CMC Component with Integral Cooling Channels
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Solution Overview
Problem
Designing CMC components for gas turbine engines that balance strength and thermal gradients is challenging, particularly in regions where maximum interface temperature and bulk proportional stress targets are violated, while also requiring low through-wall thermal gradients and high cross-sectional moments of inertia to react to pressure loads.
Innovation Solution
A fiber-reinforced component with a fiber sleeve forming a cooling channel, enclosed by multiple fiber plies, and a matrix material between the fibers, manufactured using braided fiber sleeves to create integral cooling channels that reduce thermal gradients and enhance structural stiffness and resistance to crack propagation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If CMC components are designed to provide large cross-sectional moments of inertia to react to high pressure loads, then structural strength is improved, but through-wall thermal gradient increases
Solution Approach 1:
The component is segmented into multiple fiber plies (first ply, second ply, third ply, fourth ply) with cooling channels integrated between them. This segmentation allows the structure to provide large cross-sectional moments of inertia for strength while simultaneously incorporating cooling channels to reduce thermal gradients, resolving the contradiction between structural strength and thermal management.
2Temperature
If cooling channels are added to reduce thermal gradients, then thermal performance is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling channels are merged with the structural component itself rather than being separate attachments. The fiber sleeves forming cooling channels are integrated between the fiber plies during manufacturing, creating a unified structure that provides both cooling function and structural strength without increasing device complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The component uses composite fiber-reinforced structures where fiber plies are combined with fiber sleeves to form an integrated cooling structure. This composite approach allows the cooling channels to be part of the load-bearing structure, improving thermal performance without adding separate cooling components that would increase complexity.
3Strength
If fiber plies are used to provide structural strength, then mechanical properties are improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The cooling channels are formed using fiber sleeves as preliminary structures before the final densification process. The fiber sleeves are placed in position during preform assembly, and the entire structure (including cooling channels and fiber plies) is densified together in a single step, simplifying manufacturing despite the complex multi-ply structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A fiber-reinforced component for use in a gas turbine engine includes a fiber sleeve forming a cooling channel and a plurality of fiber plies enclosing the fiber sleeve, with the plurality of fiber plies forming first and second walls separated by the fiber sleeve. The fiber-reinforced component further includes a matrix material between fibers of the fiber sleeve and the plurality of fiber plies.