Turbine blade with integrated serpentine and axial tip cooling circuits
First Claim
1. An air cooled turbine blade comprising:
- an airfoil having a leading edge and a trailing edge, and a pressure side wall and a suction side wall, the pressure and suction side walls extend in a chordal direction between the leading and trailing edges and extend spanwise between a blade root and a tip of the airfoil;
a leading edge cooling circuit extending spanwise adjacent to the leading edge;
a trailing edge cooling circuit extending spanwise adjacent to the trailing edge;
a mid-section serpentine cooling circuit extending spanwise and located between the leading edge cooling circuit and the trailing edge cooling circuit for channeling air in a forward direction extending from the trailing edge toward the leading edge, the serpentine cooling circuit including a first channel and a final channel, the first channel receiving cooling air from a first channel root passage;
an axial tip cooling circuit extending in the chordal direction and located between a tip cap and the serpentine cooling circuit at an outer end of the first channel, the axial tip cooling circuit having a forward end receiving cooling air from the final channel of the serpentine cooling circuit and discharging the cooling air adjacent to the trailing edge, wherein the axial tip cooling circuit is defined as a continuous cavity extending from the pressure side wall to the suction side wall between the tip cap and a cavity floor extending in an aft direction from the forward end of the axial tip cooling circuit to a location adjacent to the trailing edge;
a squealer rail extending radially outward from the tip cap to a radially outer blade tip at the pressure and suction side walls; and
wherein pressure and suction wall corners are defined within the axel tip cooling circuit at junctions of the tip cap with the respective pressure and suction side walls, and the tip cap is defined by opposing side portions extending inwardly from the pressure and suction wall corners toward the cavity floor, the opposing side portions each comprising a continuous radial inward angling to form a junction of the opposing side portions at a chordal center of the airfoil, wherein the axial tip cooling circuit has a minimum dimension in the spanwise direction at the chordal center of the airfoil.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An air cooled turbine blade including leading and trailing edges, and pressure and suction side walls extending between the leading and trailing edges. Leading and trailing edge cooling circuits extend spanwise adjacent to the leading and trailing edges, respectively. A forward flow mid-section serpentine cooling circuit extends spanwise and is located between the leading and trailing edge cooling circuits. An axial tip cooling circuit extends in the chordal direction and is located between a tip cap of the blade and the serpentine cooling circuit at an outer end of the serpentine cooling circuit. The axial tip cooling circuit has a forward end receiving cooling air from a final channel of the serpentine cooling circuit and discharges the cooling air adjacent to the trailing edge.
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Citations
14 Claims
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1. An air cooled turbine blade comprising:
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an airfoil having a leading edge and a trailing edge, and a pressure side wall and a suction side wall, the pressure and suction side walls extend in a chordal direction between the leading and trailing edges and extend spanwise between a blade root and a tip of the airfoil; a leading edge cooling circuit extending spanwise adjacent to the leading edge; a trailing edge cooling circuit extending spanwise adjacent to the trailing edge; a mid-section serpentine cooling circuit extending spanwise and located between the leading edge cooling circuit and the trailing edge cooling circuit for channeling air in a forward direction extending from the trailing edge toward the leading edge, the serpentine cooling circuit including a first channel and a final channel, the first channel receiving cooling air from a first channel root passage; an axial tip cooling circuit extending in the chordal direction and located between a tip cap and the serpentine cooling circuit at an outer end of the first channel, the axial tip cooling circuit having a forward end receiving cooling air from the final channel of the serpentine cooling circuit and discharging the cooling air adjacent to the trailing edge, wherein the axial tip cooling circuit is defined as a continuous cavity extending from the pressure side wall to the suction side wall between the tip cap and a cavity floor extending in an aft direction from the forward end of the axial tip cooling circuit to a location adjacent to the trailing edge; a squealer rail extending radially outward from the tip cap to a radially outer blade tip at the pressure and suction side walls; and wherein pressure and suction wall corners are defined within the axel tip cooling circuit at junctions of the tip cap with the respective pressure and suction side walls, and the tip cap is defined by opposing side portions extending inwardly from the pressure and suction wall corners toward the cavity floor, the opposing side portions each comprising a continuous radial inward angling to form a junction of the opposing side portions at a chordal center of the airfoil, wherein the axial tip cooling circuit has a minimum dimension in the spanwise direction at the chordal center of the airfoil. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. A process for cooling a turbine blade used in a gas turbine engine, the turbine blade including an inward located blade root and an airfoil having an outward located tip comprising a tip cap located at a radially outer end of the tip, the airfoil including a leading edge and a trailing edge with a plurality of trailing edge exit passages to discharge cooling air from the airfoil, wherein the tip cap further comprises a squealer rail extending radially outward from a junction of an outer tip cap surface with a pressure side wall and a suction side wall, the squealer rail extending chordally from the leading edge to the trailing edge, wherein the tip cap is recessed relative to the squealer rail to define a squealer tip cavity,the process comprising:
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supplying cooling air to the airfoil via the blade root; passing a portion of the cooling air through a leading edge cooling circuit to cool the leading edge of the airfoil; passing a portion of the cooling air through a trailing edge cooling circuit to exit the airfoil through the plurality of exit passages; passing a portion of the cooling air through a forward flowing serpentine cooling circuit between the leading edge cooling circuit and the trailing edge cooling circuit; passing the cooling air from a forward end of the serpentine cooling circuit to flow axially within an axial tip cooling circuit toward the trailing edge to provide cooling to the tip cap; and directing a greater amount air within the axial tip cooling circuit toward portions of the axial cooling circuit adjacent to the pressure and suction side walls of the airfoil than is provided to a chordal center of the axial tip cooling circuit, comprising; a) providing a reduced spanwise dimension at a chordal center of the airfoil in the axial tip cooling circuit than spanwise dimensions of the axial tip cooling circuit adjacent to the pressure and suction side walls, wherein pressure and suction wall corners are defined within the axial tip cooling circuit at junctions of an inner tip cap surface with the respective pressure and suction side walls and the tip cap is defined by opposing side portions extending inwardly from the pressure and suction wall corners toward the cavity floor, the opposing side portions each comprising a continuous radial inward angling to form a junction of the opposing side portions at the chordal center of the airfoil; and b) providing rib-like turbulators extending from inner surface of the pressure and suction side walls within the axial tip cooling circuit, the turbulators angled radially outward in the spanwise and aft directions, with respect to the cavity floor, to create a flow of the cooling air in the axial tip cooling circuit radially outward to corners defined at junctions between the pressure and suction walls and the tip cap. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An air cooled turbine blade comprising:
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an airfoil having a leading edge and a trailing edge, and a pressure side wall and a suction side wall, the pressure and suction side walls extend in a chordal direction between the leading and trailing edges and extend spanwise between a blade root and a tip of the airfoil; a leading edge cooling circuit extending spanwise adjacent to the leading edge; a trailing edge cooling circuit extending spanwise adjacent to the trailing edge; a mid-section serpentine cooling circuit extending spanwise and located between the leading edge cooling circuit and the trailing edge cooling circuit for channeling air in a forward direction extending from the trailing edge toward the leading edge, the serpentine cooling circuit including a first channel and a final channel, the first channel receiving cooling air from a first channel root passage; an axial tip cooling circuit extending in the chordal direction and located between a tip cap and the serpentine cooling circuit at an outer end of the first channel, the axial tip cooling circuit having a forward end receiving cooling air from the final channel of the serpentine cooling circuit and discharging the cooling air adjacent to the trailing edge, wherein the axial tip cooling circuit is defined as a continuous cavity extending from the pressure side wall to the suction side wall between the tip cap and a cavity floor extending in an aft direction from the forward end of the axial tip cooling circuit to a location adjacent to the trailing edge; wherein pressure and suction wall corners are defined within the axial tip cooling circuit at junctions of an inner tip cap surface with the respective pressure and suction side walls, and the tip cap is defined by opposing side portions extending inwardly from the pressure and suction wall corners toward the cavity floor, the opposing side portions each comprising a continuous radial inward angling to form a junction of the opposing side portions at a chordal center of the airfoil, wherein the axial tip cooling circuit has a minimum dimension in the spanwise direction at the chordal center of the airfoil, the tip cap further comprising a squealer rail extending radially outward from a junction of an outer tip cap surface with the pressure and suction side wall, wherein the squealer rail extends chordally from the leading edge to the trailing edge, the tip cap being recessed relative to the squealer rail to define a squealer tip cavity; and rib-like turbulators extending from inner surfaces of the pressure and suction side walls within the axial tip cooling circuit, the turbulators angled radially outward in the spanwise and aft directions, with respect to the cavity floor, to create a flow of the cooling air in the axial tip cooling circuit radially outward to the pressure and suction wall corners at the tip cap.
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Specification