Turbine engine, components, and methods of cooling same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10975731-B2
Application number	US-201515314341-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 28, 2015
Priority date	May 29, 2014
Publication date	Apr 13, 2021
Grant date	Apr 13, 2021

Abstract

A centrifugal separator for removing particles from a fluid stream includes an angular velocity increaser configured to increase the angular velocity of a fluid stream, a flow splitter configured to split the fluid stream to form a concentrated-particle stream and a reduced-particle stream, and an exit conduit configured to receive the reduced-particle stream. An inducer assembly for a turbine engine includes an inducer with a flow passage having an inducer inlet and an inducer outlet in fluid communication with a turbine section of the engine, and a particle separator, which includes a particle concentrator that receives a compressed stream from a compressor section of the engine and a flow splitter. A turbine engine includes a cooling air flow circuit which supplies a fluid stream to a turbine section of the engine for cooling, a particle separator located within the cooling air flow circuit, and an inducer forming a portion of the cooling air flow circuit in fluid communication with the particle separator. A method of cooling a rotating blade of a turbine engine having an inducer includes directing a cooling fluid stream from a portion of turbine engine toward the rotating blade, separating particles from the cooling fluid stream by passing the cooling fluid stream through a inertial separator, accelerating a reduced-particle stream emitted from the inertial separator to the speed of the rotating blade, and orienting the reduced-particle stream by emitting the reduced-particle stream from the inertial separator into a cooling passage in the inducer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of cooling a rotating blade of a turbine engine, the turbine engine having at least a compressor, a combustor, a turbine comprising the rotating blade, an inducer located between the combustor and the turbine, and a centrifugal separator in fluid communication with the inducer, the centrifugal separator comprising:
a body defining a centerline and having an outer wall defining a through passage and having a separator inlet arranged to receive a cooling fluid stream;
an angular velocity increaser located within the through passage and configured to increase an angular velocity of the cooling fluid stream as the cooling fluid stream passes through the through passage;
a flow splitter comprising an inner wall spaced radially inward from the outer wall, defining an outlet passage therebetween, the outlet passage having a particle inlet opening at an upstream edge of the inner wall, the flow splitter being configured to split a radially-outward portion of the cooling fluid stream from a radially-inward portion of the cooling fluid stream such that the radially-outward portion of the cooling fluid stream is a concentrated-particle stream and the radially-inward portion of the cooling fluid stream is a reduced-particle stream;
an exit conduit fluidly coupled to the body to receive the reduced-particle stream, the exit conduit defining a separator outlet, wherein the outlet passage is fluidly separated and isolated from the exit conduit by the inner wall; and
an angular velocity decreaser located downstream of the angular velocity increaser and the particle inlet and upstream of the separator outlet and configured to impart a decreased angular velocity to the reduced-particle stream exiting through the separator outlet;
wherein the outer wall of the body includes a bend upstream of the particle inlet and between the angular velocity increaser and the angular velocity decreaser; and
wherein the separator inlet and the separator outlet are axially-centered on the centerline of the body and are non-coaxial with each other,
the method comprising:
directing the cooling fluid stream from a portion of the turbine engine toward the rotating blade;
separating particles from the cooling fluid stream by passing the cooling fluid stream through the centrifugal separator, the centrifugal separator having a particle outlet through which the concentrated-particle stream is emitted;
emitting the reduced-particle stream from the separator outlet;
emitting the concentrated-particle stream from the particle outlet;
accelerating the reduced-particle stream substantially to a speed of the rotating blade; and
orienting the reduced-particle stream in a direction substantially tangential to the rotating blade wherein the emitted reduced-particle stream is injected into an inlet of a cooling passage in the inducer and injected by the inducer into the rotating blade.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein passing the cooling fluid stream through the centrifugal separator comprises passing the reduced-particle stream through the exit conduit, wherein the exit conduit is curved.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein accelerating the reduced-particle stream comprises passing the reduced-particle stream through an accelerator having a decreasing cross-sectional area in a direction of fluid flow.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein passing the cooling fluid stream through the centrifugal separator further comprises passing the reduced-particle stream from the exit conduit and into the accelerator.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein separating particles comprises separating the radially-outward portion of the cooling fluid stream to form the concentrated-particle stream.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein passing the cooling fluid stream through the centrifugal separator comprises increasing an angular velocity of the cooling fluid stream, using the angular velocity increaser, prior to separating the radially-outward portion of the cooling fluid stream.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the exit conduit comprises a helical conduit, the method further comprising passing the reduced-particle stream from the centrifugal separator to the inducer without substantial loss of angular velocity by passing the reduced-particle stream through the helical conduit.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising directing the concentrated-particle stream away from the rotating blade.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein directing the concentrated-particle stream away from the rotating blade comprises providing the concentrated-particle stream to another portion of the turbine engine.

10. The method according to claim 9 , wherein providing the concentrated-particle stream to another portion of the turbine engine comprises passing the concentrated-particle stream through an interior of a vane of the turbine.

11. The method according to claim 9 , wherein providing the concentrated-particle stream to another portion of the turbine engine comprises providing the concentrated-particle stream to an inter-stage cavity between at least two turbine stages of the turbine.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein directing the cooling fluid stream from the portion of the turbine engine comprises directing the cooling fluid stream from at least one of the compressor or a fan section of the turbine engine.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein directing the cooling fluid stream from the at least one of the compressor or the fan section comprises deflecting the cooling fluid stream at least once to separate particles from the cooling fluid stream prior to the cooling fluid stream reaching the centrifugal separator.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein deflecting the cooling fluid stream comprises turning the cooling fluid stream substantially 180°.

15. The method of claim 13 , further comprising collecting particles separated by deflecting the cooling fluid stream in at least one particle collector.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the exit conduit comprises a helical conduit, the method further comprising passing the reduced-particle stream from the centrifugal separator to the inducer without substantial loss of angular velocity by passing the reduced-particle stream through the helical conduit.

17. A centrifugal separator for removing particles from a fluid stream, the fluid stream passing through a turbine engine with a centerline, comprising:
a body defining a centerline and having an outer wall defining a through passage and having a separator inlet arranged to receive a fluid stream;
an angular velocity increaser located within the through passage and configured to increase an angular velocity of the fluid stream as the fluid stream passes through the through passage;
a flow splitter comprising an inner wall spaced radially inward from the outer wall, defining an outlet passage therebetween, the outlet passage having a particle inlet opening at an upstream edge of the inner wall, the flow splitter being configured to split a radially-outward portion of the fluid stream from a radially-inward portion of the fluid stream such that the radially-outward portion of the fluid stream is a concentrated-particle stream and the radially-inward portion of the fluid stream is a reduced-particle stream;
an exit conduit fluidly coupled to the body to receive the reduced-particle stream, the exit conduit defining a separator outlet, wherein the outlet passage is fluidly separated and isolated from the exit conduit by the inner wall; and
an angular velocity decreaser located downstream of the angular velocity increaser and the

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Manning Robert Francis
• Stone Timothy Deryck
• Buhler Jared Peter
• Correia Victor Hugo Silva
• Laskowski Gregory Michael
• Murray Robert Carl
• Ratzlaff Jonathan Russell
• Proctor Robert
• Starkweather John Howard
• Stover Curtis Walton

Classifications

• B01D45/16 Primary

  generated by the winding course of the gas stream {, the centrifugal forces being generated solely or partly by mechanical means, e.g. fixed swirl vanes} · CPC title

• B64D2033/024

  comprising cooling means · CPC title

• B64D2033/022

  comprising bird or foreign object protections · CPC title

• B04C3/00

  Apparatus in which the axial direction of the vortex {flow following a screw-thread type line} remains unchanged {; Devices in which one of the two discharge ducts returns centrally through the vortex chamber, a reverse-flow vortex being prevented by bulkheads in the central discharge duct (combined with other devices B04C9/00)} · CPC title

• F02C7/05

  having provisions for obviating the penetration of damaging objects or particles · CPC title