Fiber Reinforced Gas Turbine Spacer Composite
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Solution Overview
Problem
Gas turbine engine spacers constructed from single materials suffer from poor deformation, expansion, contraction, and translation properties, leading to performance issues and weight or packaging compromises, with unpredictable deformation control.
Innovation Solution
A fiber-reinforced composite material, either organic or metal matrix, is used to reinforce the spacers, which can be cured around or encapsulate them, providing enhanced strength and thermal resistance, and retained using a retention mechanism.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If spacers are constructed from single materials, then manufacturing is simpler, but deformation, expansion, contraction, and translation properties are poor
Solution Approach 1:
The spacer is constructed using composite materials consisting of a base material combined with reinforcing fibers (such as carbon fibers, glass fibers, or aramid fibers). This composite structure provides superior deformation, expansion, and contraction properties compared to single materials, while maintaining manufacturability through established composite fabrication processes.
2Device complexity
If spacers are constructed from single materials, then device complexity is reduced, but translation properties and weight control are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The use of fiber-reinforced composite materials allows for optimized weight-to-strength ratio. The composite structure enables precise control of translation properties and deformation characteristics while reducing overall weight compared to traditional single-material spacers, addressing both complexity and weight concerns.
3Ease of manufacture
If spacers are constructed from single materials, then manufacturing is easier, but temperature resistance and strength are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The composite spacer construction with fiber reinforcement provides enhanced temperature resistance and structural strength. The fiber materials (such as carbon or ceramic fibers) maintain their properties at high temperatures, allowing the spacer to withstand thermal conditions in gas turbine engines while retaining manufacturing advantages through standardized composite processes.
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 reinforced spacers exhibit improved strength, temperature resistance, and reduced strain, enabling more efficient and reliable gas turbine engine operation with lower weight and more compact packaging.
Implementation Method 1
As the gas turbine engine operates, the rotors and spacers may rotate along with the central rotating shaft. This rotation creates forces which can deform, expand, contract or translate certain gas turbine engine components, including spacers.
Implementation Method 2
the spacer comprising a fiber reinforced composite material. The fiber reinforced composite material may be an organic matrix composite or a metal matrix composite
Data Source
AI summary
A spacer of a gas turbine engine is reinforced with a fiber. The fiber can be cured with a substrate to form a fiber reinforced composite material. As a gas turbine engine operates, the rotation creates forces which can deform, expand, contract or translate certain gas turbine engine components, including spacers. These forces can adversely affect gas turbine engine performance and reliability, particularly when they are either unpredictable or difficult to control. Reinforcing a spacer with a fiber may allow a lower system weight, more compact or configurable internal packaging or a high degree of reinforcement.