Patents by Inventor Kevin Weston McMahan
Kevin Weston McMahan has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
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Patent number: 8281601Abstract: A system and method for reintroducing gas turbine combustion bypass flow. The system may include a combustor body, wherein the combustor body includes a reaction zone for primary combustion of fuel and air, and a casing enclosing the combustor body and defining an annular passageway for carrying compressor discharge air into the combustor body at one end. The system further may include a reintroduction manifold for receiving combustor bypass air extracted from the compressor discharge air in the annular passageway, and one or more reintroduction slots in communication with the reintroduction manifold for injecting the combustor bypass air into the combustor body downstream of the reaction zone. The method may include extracting combustor bypass air from the annular passageway, transporting the combustor bypass air to a reintroduction manifold, and reintroducing the combustor bypass air into the combustor body through one or more reintroduction slots in communication with the reintroduction manifold.Type: GrantFiled: March 20, 2009Date of Patent: October 9, 2012Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Thomas Edward Johnson, Stanley Kevin Widener
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Publication number: 20120234018Abstract: An aft frame and a method for cooling an aft frame are disclosed. In one embodiment, an aft frame for a transition piece in a combustor is disclosed. The combustor includes the transition piece and an impingement sleeve at least partially defining a flow path therebetween. The aft frame includes a body and a generally radially extending cooling passage defined in the body, the cooling passage comprising a first end configured to accept a coolant. The aft frame further includes an exhaust passage defined in the body, the exhaust passage including a first end in communication with the cooling passage and a second end configured for communication with the flow path for flowing the coolant therethrough.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 16, 2011Publication date: September 20, 2012Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: David William Cihlar, Patrick Benedict Melton, David Leach, Kevin Weston McMahan
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Publication number: 20120210720Abstract: A combustor assembly that includes a casing that includes a plenum, a combustor liner positioned within the plenum and defining a combustion chamber there within, and a transition piece that includes a forward portion that is coupled to the combustion liner and an aft portion that extends from the forward portion. The aft portion includes a transition piece frame. The transition piece frame includes an upstream surface, a downstream surface, and a radially inner surface extending between the upstream and downstream surfaces. The radially inner surface includes a leading edge that extends between the radially inner surface and the upstream surface. A plurality of first cooling passages extend from the upstream surface to the downstream surface. Each of the first cooling passages is oriented obliquely with respect to the leading edge from the upstream surface towards the downstream surface.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 18, 2011Publication date: August 23, 2012Inventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Ronald James Chila
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Patent number: 8141879Abstract: A side seal for sealing the side edges of adjacent combustors of a turbine engine include extended ends. The extended ends of the side seal abut and seal against inner and outer circumferential seals to prevent leakage of combustion gases.Type: GrantFiled: July 20, 2009Date of Patent: March 27, 2012Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: Krishna Kumar Venkataraman, Kevin Weston McMahan, Timur R. Repikov, Kara Edwards
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Publication number: 20120031097Abstract: The present application provides a fuel nozzle for use in a gas turbine. The fuel nozzle may include a mounting flange, a number of premixers attached to each other, and a number of gas pathways extending from the mounting flange to the number of premixers.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 7, 2009Publication date: February 9, 2012Applicant: General Electric CompanyInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Krishna Kumar Venkataraman, Jonathan Dwight Berry, Sergey Aleksandrovich Stryapuninr
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Patent number: 8087228Abstract: A combustor cap is cooperable with an impingement plate in a turbine fuel nozzle and includes a plurality of cap segments independently securable to the impingement plate. The plurality of cap segments are radially and tangentially movable relative to the impingement plate.Type: GrantFiled: September 11, 2008Date of Patent: January 3, 2012Assignee: General Electric CompanyInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, John Charles Intile, Shiva Srinivasan, Sergey Alexandrovich Stryapunin
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Publication number: 20110314825Abstract: In certain exemplary embodiments, a system includes an annular duct having an inner annular wall and an outer annular wall. The system also includes a plurality of injector vanes configured to mix air and fuel to produce an air-fuel mixture, and configured to inject the air-fuel mixture into a central chamber between the inner and outer annular walls.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 29, 2010Publication date: December 29, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Sergey Aleksandrovich Stryapunin, Kevin Weston McMahan, Geoffrey David Myers
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Publication number: 20110304104Abstract: A spring loaded seal assembly is disclosed for sealing a gap between adjacent turbine components. The seal assembly may generally include a turbine seal and a spring member. The turbine seal may extend between the adjacent turbine components and may be configured to seal the gap defined between the turbine components. The spring member may be configured to engage the turbine seal so as to maintain the seal in sealing engagement with the adjacent turbine components.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 9, 2010Publication date: December 15, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Timur Rustamovich Repikov, Mehmet Demiroglu
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Publication number: 20110247341Abstract: A combustor liner is provided. The combustor liner may include an upstream portion and a downstream end portion. The upstream portion may have a radius and a length along a generally longitudinal axis. The downstream end portion may have a radius and a length along the generally longitudinal axis. The downstream end portion may define a plurality of channels. Each of the plurality of channels may extend helically through the length of the downstream end portion. Each of the plurality of channels may be configured to flow an air flow therethrough, cooling the downstream end portion.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 9, 2010Publication date: October 13, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Ronald James Chila
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Publication number: 20110239652Abstract: A combustor section is provided and includes a segmented annular manifold mounted upstream from a fuel nozzle support in a section of a passage through which an oxidizer flows, each segment of the manifold being substantially axially aligned and including a body to accommodate fuel internally that is formed to define injection holes through which the fuel is injected into the passage through which the oxidizer flows upstream of the fuel nozzle support.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 6, 2010Publication date: October 6, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Almaz Valeev, Chunyang Wu
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Publication number: 20110217159Abstract: Turbine nozzle assemblies include a plurality of circumferentially spaced first components and second components, which are designed to provide different amounts of cooling. The second components, which are generally aligned with an opening of transition pieces, are designed to provide more cooling than the first components, which are generally aligned with interfaces between the transition pieces.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 8, 2010Publication date: September 8, 2011Applicant: General Electric CompanyInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Joseph V. Citeno
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Publication number: 20110107769Abstract: A turbomachine includes a compressor, a turbine operatively coupled to the compressor, and a combustion assembly fluidly linking the compressor and the turbine. The combustion assembly includes at least one injector having a burner tube including an outer wall portion and an inner wall portion that define a mixing zone. A swirler arranged within the mixing zone. The swirler includes a plurality of vanes, with at least one of the plurality of vanes having a wall section including an outer surface and an inner surface that define a hollow interior portion. An insert member is arranged within the hollow interior portion. The insert member includes at least one guide element that is disposed and configured to deliver a fluid flow to the hollow interior portion to flow over the wall section of the at least one of the plurality of vanes.Type: ApplicationFiled: November 9, 2009Publication date: May 12, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Christian Xavier Stevenson, Thomas Edward Johnson, Kevin Weston McMahan, William David York
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Publication number: 20110048030Abstract: An aft frame of a turbine engine transition piece body is provided and includes an annular body disposed within a first annular space defined between an impingement sleeve and a compressor discharge casing and aft of a second annular space defined between the transition piece body and the impingement sleeve and including a main portion with a first surface facing the first annular space and a second surface facing the forward annular space. The main portion has an impingement hole extending therethrough from an inlet at the first surface of the annular body to an outlet at the second surface of the annular body to define a fluid path along which the first and second annular spaces communicate with one another.Type: ApplicationFiled: September 3, 2009Publication date: March 3, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Jonathan Dwight Berry, Kevin Weston McMahan
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Publication number: 20110023494Abstract: A gas turbine includes a compressor and at least one combustor downstream from the compressor. The combustor includes a burner having an inner shroud extending axially along at least a portion of the burner, an outer shroud radially separated from the inner shroud and extending axially along at least a portion of the burner, and a plurality of stator vanes extending radially between the inner shroud and the outer shroud. The stator vanes have an inner end proximate the inner shroud and an outer end proximate the outer shroud. The burner further includes a vortex tip at one of either the inner end or the outer end of the stator vanes. The vortex tip provides a gap between the inner end and the inner shroud or the outer end and the outer shroud, and the vortex tip includes a plurality of fuel ports. The gas turbine further includes a turbine downstream from the combustor.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 28, 2009Publication date: February 3, 2011Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: JESSE BLAIR BUTLER, DAVID LEACH, KEVIN WESTON MCMAHAN, MARK ALLAN HADLEY, GEOFFREY DAVID MYERS
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Publication number: 20110014029Abstract: A side seal for sealing the side edges of adjacent combustors of a turbine engine include extended ends. The extended ends of the side seal abut and seal against inner and outer circumferential seals to prevent leakage of combustion gases.Type: ApplicationFiled: July 20, 2009Publication date: January 20, 2011Inventors: Krishna Kumar VENKATARAMAN, Kevin Weston MCMAHAN, Timur R. REPIKOV, Kara EDWARDS
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Publication number: 20100300106Abstract: A system comprises a turbine combustor cap. The turbine combustor cap includes a plurality of segments. Each segment of the plurality of segments has edges abutting at least two fuel nozzle receptacles. Moreover, each segment of the plurality of segments does not completely surrounding any one fuel nozzle receptacle.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 2, 2009Publication date: December 2, 2010Applicant: General Electric CompanyInventors: Kara Johnston Edwards, Kevin Weston McMahan, Thomas Edward Johnson, Jonathan Dwight Berry
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Publication number: 20100293955Abstract: A system comprising a fuel nozzle. The fuel nozzle includes a mounting base and an inlet flow conditioner extending directly from the mounting base in a downstream direction. Moreover, the inlet flow conditioner structurally supports the fuel nozzle without a central support member extending directly from the mounting base inside the inlet flow conditioner.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 20, 2009Publication date: November 25, 2010Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Jonathan Dwight Berry, Kevin Weston McMahan, Carl Robert Barker
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Publication number: 20100287943Abstract: Methods and systems are provided for inducing combustion dynamics within turbine engines to remove combustion deposits within the turbine engine during operation of the turbine engine.Type: ApplicationFiled: May 14, 2009Publication date: November 18, 2010Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANYInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Mark Allan Hadley, Geoffrey D. Myers, Sam D. Draper
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Publication number: 20100257863Abstract: An industrial turbine engine comprises a combustion section, an air discharge section downstream of the combustion section, a transition region between the combustion and air discharge section, a combustion transition piece and a sleeve. The transition piece defines an interior space for combusted gas flow. The sleeve surrounds the combustor transition piece so as to form a flow annulus between the sleeve and the transition piece. The sleeve includes a first set of apertures for directing cooling air from compressor discharge air into the flow annulus. The transition piece includes an outer surface bounding the flow annulus and an inner surface bounding the interior surface, and includes a second set of apertures for directing cooling air in the flow annulus to the interior space. Each of the second set of apertures extends from an entry portion on the outer surface to an exit portion on the inner surface.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 13, 2009Publication date: October 14, 2010Applicant: General Electric CompanyInventors: Ronald James Chila, Kevin Weston McMahan
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Publication number: 20100236249Abstract: A system and method for reintroducing gas turbine combustion bypass flow. The system may include a combustor body, wherein the combustor body includes a reaction zone for primary combustion of fuel and air, and a casing enclosing the combustor body and defining an annular passageway for carrying compressor discharge air into the combustor body at one end. The system further may include a reintroduction manifold for receiving combustor bypass air extracted from the compressor discharge air in the annular passageway, and one or more reintroduction slots in communication with the reintroduction manifold for injecting the combustor bypass air into the combustor body downstream of the reaction zone. The method may include extracting combustor bypass air from the annular passageway, transporting the combustor bypass air to a reintroduction manifold, and reintroducing the combustor bypass air into the combustor body through one or more reintroduction slots in communication with the reintroduction manifold.Type: ApplicationFiled: March 20, 2009Publication date: September 23, 2010Applicant: General Electric CompanyInventors: Kevin Weston McMahan, Thomas Edward Johnson, Stanley Kevin Widener