Cooling circuit for and method of cooling a gas turbine bucket

Patent · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 2002

OSTI ID:874606

Jacala, Ariel C. P. ^[1]

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1. Simpsonville, SC

A closed internal cooling circuit for a gas turbine bucket includes axial supply and return passages in the dovetail of the bucket. A first radial outward supply passage provides cooling medium to and along a passageway adjacent the leading edge and then through serpentine arranged passageways within the airfoil to a chamber adjacent the airfoil tip. A second radial passage crosses over the radial return passage for supplying cooling medium to and along a pair of passageways along the trailing edge of the airfoil section. The last passageway of the serpentine passageways and the pair of passageways communicate one with the other in the chamber for returning spent cooling medium radially inwardly along divided return passageways to the return passage. In this manner, both the leading and trailing edges are cooled using the highest pressure, lowest temperature cooling medium.

• Research Organization: General Electric Company (Schenectady, NY)
• DOE Contract Number: FC21-95MC31176
• Assignee: General Electric Company (Schenectady, NY)
• Patent Number(s): US 6422817
• OSTI ID: 874606
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/416/415/
adjacent
airfoil
arranged
axial
bucket
chamber
circuit
closed
communicate
cooled
cooling
cooling circuit
crosses
divided
dovetail
edge
edges
gas
gas turbine
internal
inwardly
leading
lowest
manner
medium
method
outward
pair
passage
passages
passageway
passageways
pressure
provides
radial
radially
return
returning
section
serpentine
spent
supply
supplying
temperature
tip
trailing
turbine