Patents by Inventor Thomas Hazel

Thomas Hazel 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).

  • Patent number: 7429424
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a thermal barrier coating (TBC) for inclusion in a thermal barrier coating/environmental barrier coating system (TBC/EBC system) for use on a silicon containing material substrate is provided. The TBC comprises a compound having a primary constituent portion and a stabilizer portion stabilizing said primary constituent. The primary constituent portion of the TBC comprises hafnia present in an amount of at least about 5 mol % of the primary constituent. The stabilizer portion of said thermal barrier coating comprises at least one metal oxide comprised of cations with a +2 or +3 valence present in the amount of about 10 to about 40 mol % of the thermal barrier coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2004
    Date of Patent: September 30, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore A. Nagaraj, Brian Thomas Hazel
  • Publication number: 20080220172
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a thermal barrier coating (TBC) for inclusion in a thermal barrier coating/environmental barrier coating system (TBC/EBC system) for use on a silicon containing material substrate is provided. The TBC comprises a compound having a primary constituent portion and a stabilizer portion stabilizing said primary constituent. The primary constituent portion of the TBC comprises hafnia present in an amount of at least about 5 mol % of the primary constituent. The stabilizer portion of said thermal barrier coating comprises at least one metal oxide comprised of cations with a +2 or +3 valence present in the amount of about 10 to about 40 mol % of the thermal barrier coating.
    Type: Application
    Filed: October 23, 2007
    Publication date: September 11, 2008
    Inventors: Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore A. Nagaraj, Brian Thomas Hazel
  • Patent number: 7407718
    Abstract: A coating system for Si-containing materials, particularly Si-based composites used to produce articles exposed to high temperatures. The coating system is a compositionally-graded thermal/environmental barrier coating (T/EBC) system that includes an intermediate layer containing yttria-stabilized hafnia (YSHf) and mullite, alumina and/or an aluminosilicate, which is used in combination with an inner layer between a Si-containing substrate and the intermediate layer and a thermal-insulating top coat overlying the intermediate layer. The intermediate layer provides environmental protection to the silicon-containing substrate, and has a coefficient of thermal expansion between that of the top coat and that of the inner layer so as to serve as a transition layer therebetween. The intermediate layer is particular well suited for use in combination with an inner layer of an alkaline earth metal aluminosilicate (such as BSAS) and a top coat formed of YSZ or YSHf.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: August 5, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore Aswatha Nagaraj
  • Publication number: 20080160201
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, an article is provided. The article comprises a substrate comprised of silicon containing material, an environmental barrier coating (EBC) overlying the substrate and a thermal barrier coating (TBC) on the environmental barrier coating. The thermal barrier coating comprising a compound having a rhombohedral phase.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 5, 2007
    Publication date: July 3, 2008
    Inventors: Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore A. Nagaraj, Brian Thomas Hazel, Ramgopal Darolia, Curtis Alan Johnson, Yan Gao, Mark Daniel Gorman
  • Publication number: 20080131720
    Abstract: A coating process and system for an article having a substrate formed of a metal alloy that is prone to the formation of a secondary reaction zone (SRZ). The coating system includes an aluminum-containing overlay coating and a stabilizing layer between the overlay coating and the substrate. The overlay coating contains aluminum in an amount greater by atomic percent than the metal alloy of the substrate, such that there is a tendency for aluminum to diffuse from the overlay coating into the substrate. The stabilizing layer is predominantly or entirely formed of at least one platinum group metal (PGM), namely, platinum, rhodium, iridium, and/or palladium. The stabilizing layer is sufficient to inhibit diffusion of aluminum from the overlay coating into the substrate so that the substrate remains essentially free of an SRZ that would be deleterious to the mechanical properties of the alloy.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 30, 2006
    Publication date: June 5, 2008
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Mark Daniel Gorman, Brian Thomas Hazel, Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, Ramgopal Darolia
  • Publication number: 20080124479
    Abstract: Process includes providing a silicide-containing bond coat layer overlying a silicon-containing substrate, optionally forming a silica scale layer adjacent to and overlying the bond coat layer by preoxidizing the bond coat layer, and providing an environmental barrier coating overlying the bond coat layer. The environmental barrier coating includes a corrosion resistant outer layer formed by reacting a metal source with the silica scale layer, if present, or with the silicide-containing substrate in the absence of the silica scale layer. The process may include providing a thermal barrier coating overlying the corrosion resistant outer layer. The silicon-containing substrate may include at least a portion of a gas turbine engine component selected from a turbine blade, vane, and blisk.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 5, 2008
    Publication date: May 29, 2008
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Irene Spitsberg, Brett Allen Boutwell
  • Patent number: 7374825
    Abstract: According to an embodiment of the invention, disclosed is a composite comprising a porous thermal barrier coating on a metallic part and an impermeable barrier coating adjacent to the outer surface of the thermal barrier coating. The impermeable barrier coating is dense and non-porous and comprises a rare earth silicate, the impermeable barrier coating thereby preventing infiltration of the contaminant composition into the thermal barrier coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 1, 2004
    Date of Patent: May 20, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore A. Nagaraj
  • Patent number: 7364807
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, an article is provided. The article comprises a substrate comprised of silicon containing material, an environmental barrier coating (EBC) overlying the substrate and a thermal barrier coating (TBC) on the environmental barrier coating. The thermal barrier coating comprising a compound having a rhombohedral phase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2004
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore A. Nagaraj, Brian Thomas Hazel, Ramgopal Darolia, Curtis Alan Johnson, Yan Gao, Mark Daniel Gorman
  • Patent number: 7364801
    Abstract: An environmental coating suitable for use on turbine components, such as turbine disks and turbine seal elements, formed of alloys susceptible to oxidation and hot corrosion. The environmental coating is predominantly a solid solution phase of nickel, iron, and/or cobalt. The coating contains about 18 weight percent to about 60 weight percent chromium, which ensures the formation of a protective chromia (Cr2O3) scale while also exhibiting high ductility. The coating may further contain up to about 8 weight percent aluminum, as well as other optional additives. The environmental coating is preferably sufficiently thin and ductile to enable compressive stresses to be induced in the underlying substrate through shot peening without cracking the coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 6, 2006
    Date of Patent: April 29, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Michael James Weimer
  • Patent number: 7357994
    Abstract: A coating system for Si-containing materials, particularly those for articles exposed to high temperatures. The coating system exhibits improved resistance to corrosion from sea salt and CMAS as a result of using aluminate compounds to protect silicate-containing layers of the coating system. The coating system includes an environmental barrier coating, a thermal barrier coating overlying the environmental barrier coating and formed of a thermal-insulating material, and a transition layer between the environmental barrier coating and thermal barrier coating, wherein the transition layer contains at least one aluminate compound and/or alumina.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 15, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Irene Spitsberg
  • Patent number: 7354651
    Abstract: An article comprising a silicon-containing substrate, a silicide-containing bond coat layer overlying the substrate, and an environmental barrier coating (EBC) overlying the bond coat layer, wherein the EBC comprises a corrosion resistant outer layer comprising a corrosion resistant metal silicate. A process is also provided for forming the corrosion resistant outer layer over the silicide-containing bond coat layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 13, 2005
    Date of Patent: April 8, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Irene Spitsberg, Brett Allen Boutwell
  • Patent number: 7341797
    Abstract: A protective coating for use on a silicon-containing substrate, and deposition methods therefor. The coating has a barium-strontium-aluminosilicate (BSAS) composition that is less susceptible to degradation by volatilization and in corrosive environments as a result of having at least an outer surface region that consists essentially of one or more stoichiometric crystalline phases of BSAS and is substantially free of a nonstoichiometric second crystalline phase of BSAS that contains a substoichiometric amount of silica. The coating can be produced by carrying out deposition and heat treatment steps that result in the entire coating or just the outer surface region of the coating consisting essentially of the stoichiometric celsian phase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 27, 2004
    Date of Patent: March 11, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Irene Spitsberg, Brian Thomas Hazel, Christine Govern
  • Patent number: 7326468
    Abstract: An article comprising a substrate formed of a silicon-comprising material, such as an article exposed to the hostile thermal environment of a gas turbine engine. The article further comprises an environmental barrier layer, e.g., an alkaline earth metal aluminosilicate, and a top coat comprising hafnia stabilized with from about 0.5 mole % to about 10 mole % of an oxide of a metal selected from the group consisting of magnesium, calcium, scandium, yttrium, and lanthanide metals, and mixtures thereof. The article optionally comprises a transition layer between the environmental barrier layer and the top coat. A method for preparing a thermal/environmental barrier coating on a substrate formed of a silicon-comprising material is also disclosed.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 21, 2005
    Date of Patent: February 5, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Bangalore Aswatha Nagaraj, Brian Thomas Hazel, David Joseph Mitchell
  • Patent number: 7318955
    Abstract: Thermal barrier coating (TBC) and a method of depositing a TBC having a modulated columnar microstructure that exhibits increased impact resistance. The TBC is deposited to have a columnar microstructure in which columns extend from a substrate surface. The columns having inner regions contacting the surface, outer regions near an outermost surface of the TBC, and interior regions therebetween. The inner regions of the columns are substantially normal to the substrate surface and at least one of the interior and outer regions of the columns are nonaligned with its respective inner regions, so that the columns of the columnar microstructure are continuous but modulated between the inner and outer regions to reduce tensile stresses within the columns resulting from particle impact.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 15, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Ramgopal Darolia, Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, Brian Thomas Hazel, Bangalore Aswatha Nagaraj, Joseph David Rigney, Roger D. Wustman
  • Patent number: 7314674
    Abstract: A composition comprising a particulate corrosion resistant component, and a glass-forming binder component. The particulate corrosion resistant component comprises from 0 to about 95% alumina particulates, and from about 5 to 100% corrosion resistant non-alumina particulates having a CTE greater than that of the alumina particulates. Also disclosed is an article comprising a turbine component comprising a metal substrate and a corrosion resistant coating having thickness up to about 10 mils (254 microns) overlaying the metal substrate. At least the layer of this coating adjacent to the metal substrate comprises a glass-forming binder component and the particulate corrosion resistant component adhered to the glass-forming binder component.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 15, 2004
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2008
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Michael James Weimer
  • Patent number: 7311940
    Abstract: The present invention is a gas turbine engine turbine blade comprising an airfoil section having at least an exterior surface, a platform section having an exterior surface, an under platform section having an exterior surface, and a dovetail section having an exterior surface. The blade further comprises a corrosion resistant coating on a surface of a turbine blade section selected from the group consisting of the exterior surface of the under platform section, the exterior surface of the dovetail section, and combinations thereof, the corrosion resistant coating comprising a particulate corrosion resistant component comprising from about 5 weight percent to about 100 weight percent corrosion resistant non-alumina particulates having a CTE greater than that of alumina particulates and balance alumina particulates, and a binder component. The present invention also includes methods for making such a gas turbine engine blade.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 4, 2005
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2007
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Bangalore Aswatha Nagaraj, Brian Thomas Hazel
  • Publication number: 20070292624
    Abstract: In accordance with an embodiment of the invention, a thermal barrier coating for inclusion in a thermal barrier coating/environmental barrier coating system (TBC/EBC system) for use on a silicon based substrate is disclosed. The thermal barrier coating comprising up to about 9 mol percent of a stabilizer and up to 91 mol percent of primary oxide selected from the group consisting of zirconia, hafnia and mixtures thereof. The stabilizer comprises: a first metal oxide selected from the group consisting of yttria, calcia, ceria, scandia, magnesia, india and mixtures thereof, a second metal oxide of a trivalent metal atom selected from the group consisting of lanthana, gadolinia, neodymia, samaria, dysprosia, ytterbia, erbia, and mixtures thereof. The first metal oxide is in an amount of from about 3 to about 5 mol %, the second metal oxide is in an amount of from about 0.25 to about 6 mol %.
    Type: Application
    Filed: June 28, 2005
    Publication date: December 20, 2007
    Inventors: Bangalore A. Nagaraj, Irene Spitsberg, Christine Govern, Brian Thomas Hazel
  • Patent number: 7250225
    Abstract: An intermetallic composition suitable for use as an environmentally-protective coating on surfaces of components used in hostile thermal environments, including the turbine, combustor and augmentor sections of a gas turbine engine. The coating contains the gamma-prime (Ni3Al) nickel aluminide intermetallic phase and either the beta (NiAl) nickel aluminide intermetallic phase or the gamma solid solution phase. The coating has an average aluminum content of 14 to 30 atomic percent and an average platinum-group metal content of at least 1 to less than 10 atomic percent, the balance of the coating being nickel, incidental impurities, and optionally hafnium.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 31, 2007
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Ramgopal Darolia, Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, David John Wortman
  • Patent number: 7247393
    Abstract: An intermetallic composition suitable for use as an environmentally-protective coating on surfaces of components used in hostile thermal environments, including the turbine, combustor and augmentor sections of a gas turbine engine. The coating contains the gamma-prime (Ni3Al) nickel aluminide intermetallic phase and either the beta (NiAl) nickel aluminide intermetallic phase or the gamma solid solution phase. The coating has an average aluminum content of 14 to 30 atomic percent and an average platinum-group metal content of at least 1 to less than 10 atomic percent, the balance of the coating being nickel, one or more of chromium, silicon, tantalum, and cobalt, optionally one or more of hafnium, yttrium, zirconium, lanthanum, and cerium, and incidental impurities.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 26, 2005
    Date of Patent: July 24, 2007
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Ramgopal Darolia, Brett Allen Rohrer Boutwell, David John Wortman
  • Publication number: 20070141371
    Abstract: A composition comprising a glass-forming binder component and a particulate corrosion resistant component. The particulate corrosion resistant component comprises corrosion resistant particulates having: a CTEp of at least about 4 and being solid at a temperature of about 1300° F. (704° C.) or greater; and a maximum median particle size defined by one of the following formulas: (a) for a CTEp of 8 or less, an Mp equal to or less than (4.375×CTEp)?10; and (b) for a CTEp of greater than 8, an Mp equal to or less than (?4.375×CTEp)+60, wherein CTEp is the average CTE of the corrosion resistant particulates and wherein Mp is the median equivalent spherical diameter (ESD), in microns, of the corrosion resistant particulates. Also disclosed is an article comprising a turbine component comprising a metal substrate and a corrosion resistant coating overlaying the metal substrate, as well as a method for forming at least one layer of the corrosion resistant coating adjacent to the metal substrate.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 20, 2005
    Publication date: June 21, 2007
    Inventors: Brian Thomas Hazel, Michael James Weimer