Fuel Nozzle Premixing via Segmented Machined Components
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fuel nozzle manufacturing techniques are expensive and time-consuming, particularly for large-scale production, and do not efficiently premix fuel and compressed working fluid prior to combustion, which is necessary for optimal NOx emissions across varying operational loads.
Innovation Solution
A premixed direct injection fuel nozzle design comprising a fuel plenum and outer body with machined bore holes and passages for fluid communication, allowing for cost-effective manufacturing and improved premixing and cooling, using machining techniques instead of costly methods like direct metal laser sintering.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If direct metal laser sintering, braising, or casting is used to manufacture fuel nozzles, then premixing capability is improved, but manufacturing cost and time increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The fuel nozzle is divided into separate components (body, cap, insert) that can be manufactured independently using conventional machining techniques, then assembled together. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while using cost-effective manufacturing methods, resolving the contradiction between achieving precise premixing geometry and reducing manufacturing costs.
Solution Approach 2:
The fuel nozzle design incorporates multiple functions within a single integrated structure: the body provides structural support and fluid distribution, the cap seals and directs flow, and the insert provides precise flow control. This multi-functional design achieves complex premixing capabilities through conventional machining of standardized components, eliminating the need for expensive specialized manufacturing processes.
2Manufacturing precision
If direct metal laser sintering, braising, or casting is used to manufacture fuel nozzles, then premixing capability is improved, but production time increases
Solution Approach 1:
By dividing the fuel nozzle into separable components that can be manufactured using conventional machining techniques, each part can be produced quickly and assembled efficiently. This approach enables high-volume production while maintaining the precise internal geometries needed for effective fuel-air premixing, resolving the contradiction between manufacturing precision and production speed.
Solution Approach 2:
The separate components are pre-manufactured using efficient conventional machining processes, then assembled in a standardized procedure. This preliminary manufacturing of individual components allows for parallel production and quality control, significantly reducing total production time compared to monolithic manufacturing processes while preserving premixing performance.
3Ease of manufacture
If conventional machining techniques are used to manufacture fuel nozzles, then manufacturing cost decreases, but premixing capability is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The fuel nozzle is segmented into multiple components with specific functions: the body contains flow distribution channels, the cap provides sealing and flow direction, and the insert offers precise flow control features. Each component can be manufactured using cost-effective conventional machining techniques while collectively achieving the complex premixing geometry that would be expensive to produce as a single piece.
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the fuel nozzle are designed with locally optimized features: the body has large flow distribution channels, the cap has sealing surfaces and flow direction features, and the insert has precision flow control elements. This local quality approach allows conventional machining to produce each zone with appropriate precision, achieving overall excellent premixing capability at lower cost.
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 design reduces manufacturing costs while providing effective premixing and impingement cooling, enabling efficient fuel and compressed working fluid mixing before combustion, thus optimizing NOx emissions across different operational loads.
Implementation Method 1
During reduced power operations, however, the primary nozzles 18 operate in a diffusion mode in which the flow rate of the fuel and compressed working fluid mixture from the primary nozzles 18 is reduced so that combustion of the fuel and the compressed working fluid mixture from the primary nozzles 18 occurs in the upstream chamber 24
Implementation Method 2
The nozzles 18, 20 mix fuel with the compressed working fluid, and the mixture flows from the nozzles 18, 20 into the upstream 24 and downstream 26 chambers where combustion occurs
Implementation Method 3
fuel exiting the fuel plenum through the plurality of apertures impinges on the front wall to provide impingement cooling to the front wall
Data Source
Figure 1
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AI summary
A fuel nozzle (30) includes a fuel plenum (32), an outer body (34) surrounding the fuel plenum (32), and bore holes (46) that extend longitudinally through the outer body (34). The fuel nozzle (30) also includes means for fixedly attaching the fuel plenum (32) to the outer body (34) and passages (50) that provide fluid communication between the fuel plenum (32) and the bore holes (46). A method for manufacturing a fuel nozzle (30) includes drilling bore holes (46) longitudinally through an outer body (34) and drilling passages (50) in the outer body (34) to the bore holes (46). The method further includes inserting a fuel plenum (32) into the outer body (34), wherein the passages (50) provide a fluid communication between the bore holes (46) and the fuel plenum (32), and attaching the fuel plenum (32) to the outer body (34).