Turbine Nozzle Guide Vane Cooling with Low-Melting-Point Metal
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional cooling methods for turbine nozzle guide vanes in aviation gas turbines, such as air film cooling, result in heat loss and reduced engine efficiency due to the use of cooling air that does not participate in the thermodynamic cycle, and the guide vane is prone to overheating and damage from high-temperature combustion gases.
Innovation Solution
A cooling device utilizing a low-melting-point metal or alloy as a flowing working medium in a closed loop system, including a flow divider, collector, radiator, and electromagnetic pump, to efficiently transfer heat away from the guide vane, eliminating the need for air cooling and enhancing heat transfer efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If air film cooling is used on the guide vane, then the guide vane is protected from high temperature, but cooling air is lost and engine heat efficiency is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the working medium from gas (air) to liquid (low-melting-point metal), fundamentally altering the heat transfer parameters. Liquid metals have thermal conductivity 10-100 times higher than gases, enabling efficient heat removal without compromising engine thermal efficiency. The liquid metal circulates in a closed loop through the guide vane cooling channels, absorbing heat and maintaining protective temperature levels.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the traditional air cooling system with a liquid metal circulation system. Instead of using compressed air from the engine's air compressor, the system uses liquid metal pumped through cooling channels embedded in the guide vane. This substitution eliminates the need to divert engine air for cooling purposes while providing superior heat transfer performance.
2Temperature
If cooling air is introduced from air compressor, then cooling requirement is met, but doing work capacity of engine is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The liquid metal cooling system operates independently from the engine's air compression and thermodynamic cycles. The liquid metal is pumped through a separate closed-loop system that includes the guide vane, heat exchanger, and pump. This self-contained system does not consume engine air or interfere with the engine's power-generating processes, thereby maintaining full doing work capacity while effectively cooling the guide vane.
3Temperature
If air cooling is used, then heat is absorbed from main combustion gas flow, but aerodynamic loss is increased
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cooling function from the main combustion gas flow path. Instead of mixing cooling air with the combustion gases (which causes aerodynamic losses), the liquid metal cooling channels are embedded within the guide vane structure itself. The liquid metal absorbs heat directly through the vane walls without interfering with the combustion gas flow, eliminating aerodynamic losses while maintaining effective heat absorption from the hot section components.
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 provides improved heat efficiency, prolonged service life of the guide vane, and increased propelling power by using a high-heat-conductivity medium that recirculates and efficiently cools the guide vane, reducing aerodynamic losses and maintaining structural integrity without the need for air film holes.
Implementation Method 1
The metals have the heat conductivity far higher than that of other non-metal materials... The special metal can be used as a high-heat-conductivity flowing working medium to flow in the guide vane by utilizing the excellent heat exchange capacity to take away heat of the guide vane
Implementation Method 2
a first circulation channel is formed in the flow divider... a second circulation channel is formed in the collector... the electromagnetic pump is driven to circulate the flowing working medium... the radiator is driven to rapidly radiate and cool the flowing working medium
Implementation Method 3
an electromagnetic pump communicated with the flow divider through a first connecting pipeline and configured for driving the flowing working media to flow
Implementation Method 4
a radiator correspondingly communicated with the electromagnetic pump and the collector through a second connecting pipeline and a third connecting pipeline... the radiator is configured for rapidly radiating and cooling the flowing working media with heat flowing out of the guide vane
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a cooling device for a turbine nozzle guide vane with a low-melting-point metal as a flowing working media. A plurality of cooling channels and a cavity are arranged in a guide vane. The cooling device includes a flow divider, a collector, a radiator and an electromagnetic pump, the cooling device and the guide vane form a closed loop. Liquid low-melting-point metal or alloy thereof as the flowing working medium is driven by the electromagnetic pump to circularly flow in the closed loop and dissipate rapidly through the radiator. Air cooling is not adopted in the present disclosure, cooling air originally led out from a gas compressor is saved so as to increase the propelling power of an aircraft. Air film holes do not need to be formed in the outer surface of the guide vane so as to improve strength of the guide vane.