Fuel Injector Swaged Seal for Gas Turbine Engine
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Gas turbine engines face challenges in reducing nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions while maintaining operational efficiency, and current liquid fuel injector seals are inefficient, prone to leaks, and complicate maintenance due to space constraints and design limitations.
Innovation Solution
A fuel nozzle assembly with a cylindrical sealing surface and conical seat configuration that swages inward to form a seal between the liquid fuel injector and the hub, eliminating the need for separate seals and allowing for tighter packing and easier maintenance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If standard seals are used to seal liquid fuel injectors in gas premixers, then sealing function is provided, but device complexity increases and maintenance becomes difficult due to restrictive space limitations
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing function is merged into the injector body structure itself. The injector includes an outer jacket with a threaded surface that directly threads into the gas premixer hub, eliminating the need for separate seal components. The threading operation creates a seal through the interaction between the injector's outer jacket and the hub's internal threading, combining sealing and mechanical attachment into a single integrated feature.
Solution Approach 2:
The sealing function is extracted from separate seal components and transferred to the injector body structure. By making the injector self-contained with integrated threading surfaces, the design removes the need for additional seal parts, reducing complexity while maintaining sealing reliability.
2Reliability
If separate seals are installed to seal the liquid fuel injector, then sealing is achieved, but manufacturing complexity increases and errors can occur during assembly
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing and attachment functions are combined into a single integrated threading operation. The injector's outer jacket includes a threaded surface that directly engages with the hub's internal threading, creating both mechanical attachment and sealing in one operation, thereby simplifying manufacturing and assembly while reducing the risk of assembly errors.
3Reliability
If liquid fuel injectors are installed permanently via brazing or welding, then sealing is achieved, but ease of repair deteriorates due to inability to remove injectors
Solution Approach 1:
The connection method transitions from permanent fixed connections (brazing/welding) to a dynamic removable connection through threading. The injector can be easily inserted and removed by threading operations, allowing for simple maintenance and repair while maintaining reliable sealing during operation through the threaded interface between the injector outer jacket and hub.
4Reliability
If current seals are used with multiple sealing surfaces, then sealing coverage is increased, but loss of time increases due to longer water flushing cycles required
Solution Approach 1:
The sealing surfaces are merged into a single integrated threading interface. The threaded interaction between the injector's outer jacket and the hub creates a continuous seal that eliminates the need for multiple separate sealing surfaces, thereby reducing the time required for water flushing while maintaining comprehensive sealing coverage.
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 solution reduces NOx emissions, improves thermal protection, and simplifies maintenance by ensuring a clean fuel flow path and eliminating the need for additional seals, while maintaining efficient operation.
Implementation Method 1
The cylindrical sealing surface may swage inward along the conical seat to form a seal therebetween as the liquid fuel injector is threaded into the aperture
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4
AI summary
A fuel nozzle assembly for a gas turbine engine is disclosed herein. The fuel nozzle assembly may include a fuel injector (204) including an outer jacket (206) having a first end (208) and a second end (210) with a threaded surface (212) disposed therebetween. The first end (208) of the fuel injector (204) may include a cylindrical sealing surface (240). The fuel nozzle assembly also may include an annular hub (130) including an aperture (230) having a first end (232) and a second end (2234) with a threaded surface (236) disposed therebetween. The aperture (230) may be configured to at least partially house the fuel injector (204) therein and includes a conical seat (244) about the first end (232). The cylindrical sealing surface (240) may swage inward along the conical seat (244) to form a seal therebetween as the liquid fuel injector (240) is threaded into the aperture (230).