| US 7,575,416 B2 | ||
| Rotor assembly for a rotary machine | ||
| Stanley J. Funk, New Britain, Conn. (US); and Wieslaw A. Chlus, Wethersfield, Conn. (US) | ||
| Assigned to United Technologies Corporation, Hartford, Conn. (US) | ||
| Filed on May 18, 2006, as Appl. No. 11/437,189. | ||
| Prior Publication US 2007/0269315 A1, Nov. 22, 2007 | ||
| Int. Cl. F01D 5/30 (2006.01) | ||
| U.S. Cl. 416—193A [416/219 R; 416/239] | 13 Claims |
| 1. A rotor assembly for a rotary machine having a rotor disk which extends circumferentially about an axis of rotation (Ar)
and which includes a plurality of circumferentially spaced slots in the rotor disk that adapt the rotor disk to receive an
array of rotor blades, each rotor blade having a root section, a platform section, and an airfoil section extending outwardly
with respect to the root section, the root section having a blade root for engaging an associated slot in the rotor disk,
and a neck extending radially outwardly with respect to the blade root toward the airfoil section, which comprises:
a pair of said adjacent rotor blades which are spaced apart leaving an interblade chamber therebetween which is bounded in
part by the root section of each rotor blade, each rotor blade having a pressure side and a suction side, a first surface
which extends in the neck and which faces circumferentially on one of said sides, and a second surface on the other of said
sides which extends in the neck and which faces circumferentially, the first surface of at least one of said pair of rotor
blades being spaced from the associated second surface on the adjacent rotor blade leaving a circumferential gap (G) therebetween
which is adjacent to the interblade chamber over at least a portion of the radial extent of the root section,
at least one of the pair of rotor blades having
a first sidewall which extends in a generally radial direction in the neck of the rotor blade and which extends into the rotor
blade in the circumferential direction away from the first surface bounding the gap (G), the first sidewall having a seal
surface, an outer end and an inner end,
a second sidewall having at least a first segment and a second segment which is spaced radially from the first segment, the
first segment and the second segment extending into the interblade chamber and being spaced axially from the first sidewall
to bound a seal channel which extends therebetween, the seal channel extending in a generally radial direction in the neck
of the rotor blade between the two sidewalls, the first and second sidewalls extending away from the adjacent portions of
the first surface bounding the gap (G) into the rotor blade and being convergent inwardly in the circumferential direction;
a deformable seal member which is resilient, which is disposed in the seal channel and which is trapped by the segments of
the second sidewall against the first sidewall, the seal member extending across the gap (G) between the root sections of
the adjacent rotor blades and engaging the seal surface of the first sidewall of the first rotor blade and the second surface
of the adjacent rotor blade in the installed condition by being held in place by the segments of the second sidewall as the
seal member is resiliently compressed by the adjacent surface of the second rotor blade; the seal member being formed of a
high temperature material and having a circumferential width (Wu) in the uninstalled condition of the adjacent rotor blade
that is greater than circumferential width (Wi) in the installed condition of the adjacent rotor blade such that the seal
member extends circumferentially past the adjacent portion of the first surface of the rotor blade by a distance (G′) prior
to installation of the adjacent rotor blade, the distance (G′) being greater than the distance (G);
wherein compression of the resilient seal member between the pair of rotor blades causes the seal member to exert a sealing
force against each of the first rotor blades which damps vibrations in the rotor blades while circumferentially urging the
first rotor blades away from each other; and,wherein the engagement of the first sidewall and the second surface of the adjacent second rotor blade by the seal member
with sealing force blocks leakage of the working medium gases between the necks under operative conditions.
|