US 12,723,518 B2Granted

Hot gas path segment with seal slot cooling groove

AssigneeGE Infrastructure Technology LLC

InventorsKatherine Courtlyn MacManus, Ibrahim Sezer, Matthew Scott Lutz, Joe Timothy Brown, Edward Bruno Mueller, IV

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A HGP segment, such as a nozzle or shroud, for a GT system includes a body. A seal slot is defined in the face of side edge(s) of the body. Each seal slot has radial inner and outer walls, an inner sidewall between the radially inner and outer walls, and receives part of a sealing member extending between the seal slots of adjacent segments. Groove(s) are defined in one or both of the radial inner and outer walls of the seal slot and extend transverse to the slot. The groove(s) extend between the inner sidewall of the respective seal slot and the face of the respective side edge. A cooling passage is defined in the body and has an outlet defined in the inner sidewall within the at least one groove of the slot and an inlet in fluid communication with an inner coolant source defined in the body.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A hot gas path (HGP) segment for a gas turbine system including at least one stage including a plurality of circumferentially adjacent HGP segments, the HGP segment comprising:

a body including at least one face on a side edge of the body for addressing a corresponding face on the side edge of the body of an adjacent HGP segment;
a seal slot defined in the face of each side edge and extending in a axial direction toward the opposite side edge, each seal slot having a radial inner wall, a radial outer wall and an inner sidewall between the radially inner and outer walls, wherein each seal slot is configured to receive part of a sealing member extending between the seal slots of the circumferentially adjacent HGP segments;
at least one groove defined in at least one of the radial inner or radial outer wall of each seal slot and extending transverse to the axial direction, each groove extending between the inner sidewall of the respective seal slot and the face of the respective side edge, wherein a radial height of the at least one groove at the inner sidewall is less than a radial height of the at least one groove at the at least one face;
and
a cooling passage defined in the respective HGP segment and having an outlet defined in the inner sidewall within the at least one groove of the respective seal slot and an inlet in fluid communication with an inner coolant source defined in the body.

2 more elements

In a gas turbine system including at least one stage including a plurality of circumferentially adjacent segments, each segment having a body including at least one face on a side edge of the body for addressing a corresponding face on the side edge of the body of a circumferentially adjacent segment, a joint connection for the faces of the circumferentially adjacent segments comprises:

a first seal slot defined in a first face of a first segment and extending in an axial direction, the first seal slot having a radial inner wall, a radial outer wall and an inner sidewall between the radial inner and outer walls, at least one groove defined in at least one of the radial inner or radial outer wall of the first seal slot and extending transverse to the axial direction, each groove extending between the inner sidewall of the first seal slot and the first face of the respective side edge of the first segment wherein a radial height of the at least one groove in the first seal slot at the inner sidewall of the first seal slot is less than a radial height of the at least one groove at the at least one face of the first seal slot, and a cooling passage defined in the body of the first segment and having an outlet defined in the inner sidewall within the at least one groove and an inlet in fluid communication with an inner coolant source defined at least in part in the body of the first segment;
a second seal slot defined in a second face of a second segment and extending in the axial direction, the second seal slot having a radial inner wall, a radial outer wall and an inner sidewall between the radial inner and radial outer wall of the second seal slot, at least one groove defined in at least one of the radial inner or outer walls of the second seal slot and extending transverse to the axial direction, each groove of the second seal slot extending between the inner sidewall of the second seal slot and the second face of the respective side edge of the second segment wherein a radial height of the at least one groove in the second seal slot at the inner sidewall of the second seal slot is less than a radial height of the at least one groove at the at least one face of the second seal slot, and a cooling passage defined in the body of the second segment and having an outlet defined in the inner sidewall within the at least one groove in the second seal slot and an inlet in fluid communication with an inner coolant source defined at least in part in the body of the second segment;
and
a sealing member extending between the first and second seal slots of the circumferentially adjacent segments.

1 more element

A method, comprising:

providing a seal slot in a hot gas path (HGP) segment for a gas turbine system including at least one stage including a plurality of circumferentially adjacent HGP segments where each HGP segment includes a body including at least one face on a side edge of the body for addressing a corresponding face on the side edge of the body of an adjacent HGP segment, wherein the seal slot is defined in each face and extends in an axial direction, the seal slot having a radial inner wall, a radial outer wall and an inner sidewall between the radially inner and outer walls thereof;
providing at least one groove defined in at least one of the radial inner or radial outer wall of each seal slot and extending transverse to the axial direction, each groove extending between the inner sidewall of the respective seal slot and the face of the respective side edge, wherein a radial height of the at least one groove at the inner sidewall is less than a radial height of the at least one groove at the at least one face;
providing a cooling passage defined in the body of the segment and having an outlet defined in the inner sidewall within the at least one groove of the seal slot and an inlet in fluid communication with an inner coolant source defined in the body of the segment;
and
cooling at least one of the radial inner wall or the radial outer wall during use of the gas turbine.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 19/040,248Filed 29 Jan 2025
Published: US 2026/0218617 A130 Jul 2026
Granted: 1 Sep 2026
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification10 codes

F01D 9/065
Fluid supply conduits to nozzles or the like: fluid supply or removal conduits traversing the working fluid flow, e.g. for lubrication-, cooling-,…
F01D 11/006
Sealing means between non relatively rotating elements: sealing the gap between rotor blades or blades and rotor
F01D 9/041
Forming ring or sector: using blades
F01D 11/24
Actively adjusting tip-clearance: by selectively cooling-heating stator or rotor components