Component with cooling passage for a turbine engine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11512599-B1
Application number	US-202117491828-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Oct 1, 2021
Priority date	Oct 1, 2021
Publication date	Nov 29, 2022
Grant date	Nov 29, 2022

Abstract

An apparatus and method for an engine component for a turbine engine having a working airflow separated into a cooling airflow and a combustion airflow. The engine component including a wall defining an interior and having an outer surface. A tip wall spanning first and second sides of the wall to close the interior. A tip rail extending from the tip wall and having an inner tip rail surface, which in combination with the tip wall, at least partially bounds a region defining a plenum. A rim formed in at least one of the outer surface and inner tip rail surface.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An engine component for a turbine engine having a working airflow separated into a cooling airflow and a combustion airflow, the engine component comprising:
an outer wall defining an interior and having an outer surface over which flows the combustion airflow, the outer surface defining a first side and a second side extending between an upstream edge and a downstream edge to define a streamwise direction and extending between a root and a tip to define a radial direction;
a tip wall spanning the first side and second sides to close the interior at the tip;
a tip rail extending from the tip wall and having an inner tip rail surface, which in combination with the tip wall, at least partially bounds a region defining a plenum, the tip rail having an outer tip rail surface extending from at least one of the first and second sides, and radially terminating in an upper tip rail surface connecting the inner tip rail surface and the outer tip rail surface;
a tip rim formed in at least one of the outer surface or the inner tip rail surface and spaced from the upper tip rail surface in the radial direction,
at least one cooling conduit provided in the interior;
a set of cooling passages formed in the outer wall and fluidly coupling the at least one cooling conduit to at least one of the outer surface or the inner tip rail surface, at least one of the cooling passages in the set comprising:
a diffusion slot extending along a flow direction toward the tip between a rear and a passage outlet opening onto the tip rim, the diffusion slot defining a slot centerline along which a diffuser vector extends between the rear and the passage outlet,
at least one metered passage having an inlet fluidly connected to the at least one cooling conduit and an intermediate outlet fluidly coupled to the diffusion slot at a junction proximate the rear of the diffusion slot, and defining a first centerline, which forms an angle relative to the slot centerline.

2. The engine component of claim 1 wherein the tip rim is formed in the outer tip rail surface.

3. The engine component of claim 2 wherein the tip rim terminates in an edge wall extending toward the downstream edge and the upper tip rail surface.

4. The engine component of claim 3 wherein the edge wall terminates at the upper tip rail surface.

5. The engine component of claim 3 further comprising a cavity extending in the streamwise direction and spaced from the tip, at least a portion of the cavity defining the tip rim.

6. The engine component of claim 5 wherein at least one of the cavity and tip rim comprises a rounded geometry.

7. The engine component of claim 6 wherein the tip rim is located between the tip wall and the upper tip rail surface.

8. The engine component of claim 1 wherein the tip rim is formed in the inner tip rail surface.

9. The engine component of claim 1 wherein the at least one cooling passage is multiple cooling passages extending between the upstream edge and the downstream edge.

10. The engine component of claim 9 wherein when moving from the upstream edge to the downstream edge, the multiple cooling passages have diffuser vectors that point increasingly toward the downstream edge.

11. The engine component of claim 1 wherein the intermediate outlet is spaced from the rear to define a pocket.

12. The engine component of claim 11 wherein the at least one cooling passage is multiple cooling passages extending between the upstream edge and the downstream edge and a diffuser length varies amongst the multiple cooling passages.

13. The engine component of claim 1 , further comprising a second set of cooling passages formed in the outer wall and fluidly coupling the at least one cooling conduit to the outer surface, at least one of the cooling passages in the second set of cooling passages comprising a diffusion slot extending in a flow direction toward the tip and terminating in a passage outlet opening onto the upper tip rail surface.

14. The engine component of claim 1 wherein an impingement surface is located opposite the intermediate outlet along a portion of the diffusion slot.

15. The engine component of claim 1 , further comprising at least one flow enhancement structure within the diffusion slot.

16. A method for cooling an engine component of claim 1 in the form of an airfoil extending between a root and a tip to define a radial direction and including the at least one cooling passage, the method comprising:
receiving at the inlet of the at least one cooling passage a cooling fluid flow;
flowing the cooling fluid flow through the at least one cooling passage and into the diffusion slot;
directing the cooling fluid flow in a primarily radial direction within the diffusion slot;
expanding the cooling fluid flow in a direction perpendicular to the primarily radial direction within the diffusion slot; and
emitting the cooling fluid flow from the diffusion slot at the passage outlet opening along an exterior surface of the tip rail of the airfoil.

17. The method of claim 16 , further comprising impinging the cooling fluid flow on an impingement surface within the at least one cooling passage.

18. The method of claim 17 , further comprising turning the cooling fluid flow from a first passage to the diffusion slot.

19. The method of claim 16 , further comprising emitting the cooling fluid flow at a passage outlet opening along a tip rim in the tip rail.

20. The method of claim 16 , further comprising emitting the cooling fluid flow toward one of an upstream edge or a downstream edge of the airfoil.

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Webster Zachary Daniel
• Osgood Daniel Endecott
• Gallier Kirk Douglas

Classifications

• Y02T50/60

  Efficient propulsion technologies, e.g. for aircraft · CPC title

• F05D2260/232

  characterized by the cooling medium · CPC title

• F05D2260/201

  by impingement of a fluid · CPC title

• F01D5/187 Primary

  Convection cooling · CPC title

• F01D5/087

  in the radial passages of the rotor disc · CPC title