Non-uniform Cooling Apertures for Combustor Wall Thermal Stress
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Solution Overview
Problem
Turbine engine combustors face challenges with high thermal stresses in quench aperture grommets and heat shields due to high temperatures, which existing designs fail to adequately address, leading to potential structural issues and reduced efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The design incorporates non-uniformly distributed cooling apertures in quench aperture bodies that are attached to heat shield panels, allowing for targeted cooling and reduced thermal gradients, thereby mitigating thermal stresses. These apertures are configured to direct cooling air in a manner that enhances convective heat transfer and film cooling, using a combination of radial, tangential, and acutely angled paths to optimize heat dissipation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional cooling designs are used in combustor walls, then the structure is simple, but thermal stresses in quench aperture grommets and heat shields are excessively high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements non-uniformly distributed cooling apertures with varying sizes and orientations in different regions of the quench aperture body. This local quality variation optimizes cooling efficiency in high-temperature zones while reducing thermal stresses in specific areas, directly addressing the contradiction between structural integrity and thermal stress reduction.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling aperture design incorporates dynamic adaptation through varying aperture orientations (radial, tangential, and acute angles) and sizes. This dynamic configuration allows the cooling system to adapt to different thermal load distributions, enhancing structural integrity while managing thermal stresses effectively.
2Temperature
If uniform cooling apertures are used, then the design is simple, but thermal gradients are not adequately reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs non-uniform aperture distribution where aperture size, shape, and orientation vary by location. This local quality approach creates targeted cooling zones that effectively reduce thermal gradients in high-stress areas without requiring complex systems throughout the entire structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The cooling apertures are arranged asymmetrically with different orientations (radial, tangential, acute angles) and varying dimensions. This asymmetric design optimizes heat dissipation patterns to match the non-uniform thermal load distribution, reducing thermal gradients while maintaining manageable design complexity.
3Stress or pressure
If high cooling air flow is used, then thermal stresses are reduced, but energy consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The non-uniform aperture distribution concentrates cooling air flow in regions with highest thermal stresses while reducing or eliminating cooling in lower-stress areas. This localized approach reduces overall energy consumption while maintaining effective thermal stress reduction where most needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies cooling air flow selectively and partially - using high cooling intensity only in critical high-temperature zones rather than uniformly across the entire combustor wall. This partial action approach reduces energy consumption while still achieving the necessary thermal stress reduction in critical areas.
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 effectively reduces thermal stresses and improves the structural integrity of quench aperture bodies by optimizing cooling air flow and distribution, leading to enhanced performance and longevity of turbine engine components.
Implementation Method 1
enhances convective heat transfer
Implementation Method 2
film cooling
Data Source
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AI summary
An assembly is provided for a turbine engine. This turbine engine assembly includes a combustor wall, which includes a shell, a heat shield and an annular body. The body at least partially defines a first aperture through the shell and the heat shield. The body also defines one or more second apertures through which air is directed into the first aperture and provides non-uniform cooling to the body.