Aeronautical Turbine Sealing Ring Mounting via Removable Shroud
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sealing and fastening systems in aeronautical turbine engines face challenges in accessing the outer periphery of the sealing ring and surrounding casing areas, particularly when cracks occur, requiring full local disassembly and leading to issues of use, time, and cost.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of a shroud ring inserted between the upstream and downstream casings, with removable fastening means, allows for detachable fastening of the shroud and casings. This design includes upstream and downstream hooks for coupling the distributor and sealing element, respectively, enabling easier access to the sealing ring and surrounding areas upon removal of the shroud ring.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a circlip type element or single casing with hooks is used for fastening, then the sealing element can be mounted, but accessibility to the outer periphery of the sealing ring and surrounding casing area is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening system is segmented into modular components: upstream casing, downstream casing, and intermediate casing with removable hooks. This segmentation allows the intermediate casing to be detached independently, providing accessibility to the sealing ring outer periphery and surrounding areas without requiring complete disassembly of the entire fastening system.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastening system transitions from a static, fixed structure to a dynamic, partially removable structure. The intermediate casing hooks are designed to be removable, allowing the system to change its configuration from closed to open state, thereby enabling accessibility when needed while maintaining structural integrity during operation.
2Ease of repair
If full local disassembly is performed to access cracks on hooks or sealing ring area, then repairs can be made, but time and cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening system is divided into separable modules with the intermediate casing equipped with removable hooks. This allows targeted access to the sealing ring and hook areas for inspection and repair by removing only the intermediate casing, rather than performing full local disassembly of the entire turbine engine assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The removable hook design anticipates future maintenance needs by pre-configuring the fastening system to allow easy access. The hooks can be removed in advance or on-demand to expose the sealing ring and surrounding areas, enabling rapid inspection and repair without extensive disassembly procedures.
3Reliability
If the shroud ring is equipped with upstream hook for coupling sealing element, then sealing element can be fastened to downstream casing, but mounting complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The shroud ring is designed with multi-functionality: it can be equipped with an upstream hook when additional fastening reliability is needed, or left without the hook when simpler mounting is preferred. This universal design allows the same shroud ring component to serve different functional requirements based on specific application needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The upstream hook on the shroud ring is not a universal feature but a localized enhancement applied only where and when fastening reliability requires it. This allows the sealing element to be fastened with enhanced reliability in critical applications, while maintaining simpler mounting in less critical applications, optimizing the balance between reliability and complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention proposes an aeronautical turbine engine assembly comprising an upstream casing (55) to which guide blading (48a) is fastened, and a downstream casing (58) to which a sealing element (62) provided with an abradable material for rotor blading is fastened. This assembly further comprises a shroud ring (66) placed between the upstream casing and the downstream casing and fastening means (68) for detachably fastening the shroud ring. In order to be fastened to the upstream casing, the guide blading (48a) of the turbine engine is mounted on a downstream hook (480b) of the upstream casing, without being hooked onto the shroud ring (66), and the downstream casing (58) has an upstream hook with which the sealing element (62) is engaged in order to be fastened to the downstream casing, or the shroud ring has an upstream hook on which the sealing element (62) is mounted so as to be fastened to the downstream casing.