Airfoil with dual source cooling
AssigneeUnited Technologies Corporation
InventorsAnnette M. Pighetti, Lawrence A. Seidel
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An airfoil for a gas turbine engine, having an airfoil portion with a leading and a trailing edge, includes dual pressure source cooling. The trailing edge of the airfoil includes an internal trailing edge passage and the leading edge includes an internal leading edge passage. Compressor bleed air at higher pressure is channeled through the leading edge passage whereas compressor bleed air at lower pressure is channeled through the trailing edge passage. The higher internal pressure in the leading edge ensures that the inward flow of products of combustion does not occur.
Claims6
An airfoil for gas turbine engines having an airfoil-shaped portion flanged by an inner diameter platform and an outer diameter platform, said airfoil-shaped portion having a leading edge and a trailing edge, said airfoil having a leading edge internal cooling passage and a trailing edge internal cooling passage, said airfoil characterized by:
- a first inlet for providing cooling air to said leading edge cooling passage, said first inlet being in communication with a first plenum;
- a second inlet for providing cooling air to said trailing edge cooling passage, said second inlet being in communication with a second plenum independent from said first plenum;
- said first plenum being adopted for communication with compressor discharge air at a first, higher pressure;
- and
- said second plenum being adopted for communication with compressor discharge air at a second, lower pressure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.