CMC Flange Cooling Cavities for Thick-Section Thermal Gradients
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Solution Overview
Problem
CMC components with flanges, such as blade outer air seals, face challenges in cooling due to increased material thickness under flanges, leading to higher thermal gradients and thermal stresses, which existing methods fail to adequately address.
Innovation Solution
Introduce cooling cavities beneath flanges during the layup or densification of CMC components, with cooling fluid inlet and outlet passages, using tooling or fugitive materials to form channels for effective cooling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If cooling structures are added to CMC components, then cooling efficiency is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by positioning cooling cavities specifically beneath flanges where thermal gradients are most severe. The cooling structure is not uniformly distributed but concentrated in the high-thermal-stress region, providing targeted cooling where needed most while minimizing overall structural complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces cooling cavities as a new dimensional feature within the existing CMC component structure. By creating internal voids and channels within the flange region, the patent adds a thermal management dimension without fundamentally redesigning the external geometry of the component.
2Strength
If material thickness is increased to provide flanges, then structural strength is improved, but cooling efficiency deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the flange structure by introducing cooling cavities that divide the solid material into separate regions. This segmentation creates internal cooling channels while maintaining the external flange geometry needed for structural strength, effectively splitting the material into load-bearing and cooling-function zones.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes a porous or hollowed-out structure within the flange by creating cooling cavities. This porous approach reduces the effective material thickness in critical cooling regions while maintaining overall flange integrity, allowing cooling fluid flow through the structure to enhance heat dissipation.
3Manufacturing precision
If cooling cavities are introduced during layup, then manufacturing precision is improved, but ease of manufacture deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by incorporating cooling cavity formation during the layup process itself, before densification. Tooling or fugitive materials are positioned in advance to define cavity locations, ensuring precise positioning is built into the structure during the forming stage rather than requiring post-processing adjustments.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses tooling or fugitive materials as intermediaries to form cooling cavities. These temporary structures facilitate cavity creation during manufacturing and are subsequently removed or degraded, leaving the desired cooling geometry without requiring complex direct-forming equipment.
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
Reduces thermal gradients and thermal stresses by enhancing cooling efficiency, thereby prolonging the operational lifespan of CMC components.
Implementation Method 1
CMC components have comparably lower thermal conductivity
Implementation Method 2
precautions can be taken to cool CMC components by subjecting the components to a flow of cooling fluid
Data Source
AI summary
A method is described for introducing cooling cavities into CMC components beneath flanges such as T-shaped flanges within the CMC components. During layup, a base of the CMC component from a plurality of ceramic fiber plies in which a cooling cavity is formed below the connection region between the flange and the base. Cooling fluid inlet passages are provided to permit cooling fluid to enter the cooling cavity and thereby cool the internal region of the CMC component to reduce formation of thermal stresses.