Novel Technology for Gas Turbine Blade Effusion Cooling

Abstract

Gas turbine combustion chambers and turbine blades require better cooling techniques to cope with the increase in operating temperatures with each new engine model. Current gas turbine inlet temperatures are approaching 2000 K. Such extreme temperatures, combined with a highly dynamic environment, result in major stress on components, especially combustion chamber and blades of the first turbine stages. A technique that has been extensively investigated is transpiration cooling, for both combustion chambers and turbine blades. Transpiration-cooled components have proved an effective way to achieve high temperatures and erosion resistance for gas turbines operating in aggressive environments, though there is a shortage of durable and proven technical solutions. Effusion cooling (full-coverage discrete hole film cooling), on the other hand, is a relatively simpler and more reliable technique offering a continuous coverage of cooling air over the component’s hot surfaces. This paper presents an innovative technology for the efficient effusion cooling of the combustor wall and turbine blades. The dedicated electroforming process used to manufacture effusive film cooling systems, called Poroform®, is illustrated. A numerical model is also presented, developed specifically for designing the distributions of the diameter and density of the holes on the cooled surface with a view to reducing the metal’s working temperature and achieving isothermal conditions for large blade areas. Numerical simulations were used to design the effusive cooling system for a first-stage gas turbine blade. The diameter, density and spacing of the holes, and the adiabatic film efficiency are discussed extensively to highlight the cooling capacity of the effusive system.