One-piece Combustion Chamber with Integrated Heat Shield
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Combustion chambers for gas turbomachines face issues with thermal stress, deformation, and leakage due to the exposure of the chamber bottom to radiation, leading to reduced service life, increased fuel consumption, and parasitic gas leaks, which existing solutions fail to adequately address without adding weight or complexity.
Innovation Solution
The inner and outer walls, along with the heat shield, form a one-piece assembly made of refractory material, eliminating the need for a separate heat shield and reducing the number of openings, which enhances thermal resistance and mechanical integrity while maintaining the chamber volume and reducing mass.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If a separate heat shield is added to protect the chamber bottom thermally, then thermal protection is improved, but device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the heat shield with the inner wall to form an integrated one-piece structure. The inner wall itself is designed with thermal insulation properties and extends to cover the chamber bottom, eliminating the need for a separate heat shield component. This integration maintains thermal protection while reducing structural complexity and weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The inner wall is designed to serve multiple functions simultaneously: it acts as both the structural wall containing the combustion chamber and as the thermal protection shield. The inner wall's geometry and material properties are optimized to provide thermal insulation to the chamber bottom without requiring additional dedicated shielding components.
2Ease of operation
If multiple openings are provided for fuel injection devices, then fuel injection functionality is improved, but parasitic gas leaks increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces sealing elements as intermediary components between the fuel injection devices and the chamber openings. These sealing elements are positioned in the openings to prevent parasitic gas leaks while allowing fuel injection functionality to operate normally. The seals act as mediators that maintain both operational access and thermal/pressure containment.
3Power
If the chamber bottom is directly exposed to flame radiation, then combustion efficiency is improved, but thermal stress and deformation increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the chamber structure into distinct functional zones: the inner wall forms a protective envelope that shields the chamber bottom from direct flame radiation, while still allowing combustion to occur efficiently in the chamber space. The inner wall acts as an intermediate layer that manages thermal exposure separately from the structural bottom support.
4Temperature
If a double-walled chamber bottom with cooling air passages is used, then thermal resistance is improved, but device complexity and weight increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines the thermal protection function into the inner wall structure itself, which is designed with appropriate thickness and material properties to provide thermal resistance. This integrated approach eliminates the need for separate double-walled constructions with cooling air passages, maintaining thermal protection while simplifying the overall structure.
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 improves the service life, reduces fuel consumption and parasitic leaks, and decreases the overall mass of the combustion chamber by 15-25% while maintaining effective thermal protection and mechanical resistance, eliminating the need for additional thermal barriers and simplifying manufacturing.
Implementation Method 1
said inner and outer walls and said heat shield form a one-piece assembly
Implementation Method 2
the chamber bottom (FDC; single- or double-walled) extending (on the upstream side) between said inner and outer walls... which is directly exposed to the flame radiation
Data Source
AI summary
A combustion chamber for a gas turbomachine. The combustion chamber comprising inner and outer walls, a chamber bottom, and a heat shield arranged downstream of the chamber bottom, to protect it thermally. The inner and outer walls and the heat shield form a one-piece unit.