Sealing system for a rotary machine and method of assembling same

A rotor assembly for a rotary machine comprising:

• a row of a plurality of rotary components spaced circumferentially about a rotor disk, said plurality of rotary components comprising at least a first rotary component and a second rotary component, each of said plurality of rotary components comprising:
• a platform;
• and
• a shank extending radially inwardly from said platform, said shank comprising a radially extending first side channel and an opposite radially extending second side channel, the first and second side channels cooperate to define a circumferential seal channel width at a downstream end of said first and second side channels and a circumferential channel entry width at an opposite upstream end of said first and second side channels, said channel entry width is smaller than said seal channel width;
• and
• a radial seal comprising a first leg received in said first side channel of said first rotary component, a second leg received in said second side channel of said second rotary component, and a resiliently deformable body extending therebetween, said body comprising a U-shaped portion located generally centrally between said first and second legs.

A method of assembling a rotor assembly, said method comprising:

• coupling a pair of rotary components circumferentially adjacent to each other in a circumferentially extending row of a plurality of rotary components, the pair of rotary components including a first rotary component and a second rotary component, wherein each of the pair of rotary components includes a platform and a shank extending radially inwardly from the platform, each shank including a radially extending first side channel and an opposite radially extending second side channel;
• resiliently deforming a body of a radial seal inwardly, the body including a U-shaped portion located generally centrally between a first leg and a second leg wherein deforming the body includes pressing the first leg and the second leg closer together;
• inserting the resiliently deformed radial seal from an axially upstream direction such that the first leg of the radial seal is received in the first side channel of the first rotary component, the second leg of the radial seal is received in the second side channel of the second rotary component, and the body extends therebetween;
• and
• releasing the body, such that the first and second legs are biased away from each other and are retained in the respective first side channel of the first rotary component and the second side channel of the second rotary component.