Full ring shroud system and method with stress management

A method for managing stress in a shroud, the method comprising:

• constructing a support structure in an annular shape and defining a shroud cavity by the support structure;
• positioning a shroud, at least partly, in the shroud cavity;
• configuring a rotor to rotate about an axis and within the shroud;
• forming a body of the shroud with a first surface facing the rotor and a second surface facing away from the rotor, and with a gap between the rotor and the shroud, wherein the body comprises a monolithic ring formed from one piece of material with no joints;
• forming a pair of rails on the shroud that are parallel to each other and that are spaced apart, the pair of rails extending from the second surface;
• defining a minimum compliance limit threshold for a thickness of the body in a radial direction;
• forming the thickness of the body to be less than the minimum compliance limit threshold for flexibility, meaning the body is thin to a point of being flexible to be unable to maintain the gap on its own;
• providing stiffness to the shroud by the pair of rails to enable the thickness of the body to be less than the minimum limit threshold;
• and
• forming each rail in the pair of rails of the one piece of material with the body and to have a rectangular cross section that is consistent around a circumference of each rail in the pair of rails, in entirety, with the exception of no more than five tabs that project radially outward from the rectangular cross section.

A shroud system for a gas turbine engine, the shroud system comprising:

• a support structure configured in an annular shape and defining a shroud cavity;
• a shroud disposed, at least partly, in the shroud cavity;
• and
• a rotor configured to rotate about an axis and disposed within the shroud,
• wherein the shroud includes a body that has a first surface facing the rotor and a second surface facing away from the rotor with a gap between the rotor and the shroud, wherein the body comprises a monolithic ring formed from one piece of material with no joints,
• wherein the shroud includes a pair of rails that are parallel to each other and that are spaced, wherein each rail in the pair of rails extends from the second surface,
• wherein the body is configured with a thickness in a radial direction, and the thickness is less than a minimum limit, where the minimum limit is a threshold at which the body has surpassed a compliance limit where the threshold is defined by an amount of flexibility of the body that results in shroud stresses and/or blade tip clearance control exceeding operational limits for the shroud, meaning the body is thin to a point of being flexible to be unable to maintain the gap on its own,
• wherein the pair of rails are configured to provide stiffness to the shroud to enable the thickness of the body to be less than the minimum limit and maintain the gap,
• wherein the shroud includes an environmental or thermal barrier coating with an interface at the first surface, wherein the pair of rails and the thickness in combination are configured to maintain the interface below a threshold temperature, wherein the threshold temperature is a temperature below which the shroud is maintained within operational parameters for the gas turbine engine and spalling at the interface is avoided,
• wherein each rail in the pair of rails is formed of the one piece of material with the body and has a rectangular cross section that is consistent around the entirety of its circumference with the exception of no more than five tabs that project radially outward from the rectangular cross section.