High temperature and pressure testing facility

• US 7,174,797 B2
• Filed: 10/14/2003
• Issued: 02/13/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 10/15/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Florida Turbine Technologies, Inc. (Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Florida Turbine Technologies, Inc. (Kratos Defense & Security Solutions Incorporated)
• Inventors: Brostmeyer, Joseph, Ebert, Todd A., Wilson, Jack
• Primary Examiner(s): Williams; Hezron
• Assistant Examiner(s): FAYYAZ, NASHMIYA SAQIB
• Application Number:
  US10/685,339
• Publication Number:
  US 20040216535A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,218 Days
• Field of Search: 738/656, 731/50.R, 738/66
• US Class Current: 73/865.6
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 15/14 Testing gas-turbine engines or jet-propulsion engines
• CPC Class Codes: G01M 99/002 Thermal testing flaw detection G01N25/72
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 17/002 Test chambers
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2203/0042 Pneumatic or hydraulic means
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2203/0057 using stresses due to heating, e.g. conductive heating, radiative heating
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2203/0226 High temperature; Heating means
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2203/0232 High pressure
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 25/00 Investigating or analyzing materials by the use of thermal means G01N3/00 - G01N23/00 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 3/18 Performing tests at high or low temperatures

Abstract

A test facility is provided for testing materials under high temperature, pressure, and mechanical loads. The facility provides a physically scaled system that simulates conditions in hot sections of gas turbine engines. A test article is coated with a test material and exposed to a hot combusting flow in a test section housing. The article may be a pipe or conduit member oriented at any direction to the flow. A second cooler flow of fluid is channeled through the test article to create a sharp temperature gradient in the test article and through the test material. A liquid-cooled sleeve is disposed about the test article to create an annular channel of combusting flow over the test article. The downstream end of the second cooler flow is connected to the upstream end of the main hot flow at the combustion chamber.

Claims

1. A facility for testing a material, comprising:

a test section housing defining a first flow path and a second flow path, each flow path having upstream and downstream ends, respectively;

a combustor section defining a combustion chamber in fluid communication with the upstream end of the second flow path and the downstream end of the first flow path;

at least one fuel injector disposed proximate the downstream end of the first flow path and proximate the upstream end second flow path;

a conduit enclosing a portion of the first flow path for accommodation therethrough of a first fluid flow having a first temperature;

a sleeve concentric about the conduit to define an annular portion of the second flow path for accommodation therethrough of a second fluid flow having a temperature higher than the first temperature; and

a test material disposed on the conduit in contact with the annular portion.

2. The facility of claim 1, further comprising:

a source of compressed fluid coupled to the test section at the upstream end of the first flow path; and

an exhaust channel coupled to the downstream end of the second flow path.

3. The facility of claim 2, further comprising:

a heat exchanger disposed in the exhaust channel in thermal communication with the source of compressed fluid.

4. The facility of claim 2, further comprising:

an exhaust valve and silencer coupled to the exhaust channel.

5. The facility of claim 1,

wherein the first fluid flow is oriented along an axis in a first direction and the second fluid flow is oriented along the axis in a direction opposite the first direction.

6. The facility of claim 1,

wherein the sleeve defines a plurality of channels for accommodation therethrough of a fluid coolant.

7. The facility of claim 1,

wherein the conduit comprises a first plurality of serially connected longitudinal pipe sections.