1. Technical Field
This disclosure relates generally to a turbine engine and, more particularly, to cooling a multi-walled structure of a turbine engine.
2. Background Information
A floating wall combustor for a turbine engine typically includes a bulkhead, an inner combustor wall and an outer combustor wall. The bulkhead extends radially between the inner and the outer combustor walls. Each combustor wall includes a shell and a heat shield that defines a respective radial side of a combustion chamber. Cooling cavities extend radially between the heat shield and the shell. These cooling cavities fluidly couple impingement apertures defined in the shell with effusion apertures defined in the heat shield.
During turbine engine operation, the impingement apertures direct cooling air from a plenum adjacent the combustor into the cooling cavities to impingement cool the heat shield. The effusion apertures direct the cooling air from the cooling cavities into the combustion chamber to film cool the heat shield. This cooling air subsequently mixes and reacts with a fuel-air mixture within the combustion chamber, thereby leaning out the fuel-air mixture in both an upstream fuel-rich primary zone and a downstream fuel-lean secondary zone. The primary zone of the combustion chamber is located between the bulkhead and the secondary zone, which is generally axially aligned with quench apertures in the combustor walls.
In an effort to increase turbine engine efficiency and power, temperature within the combustion chamber may be increased. However, increasing the temperature in the primary zone with a relatively lean fuel-air mixture may also increase NOx, CO and unburned hydrocarbon (UHC) emissions.
There is a need in the art for an improved turbine engine combustor.
According to an aspect of the invention, an assembly is provided for a turbine engine. This turbine engine assembly includes a body, a shell and a heat shield panel. The panel is attached to the shell with a tapered cooling cavity between the shell and the panel. The panel defines a cooling aperture configured to direct air out of the cooling cavity to impinge against the body.
According to another aspect of the invention, another assembly is provided for a turbine engine. This turbine engine assembly includes a body, a shell and a heat shield panel. The panel is attached to the shell with a cooling cavity vertically between the shell and the panel. The panel includes a rail and defines a plurality of cooling apertures, at the rail, through which substantially all air within the cooling cavity is directed out of the cooling cavity to impinge against the body.
The cooling aperture may be one of a plurality of cooling apertures defined by the panel and configured to direct air out of the cooling cavity to impinge against the body.
Substantially all air entering the cooling cavity may be directed out of the cooling cavity through the cooling apertures.
The body may define a plurality of second cooling apertures through which air is directed towards the panel. The cooling apertures may be circumferentially offset from the second cooling apertures.
The panel may include a rail that partially defines the cooling cavity. The panel may define the cooling aperture at the rail. The rail may at least partially define the cooling aperture. The panel may also include a base that may partially define the cooling cavity. The base may also or alternatively at least partially define the cooling aperture.
A surface of the shell and a surface of the panel may converge towards one another and vertically define at least a portion of the cooling cavity.
The body may be configured as or otherwise include a combustor bulkhead.
The body may be configured as or otherwise include a second heat shield panel that is attached to the shell.
The turbine engine assembly may include a second body. The panel may further define a second cooling aperture configured to direct air from a second cooling cavity between the shell and the panel to impinge against the second body.
The second cooling aperture may be one of a plurality of second cooling apertures defined by the panel and configured to direct air out of the second cooling cavity to impinge against the second body.
The body may be configured as or otherwise include a combustor bulkhead. In addition or alternatively, the second body may be configured as or otherwise include a second heat shield panel.
The body may define a plurality of second cooling apertures through which air is directed towards the panel. The cooling apertures may be circumferentially offset from the second cooling apertures.
The rail may at least partially define one or more of the cooling apertures.
The panel may include a base that partially defines the cooling cavity. The base may also at least partially define one or more of the cooling apertures.
The body may be configured as or otherwise include a combustor bulk head or a second heat shield panel.
The foregoing features and the operation of the invention will become more apparent in light of the following description and the accompanying drawings.
Each of the engine sections 28, 29A, 29B, 31A and 31B includes a respective rotor 40-44. Each of the rotors 40-44 includes a plurality of rotor blades arranged circumferentially around and connected to (e.g., formed integral with or mechanically fastened, welded, brazed, adhered or otherwise attached to) one or more respective rotor disks. The fan rotor 40 is connected to a gear train 46 through a fan shaft 47. The gear train 46 and the LPC rotor 41 are connected to and driven by the LPT rotor 44 through a low speed shaft 48. The HPC rotor 42 is connected to and driven by the HPT rotor 43 through a high speed shaft 50. The shafts 47, 48 and 50 are rotatably supported by a plurality of bearings 52. Each of the bearings 52 is connected to the second engine case 38 by at least one stationary structure such as, for example, an annular support strut.
Air enters the turbine engine 20 through the airflow inlet 24, and is directed through the fan section 28 and into an annular core gas path 54 and an annular bypass gas path 56. The air within the core gas path 54 may be referred to as “core air”. The air within the bypass gas path 56 may be referred to as “bypass air”.
The core air is directed through the engine sections 29-31 and exits the turbine engine 20 through the airflow exhaust 26. Within the combustor section 30, fuel is injected into a combustion chamber 58 and mixed with the core air. This fuel-core air mixture is ignited to power the turbine engine 20 and provide forward engine thrust. The bypass air is directed through the bypass gas path 56 and out of the turbine engine 20 through a bypass nozzle 60 to provide additional forward engine thrust. Alternatively, the bypass air may be directed out of the turbine engine 20 through a thrust reverser to provide reverse engine thrust.
The combustor 64 may be configured as an annular floating wall combustor arranged within an annular plenum 72 of the combustor section 30. The combustor 64 of
The inner wall 76 and the outer wall 78 may each be configured as a multi-walled structure; e.g., a hollow dual-walled structure. The inner wall 76 and the outer wall 78 of
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The aperture surfaces 100 and 102 (see
Each of the aperture surfaces 100, 102 defines a respective cooling aperture 114, 116. Each cooling aperture 114, 116 extends (e.g., radially) through the shell 80 from the plenum surface 96 to the cavity surface 98. Each cooling aperture 114, 116 may be configured as an impingement aperture. Each aperture surface 100, 102 of
Referring to
The heat shield 82 may include one or more heat shield panels 118 and 120, one or more of which may have an arcuate geometry. The panels 118 and 120 are respectively arranged at discrete locations along the centerline 22. The panels 118 are disposed circumferentially around the centerline 22 and form a forward hoop. The panels 120 are disposed circumferentially around the centerline 22 and form an aft hoop. Alternatively, the heat shield 82 may be configured from one or more tubular bodies.
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For example, each panel 118 may include a panel base 128 and one or more rails (e.g., rails 110 and 130-133) with the panel base 128 and the panel rails 110, 130, 132 and 133 collectively defining cavity surface 122. Similarly, the panel base 128 and the panel rails 110 and 131-133 may collectively define cavity surface 124, and the panel base 128 may define the chamber surface 126.
The panel base 128 may be configured as a generally curved (e.g., arcuate) plate. The panel base 128 extends axially between an axial forward end 134 and an axial aft end 136. The panel base 128 extends circumferentially between opposing circumferential ends 138 and 140.
The panel rails may include the axial intermediate rail 110, one or more axial end rails 130 and 131, and one more circumferential end rails 132 and 133. Each of the panel rails 110 and 130-133 of the inner wall 76 extends radially in from the respective panel base 128; see also
The axial intermediate and end rails 110, 130 and 131 extend circumferentially between and are connected to the circumferential end rails 132 and 133. The axial intermediate rail 110 is disposed axially (e.g., centrally) between the axial end rails 130 and 131. The axial end rail 130 is arranged at the forward end 134. The axial end rail 131 is arranged at the aft end 136. The circumferential end rail 132 is arranged at the circumferential end 138. The circumferential rail 133 is arranged at the circumferential end 140.
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Each cooling cavity 85 is defined radially by and extends radially between the cavity surface 98 and a respective one of the cavities surfaces 124 as set forth above. Each cooling cavity 85 is defined circumferentially by and extends circumferentially between the end rails 132 and 133 of a respective one of the panels 118. Each cooling cavity 85 is defined axially by and extends axially between the rails 110 and 131 of a respective one of the panels 118. In this manner, each cooling cavity 85 may fluidly couple one or more of the cooling apertures 116 with one or more of the cooling apertures 166.
Referring to
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The cooling air may flow axially within the respective cooling cavities 84 and 85 from the cooling apertures 114, 116 to the cooling apertures 150, 166. The converging surfaces 98 and 122, 98 and 124 may accelerate the axially flowing cooling air as it flows towards a respective one of the axial end rails 130, 131. By accelerating the cooling air, thermal energy transfer from the heat shield 82 to the shell 80 through the cooling air may be increased.
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The shell 80 and/or the heat shield 82 may each have a configuration other than that described above. In some embodiments, for example, a respective one of the heat shield portions 174 and 175 may have a concavity that defines the cooling cavity tapered geometry with the concavity of a respective one of the shell portions 172 and 173. In some embodiments, a respective one of the heat shield portions 174, 175 may have a concavity rather than a respective one of the shell portions 172, 173. In some embodiments, one or more of the afore-described concavities may be replaced with a substantially straight radially tapering wall. In some embodiments, each panel 118 may define one or more additional cooling cavities with the shell 80. In some embodiments, each panel 118 may define a single cooling cavity (e.g., 84 or 85) with the shell 80, which cavity may taper in a forward or aftward direction. In some embodiments, one or more of the panels 120 may have a similar configuration as that described above with respect to the panels 118. The present invention therefore is not limited to any particular combustor wall configurations.
The terms “forward”, “aft”, “inner”, “outer”, “radial”, circumferential” and “axial” are used to orientate the components of the turbine engine assembly 62 and the combustor 64 described above relative to the turbine engine 20 and its centerline 22. One or more of these components, however, may be utilized in other orientations than those described above. The present invention therefore is not limited to any particular spatial orientations.
The turbine engine assembly 62 may be included in various turbine engines other than the one described above. The turbine engine assembly 62, for example, may be included in a geared turbine engine where a gear train connects one or more shafts to one or more rotors in a fan section, a compressor section and/or any other engine section. Alternatively, the turbine engine assembly 62 may be included in a turbine engine configured without a gear train. The turbine engine assembly 62 may be included in a geared or non-geared turbine engine configured with a single spool, with two spools (e.g., see
While various embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that many more embodiments and implementations are possible within the scope of the invention. For example, the present invention as described herein includes several aspects and embodiments that include particular features. Although these features may be described individually, it is within the scope of the present invention that some or all of these features may be combined within any one of the aspects and remain within the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the present invention is not to be restricted except in light of the attached claims and their equivalents.
This application claims priority to PCT Patent Application No. PCT/US14/066880 filed Nov. 21, 2014 which claims priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 61/907,228 filed Nov. 21, 2013, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entireties.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/US2014/066880 | 11/21/2014 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
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WO2015/077600 | 5/28/2015 | WO | A |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20160273772 A1 | Sep 2016 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
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61907228 | Nov 2013 | US |