Fire protection of a fan casing made of composite

• US 10,641,178 B2
• Filed: 01/08/2015
• Issued: 05/05/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/09/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Safran Aircraft Engine Company
• Original Assignee: Safran Aircraft Engine Company
• Inventors: Corradini, Sylvain, Elisseeff, Timothee, Essayan, Sophie
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Ninh H.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Mikus, Jason
• Application Number:
  US15/110,391
• Publication Number:
  US 20160333789A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,944 Days
• Field of Search: 415200
• CPC Class Codes: F01D 25/24 Casings modified for heating or cooling F01D25/14; Casing parts, e.g. diaphragms, casing fastenings casings for rotary machines or engines in general F16M ; special arrangements in stators dealing with breaking-off of part of rotor F01D21/045
• CPC Class Codes: F02C 7/25 Fire protection or prevention in general A62
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/526 Details of the casing section radially opposing blade tips ducts F04D29/545
• CPC Class Codes: F05D 2240/15 Heat shield
• CPC Class Codes: F05D 2300/603 Composites; e.g. fibre-reinforced
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 50/60 Efficient propulsion technologies, e.g. for aircraft

Abstract

Method (S) for protecting against fire a fan casing (1) comprising a roughly cylindrical barrel (10) having a main direction extending along a longitudinal axis (X) and an upstream flange (20) extending radially with respect to the longitudinal axis (X) from an upstream end of the barrel (10), the fan casing (1) being made of a composite comprising a fibrous reinforcement densified by a matrix, said matrix being polymerized, the protection method(S) comprising the following steps:⋅—laying (SI) widths containing glass fibre pre-impregnated with a resin capable of affording the fan casing with thermal protection against fire on an upstream radial face (22) of the upstream flange (20), and ⋅—polymerizing (S2) the resin in order to obtain a protective layer (2).

Claims

1. A fire protection method

the fire protection method comprising the following successive steps:

providing a fan casing comprising an overall cylindrical barrel having a main direction extending along a longitudinal axis and an upstream flange radially extending relative to the longitudinal axis from an upstream end of the barrel, the fan casing being made of composite material comprising a fiber reinforcement densified by a matrix, said matrix having been polymerized,

draping, on an upstream radial face of the upstream flange of the fan casing, panels comprising prepreg glass fibers with a resin capable of thermally protecting the fan casing against fire, the resin of the panels being unpolymerized during the draping step, and

polymerizing the resin of the panels to obtain a protective layer.

2. The fire protection method according to claim 1, wherein supplementary panels are also draped on an outer face of the barrel during the draining step.

3. The fire protection method according to claim 1, wherein supplementary panels are also draped on a top of the upstream flange during the draining step.

4. The fire protection method according to claim 1, wherein supplementary panels are also draped against an inner face of the barrel during the draining step, in a part adjacent to the upstream flange.

5. The fire protection method according to claim 4, wherein, during the draping step, more supplementary panels are draped on the upstream radial face of the upstream flange than on the inner face of the barrel in the part adjacent to the upstream flange.

6. The fire protection method according to claim 2, wherein, during the polymerizing step, the supplementary panels are polymerized to form supplementary protective layers against fire.

7. The fire protection method according to claim 1, further comprising, following the polymerization step, a step during which an annular counter plate made of titanium is fixed on a downstream radial face of the upstream flange.

8. The fire protection method according to claim 1, wherein the resin comprises at least one of the following materials:

an epoxy resin, a phenolic resin, a cyanate ester resin.

9. The protection method according to claim 1, further comprising a machining step of the upstream radial face of the upstream flange so as to adjust a thickness of the protective layer.

10. The fire protection method according to claim 1, the fan casing further comprising a downstream flange, and the method further comprises a step during which a barrier against galvanic corrosion is applied against a downstream surface of the downstream flange.

11. The fire protection method according to claim 10, wherein the barrier against galvanic corrosion is applied according to the following steps:

draping, on a downstream radial face of the downstream flange, panels comprising prepreg glass fibers with a resin capable of protecting the fan casing, and

polymerizing the resin of the panels to obtain a protective layer.

12. A fan casing made of composite material comprising a fiber reinforcement densified by a matrix, the fan casing comprising:

an overall cylindrical barrel having a main direction extending along a longitudinal axis and an upstream flange radially extending relative to the longitudinal axis from an upstream end of the barrel, and

a protective layer on an upstream radial face obtained as per a fire protection method according to claim 1.

13. The fan casing according to claim 12, further comprising a downstream flange radially extending relative to the longitudinal axis from a downstream end of the barrel and a barrier against galvanic corrosion on a downstream radial face of the downstream flange.

14. The protection method according to claim 2, wherein, during the polymerizing step, the supplementary panels are polymerized to form supplementary protective layers against fire at the same time as the panels are draped on the upstream radial face of the upstream flange.

15. The protection method according to claim 10, wherein the barrier against galvanic corrosion is applied according to the following steps:

draping, on a downstream radial face of the downstream flange and on the top, panels comprising prepreg glass fibers with a resin capable of protecting the fan casing, and

polymerizing the resin of the panels to obtain a protective layer.