Rotor Wheel Impeller Inserts for Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gas turbine engine rotor designs face challenges in efficiently managing air flow and cooling, particularly in directing compressed air to cool turbine components without significant pressure loss or heat pickup, often requiring replacement of entire wheels for flow adjustments.
Innovation Solution
The integration of impeller inserts with specific passage shapes within the rotor wheel's fluid passages, which can be secured using dovetail, pin-secured, or welded methods, allowing for customizable fluid flow control and reduced manufacturing complexity by enabling tuning of existing rotor wheels with different insert geometries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional rotor wheel designs are used with fixed fluid passages, then manufacturing is simpler, but flow adjustment requires replacing entire wheels which increases device complexity and manufacturing cost
Solution Approach 1:
The rotor wheel is segmented into a base structure with fluid passages and separate removable impeller inserts. Each insert can be independently exchanged to change flow characteristics without replacing the entire rotor wheel, enabling flow adjustment while maintaining structural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions from a static, fixed-geometry rotor wheel to a dynamic configuration where impeller inserts can be changed based on operational requirements. This allows the rotor wheel to adapt its flow characteristics dynamically while maintaining a consistent base structure.
2Temperature
If air is extracted from the flow path through flanges for turbine cooling, then turbine component cooling is improved, but pressure loss and heat pickup in the fluid passages increase
Solution Approach 1:
The impeller inserts are designed with specific passage shapes that optimize local flow characteristics within the fluid passages. By tailoring the geometry of individual inserts, the system achieves effective turbine cooling while minimizing pressure loss and heat pickup in specific regions of the flow path.
Solution Approach 2:
Different impeller insert geometries are used to change flow parameters such as passage cross-section, curvature, and flow direction. These parameter changes optimize the balance between cooling effectiveness and pressure loss by adjusting the flow extraction characteristics at different locations.
3Productivity
If impeller inserts with specific passage shapes are integrated into fluid passages, then air flow management and efficiency are improved, but manufacturing and installation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The complex flow control function is segmented into separate impeller inserts that can be manufactured independently using optimized processes. This allows each insert to be precisely formed with complex passage shapes while keeping the base rotor wheel structure simple and easy to manufacture.
Solution Approach 2:
The impeller inserts are designed to nest within the fluid passages of the rotor wheel, with precise fit features such as dovetail interfaces. This nesting arrangement simplifies assembly by ensuring proper positioning and alignment while maintaining the complex internal passage geometry needed for optimized air flow management.
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 enhances air flow management, reduces pressure loss and heat pickup, and allows for adjustments in impeller flow without replacing the entire rotor wheel, thereby improving efficiency and thermal performance.
Implementation Method 1
The impeller inserts define an impeller passage with a passage shape that controls a flow of fluid through the one or more of the plurality of fluid passages
Data Source
AI summary
A rotor wheel for an engine includes a plurality of impeller vanes and a plurality of fluid passages defined by adjacent impeller vanes. The fluid passages are radially disposed across at least a portion of the rotor wheel. One or more impeller inserts may be disposed within one or more of the plurality of fluid passages, respectively. The impeller inserts define an impeller passage with a passage shape that controls a flow of fluid through the one or more of the plurality of fluid passages.