Patent Grant
9267391
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to gas turbine engines and more particularly to diffuser assemblies including at least one flow deflecting member.
Gas turbine engines are widely utilized in fields such as power generation. A conventional gas turbine engine may include a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine. The compressor may supply compressed air to the combustor, where the compressed air may be mixed with fuel and burned to generate a working fluid. The working fluid may be supplied to the turbine, where energy may be extracted from the working fluid to produce work. The working fluid may exit the turbine via an exhaust section having a diffuser assembly.
At partial loads, the total pressure profile of the working fluid at the inlet of diffuser assembly is generally tip (i.e., outer wall) strong. A tip strong profile causes flow separation at the inner wall (i.e., hub side of the diffuser assembly). The skewed profile does not allow the working fluid to distribute evenly in the diffuser assembly, thus reducing the diffuser assembly performance. Moreover, skewed or non-uniform velocity profiles deteriorate the performance of the heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) assembly positioned downstream of the diffuser assembly, which leads to premature failure or damage of the HRSG assembly. Accordingly, there is a need to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution of the working fluid within the exhaust flow path of the diffuser assembly, which in turn may be supplied to the HRSG assembly.
Some or all of the above needs and/or problems may be addressed by certain embodiments of the present disclosure. According to an embodiment, there is disclosed a diffuser assembly. The diffuser assembly may include an outer boundary member and an inner boundary member positioned radially inward of the outer boundary member. The diffuser assembly also may include an exhaust flow path defined between the outer boundary member and the inner boundary member. Further, the diffuser assembly may include at least one flow deflecting member operatively attached to the outer boundary member. The flow deflecting member may be adjustable about the outer boundary member to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution within the exhaust flow path.
According to another embodiment, there is disclosed a method for use with a gas turbine engine. The method may include flowing a fluid in an exhaust flow pathway defined between an outer boundary member and an inner boundary member. Moreover, the method may include adjusting at least one flow deflecting member operatively attached to the outer boundary member to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution within the exhaust flow path.
Further, according to another embodiment, there is disclosed a gas turbine system. The system may include a turbine assembly, an exhaust diffuser assembly in communication with the turbine assembly, and a HRSG assembly in communication with the exhaust diffuser assembly. The exhaust diffuser assembly may include an outer boundary member and an inner boundary member positioned radially inward of the outer boundary member. The exhaust diffuser assembly also may include an exhaust flow path defined between the outer boundary member and the inner boundary member. Moreover, the exhaust diffuser assembly may include at least one flow deflecting member operatively attached to the outer boundary member. The flow deflecting member may be adjustable about the outer boundary member to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution within the exhaust flow path. The substantially uniform velocity distribution may be supplied to the HRSG assembly.
Other embodiments, aspects, and features of the disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended claims.
Reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:
Illustrative embodiments will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which some, but not all embodiments are shown. The present disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.
Illustrative embodiments are directed to, among other things, a gas turbine engine system including a diffuser assembly. In certain embodiments, the diffuser assembly may be associated with the exhaust of a turbine. That is, the diffuser assembly may include an exhaust flow path defined between an outer boundary member (i.e., an outer radial wall) and an inner boundary member (i.e., an inner radial wall or hub). The diffuser assembly also may include one or more flow deflecting members (e.g., a single deflecting plate or a number of deflecting plates) operatively attached to the outer boundary member. That is, the flow deflecting member may be adjustable about the outer boundary member to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution within the exhaust flow path. For example, in some instances, the flow deflecting member may be rotatably attached (e.g., via a pivot or the like) to the outer boundary such that the flow deflecting member may extend at least partially into the exhaust flow path. In other instances, however, the flow detecting member may be wholly or partially positioned within a housing such that the flow deflecting member is substantially flush with the outer boundary member.
In certain embodiments, an actuator may be in operative communication with the flow deflecting member. In this manner, the actuator may be configured to rotate (i.e., extend) the flow deflecting member at least partially into the exhaust flow path. Conversely, the actuator also may be configured to rotate (i.e., retract) the flow deflecting member into the housing.
One or more struts may be positioned within the exhaust flow path between the outer boundary member and the inner boundary member. In some instances, the flow deflecting member may be positioned downstream of the struts. Moreover, the flow deflecting member may include one or more apertures therethrough. For example, the apertures may include a plurality of holes or a plurality of slots. Further, the flow deflecting member may include one or more protrusions. In some instances, the flow deflecting member may include a plate-like structure or the like, although other configurations are within the scope of the disclosure.
In certain embodiments, the flow deflecting member may reduce the tip strong nature of the exhaust flow and improve the diffuser assembly performance at partial loads. That is, the flow deflecting member may divert at least a portion of the exhaust flow towards the inner boundary member (i.e., the hub region) of the diffuser assembly, thereby utilizing the entire diffuser assembly domain for pressure recovery.
Turning now to
The gas turbine engine 10 may use natural gas, various types of syngas, and/or other types of fuels. The gas turbine engine 10 may be any one of a number of different gas turbine engines offered by General Electric Company of Schenectady, N.Y., including, but not limited to, those such as a 7 or a 9 series heavy duty gas turbine engine or the like. The gas turbine engine 10 may have different configurations and may use other types of components. Moreover, other types of gas turbine engines also may be used herein. Multiple gas turbine engines, other types of turbines, and other types of power generation equipment also may be used herein together.
Referring to
The inlet 202 may be configured to receive a flow of combustion gases 216. The flow of combustion gases 216 may flow from the inlet 202 to the outlet 204 along the exhaust flow path 206 between the outer boundary member 208 and the inner boundary member 210.
As noted above, in some instances, the total pressure profile of the flow of combustion gases 216 at the inlet 202 of diffuser assembly 200 may be generally tip (i.e., the outer boundary member 208) strong. A tip strong profile causes flow separation at the inner boundary member 210 (i.e. hub side of the diffuser assembly 200). The skewed profile does not allow the flow of combustion gases 216 to distribute evenly in the diffuser assembly 200, thus reducing the diffuser assembly 200 performance. Accordingly, in order to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution of the flow of combustion gases 216 within the exhaust flow path 206, a flow deflecting member 218 may be operatively attached to the outer boundary member 208. In this manner, the flow deflecting member 218 may be configured to deflect (or direct) at least a portion of the flow of combustion gases 216 away from the outer boundary member 208 to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution of the flow of combustion gases 216 within the exhaust flow path 206. In this manner, the substantially uniform velocity distribution of the flow of combustion gases 216 may be supplied to the HRSG assembly 60 of
As depicted in
In some instances, the flow deflecting member 218 may include one or more apertures 230 extending therethrough. That is, the plate 220 may include a number of apertures 230. The apertures 230 may enable at least a portion of the flow of combustion gases 216 to pass through the plate 220, while at least another portion of the flow of combustion gases 216 may be deflected from the outer boundary member 208 to produce a substantially uniform velocity distribution of the flow of combustion gases 216 within the exhaust flow path 206, which is supplied to the HRSG assembly 60 of
In certain embodiment, the diffuser assembly 200 may include a housing 232. The housing 232 may be positioned about the outer boundary member 208. The housing 232 may be configured to at least partially house the flow deflecting member 218 when in the second position 226 (i.e., the retracted position) flush with the outer boundary member 208.
Although embodiments have been described in language specific to structural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described. Rather, the specific features and acts are disclosed as illustrative forms of implementing the embodiments.
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| 4682746 | Thomas | Jul 1987 | A |
| 8146341 | Siden et al. | Apr 2012 | B2 |
| 20100089031 | Wells et al. | Apr 2010 | A1 |
| 20130152592 | Orosa et al. | Jun 2013 | A1 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20140178191 A1 | Jun 2014 | US |
