Nozzle Insert Rib Cap Asymmetry for Gas Turbine Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
In gas turbine engines, the installation of correct nozzle cavity inserts is challenging due to physical similarities between functionally different inserts, leading to potential performance and cooling issues, and there is a need for a solution to prevent incorrect installation and facilitate upgrades.
Innovation Solution
A rib cap is installed with a width greater than the rib, extending into adjacent nozzle cavities, and modified cavity inserts with offset surfaces are used, ensuring only complementary inserts fit by joining their inlet edges to the rib cap.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If physically similar nozzle cavity inserts are used for different functions, then manufacturing efficiency is improved, but the risk of incorrect installation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies asymmetry by providing nozzle cavity inserts with distinct geometric features (such as different shapes, orientations, or protrusions) that make them non-interchangeable. Each insert is designed with unique asymmetric characteristics that correspond to its specific function, preventing incorrect installation while maintaining manufacturing efficiency through standardized base designs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements local quality by providing different geometric features at specific locations on each nozzle cavity insert. These localized variations (such as different patterns of cooling holes, varying depths, or specific protrusions in particular positions) enable differentiation between inserts of the same general type but different functions, ensuring correct installation without requiring completely different manufacturing processes.
2Temperature
If nozzle cavity inserts are upgraded to improve cooling, then cooling performance is improved, but the complexity of replacement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by pre-configuring the nozzle assembly with a rib cap structure that anticipates future upgrade needs. The rib cap includes a recess that is pre-formed to receive the geometric features of upgraded inserts, so that when upgrades are needed, the replacement process is simplified because the receiving structure is already in place, eliminating the need for complex modifications to the nozzle assembly itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements segmentation by separating the nozzle cavity insert from the main nozzle assembly structure through the use of a removable rib cap. This segmentation allows the insert to be independently replaced without affecting the entire nozzle assembly, reducing the complexity of replacement operations while enabling upgrades to improve cooling performance.
3Reliability
If the rib cap width is increased to prevent incorrect insert installation, then installation accuracy is improved, but the structural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies partial or excessive action by providing a rib cap width that is slightly greater than the minimum required to prevent incorrect insert installation. The rib cap extends beyond the rib structure into the nozzle cavity, providing sufficient overlap to ensure proper fit and prevent misinstallation, while avoiding excessive complexity by maintaining a simple, straightforward geometric configuration rather than over-engineering the structure.
Data Source
AI summary
A nozzle assembly includes a first nozzle cavity, a second nozzle cavity, a rib positioned between the nozzle cavities, a rib cap positioned on the rib, a first cavity insert, and a second cavity insert. The rib cap is wider than the rib, such that the rib cap extends outwardly into those portions of the nozzle cavities immediately adjacent the rib. The first cavity insert and the second cavity insert include a longitudinal surface offset from the rib. The offset surfaces include rib cap-interface surfaces that are joined to the rib cap. A method of modifying the nozzle assembly is achieved by installing a rib cap having a width greater than that of the rib and by installing modified cavity inserts having a surface offset from the rib, and by joining rib cap-interface surfaces of the modified cavity inserts to the rib cap.