Liquid cooled salient pole rotor support wedges

• US 4,943,746 A
• Filed: 03/20/1989
• Issued: 07/24/1990
• Est. Priority Date: 03/20/1989
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Alliedsignal Inc. (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Alliedsignal Inc. (Honeywell International Inc.)
• Inventors: Kasdan, Leon M., Chu, Tsuwei, Scherzinger, William M.
• Primary Examiner(s): Budd, Mark O.
• Assistant Examiner(s): REBSCH, DONALD
• Application Number:
  US07/326,149
• Time in Patent Office: 491 Days
• Field of Search: 310/54, 310/58, 310/59, 310/61, 310/261, 310/269, 310/60 A, 310/60 R
• US Class Current: 310/61
• CPC Class Codes: H02K 9/197 in which the rotor or stator space is fluid-tight, e.g. to provide for different cooling media for rotor and stator

Abstract

Apparatus and method for dissipating heat in a generator. A rotor having support wedges between each of its poles is mounted on a bored shaft in which a bored spindle having helical grooves along its outer diameter is fixed. A cooling medium is circulated through the bored shaft upon rotation of the shaft. The shaft has at least one outlet and one inlet through which the cooling medium can radially exit and return, respectively. Each of the support wedges has an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends. In a preferred embodiment, a manifold is disposed about the bored shaft and mated to each of the support wedges so as to circulate the cooling medium from the bored shaft to the support wedges and back to the bored shaft, thereby dissipating heat from the generator rotor. In alternate embodiments more than one manifold is used to circulate the cooling medium through the support wedges.

Claims

1. A conduction cooling system through which a cooling medium can be circulated for dissipating heat in a generator, comprising:

a shaft adapted to be rotated and having an axial bore through which the cooling medium can be circulated and at least two orifices extending radially from said bore;

a rotor mounted on said shaft having a plurality of poles;

a plurality of support wedges positioned between each of said plurality of poles, at least one of said plurality of support wedges having an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends;

means disposed in said bore of said shaft for directing the cooling medium out of said shaft through at least one of said orifices and into said shaft through at least one of said orifices; and

means disposed about said shaft for transferring the cooling medium from said orifices through which the cooling medium exits said shaft to said inlet in at least one of said plurality of support wedges and for transferring the cooling medium from said outlet in each of said plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium to said orifices through which the cooling medium enters said shaft so as to transfer the cooling medium through said bore in at least one of said plurality of support wedges.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of support wedges has an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends such that the cooling medium is transferred through each of said plurality of support wedges.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means for transferring and each of said plurality of support wedges are fabricated from a material selected from the group consisting of aluminum, titanium and nonmagnetic steel.

4. The system as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of said plurality of support wedges is coated with an insulating material.

5. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said inlet and said outlet are in a same end of each of said plurality of support wedges having said inlet and said outlet and said means for transferring is a manifold having a plurality of conduits.

6. The system as claimed in claim 5, wherein each of said plurality of support wedges has an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends such that the cooling medium is transferred through each of said plurality of support wedges.

7. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said inlet and said outlet are in opposite ends in each of said plurality of support wedges having said inlet and said outlet and said means for transferring comprises two manifolds, a first manifold disposed at a first axial end of said plurality of support wedges and having conduits extending from said orifices through which the cooling medium exits said shaft to said inlet in each of said plurality of support wedges which receive the cooling medium and a second manifold disposed at a second axial end of said plurality of support wedges and having conduits extending from said outlet in each of said plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium to said orifices through which the cooling medium enters said shaft.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, wherein each of said plurality of support wedges has an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends such that the cooling medium is transferred through each of said plurality of support wedges.

20. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a rod having an axial bore which is fixed in said bore of said shaft.

21. The system as claimed in claim 20, wherein said means for directing is a bushing disposed about said rod, said bushing having at least one cutout face on a first side for directing the cooling medium into said shaft and at least one cutout face on a second side for directing the cooling medium out of said shaft.

22. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein said means for transferring the cooling medium is mounted to each of said plurality of support wedges which receive the cooling medium.

9. A conduction system through which a cooling medium can be circulated for dissipating that in a generator, comprising:

a shaft having an axial bore and at least two orifices extending radially from said bore;

a rotor mounted on said shaft having a plurality of poles;

a plurality of support wedges positioned between each of said plurality of poles, at least two of said plurality of support wedges having an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends;

means for providing a conduit through which the cooling medium can be transferred from said outlet in one of said plurality of support wedges to said inlet in another of said plurality of support wedges; and

means disposed about said shaft for transferring the cooling medium from said orifices through which the cooling medium exits said shaft to said inlet in at least one of said plurality of support wedges and for transferring the cooling medium from said outlet in each of said plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium to said orifices through which the cooling medium enters said shaft so that the cooling medium circulates from said shaft to at least one of said plurality of support wedges to said means for providing a conduit to at least one other of said plurality of support wedges to said shaft.

10. The system as claimed in claim 9, wherein each of said plurality of support wedges has said inlet, said outlet and said bore and said means for transferring and said means for providing a conduit transfers the cooling medium through each of said plurality of support wedges.

11. The system as claimed in claim 10, wherein said means for transferring and each of said plurality of support wedges are fabricated from a material selected from the group consisting of aluminum, titanium and steel.

12. The system as claimed in claim 11, wherein each of said plurality of support wedges is coated with an insulating material.

23. The system as claimed in claim 9, wherein said means for transferring the cooling medium is mounted to each of said plurality of support wedges which receive the cooling medium.

13. A conduction cooling system through which a cooling medium can be circulated for dissipating that in a generator, comprising:

a shaft adapted for rotation and having an axial bore and at least two orifices extending radially from said bore;

a rotor mounted on said shaft having a plurality of poles;

a plurality of support wedges positioned between each of said plurality of poles, at least one of said plurality of support wedges having an inlet and an outlet between which a bore extends;

means mounted in said bore of said shaft for directing the exit of at least a portion of the cooling medium through at least one of said orifices from said shaft; and

means disposed about said shaft for transferring the cooling medium from said orifices through which the cooling medium exits said shaft to said inlet in at least one of said plurality of support wedges and for transferring the cooling medium from said outlet in each of said plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium to said orifices through which the cooling medium enters said shaft so as to allow the cooling medium to circulate through said bore in at least one of said plurality of support wedges.

14. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said inlet and said outlet are in opposite ends in each of said plurality of support wedges having said inlet and said outlet and said means for transferring is two manifolds, a first manifold disposed at a first axial end of said plurality of support wedges having conduits extending between said orifices through which the cooling medium exits said shaft to said inlet in each of said plurality of support wedges having said inlet through which the cooling medium can be transferred and a second manifold disposed at a second axial end of said plurality of support wedges having conduits extending between said outlet in each of said plurality of support wedges having said outlet to said orifices through which the cooling medium enters said shaft through which the cooling medium can be transferred.

24. The system as claimed in claim 13, wherein said means for transferring the cooling medium is mounted to each of said plurality of support wedges which receive the cooling medium.

25. The system as claimed in claim 14, wherein said two manifolds are mounted to each of said plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium.

15. A method for dissipating heat in a generator having an axially bored shaft, a rotor mounted on the bored shaft having a plurality of poles, and a plurality of support wedges positioned between each of the plurality of poles, at least one of the plurality of support wedges having a bore, comprising the steps of:

transferring a cooling medium through the shaft;

transferring at least a portion of cooling medium from at least one radially extending orifice in the shaft through one or more conduits and through the bore in at least one of the plurality of support wedges; and

returning the cooling medium from each of the plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium through one or more conduits to at least one radially extending orifice in the shaft.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein said cooling medium is oil.

17. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the cooling medium is transferred to the plurality of support wedges and returned to the shaft by a manifold disposed at about the shaft at one end of the plurality of support wedges.

18. The method as claimed in claim 15, wherein the cooling medium is transferred to the plurality of support wedges by a first manifold disposed about the shaft at one end of the plurality of support wedges and returned to the shaft by a second manifold disposed about the shaft at a second end of the plurality of support wedges.

19. A method for dissipating heat in a generator having an axially bored shaft, a rotor mounted on the bored shaft having a plurality of poles, and a plurality of support wedges positioned between each of the plurality of poles, at least two of the plurality of support wedges having a bore, comprising the steps of:

transferring a cooling medium through the shaft;

transferring the cooling medium from the shaft through the bore in at least one of the plurality of support wedges having the bore;

circulating the cooling medium from each of the plurality of support wedges receiving the cooling medium from the shaft to at least one other of said plurality of support wedges; and

returning the cooling medium to the shaft.