Gas turbine compressor passive clearance control

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018010617-A1
Application number	US-201615206464-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 11, 2016
Priority date	Jul 11, 2016
Publication date	Jan 11, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A gas turbine engine is disclosed having a turbine, one or more hydrocarbon gas combustors, and a compressor. The compressor has a rotor assembly with one or more rotor blade rows extending radially outward from an inner wheel disk. The compressor also has a stator assembly with one or more stator vane rows extending radially inward from an inner casing and positioned between adjacent rotor blade rows. The inner casing extends circumferentially around the rotor assembly and is constructed from at least one low-alpha metal alloy.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A compressor for a gas turbine, comprising:
a rotor assembly comprising one or more rotor blade rows comprising circumferentially spaced-apart rotor blades, each rotor blade extending radially outward from an inner wheel disk; a stator assembly comprising one or more stator vane rows comprising circumferentially spaced-apart stator vanes extending radially inward from an inner casing, each stator vane row positioned between adjacent rotor blade rows, the inner casing extending circumferentially around the rotor assembly thereby forming a plurality of inner flow paths defined by the rotor blades cooperating with the stator vanes, the rotor blades exhibiting a hot running rotor tip clearance and a cold build rotor tip clearance; and wherein said inner casing comprises at least one low-alpha metal alloy.

2 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the at least one low-alpha metal alloy exhibits a coefficient of thermal expansion in the range of about 12 microns/meter/degrees Kelvin or less.

3 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the inner casing comprises a low-alpha metal alloy having an alpha less than the alpha of the rotor blades.

4 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the at least one low-alpha metal alloy is selected from the group consisting of aluminum, iron, nickel, titanium, cobalt, niobium, iron, carbon, chromium or mixtures thereof.

5 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the rotor assembly comprises at least one high-alpha metal alloy.

6 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the compressor is an axial flow compressor.

7 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the low-alpha stator hot running rotor tip clearance is less than about 4% of the radial opening.

8 . The compressor according to claim 1 wherein the low-alpha stator cold build rotor tip clearance is more than about 20% of the radial opening.

9 . The compressor according to claim 1 further comprising inlet guide vanes.

10 . A gas turbine engine, comprising:
a turbine; one or more hydrocarbon gas combustors; a compressor comprising;
a rotor assembly comprising one or more rotor blade rows comprising circumferentially spaced-apart rotor blades, each blade extending radially outward from an inner wheel disk;
a stator assembly comprising one or more stator vane rows comprising circumferentially spaced-apart stator vanes extending radially inward from an inner casing, each stator vane row positioned between adjacent rotor blade rows, the inner casing extending circumferentially around the rotor assembly thereby forming a plurality of inner flow paths defined by the rotor blades cooperating with the stator vanes, the rotor blades exhibiting a hot running rotor tip clearance and a cold build rotor tip clearance; and
wherein said inner casing comprises at least one low-alpha metal alloy.

11 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the at least one low-alpha metal alloy exhibits a coefficient of thermal expansion in the range of about 12 microns/meter/degrees Kelvin or less.

12 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the inner casing comprises a low-alpha metal alloy having an alpha is less than the alpha of the rotor blades.

13 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the at least one low-alpha metal alloy is selected from the group consisting of aluminum, iron, nickel, titanium, cobalt, niobium, iron, carbon, chromium or mixtures thereof.

14 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the rotor assembly comprises at least one high-alpha metal alloy.

15 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the compressor is an axial flow compressor.

16 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the low-alpha stator hot running rotor tip clearance is less than about 4% of the radial opening.

17 . The engine according to claim 10 wherein the low-alpha stator cold build rotor tip clearance is more than about 20% of the radial opening.

18 . The engine according to claim 10 further comprising inlet guide vanes.

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Casavant Matthew Stephen
• Black Kenneth Damon
• Hansen Christian Michael
• Floyd Donald Earl
• Adaickalasamy James
• Klingler Brett Darrick
• Cao Khoa Dang
• Benson Kyle Eric
• Perkins Devin Patrick
• McClelland Damian Anthony

Classifications

• F05D2260/97

  Reducing windage losses · CPC title

• F02C3/04

  having a turbine driving a compressor (power transmission arrangements F02C7/36; control of working fluid flow F02C9/16) · CPC title

• F05D2300/177

  Ni - Si alloys · CPC title

• F04D29/542

  Bladed diffusers (fixing blades to stators F01D9/042) · CPC title

• F05D2220/32

  in gas turbines · CPC title