Aspirating face seal assembly for a rotary machine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10895324-B2
Application number	US-201816201669-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 27, 2018
Priority date	Nov 27, 2018
Publication date	Jan 19, 2021
Grant date	Jan 19, 2021

Abstract

A seal assembly for a rotary machine includes a seal bearing face that opposes a rotating component of the machine and a slide device coupled with the seal bearing face. The slide device axially moves toward the rotating component responsive to pressurization of the rotary machine. The slide device includes cross-over ports and the seal bearing includes feed ports. The feed ports extend through the seal bearing face to form aerostatic portions of a film bearing between the seal bearing face and the rotating component. The seal bearing face and/or the rotating component has a non-planar surface that, during rotating motion of the rotating component relative to the face of the seal bearing face, forms aerodynamic portions of the film bearing.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A rotary machine comprising:
a rotating component configured to rotate around a rotation axis relative to a stationary component; and
an aspirating seal assembly disposed between the rotating component and the stationary component, the seal assembly having a slide device coupled with a seal bearing, the slide device configured to create a pressure drop between (a) a first fluid pressure volume that is radially outside of the slide device and the rotating component and (b) a different, second fluid pressure volume that is radially inside the slide device between the slide device and the rotating component along one or more radial directions, the slide device configured to axially move the seal bearing toward an annular surface of the rotating component and to form a film bearing between the seal bearing and the annular surface of the rotating component responsive to pressurization of the rotary machine,
wherein one or more of the slide device or the rotating component include one or more starter teeth, the one or more starter teeth configured to restrict a fluid leakage path extending between the first fluid pressure volume and the second fluid pressure volume and extending between the slide device and the rotating component, the one or more starter teeth configured to reduce a size of the fluid leakage path responsive to the slide device axially moving toward the annular surface of the rotating component,
wherein one or more of the slide device or the rotating component include one or more primary sealing teeth, the one or more primary teeth configured to engage another of the slide device or the rotating component to form a fluid seal across the fluid leakage path between the slide device and the rotating component responsive to the slide device axially moving toward the annular surface of the rotating component,
wherein the rotating component includes a directional hooked tooth having a curved surface that bends inward toward and perpendicular to the axis of rotation.

2. The rotary machine of claim 1 , wherein the one or more primary sealing teeth include an upstream primary tooth and a downstream primary tooth, the upstream primary tooth located upstream of the downstream primary tooth in the fluid leakage path.

3. The rotary machine of claim 2 , wherein both the upstream primary tooth and the downstream primary tooth are coupled with the slide device and axially extend from the slide device toward the rotating component.

4. The rotary machine of claim 2 , wherein the upstream primary tooth extends a longer axial length than the downstream primary tooth.

5. The rotary machine of claim 2 , wherein the upstream primary tooth is coupled with the rotating component and the downstream primary tooth is coupled with the slide device.

6. The rotary machine of claim 2 , wherein the one or more starter teeth include an upstream starter tooth and a downstream starter tooth, the upstream starter tooth located upstream of the downstream starter tooth in the fluid leakage path.

7. The rotary machine of claim 6 , wherein at least one of the primary starter teeth is coupled with and axially protrudes from the upstream starter tooth.

8. The rotary machine of claim 1 , wherein the curved surface of the directional hooked tooth is shaped and positioned to direct fluid in an interior lower fluid pressure volume through one or more cross-over ports in the slide device.

9. The rotary machine of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the primary sealing teeth includes a flow protuberance radially projecting from the at least one of the primary sealing teeth, the flow protuberance positioned to introduce turbulent flow into fluid flowing along a fluid leakage path upstream of the one or more primary sealing teeth.

10. The rotary machine of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the primary sealing teeth and at least one of the starter teeth are included in a single hybrid sealing tooth.

11. The rotary machine of claim 10 , wherein the rotating component includes a step formed from an axially elongated segment and a radially elongated segment of the rotating component, and
wherein the hybrid sealing tooth axially extends from the slide device toward the axially elongated segment of the rotating component.

12. The rotary machine of claim 11 , wherein the hybrid sealing tooth (a) is positioned and shaped to first reduce the size of the fluid leakage path between the hybrid sealing tooth and the axially elongated segment of the rotating component and (b) is positioned and shaped to subsequently engage and form a seal between an outer end of the hybrid sealing tooth and the radially elongated segment of the rotating component as the slide device axially moves toward the rotating component.

13. The rotary machine of claim 10 , wherein the single hybrid sealing tooth is an upstream hybrid sealing tooth, and at least one additional primary sealing tooth and at least one additional starter tooth are included in a downstream hybrid sealing tooth.

14. The rotary machine of claim 13 , wherein both the upstream and the downstream hybrid sealing teeth are elongated in directions angled between an axial direction and a radial direction of the rotary machine.

15. A seal assembly of a rotary machine, the seal assembly comprising:
a slide device coupled with a seal bearing, the slide device configured to create a pressure drop between higher and lower pressure sides of the rotary machine,
wherein the slide device includes:
one or more starter teeth configured to restrict a fluid leakage path between the slide device and a rotating component of the rotary machine, the one or more starter teeth configured to reduce a size of the fluid leakage path responsive to the slide device axially moving toward the rotating component, and
one or more primary sealing teeth configured to form a fluid seal across the fluid leakage path between the slide device and the rotating component responsive to the slide device axially moving toward an annular surface of the rotating component,
wherein the rotating component includes a directional hooked tooth having a curved surface that bends inward toward and perpendicular to the axis of rotation.

16. The seal assembly of claim 15 , wherein the one or more primary sealing teeth include an upstream primary tooth and a downstream primary tooth, the upstream primary tooth located upstream of the downstream primary tooth in the fluid leakage path.

17. The seal assembly of claim 15 , wherein the curved surface of the directional hooked tooth is shaped and positioned to direct fluid in an interior lower fluid pressure volume through one or more cross-over ports in the slide device.

18. The seal assembly of claim 15 , wherein at least one of the primary sealing teeth includes a flow protuberance radially projecting from the at least one of the primary sealing teeth, the flow protuberance positioned to introduce turbulent flow into fluid flowing along a fluid leakage path upstream of the one or more primary sealing teeth.

19. The seal assembly of claim 15 , wherein at least one of the primary sealing teeth and at least one of the starter teeth are included in a single hybrid sealing tooth.

20. A seal assembly of a rotary machine, the seal assembly comprising:
a rotating component configured to rotate around an axis of rotation, the rotating component including a directional hooked tooth having a curved surface that bends inward toward and perpendicular to the axis of rotation; and
a slide device coupled with a seal bearing, t

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Tran Quang Tue Nguyen
• Gibson Nathan Evan Mccurdy
• Erdmenger Rodrigo Rodriguez
• Wolfe Christopher Edward
• Johnson Steven Douglas
• Valencia Antonio Guijarro

Classifications

• F05D2220/30

  in turbines · CPC title

• F05D2240/128

  Nozzles · CPC title

• F01D25/22

  using working-fluid or other gaseous fluid as lubricant · CPC title

• F16J15/445

  with means for adjusting the clearance · CPC title

• F01D5/20

  Specially-shaped blade tips to seal space between tips and stator {(F01D5/225 takes precedence)} · CPC title