Active clearance control valves and related methods
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsTaehong Kim, Timothy L. Schelfaut
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Active clearance control valves and related methods are disclosed. An example apparatus includes a pipe defining a flow path between (i) at least one of a fan section, a bypass airflow passage, or a compressor section and (ii) a turbine section of the gas turbine, the pipe including an inlet fluidly coupled to at least one of the fan section, the bypass airflow passage, or the compressor section, a valve coupled to the pipe and positioned downstream of the inlet, the valve including swing wings, the swing wings positioned around an opening in the pipe defined by the second valve when the second valve is at least partially open.
Claims17
An apparatus comprising:
- a conduit in fluid connection with a turbine section, the conduit including an inlet to receive air driven by at least one of a fan or a compressor of a turbine engine;
- a valve coupled to the conduit at the inlet, the valve positioned between the conduit and an airflow passage in which the air flows towards the turbine section, wherein the valve includes vanes including a first vane and a second vane positioned at the inlet, the second vane downstream of the first vane in a direction in which the air flows towards the turbine section, wherein the first vane and the second vane are configured to move linearly towards or away from the airflow passage;
- a rod operatively coupled to the vanes;
- a first actuator operatively coupled to a first end of the rod;
- and
- a second actuator operatively coupled to a second end of the rod, the first actuator and the second actuator to cause the vanes to extend past the inlet into the airflow passage.
An apparatus comprising:
- means for routing air from (i) a fan section, a bypass airflow passage, or a compressor section to (ii) a turbine section of a turbine engine;
- means for adjusting a cross-sectional area through which the air can flow the means for routing air, the means for adjusting the cross-sectional area including means for defining slots at an inlet of the means for routing air, wherein the means for defining slots are rotatable to adjust the cross-sectional area of a first slot and a second slot at the inlet, the second slot downstream of the first slot;
- first means for linearly moving the first slot and the second slot towards or away from the means for routing air;
- second means for moving the first slot and the second slot towards or away from the means for routing air;
- and
- means for coupling the first means for moving, the second means for moving, and the means for adjusting.
An apparatus comprising:
- a conduit in fluid connection with a turbine section, the conduit including an inlet to receive air driven by at least one of a fan or a compressor of a turbine engine;
- a valve positioned at the inlet, the valve including vanes that are rotatable to adjust a cross-sectional area of the inlet through which the air flows, and wherein the vanes include a first vane and a second vane positioned at the inlet, wherein the second vane is positioned downstream of the first vane in a direction in which the air flows towards the turbine section, wherein the first vane and the second vane are configured to move linearly in a radial direction defined by the turbine engine towards or away from an airflow passage adjacent to the inlet;
- a first linear actuator operatively coupled to the vanes to cause a translational movement of at least one of the vanes;
- a second linear actuator;
- and
- a rod coupled to the vanes, the first linear actuator, and the second linear actuator, the first linear actuator and the second linear actuator to move the rod towards or away from the airflow passage, wherein the vanes are movable between (i) a first position in which ends of the vanes are positioned in the airflow passage and (ii) a second position in which the ends of the vanes are positioned outside of the airflow passage.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.