Methods and apparatus for injecting fluids into turbine engines
AssigneeGeneral Electric Company
InventorsSteve Marakovits, Mark Durbin
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method facilitates operating a gas turbine engine. The method comprises supplying steam and primary fuel to a chamber within a nozzle, mixing the primary fuel and steam within the chamber, and discharging the mixture into a combustor from a plurality of circumferentially spaced mixture outlets.
Claims17
A method of operating a gas turbine engine wherein the nozzle includes a first chamber and a second chamber defined separately therein, said method comprising:
- supplying pilot fuel to the first chamber during preselected engine operations;
- supplying primary fuel and steam to the second chamber during other preselected engine operations to facilitate mixing of the primary fuel and the steam;
- mixing the primary fuel and the steam within a tip of the nozzle;
- and
- discharging the mixture of primary fuel and steam from the nozzle tip through a plurality of mixture outlets defined in the nozzle tip.
A nozzle tip for a turbine engine fuel nozzle, said nozzle tip is substantially circular and includes a centerline extending therethrough, said tip comprising:
- an annular body comprising:
- a first chamber in flow communication with a pilot fuel source for discharging pilot fuel only during preselected engine operations;
- and
- a second chamber in flow communication with a primary fuel source and a steam source for discharging a mixture of primary fuel and steam during other preselected engine operations wherein said primary fuel and steam mixture is configured to be discharged from said second chamber through a plurality of mixture outlets defined at a first radial distance outward from said centerline.
A gas turbine engine comprising:
- a combustor;
- and
- a nozzle tip in flow communication with said combustor, said fuel nozzle tip is substantially circular and includes a centerline extending therethrough, said fuel nozzle tip further comprising:
- an annular body comprising:
- a first chamber in flow communication with a pilot fuel source for discharging pilot fuel into said combustor only during preselected engine operations;
- and
- a second chamber in flow communication with a primary fuel source and a steam source for discharging a mixture of primary fuel and steam into said combustor during other preselected engine operations, the primary fuel and steam mixture is configured to be discharged from said second chamber through a plurality of mixture outlets defined at a first radial distance outward from said centerline.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.