Combustor for a gas turbine engine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12385641-B1
Application number	US-202418736927-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Jun 7, 2024
Priority date	Jun 7, 2024
Publication date	Aug 12, 2025
Grant date	Aug 12, 2025

Abstract

A combustor for a gas turbine engine includes a dome-deflector structure and a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly having a mounting wall with a plurality of purge orifices extending therethrough. A circumferential purge cavity is defined between a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly housing, a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening of the dome-deflector structure, and the mounting wall. The purge orifices provide a purge airflow to the circumferential purge cavity. In a first state, when a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity is constant, the dome-deflector structure overlaps a portion of the purge orifices to block a portion of each purge orifice, and, in a second state when the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly is radially shifted, the dome-deflector structure increases blockage of at least one purge orifice on a second side of the circumferential purge cavity, and reduces blockage of at least one purge orifice on a first side of the circumferential purge cavity.

First claim

We claim:

1. A combustor for a gas turbine engine, the combustor comprising:
a dome-deflector structure defining a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening therethrough; and
a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly having (a) a housing and (b) a mounting wall extending from the housing, the mounting wall having a plurality of purge orifices extending therethrough and being circumferentially spaced apart from each other,
wherein the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly is mounted to the dome-deflector structure to extend at least partially through the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening and a circumferential purge cavity is defined between the housing, the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening of the dome-deflector structure, and the mounting wall, and the plurality of purge orifices are arranged to provide a purge airflow to the circumferential purge cavity,
in a first state, in which a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity is constant circumferentially, the dome-deflector structure overlaps a portion of each of the plurality of purge orifices so as to block a portion of each purge orifice, and
in a second state, in which the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly is radially shifted such that a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity on a first side of the circumferential purge cavity is increased and a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity on a second side of the circumferential purge cavity opposing the first side is decreased, the dome-deflector structure increases blockage of at least one purge orifice on the second side, and the dome-deflector structure reduces blockage of at least one purge orifice on the first side.

2. The combustor according to claim 1 , wherein a total purge airflow volume through the plurality of purge orifices in the first state and a total purge airflow volume through the plurality of purge orifices in the second state is constant.

3. The combustor according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of purge orifices is one of a circular orifice, an oval-shaped orifice, a hexagon-shaped orifice, a rectangular-shaped orifice, a triangular-shaped orifice, a diamond-shaped orifice, a keyhole-shaped orifice, or a star-shaped orifice.

4. The combustor according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of purge orifices are arranged at an angle with respect to a fuel nozzle centerline axis.

5. The combustor according to claim 1 , wherein the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening defines an opening centerline axis therethrough, the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly defines a fuel nozzle centerline axis, in the first state, the opening centerline axis and the fuel nozzle centerline axis are congruent with each other, and, in the second state, the opening centerline axis and the fuel nozzle centerline axis are radially offset with respect to one another.

6. The combustor according to claim 5 , wherein the mounting wall extends in a radial direction, with respect to the fuel nozzle centerline axis, from the housing and extends circumferentially about the fuel nozzle centerline axis.

7. The combustor according to claim 6 , wherein the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly is mounted to the dome-deflector structure via a mounting member connected to the dome-deflector structure, and the mounting wall slidingly engages with the mounting member to allow radial motion of the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly with respect to the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening.

8. The combustor according to claim 5 , wherein each of the plurality of purge orifices is an oval-shaped orifice with a major axis extending radially with respect to the fuel nozzle centerline axis.

9. The combustor according to claim 8 , wherein, in the first state, the dome-deflector structure blocks a radially outward portion of each oval-shaped orifice.

10. The combustor according to claim 5 , wherein the plurality of purge orifices are arranged in a plurality of circumferential rows, including a first circumferential row arranged at a first radial distance from the fuel nozzle centerline axis, and a second circumferential row arranged at a second radial distance greater than the first radial distance from the fuel nozzle centerline axis.

11. The combustor according to claim 10 , wherein purge orifices in the first circumferential row are arranged at a first angle with respect to the fuel nozzle centerline axis, and purge orifices in the second circumferential row are arranged at a second angle different from the first angle with respect to the fuel nozzle centerline axis.

12. The combustor according to claim 10 , wherein purge orifices in the first circumferential row are circumferentially staggered with respect to purge orifices in the second circumferential row.

13. The combustor according to claim 10 , wherein the plurality of purge orifices are further arranged in a third circumferential row arranged at a third radial distance greater than the second radial distance from the fuel nozzle centerline axis.

14. The combustor according to claim 13 , wherein, in the first state, the dome-deflector structure overlaps an entirety of each purge orifice in the third circumferential row, and, in the second state, at least one of the purge orifices in the third circumferential row on the first side is at least partially unblocked.

15. The combustor according to claim 10 , wherein, in the first state, the dome-deflector structure blocks at least a portion of each of purge orifice in the second circumferential row.

16. The combustor according to claim 15 , wherein purge orifices in the first circumferential row are circular-shaped purge orifices, and purge orifices in the second circumferential row are oval-shaped purge orifices.

17. The combustor according to claim 15 , wherein, in the second state, the dome-deflector structure decreases a blockage of purge orifices in the second circumferential row on a first side of the circumferential purge cavity, and increases the blockage of purge orifices in the second circumferential row on a second side opposing the first side of the circumferential purge cavity.

18. A gas turbine engine, comprising:
a compressor section; and
a combustor arranged in fluid communication with the compressor section and arranged to receive a flow of compressed air from the compressor section, the combustor including:
a dome-deflector structure defining a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening therethrough; and
a fuel nozzle-swirler assembly having (a) a housing and (b) a mounting wall extending from the housing, the mounting wall having a plurality of purge orifices extending therethrough and being circumferentially spaced apart from each other,
wherein the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly is mounted to the dome-deflector structure to extend at least partially through the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening and a circumferential purge cavity is defined between the housing, the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly opening of the dome-deflector structure, and the mounting wall, and the plurality of purge orifices are arranged to provide a purge airflow to the circumferential purge cavity,
in a first state, in which a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity is constant circumferentially, the dome-deflector structure overlaps a portion of each of the plurality of purge orifices so as to block a portion of each purge orifice, and
in a second state, in which the fuel nozzle-swirler assembly is radially shifted such that a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity on a first side of the circumferential purge cavity is increased and a radial height of the circumferential purge cavity o

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Li Hejie
• Salazar Lois Gerardo Antonio
• Cooper Clayton S

Classifications

• F23R3/14

  by using swirl vanes · CPC title

• F23R3/10

  for primary air (F23R3/06, F23R3/045 take precedence) · CPC title

• F23R3/26

  Controlling the air flow · CPC title

• F23R3/12 Primary

  inducing a vortex · CPC title

• F23R3/002 Primary

  Wall structures (F23R3/02 and F23R3/007 take precedence) · CPC title