Boundary Layer Turbomachine Disk Deflection Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Boundary layer turbomachines face limitations due to disk deflection under operating loads, leading to potential contact with other disks or structures, and efficiency issues, which hinder their practical application.
Innovation Solution
The design includes disks oriented perpendicular to the axis of rotation with tapered outer edges, a helical baffle for fluid movement, and spacers arranged in a Fibonacci or Golden ratio configuration to minimize deflection and enhance efficiency, along with a debris trap and venturi configuration for improved fluid flow and energy transfer.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Device complexity
If thin disks are used in boundary layer turbomachine, then device complexity is reduced, but disk deflection increases causing contact with other disks and housing
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a radial dimension to the disk design by incorporating curved surfaces and varying thickness profiles. Instead of simple flat thin disks, the disks are designed with radial curvature and thickness variation that provides structural rigidity while maintaining the thin-disk boundary layer characteristics. This dimensional enhancement resolves the contradiction by adding structural strength without significantly increasing overall device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies parameter changes by varying the disk thickness, curvature radius, and material properties across different radial positions. The disks have non-uniform thickness profiles and curved surfaces that optimize both structural integrity and fluid dynamics performance. This allows thin disks to maintain rigidity and prevent deflection-induced contact while preserving the boundary layer effects needed for turbomachine operation.
2Productivity
If disk spacing is reduced to improve efficiency, then fluid drag increases causing excessive deflection and potential contact
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating non-uniform disk spacing and varying disk properties at different locations. The curved surfaces and varying thickness of disks create localized flow patterns that optimize fluid drag distribution. This allows reduced spacing in regions where efficiency is critical while maintaining adequate spacing in regions where deflection control is prioritized, resolving the contradiction between efficiency and force management.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates curved and spheroidal surfaces on the disks rather than flat surfaces. This curvature modifies the fluid flow patterns between disks, distributing drag forces more evenly and reducing peak stresses that cause deflection. The curved surfaces maintain efficient fluid transfer while minimizing excessive deflection even at reduced disk spacing.
3Reliability
If disk thickness is increased to reduce deflection, then boundary layer effects are diminished reducing efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies parameter changes by creating non-uniform thickness profiles where disk thickness varies radially. The disks are thinnest at the outer edges where boundary layer effects are most important for fluid transfer, and thicker toward the center where structural rigidity is needed to prevent deflection. This gradient in thickness parameter optimizes both rigidity and boundary layer efficiency simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by giving different parts of the disk different thickness characteristics. The outer peripheral regions maintain thin profiles to preserve boundary layer effects for efficient fluid transfer, while the central and support regions have increased thickness to provide structural rigidity. This localized differentiation resolves the contradiction between rigidity and efficiency.
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 configuration reduces disk deflection, increases efficiency, and facilitates bidirectional fluid flow, enhancing the turbomachine's operational reliability and energy conversion capabilities.
Implementation Method 1
fluid drags on closely spaced rotating disks due to viscosity and adhesion of a surface layer of the fluid
Implementation Method 2
fluid drags on closely spaced rotating disks due to viscosity and adhesion of a surface layer of the fluid
Implementation Method 3
one acting tangentially in the direction of rotation and the other acting radially outward. The combined effect of these tangential and centrifugal forces is to propel the fluid with continuously increasing velocity in a spiral path
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A
Figure 2B
AI summary
A boundary layer turbomachine is disclosed and described. The boundary layer turbomachine can include a housing defining an interior space and having an inlet opening and an outlet opening to facilitate movement of a fluid through the housing. The boundary layer turbomachine can also include partition circumferentially dividing the interior space into an outer chamber and a rotor chamber located radially inward of the outer chamber. The partition can have partition openings such that fluid is movable through the partition between the outer chamber and the rotor chamber. Additionally, the boundary layer turbomachine can include a rotor assembly disposed in the rotor chamber and configured to rotate about an axis of rotation. The rotor assembly can have a plurality of disks spaced apart along the axis of rotation and defining an interior opening along the axis of rotation. The fluid can pass through gaps between the disks and the interior opening as the fluid moves through the housing. A corresponding method of operating the boundary layer turbomachine is also provided.