Turbomachine Rotor Blade Cooling Core Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional rotor blade configurations in turbomachines face limitations in service life due to restrictive cooling passage designs and manufacturing processes, as well as inadequate fillet configurations, which lead to high costs and inefficiencies.
Innovation Solution
The rotor blade design features an airfoil with a tip shroud that defines a core with a maximum radial depth at least six times greater than the minimum hydraulic diameter of cooling passages, along with an arcuate pattern of cross-over apertures and a fillet runout extending beyond the side surface of the tip shroud, enhancing cooling efficiency and stress resistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional cooling passage configurations are used, then manufacturing processes are expensive and time-consuming, but cooling efficiency is limited and service life is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the geometric parameters of the cooling system by defining a core with maximum radial depth at least six times greater than the minimum hydraulic diameter of cooling passages. This parameter change enables improved cooling efficiency while maintaining manufacturability through conventional processes
2Reliability
If conventional fillet configurations are used, then manufacturing is simpler, but stress resistance is inadequate and service life is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs curved fillet configurations that transition smoothly between the airfoil and tip shroud. The fillet runout extends beyond the side surface of the tip shroud, creating optimized stress distribution through curved geometry rather than sharp transitions
3Temperature
If conventional cooling core designs are used, then device complexity is lower, but cooling efficiency is insufficient for high-temperature environments
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extends the cooling core in the radial dimension with a maximum radial depth at least six times greater than the minimum hydraulic diameter of cooling passages. This dimensional extension provides enhanced cooling capacity while maintaining a manageable structural complexity
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 design extends the service life of rotor blades by improving cooling efficiency and stress resistance, reducing manufacturing costs and complexities compared to conventional configurations.
Implementation Method 1
The airfoil defines at least one cooling passage. The tip shroud and the airfoil define a core fluidly coupled to the cooling passage
Implementation Method 2
passages, cavities, and apertures through which cooling fluid may flow
Implementation Method 3
A fillet may transition between the airfoil and the tip shroud. A runout of the fillet extends beyond the side surface of the tip shroud and/or below ninety percent of the span
Data Source
AI summary
In one aspect, the present disclosure is directed to a rotor blade for a turbomachine. The rotor blade includes an airfoil defining at least one cooling passage. The rotor blade also includes a tip shroud coupled to the airfoil. The tip shroud and the airfoil define a core fluidly coupled to the cooling passage. A maximum radial depth of the core is at least six times greater than a minimum hydraulic diameter of a largest cooling passage of the at least one cooling passage.