Flexible Pre-Swirl Nozzle Mounting for Gas Turbine Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gas turbine engines face challenges in maintaining effective cooling of high-temperature components due to rigid mounting of pre-swirl nozzles, which limits flexibility in material properties and geometry, leading to potential leakage and reduced engine performance.
Innovation Solution
A pre-swirl nozzle is flexibly mounted to the combustor inner casing using a conical mounting component, allowing for improved displacement matching and material selection, such as titanium alloys, to achieve tight seal clearances and reduce weight, thereby enhancing cooling efficiency and engine performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If the pre-swirl nozzle is hard mounted to the combustor inner casing, then the structural stability is improved, but the flexibility in material properties and geometry is reduced, leading to poor displacement matching and potential leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The pre-swirl nozzle is changed from a rigid hard-mounted structure to a flexible mounted structure that can dynamically adapt its position and geometry. The flexible mounting allows the nozzle to accommodate thermal growth and displacement changes during engine operation, maintaining optimal sealing clearance while preserving structural integrity through elastic deformation rather than rigid constraint.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention changes the physical state and mechanical properties of the mounting system from rigid to flexible. By selecting materials with appropriate elastic moduli and thermal expansion coefficients for the flexible mounting components, the system can adjust its geometric parameters (clearance, position) in response to temperature and pressure changes, resolving the contradiction between structural stability and geometric adaptability.
2Ease of manufacture
If the pre-swirl nozzle is hard mounted, then the manufacturing simplicity is improved, but the seal clearance control is reduced, resulting in increased fluid leakage
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible mounting system replaces complex precision manufacturing requirements with dynamic adaptation. Instead of manufacturing the nozzle and casing with extremely tight tolerances to maintain seal clearance, the flexible mounting allows the clearance to be optimized during operation through elastic deformation, significantly reducing manufacturing complexity while improving seal performance.
Solution Approach 2:
The flexible mounting components are designed to exploit thermal expansion and elastic deformation to maintain optimal seal clearance across the operating temperature range. As the engine heats up, the flexible mounting deforms to compensate for differential thermal growth between the nozzle and casing, maintaining consistent sealing without requiring complex compensation mechanisms or ultra-precise manufacturing.
3Strength
If traditional hard-mounted nozzles are used, then the structural rigidity is maintained, but the weight reduction potential is lost due to inability to use lightweight materials like titanium alloys
Solution Approach 1:
The invention employs composite construction where the pre-swirl nozzle can be made from lightweight materials such as titanium alloys, and the flexible mounting system uses materials with tailored mechanical properties (varying elastic moduli, thermal expansion coefficients). This composite approach allows weight reduction in the nozzle while the flexible mounting provides the necessary structural coupling and adaptability, achieving both weight reduction and structural rigidity.
Solution Approach 2:
By changing the material parameters of the flexible mounting components (selecting materials with appropriate elastic moduli, densities, and thermal properties), the system achieves weight reduction through lightweight materials while maintaining structural rigidity through proper material selection and geometric design of the flexible mounting elements.
Data Source
AI summary
An exemplary gas turbine engine may include a compressor, a turbine, and a combustor disposed between the compressor and the turbine. The combustor generally may have an inner casing. The exemplary gas turbine may further include a pre-swirl nozzle configured to receive a cooling stream. The cooling stream may be supplied from a cooled cooling air stream. The pre-swirl nozzle may further be configured to direct at least a portion of the cooling stream to the turbine. The pre-swirl nozzle may be flexibly mounted to the inner casing of the combustor.