scholarly journals State-of-the-Art Cooling Technology for a Turbine Rotor Blade

2018 ◽  
Vol 140 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jason Town ◽  
Douglas Straub ◽  
James Black ◽  
Karen A. Thole ◽  
Tom I-P. Shih

Effective internal and external cooling of airfoils is key to maintaining component life for efficient gas turbines. Cooling designs have spanned the range from simple internal convective channels to more advanced double-walls with shaped film-cooling holes. This paper describes the development of an internal and external cooling concept for a state-of-the-art cooled turbine blade. These cooling concepts are based on a review of literature and patents, as well as, interactions with academic and industry turbine cooling experts. The cooling configuration selected and described in this paper is referred to as the “baseline” design, since this design will simultaneously be tested with other more advanced blade cooling designs in a rotating turbine test facility using a “rainbow turbine wheel” configuration. For the baseline design, the leading edge is cooled by internal jet impingement and showerhead film cooling. The midchord region of the blade contains a three-pass serpentine passage with internal discrete V-shaped trip strips to enhance the internal heat transfer coefficient (HTC). The film cooling along the midchord of the blade uses multiple rows of shaped diffusion holes. The trailing edge is internally cooled using jet impingement and externally film cooled through partitioned cuts on the pressure side of the blade.

Author(s):  
Jason Town ◽  
Doug Straub ◽  
James Black ◽  
Karen Thole ◽  
Tom Shih

Effective internal and external cooling of airfoils is key to maintaining component life for efficient gas turbines. Cooling designs have spanned the range from simple internal convective channels to more advanced double-walls with shaped film-cooling holes. This paper describes the development of an internal and external cooling concept for a state-of-the-art cooled turbine blade. These cooling concepts are based on a review of literature and patents, as well as, interactions with academic and industry turbine cooling experts. The cooling configuration selected and described in this paper is referred to as the “baseline” design, since this design will simultaneously be tested with other more advanced blade cooling designs in a rotating turbine test facility using a “rainbow turbine wheel” configuration. For the baseline design, the leading edge is cooled by internal jet impingement and showerhead film cooling. The mid-chord region of the blade contains a three-pass serpentine passage with internal discrete V-shaped trip strips to enhance the internal heat transfer coefficient. The film cooling along the mid-chord of the blade uses multiple rows of shaped diffusion holes. The trailing edge is internally cooled using jet impingement and externally film cooled through partitioned cuts on the pressure side of the blade.


Author(s):  
Luca Andrei ◽  
Carlo Carcasci ◽  
Riccardo Da Soghe ◽  
Bruno Facchini ◽  
Francesco Maiuolo ◽  
...  

An experimental survey on a state of the art leading edge cooling scheme was performed to evaluate heat transfer coefficients (HTC) on a large scale test facility simulating an high pressure turbine airfoil leading edge cavity. Test section includes a trapezoidal supply channel with three large racetrack impingement holes. On the internal surface of the leading edge, four big fins are placed in order to confine impingement jets. The coolant flow impacts the leading edge internal surface and it is extracted from the leading edge cavity through 24 showerhead holes and 24 film cooling holes. The aim of the present study is to investigate the combined effects of jet impingement and mass flow extraction on the internal heat transfer of the leading edge. A non uniform mass flow extraction was also imposed to reproduce the effects of pressure side and suction side external pressure. Measurements were performed by means of a transient technique using narrow band Thermo-chromic Liquid Crystals (TLC). Jet Reynolds number and crossflow conditions into the supply channel were varied in order to cover the typical engine conditions of these cooling systems (Rej = 10000–40000). Experiments were compared with a numerical analysis on the same test case in order to better understand flow interaction inside the cavity. Results are reported in terms of detailed 2D maps, radial-wise and span-wise averaged values of Nusselt number.


2013 ◽  
Vol 135 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Andrei ◽  
Carlo Carcasci ◽  
Riccardo Da Soghe ◽  
Bruno Facchini ◽  
Francesco Maiuolo ◽  
...  

An experimental survey on a state of the art leading edge cooling scheme was performed to evaluate heat transfer coefficients (HTC) on a large scale test facility simulating a high pressure turbine airfoil leading edge cavity. The test section includes a trapezoidal supply channel with three large racetrack impingement holes. On the internal surface of the leading edge, four big fins are placed in order to confine impingement jets. The coolant flow impacts the leading edge internal surface, and it is extracted from the leading edge cavity through 24 showerhead holes and 24 film cooling holes. The aim of the present study is to investigate the combined effects of jet impingement and mass flow extraction on the internal heat transfer of the leading edge. A nonuniform mass flow extraction was also imposed to reproduce the effects of the pressure side and suction side external pressure. Measurements were performed by means of a transient technique using narrow band thermochromic liquid crystals (TLCs). Jet Reynolds number and crossflow conditions into the supply channel were varied in order to cover the typical engine conditions of these cooling systems (Rej=10,000-40,000). Experiments were compared with a numerical analysis on the same test case in order to better understand flow interaction inside the cavity. Results are reported in terms of detailed 2D maps, radial-wise, and span-wise averaged values of Nusselt number.


Author(s):  
Franz Puetz ◽  
Johannes Kneer ◽  
Achmed Schulz ◽  
Hans-Joerg Bauer

An increased demand for lower emission of stationary gas turbines as well as civil aircraft engines has led to new, low emission combustor designs with less liner cooling and a flattened temperature profile at the outlet. As a consequence, the heat load on the endwall of the first nozzle guide vane is increased. The secondary flow field dominates the endwall heat transfer, which also contributes to aerodynamic losses. A promising approach to reduce these losses is non-axisymmetric endwall contouring. The effects of non-axisymmetric endwall contouring on heat transfer and film cooling are yet to be investigated. Therefore, a new cascade test rig has been set up in order to investigate endwall heat transfer and film cooling on both a flat and a non-axisymmetric contoured endwall. Aerodynamic measurements that have been made prior to the upcoming heat transfer investigation are shown. Periodicity and detailed vane Mach number distributions ranging from 0 to 50% span together with the static pressure distribution on the endwall give detailed information about the aerodynamic behavior and influence of the endwall contouring. The aerodynamic study is backed by an oil paint study, which reveals qualitative information on the effect of the contouring on the endwall flow field. Results show that the contouring has a pronounced effect on vane and endwall pressure distribution and on the endwall flow field. The local increase and decrease of velocity and the reduced blade loading towards the endwall is the expected behavior of the 3d contouring. So are the results of the oil paint visualization, which show a strong change of flow field in the leading edge region as well as that the contouring delays the horse shoe vortex hitting the suction side.


Author(s):  
Luca Andrei ◽  
Antonio Andreini ◽  
Riccardo Da Soghe ◽  
Bruno Facchini ◽  
Stefano Zecchi

A numerical study of a state of the art leading edge cooling scheme was performed to analyze the heat transfer process within the leading edge cavity of a high pressure turbine airfoil. The investigated geometries account a trapezoidal supply channel with a large racetrack impingement holes. The coolant jets, confined among two consequent large fins, impact the leading edge internal surface and it is extracted from the leading edge cavity through both showerhead holes and film cooling holes. The CFD setup has been validated by means of the experimental measurements performed on a dedicated test rig developed and operated at University of Florence. The aim of this study is to investigate the combined effects of jet impingement, mass flow extraction and fins presence on the internal heat transfer of the leading edge cavity. More in details, the paper analyses the impact, in terms of blade metal temperature, of large fins presence and positioning. Jet’s Reynolds number is varied in order to cover the typical engine conditions of these cooling systems (Rej = 20000 – 40000).


2014 ◽  
Vol 971-973 ◽  
pp. 143-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ping Dai ◽  
Shuang Xiu Li

The development of a new generation of high performance gas turbine engines requires gas turbines to be operated at very high inlet temperatures, which are much higher than the allowable metal temperatures. Consequently, this necessitates the need for advanced cooling techniques. Among the numerous cooling technologies, the film cooling technology has superior advantages and relatively favorable application prospect. The recent research progress of film cooling techniques for gas turbine blade is reviewed and basic principle of film cooling is also illustrated. Progress on rotor blade and stationary blade of film cooling are introduced. Film cooling development of leading-edge was also generalized. Effect of various factor on cooling effectiveness and effect of the shape of the injection holes on plate film cooling are discussed. In addition, with respect to progress of discharge coefficient is presented. In the last, the future development trend and future investigation direction of film cooling are prospected.


Author(s):  
A. W. Reichert ◽  
M. Janssen

Siemens heavy duty Gas Turbines have been well known for their high power output combined with high efficiency and reliability for more than 3 decades. Offering state of the art technology at all times, the requirements concerning the cooling and sealing air system have increased with technological development over the years. In particular the increase of the turbine inlet temperature and reduced NOx requirements demand a highly efficient cooling and sealing air system. The new Vx4.3A family of Siemens gas turbines with ISO turbine inlet temperatures of 1190°C in the power range of 70 to 240 MW uses an effective film cooling technique for the turbine stages 1 and 2 to ensure the minimum cooling air requirement possible. In addition, the application of film cooling enables the cooling system to be simplified. For example, in the new gas turbine family no intercooler and no cooling air booster for the first turbine vane are needed. This paper deals with the internal air system of Siemens gas turbines which supplies cooling and sealing air. A general overview is given and some problems and their technical solutions are discussed. Furthermore a state of the art calculation system for the prediction of the thermodynamic states of the cooling and sealing air is introduced. The calculation system is based on the flow calculation package Flowmaster (Flowmaster International Ltd.), which has been modified for the requirements of the internal air system. The comparison of computational results with measurements give a good impression of the high accuracy of the calculation method used.


Author(s):  
Carol E. Bryant ◽  
Connor J. Wiese ◽  
James L. Rutledge ◽  
Marc D. Polanka

Gas turbine hot gas path components are protected through a combination of internal cooling and external film cooling. The coolant typically travels through internal passageways, which may involve impingement on the internal surface of a turbine component, before being ejected as film cooling. Internal cooling effects have been studied in facilities that allow measurement of heat transfer coefficients within models of the internal cooling paths, with large heat transfer coefficients generally desirable. External film cooling is typically evaluated through measurements of the adiabatic effectiveness and its effect on the external heat transfer coefficient. Efforts aimed at improving cooling are often focused on either only the internal cooling or the film cooling; however, the common coolant flow means the internal and external cooling schemes are linked and the coolant holes themselves provide another convective path for heat transfer to the coolant. Recently, measurements of overall cooling effectiveness using matched Biot number turbine component models allow evaluation of the nondimensional wall temperature achieved for the fully cooled component. However, the relative contributions of internal cooling, external cooling, and convection within the film cooling holes is not well understood. Large scale, matched Biot number experiments, complemented by CFD simulations, were performed on a fully film cooled cylindrical leading edge model to evaluate the effects of various alterations in the cooling design on the overall effectiveness. The relative influence of film cooling and cooling within the holes was evaluated by selectively disabling individual holes and quantifying how the overall effectiveness changed. Several internal impingement cooling schemes in addition to a baseline case without impingement cooling were also tested. In general, impingement cooling is shown to have a negligible influence on the overall effectiveness in the showerhead region. This indicates that the cost and pressure drop penalties for implementing impingement cooling may not be compensated by an increase in thermal performance. Instead, the internal cooling provided by convection within the holes themselves was shown, along with external film cooling, to be a dominant contribution to the overall cooling effectiveness. Indeed, the numerous holes within the showerhead region impede the ability of internal surface cooling schemes to influence the outside surface temperature. The results of this research may allow improved focus of future efforts on the forms of cooling with the greatest potential to improve cooling performance.


Author(s):  
Ioanna Aslanidou ◽  
Budimir Rosic ◽  
Vasudevan Kanjirakkad ◽  
Sumiu Uchida

The remarkable developments in gas turbine materials and cooling technologies have allowed a steady increase in combustor outlet temperature and hence in gas turbine efficiency over the last half century. However, the efficiency benefits of higher gas temperature, even at the current levels, are significantly offset by the increased losses associated with the required cooling. Additionally, the advancements in gas turbine cooling technology have introduced considerable complexities into turbine design and manufacture. Therefore, a reduction in coolant requirements for the current gas temperature levels is one possible way for gas turbine designers to achieve even higher efficiency levels. The leading edges of the first turbine vane row are exposed to high heat loads. The high coolant requirements and geometry constraints limit the possible arrangement of the multiple rows of film cooling holes in the so called showerhead region. In the past, investigators have tested many different showerhead configurations, varying the number of rows, inclination angle and shape of the cooling holes. However the current leading edge cooling strategies using showerheads have not been shown to allow further increase in turbine temperature without excessive use of coolant air. Therefore new cooling strategies for the first vane have to be explored. In gas turbines with multiple combustor chambers around the annulus, the transition duct walls can be used to shield, i.e. to protect the first vane leading edges from the high heat loads. In this way the stagnation region at the leading edge and the shower-head of film cooling holes can be completely removed, resulting in a significant reduction in the total amount of cooling air that is otherwise required. By eliminating the showerhead the shielding concept significantly simplifies the design and lowers the manufacturing costs. This paper numerically analyses the potential of the leading edge shielding concept for cooling air reduction. The vane shape was modified to allow for the implementation of the concept and non-restrictive relative movement between the combustor and the vane. It has been demonstrated that the coolant flow that was originally used for cooling the combustor wall trailing edge and a fraction of the coolant air used for the vane showerhead cooling can be used to effectively cool both the suction and the pressure surfaces of the vane.


Author(s):  
Christian Kunkel ◽  
Jan Werner ◽  
Daniel Franke ◽  
Heinz-Peter Schiffer ◽  
Fabian Wartzek ◽  
...  

Abstract With the well-known Transonic Compressor Darmstadt (TCD) in operation since 1994, profound knowledge in designing and operating a sophisticated test-rig is available at the Institute of Gas Turbines and Aerospace Propulsion of TU Darmstadt. During this period, TCD has been subject to a vast number of redesigns within different measurement campaigns (see [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8]). To expand the capabilities and ensure a sustainable process of compressor research, a new test facility was designed and built by the institute. The new test rig Transonic Compressor Darmstadt 2 (TCD2) features increased power for higher pressure ratios and higher mass-flow, a state of the art control system, increased flexibility towards different compressor geometries and modern data acquisition hardware and software. Following the successful commissioning of the test-rig in March 2018, a first measurement campaign has been conducted. Early test results regarding aerodynamic performance and aeroelastic effects of the test compressor are presented together with a detailed overview of test-rig infrastructure and control systems as well as the test compressor and the measurement hardware.


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