Radial expander
AssigneeEverllence SE
InventorFranz Holger
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A radial expander having a rotor mounted in a housing and comprising multiple blades. The blades together with a radially inner hub contour of a rotor hub and a radially outer housing contour define flow channels for the process gas, which process gas to be expanded enters in a radial direction and from which expanded process gas exits in the axial direction. The radially inner hub contour of the rotor includes a curvature change at least in some circumferential positions seen in the meridional section such that adjacent to a flow leading side of the rotor, the radially inner hub contour, seen in the meridional section, is curved radially to the outside and adjacent to a flow trailing side of the rotor, the radially inner hub contour, seen in the meridional section, is curved radially to the inside.
Claims13
A radial expander configured to expand a process gas, comprising:
- a housing;
- a rotor mounted in the housing, the rotor comprising a plurality of blades;
- a hub of the rotor;
- and
- flow channels for the process gas formed by the plurality of blades of the rotor together with a radially inner hub contour of the hub of the rotor and a radially outer housing contour of the housing, the flow channels configured to expand the process gas that enters in a radial direction or substantially in the radial direction and from which expanded process gas exits in an axial direction or substantially in the axial direction,
- wherein the radially inner hub contour of the rotor comprises a single curvature change at an axial position seen in a meridional section such that adjacent to a flow leading side of the rotor the radially inner hub contour, seen in the meridional section, is curved radially to the outside and adjacent to a flow trailing side of the rotor, the radially inner hub contour, seen in the meridional section, is curved radially to the inside, and
- wherein, as seen circumferentially, between a suction side and a pressure side of each pair of the plurality of blades and between the portion of the hub contour curved radially to the outside and the hub contour curved radially to the inside a reversal portion changes from a convex contour to a concave contour.
A radial expander configured to expand a process gas, comprising:
- a housing;
- a rotor mounted in the housing, the rotor comprising a plurality of blades;
- a hub of the rotor;
- and
- flow channels for the process gas formed by the plurality of blades of the rotor together with a radially inner hub contour of the hub of the rotor and a radially outer housing contour of the housing, the flow channels configured to expand the process gas that enters in a radial direction or substantially in the radial direction and from which expanded process gas exits in an axial direction or substantially in the axial direction,
- wherein the radially inner hub contour of the rotor comprises a single curvature change seen in a meridional section such that adjacent to a flow leading side of the rotor the radially inner hub contour, seen in the meridional section, is curved radially to the outside and adjacent to a flow trailing side of the rotor, the radially inner hub contour, seen in the meridional section, is curved radially to the inside,
- wherein in those circumferential positions, in which the radially inner hub contour of the rotor, seen in the meridional section, comprises the single curvature change, a minimal curvature radius of a portion of the radially inner hub contour curved radially to the inside is situated between 5% and 30%, of a working length of the radially inner hub contour after the single curvature change.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.