Airfoil Member and Composite Platform Having Contoured Endwall
AssigneeUnited Technologies Corporation
InventorJinQuan Xu
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An airfoil member and platform assembly for a gas turbine engine is provided. The platform to which the airfoil member is anchored is made of a composite material and includes an endwall defining a contoured region for improved aerodynamics. The contoured region influences the flow of gases through the flow passages between the airfoil members, thereby reducing endwall losses due to horseshoe vortexing. The composite material may be woven ceramic matrix composite fibers infiltrated with a ceramic matrix material or woven organic matrix composite fibers infiltrated with an organic matrix material.
Claims21
An assembly comprising:
- an airfoil member having an airfoil portion and a root portion, the airfoil portion having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a first side extending from the leading edge to the trailing edge, a second side extending from the leading edge to the trailing edge and a base near the root portion;
- and
- at least one platform defining a channel for receiving the root portion, the at least one platform formed from a composite material and comprising an endwall extending in generally circumferentially opposite directions from either side of the airfoil portion, the endwall having an outboard surface comprising a contoured region.
A method of making an airfoil member and platform assembly comprising the steps of:
- a. forming an airfoil member, the airfoil member having an airfoil portion and a root portion;
- b. forming a platform from a composite material, the platform and the airfoil portion partly defining a fluid flow passage, the platform having an endwall having a surface that faces the fluid flow passage and that comprises a contoured region, a pair of feet extending substantially radially away from the endwall, the endwall and the feet defining a channel having a channel wall;
- and
- c. inserting the root portion of the airfoil member into the channel so that the root portion abuts the channel wall.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.