Gas turbine engine buffer cooling system
AssigneeUnited Technologies Corporation
InventorsGabriel L. Suciu, loannis Alvanos
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Abstract
A gas turbine engine includes a heat exchanger, a mid-turbine frame, a passageway that extends through at least a portion of the mid-turbine frame and a first nozzle assembly. The heat exchanger exchanges heat with a bleed airflow to provide a conditioned airflow. The mid-turbine frame is in fluid communication with the heat exchanger. The conditioned airflow is communicated through the passageway and is received by the first nozzle assembly to condition gas turbine engine hardware.
Claims18
A gas turbine engine, comprising:
- a heat exchanger that exchanges heat with a bleed airflow to provide a conditioned airflow;
- a mid-turbine frame in fluid communication with said heat exchanger;
- a passageway that extends through at least a portion of said mid-turbine frame, wherein said conditioned airflow is communicated through said passageway;
- and
- a first nozzle assembly in fluid communication with said passageway to receive said conditioned airflow to condition gas turbine engine hardware.
A method of conditioning a portion of a gas turbine engine, comprising:
- removing heat from a bleed airflow to render a conditioned airflow;
- communicating the conditioned airflow through a passageway disposed at least partially through a mid-turbine frame of the gas turbine engine;
- and
- feeding the conditioned airflow through a nozzle assembly to at least one of an upstream location and a downstream location of the gas turbine engine.
A gas turbine engine, comprising:
- a high pressure turbine;
- a low pressure turbine downstream from said high pressure turbine;
- a mid-turbine frame positioned axially between said high pressure turbine and said low pressure turbine, wherein said mid-turbine frame includes at least one strut that extends radially between an outer casing and an inner casing;
- a bearing compartment radially inward from said inner casing of said mid-turbine frame;
- and
- a buffer cooling system including a heat exchanger, a passageway that extends between said outer casing and said bearing compartment, and a nozzle assembly in fluid communication with said passageway to receive a conditioned airflow rendered by said heat exchanger to condition hardware of at least one of said high pressure turbine and said low pressure turbine.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.