Turbine rotor blade platform cooling

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9249673-B2
Application number	US-201113341018-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 30, 2011
Priority date	Dec 30, 2011
Publication date	Feb 2, 2016
Grant date	Feb 2, 2016

Abstract

A platform cooling arrangement for a turbine rotor blade having a platform at an interface between an airfoil and a root, the root including attachment means and a shank, wherein the platform comprises a suction side that includes a topside extending from an airfoil base to a suction side slashface, and wherein the platform overhangs a shank cavity. The platform cooling arrangement may include: a pocket formed in an underside region of the platform, the pocket comprising a mouth that fluidly communicates with the shank cavity; a manifold extending from the suction side slashface to a pressure side slashface, the manifold including a connection to the pocket; and cooling apertures that extend from connections made with the pocket and manifold to ports.

First claim

We claim:

1. A platform cooling arrangement for a turbine rotor blade having a platform at an interface between an airfoil and a root, the root including attachment means and, extending between the attachment means and the platform, a shank, wherein, along the side of the platform that corresponds with a suction face of the airfoil, the platform comprises a suction side that includes a topside extending from an airfoil base to a suction side slashface, and wherein the platform overhangs a shank cavity formed in the shank, the platform cooling arrangement comprising:
a pocket formed in an underside region of the platform, the pocket comprising a mouth that receives fluid from the shank cavity;
a manifold extending from a first end near the suction side slashface to a second end near a pressure side slashface of the platform, the manifold including a connection to the pocket near the first end of the manifold; and
cooling apertures formed within the platform that extend from a connection made with one of the pocket and the manifold to ports formed within one of the suction side slashface and an aft edge of the platform.

2. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 1 , wherein the cooling apertures include apertures that connect to the manifold and extend to ports formed on the aft edge of the platform; and
the cooling apertures include apertures that connect to the pocket and extend to ports formed on the suction side slashface of the platform.

3. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 2 , wherein the manifold extends approximately linearly from the first end, which is disposed near the suction side slashface, to the second end, which is disposed near the pressure side slashface of the platform;
wherein the manifold extends from the first end to the second end in spaced relation to the aft edge of the platform; and
wherein the pocket comprises a location inboard of an aft half of the platform.

4. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein the spaced relation comprises a short offset;
wherein the manifold extends approximately parallel to the aft edge of the platform; and
wherein the manifold comprises a circumferential axial length of at least 0.75 of the circumferential length of the aft edge of the platform.

5. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein the manifold extends from the pressure side slashface, where the manifold comprises a pressure side outlet, the pressure side outlet comprising a port formed in the pressure side slashface;
wherein the manifold extends from the suction side slashface, where the manifold comprises a suction side outlet, the suction side outlet comprising a port formed in the suction side slashface; and
wherein the suction side outlet includes a non-integral plug that reduces the cross-sectional flow area of the suction side outlet, and the pressure side outlet includes a non-integral plug that reduces the cross-sectional flow area of the pressure side outlet.

6. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 5 , wherein the non-integral plug of the suction side outlet is configured to provide a predetermined cross-sectional flow area through the suction side outlet that, given anticipated operating conditions, corresponds to a desired coolant impingement characteristic; and
wherein the non-integral plug of the pressure side outlet is configured to provide a predetermined cross-sectional flow area through the pressure side outlet that, given anticipated operating conditions, corresponds to a desired coolant impingement characteristic during operation.

7. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein:
the attachment means of the root includes a dovetail;
the shank includes an upstream wall and a downstream wall;
the shank cavity comprises a large cavity formed inboard of an overhanging portion of the suction side of the platform, the shank cavity being axially defined by an inner surface of the upstream wall of the shank and an inner surface of the downstream wall of the shank.

8. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 7 , wherein, the rotor blade is configured such that, upon installation, the rotor blade desirably engages a neighboring rotor blade along the suction side slashface of the platform, and an edge of the upstream wall and the downstream wall of the shank;
wherein the desirable engagement of the neighboring rotor blades forms a combined shank cavity between the neighboring rotor blades; and
wherein the combined shank cavity is substantially enclosed.

9. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein a plurality of ports are spaced along an aft half of the suction side slashface of the platform, wherein each of the ports spaced along the aft half of the suction side slashface correspond to a cooling aperture that connects the port to the pocket; and
wherein a plurality of ports are spaced along the aft edge of the platform, wherein each of the ports spaced along the aft edge of the platform correspond to a cooling aperture connecting the port to the manifold.

10. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 9 , wherein at least 3 ports are spaced along the aft half of the suction side slashface of the platform and at least 7 ports are spaced along the aft edge of the platform.

11. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 9 , wherein the cooling apertures connecting the ports spaced along the suction side slashface to the pocket extend linearly in an approximate circumferential direction; and
wherein the cooling apertures connecting the ports spaced along the aft edge of the platform to the manifold extend linearly in an approximate axial direction.

12. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 9 , wherein the pocket includes a feed region, the feed region of the pocket comprising a ceiling portion of the pocket that has an outboard position relative to other regions of the pocket;
wherein the plurality of ports spaced along the aft half of the suction side slashface connect, via the cooling apertures, to the feed region of the pocket.

13. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 12 , wherein the outboard position comprises one in close proximity to the topside of the platform; and
wherein the feed region of the pocket is configured such that the cooling apertures that connect thereto maintain an approximate constant radial height as the cooling apertures extend toward the ports formed in the suction side slashface.

14. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 13 , wherein the constant radial height of the cooling apertures corresponds to a desired distance from the topside of the platform, the desired distance comprising one that promotes adequate cooling of the topside of the platform given anticipated operating characteristics.

15. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein the mouth of the pocket is configured to provide a wide opening that fluidly communicates with the shank cavity, and wherein the pocket comprises a smooth, narrowing contour as the pocket extends from the mouth into the rotor blade.

16. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 15 , wherein the pocket extends from the mouth to the feed region, the feed region comprising an outermost radial height of the pocket.

17. The platform cooling arrangement according to claim 3 , wherein the pocket, the manifold, and the cooling apertures are configured such that pressurized coolant from the shank cavity is encouraged to enter the cooling arrangement throug

Assignees

• Ellis Scott Edmond
• Smith Aaron Ezekiel
• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Ellis Scott Edmond
• Smith Aaron Ezekiel

Classifications

• F01D5/08

  Heating, heat-insulating or cooling means {(specially adapted for radial flow machines or engines F01D5/04)} · CPC title

• F01D5/187 Primary

  Convection cooling · CPC title

• F05D2240/81

  Cooled platforms · CPC title

• F01D5/18

  Hollow blades, {i.e. blades with cooling or heating channels or cavities (structure of hollow blades in general F01D5/147)}; Heating, heat-insulating or cooling means on blades · CPC title

• Y02T50/676

  Cross-Sectional Technologies · mapped topic