CMC Turbine Shroud Ring Assembly with Modular Support Structure
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing turbine ring assemblies for turbomachines, particularly in aeronautical gas turbines, require improvements in structure and installation efficiency, with a need to reduce axial dimension tolerances and the number of assembly parts while minimizing weight and cooling air flow requirements.
Innovation Solution
A turbine ring assembly comprising ceramic matrix composite angular sectors with a ring support structure that includes a spacer with flanges, an upstream force-response flange, and an air diffuser, which allows for controlled axial positioning and reduced part count, facilitating installation and weight reduction by utilizing an air diffuser to manage cooling air flow and temperature gradients.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Use of energy by moving object
If traditional metallic materials are used for turbine ring assembly, then cooling airflow requirements are high, but manufacturing and installation complexity is lower
Solution Approach 1:
The turbine ring assembly uses ceramic matrix composite (CMC) materials instead of traditional metallic materials. This composite material provides superior high-temperature performance and thermal efficiency, reducing cooling airflow requirements while maintaining structural integrity in the high-stress turbine environment.
Solution Approach 2:
The turbine ring is divided into multiple angular sectors that are assembled together using a modular support structure with spacers and flanges. This segmentation enables precise axial positioning and simplifies installation while accommodating thermal expansion and manufacturing tolerances of the CMC material.
2Manufacturing precision
If multiple parts are used in ring support structure, then positioning precision is improved, but assembly operations increase
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is segmented into spacers and flanges that can be independently positioned and assembled. This allows precise axial positioning of each component while maintaining modularity for simplified assembly operations.
Solution Approach 2:
Spacers act as intermediary components between the flanges and the turbine ring sectors, providing precise positioning and alignment. These spacers facilitate accurate axial positioning while reducing the complexity of direct flange-to-sector connections.
3Loss of energy
If CMC material is used for turbine ring, then cooling airflow is reduced, but axial dimensional tolerances increase
Solution Approach 1:
Dividing the turbine ring into angular sectors with a modular support structure allows for adjusted and compensated positioning. This segmentation enables precise axial positioning that compensates for the larger dimensional tolerances inherent in CMC material manufacturing.
Solution Approach 2:
The support structure design incorporates adjustable parameters such as spacer positioning and flange alignment that can be tuned to compensate for CMC material tolerances, achieving precise final positioning despite variations in raw material dimensions.
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 enhances axial positioning control, reduces installation complexity, and minimizes weight and cooling air flow requirements, improving the structural integrity and efficiency of the turbine ring assembly while maintaining performance.
Implementation Method 1
the air diffuser having an upstream wall fixed between the upstream load-bearing flange and the upstream area of the spacer... for the passage of cooling air and for the distribution of a cooling airflow (radial, in particular directed from the outside to the inside of the ring assembly) onto the opposite angular sector
Data Source
Figure 1
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Figure 4~5
AI summary
The invention relates to a turbine shroud ring assembly (10) extending about a longitudinal axis (X-X') and comprising a plurality of angular ring sectors(16) made of CMC material and arranged circumferentially in such a way as to form a turbine shroud ring, each sector (16) comprising a base (18) from which there extends radially an upstream tab (22) and a downstream tab (24), a ring support structure (14) comprising: a spacer (30) extending around the sectors (16) and comprising a downstream flange (36) such that the downstream tab (24) of each sector is held against the downstream flange (36), a load-reacting upstream flange (32) extending circumferentially about the longitudinal axis in such a way as to be in contact with the upstream tab (22) of each sector and fixed to an upstream region (40b) of the spacer which extends away from the upstream tab (22).