CMC Vane and Outer Air Seal Assembly for Cooling and Leakage Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gas turbine engines face challenges in efficiently cooling and controlling the flow of combustion products through the turbine section while maintaining a compact design, particularly with the integration of ceramic matrix composite components.
Innovation Solution
A combined gas turbine engine vane and blade outer air seal assembly is integrated using ceramic matrix composite materials, eliminating separate parts and incorporating cooling channels within the vane and air seal structure to enhance cooling and reduce leakage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If conventional materials are used for turbine components, then manufacturing and cooling are simpler, but they cannot withstand higher temperatures and suffer from thermal stress and leakage issues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies ceramic matrix composite (CMC) materials for the vane and blade outer air seal assembly. CMCs provide superior high-temperature resistance compared to conventional materials, enabling the components to withstand higher turbine temperatures while maintaining structural integrity and reducing thermal stress. The composite structure inherently provides better thermal stability and resistance to thermal fatigue.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent integrates the blade outer air seal directly into the vane structure, creating a combined vane-air seal assembly. This merging eliminates leakage paths between separate components and improves sealing effectiveness. The integrated design ensures that cooling air is properly directed through the air seal to prevent combustion product leakage while maintaining structural strength at high temperatures.
2Temperature
If cooling air is provided to turbine components, then thermal stress is reduced, but energy is lost through cooling air leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the vane and blade outer air seal into a single integrated assembly. This merging ensures that cooling air directed to the vane is contained and properly channeled through the air seal structure, preventing leakage. The integrated design creates a sealed system where cooling air is efficiently utilized to cool both the vane and air seal components without being lost to the combustion chamber.
Solution Approach 2:
The blade outer air seal acts as an intermediary structure that controls the flow of cooling air. It directs cooling air along the outer surface of the turbine blade, creating a protective barrier that prevents hot combustion products from contacting the blade while containing the cooling air within the seal cavity to prevent energy loss.
3Reliability
If blade outer air seals are positioned radially outwardly of turbine blades, then leakage is minimized, but manufacturing and integration become more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the blade outer air seal with the vane structure to form an integrated vane-air seal assembly. This combination simplifies manufacturing by reducing the number of separate parts and assembly steps. The air seal is formed as an integral part of the vane, eliminating the need for separate installation and ensuring proper positioning radially outwardly of the turbine blade for effective sealing.
Solution Approach 2:
The use of ceramic matrix composite materials allows for the integration of complex geometries including the radially outwardly extending air seal portion. CMCs provide the necessary strength and thermal resistance to maintain the integrated structure under high-temperature turbine conditions, enabling the complex but effective sealing geometry to be manufactured as a single piece.
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 integration provides improved thermal management and reduced leakage, enhancing the efficiency and compactness of the turbine section while utilizing the high-temperature resistance of CMC materials.
Implementation Method 1
The outer platform has a cooling channel that extends into the airfoil to receive cooling air
Implementation Method 2
cooling air passages within the outer platform and the blade outer air seal and connected into the cooling channel such that air can be communicated from the cooling channel into the blade outer air seal
Implementation Method 3
The CMCs can withstand higher temperatures than many other materials
Implementation Method 4
blade outer air seals positioned radially outwardly of turbine blades to ensure that the products of combustion do not pass over the turbine section without driving the turbine rotors
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
Figure 5A~5D
AI summary
A combined gas turbine engine vane (122, 222, 322, 422) and blade outer air seal assembly includes a vane (122, 222, 322, 422) having an airfoil (127) extending from a leading edge (124) to a trailing edge (108), and has an outer platform (105). The outer platform (105) has a cooling channel (112) that extends into the airfoil (127) to receive cooling air. The outer platform (105) extends to an integral blade outer air seal to be positioned radially outwardly of a turbine blade (102) in a gas turbine engine (20). At least a portion of the vane (122, 222, 322, 422) and the blade outer air seal are formed of ceramic matrix composite materials.