Turbine Blade Grain Orientation via Laser Angle Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Turbine engine components, such as blades and vanes, lack sufficient tensile strength and ductility to withstand thermal-mechanical stress, leading to premature fatigue and failure, especially in high-speed aircraft engines, where existing friction dampers provide only modest protection and methods to control metallic grain orientation are laborious and impractical for complex geometries.
Innovation Solution
A method for additive manufacturing of turbine engine components using direct metal laser melting or sintering, where regions with specific metallic grain orientations are created by varying the angle of laser irradiation, resulting in a component with a primary orientation parallel to the chord, a secondary orientation perpendicular to the rotational axis, and graded transition regions, enhancing strength and durability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional additive manufacturing with uniform grain orientation is used, then manufacturing simplicity is maintained, but tensile strength and ductility are insufficient to withstand thermal-mechanical stress
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating different grain orientations in different regions of the turbine blade. The method divides the blade into multiple zones (e.g., root region, airfoil region, transition region) and controls the laser irradiation angle to produce specific grain orientations in each zone. This localized control of microstructure properties optimizes mechanical performance in each region while managing the complexity through systematic processing parameters
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes by varying the laser irradiation angle as a key process parameter to control grain orientation. By adjusting the laser scanning angle during additive manufacturing, the method transforms the microstructure properties of the metal powder, creating different grain orientations without changing the material composition. This parameter-based control enables precise manipulation of material properties during the manufacturing process
2Reliability
If friction dampers are used to protect blades from dynamic stress, then some protection is provided, but the protection is only modest and fatigue failures occur prematurely
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the fatigue protection function from separate friction dampers and integrates it directly into the blade structure through controlled grain orientations. By creating specific microstructural configurations within the blade material itself, the invention eliminates the need for external damping components while achieving superior fatigue resistance. This integration removes the modest protection of friction dampers and replaces it with inherent material-level protection
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables the blade to protect itself from fatigue failures through self-reinforcing microstructure design. The controlled grain orientations create internal structural characteristics that automatically resist dynamic stresses and fatigue loading during operation. This self-service approach eliminates the need for separate protection systems, as the blade's own microstructure provides the necessary fatigue resistance
3Strength
If methods to control metallic grain orientation are applied, then tensile strength and ductility are improved, but the methods are laborious and impractical for complex geometries
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by implementing a movable laser source that can dynamically adjust its irradiation angle during the additive manufacturing process. This dynamic positioning system allows the laser to scan at different angles across complex blade geometries, maintaining effective grain orientation control throughout the entire component. The dynamic laser system replaces laborious manual methods with automated, flexible positioning that adapts to complex shapes
Solution Approach 2:
The patent substitutes complex mechanical grain orientation control methods with a laser-based energy field approach. Instead of using mechanical rolling, forging, or other physical deformation processes that are laborious and impractical for complex geometries, the invention uses controlled laser irradiation to directly influence grain formation during additive manufacturing. This field-based method is far more practical for complex turbine blade geometries
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 approach significantly increases the tensile strength and ductility of turbine engine components, improving their reliability and durability by aligning grains to withstand stress, thereby reducing the likelihood of premature failure.
Implementation Method 1
A selective portion of the powder 114 that corresponds to a 'slice' or a layer of the part to be manufactured is then sintered (as it is in SLS and DMLS) or melted (as it is in SLM and DMLM) by a focused laser 116 scanning across the surface of the selective portion 118
Implementation Method 2
The laser irradiation sinters or melts the raw material powder, and the sintered/melted area then re-solidifies and re-crystallizes into a fused region of the work piece
Implementation Method 3
A selective portion of the powder 114 that corresponds to a 'slice' or a layer of the part to be manufactured is then sintered (as it is in SLS and DMLS) or melted (as it is in SLM and DMLM) by a focused laser 116
Implementation Method 4
The laser irradiation sinters or melts the raw material powder, and the sintered/melted area then re-solidifies and re-crystallizes into a fused region of the work piece
Implementation Method 5
The laser irradiation sinters or melts the raw material powder, and the sintered/melted area then re-solidifies and re-crystallizes into a fused region of the work piece
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure generally relates to turbine engine components having multiple controlled metallic grain orientations. In general, the primary grain orientation is aligned substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the turbine engine component while the secondary grain orientation is aligned substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis. Such controlled grain orientations provide the blades and vanes with increased strength to withstand the thermal-mechanical stresses of the turbine operation. The disclosure also relates to turbines having these fortified components, and methods of manufacturing the components.