Airfoil Mount Cooling Layout for Turbomachine Platform Film Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional manufacturing methods face challenges in creating cooling passages and film cooling holes for turbomachine components due to fragile and complex cores, which are costly and obstructed by braze materials, particularly in the platform area behind the airfoil body trailing edge.
Innovation Solution
An airfoil component with a primary cooling plenum, impingement cooling member, collection plenum, and cooling passages, along with mount cooling plenums and second cooling openings, is additively manufactured to enable precise cooling of turbomachine components, including platforms, using impingement and film cooling techniques.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If conventional casting and drilling methods are used to create cooling passages and film cooling holes, then manufacturing process is simpler, but the cooling holes are obstructed by braze materials and manufacturing precision deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling system is divided into multiple independent components: a airfoil component with integrated cooling passages, a separate platform component, and an airfoil mount component. This segmentation allows each component to be manufactured independently with precise cooling features, then assembled together, avoiding the need for complex internal cores that would be required for integrated manufacturing of the entire assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The airfoil mount acts as an intermediary component that bridges the airfoil body and the platform. It includes a mount cooling plenum with second cooling openings that provide a dedicated cooling pathway for the platform sidewall area, mediating the cooling function between the airfoil's primary cooling system and the platform's cooling requirements.
2Manufacturing precision
If additive manufacturing is used to manufacture the airfoil component, then manufacturing precision and cooling capability are improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple cooling functions are merged into a unified additive manufacturing process. The airfoil component integrates the primary cooling plenum, impingement cooling member with plurality of impingement openings, collection plenum, and multiple cooling passages with first cooling openings all as single integrated features manufactured in one additive process, achieving complex geometry with high precision without assembly steps.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the airfoil component are given different cooling characteristics through localized features: the impingement cooling member provides intense localized cooling at specific spots, the plurality of cooling passages provide distributed cooling throughout the airfoil body, and the first cooling openings are strategically positioned at pressure side, suction side, and trailing edge for targeted cooling zones.
3Reliability
If cooling holes are provided in the platform sidewall, then cooling effectiveness is improved, but braze material fills the cooling holes causing manufacturing difficulties
Solution Approach 1:
The platform cooling function is segmented from the airfoil component and integrated into the separate airfoil mount component. The mount cooling plenum with second cooling openings provides dedicated cooling for the platform sidewall area without requiring cooling holes to be drilled through the platform itself, avoiding the braze material fill problem entirely.
Solution Approach 2:
The airfoil mount serves as an intermediary cooling system that delivers coolant to the platform sidewall region through second cooling openings in its own structure, mediating the cooling function without requiring direct modification of the platform's sidewall surface where braze material would obstruct cooling holes.
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
The solution provides enhanced cooling capabilities, overcoming conventional manufacturing limitations, resulting in improved performance and efficiency of turbomachine components.
Implementation Method 1
a primary cooling plenum extending through the airfoil body for directing a coolant therethrough
Implementation Method 2
an impingement cooling member within the primary cooling plenum, the impingement cooling member including a plurality of impingement openings defined therein configured to direct the coolant from the primary cooling plenum toward an inner surface of part of the airfoil body
Implementation Method 3
a collection plenum defined in the airfoil body configured to collect the coolant exiting the plurality of impingement openings
Implementation Method 4
a plurality of cooling passages defined in the airfoil body and in fluid communication with the collection plenum, each of the plurality of cooling passages extending to at least one first film cooling opening through one of the pressure side, the suction side, or the trailing edge of the airfoil body
Implementation Method 5
a plurality of second cooling openings defined in the flow path facing surface of each airfoil mount downstream of the trailing edge, the plurality of second cooling openings in fluid communication with the mount cooling plenum
Data Source
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AI summary
An airfoil component (138) includes an airfoil body (142) having a pressure side (144), a suction side (146), a trailing edge (148), and an airfoil mount (154). A collection plenum (194) is defined in the airfoil body (142) and is configured to collect coolant (185) exiting from impingement openings (188) in an impingement cooling member (186) therein. Cooling passages (200) are defined in the airfoil body (142) and in fluid communication with the collection plenum (194) and extend to first film cooling opening(s)(202) in part(s) of the airfoil body (142). A mount cooling plenum (210) is defined, at least in part, in the airfoil mount (154) and in fluid communication with the collection plenum (194). Second cooling openings (220) are defined in a flow path facing surface (160) of the airfoil mount (154) downstream of the trailing edge (148) and are in fluid communication with the mount cooling plenum (210). The second film cooling holes (220) cool the airfoil mount (154) and any platform (128, 130) coupled thereto. The airfoil component (138) can be additively manufactured.