (8). In said method, the mixing housing (4) is adjusted relative to the flame tube (2) and the interior housing (8) by means of an adjusting device (8) that is provided for said purpose.