Patent Application
20180283279
The present disclosure relates generally to servicing a turbine engine, and more particularly, to a method for removing a combustor component from an assembled turbine engine.
A typical combustor inspection requires the turbine engine to be in an outage state. Once the equipment has cooled down, components comprising the combustor section of the turbine such as the top hat, support housing, basket transition and auxiliary piping, for example, typically require a mobile crane to be onsite for their removal from the turbine engine. The mobile crane is positioned adjacent to the turbine enclosure which houses the turbine engine, the roof to the enclosure is opened or removed, the combustor components attached to the crane, and the turbine components are removed using the mobile crane. The combustor components are then transported to an offsite location where an inspection of the components will occur. However, having a mobile crane onsite for the combustor component removal is expensive.
Performing a combustor inspection without a crane to remove the components from the assembled gas turbine has been previously explored. For example, I-beam structures, jib cranes, crane hoists/winches, and using human strength alone to accomplish the component removal have been attempted. Ultimately, though, these tooling options still require use of a mobile crane or other expensive equipment to safely set them up. For example, using an I-beam with a rolling chain hoist may be able to remove the combustion components from the turbine engine, however, the weight of the I-beam would be too heavy for the technicians to safely put in place. Using human strength alone to remove the combustor components is too strenuous, endangering the health of the technicians involved. Consequently, there remains a need for a more inexpensive method to remove the combustor components from an assembled turbine engine than using a mobile crane.
Briefly described, aspects of the present disclosure relates to a method for removing a combustor component from an assembled turbine engine and a method for removing a combustor component from an assembled turbine engine without using a mobile crane.
A method for removing a combustor component from an assembled turbine engine is provided. The method includes disposing a truss structure in the vicinity of a turbine engine enclosure. The truss structure is mounted to a support surface in the vicinity of the turbine enclosure. The truss structure includes a removing means configured to remove a turbine engine component. The removing means is positioned so that it is in an accessible positon to engage with and attach to the combustor component. The removing means is attached to the combustor component. The removing means are used to remove the combustor component.
A method for removing a combustor component from an assembled turbine engine is provided. A rapidly deployable stationary structure is arranged in the vicinity of a turbine engine enclosure, the structure adapted to support the load of a combustor component. The combustor component is then removed from the assembled turbine engine without using a mobile crane.
To facilitate an understanding of embodiments, principles, and features of the present disclosure, they are explained hereinafter with reference to implementation in illustrative embodiments. Embodiments of the present disclosure, however, are not limited to use in the described systems or methods.
The components and materials described hereinafter as making up the various embodiments are intended to be illustrative and not restrictive. Many suitable components and materials that would perform the same or a similar function as the materials described herein are intended to be embraced within the scope of embodiments of the present disclosure.
Aluminium box truss assemblies have traditionally been used to provide lighting, sound, special effects, etc. for stage performances and concerts, specifically in the entertainment industry. The aluminium box truss is light weight and structurally sound, enabling it to handle the loads required for a combustion inspection. For example, for the proposed embodiment illustrated in
The aluminium box truss may be used as a building block for the truss assembly used in the proposed method to remove a combustor component from an assembled turbine engine. A conventional box truss structure may be seen in
A truss structure 100, as seen in the embodiments of
Referring to
According to the method, the truss structure 100 is mounted to a support surface the vicinity of the turbine enclosure. The mounting includes positioning the base 120 of the structure 100 on a support surface and securing the base 120 to the support surface. In an embodiment, the support surface may include a ground surface surrounding the turbine enclosure. In another embodiment, the support surface may include a turbine casing. Additionally, in a further embodiment the support surface may include the roof of the turbine enclosure. The base may be free standing or the base may secured to the support surface using fasteners, for instance. How the base is secured to the support surface depends on the load and/or how the truss structure 100 will be used.
In order to remove the component, a positioning means 130 including the removing means 140 may be positioned so that the removing means 140 may engage with and attach to the combustor component. In the embodiment of the 3 leg truss structure shown in
In an embodiment of the method, the combustor component may be transported to an offsite facility for a combustor inspection after the removing is completed.
The truss structure 100 may be disposed in a variety of configurations which will now be discussed. Different configurations of the truss structure 100 may accommodate the different circumstances of the particular site where the truss structure will be used. For example, different sites may have different piping layouts, different obstructions, a different configuration of catwalks, etc. Additionally, depending on the clearance at the particular site, the technicians may choose a truss structure configuration right for the site and combustor component removal.
In addition to the 3 leg truss structure embodiment, discussed above, another embodiment may include a four leg gantry truss structure 100. Similarly to the 3 leg structure, the four leg gantry structure, shown in
In an embodiment illustrated in
In an embodiment illustrated in
In an embodiment illustrated in
The disclosed method may be reliably and cost-effectively used to remove combustor components from an assembled turbine engine. A truss frame is a structurally sound and light weight structure that can safely carry the load of a combustor component. Furthermore, the truss structure is easily built in the vicinity of the turbine enclosure by technicians. The different truss structure configurations described in the embodiments of
While embodiments of the present disclosure have been disclosed in exemplary forms, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications, additions, and deletions can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and its equivalents, as set forth in the following claims.
