Patents by Inventor Wendy H. Murphy

Wendy H. Murphy 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: 6969558
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 18, 2003
    Date of Patent: November 29, 2005
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 6797408
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 11, 2001
    Date of Patent: September 28, 2004
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Publication number: 20040123923
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 18, 2003
    Publication date: July 1, 2004
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 6656605
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an article substrate having a free sulfur content of less than about 1 part per million. The low-sulfur article may be made of a material selected to have a low sulfur content, provided with a scavenging element that reacts with free sulfur to produce a sulfur compound, or desulfurized by contact with a reducing gas such as hydrogen. A platinum-group metal layer is deposited over the article substrate, and a ceramic coating is applied over the platinum-group metal layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2003
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Jon C. Schaeffer, Mark A. Rosenzweig, Norman R. Lindblad, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 6656533
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 10, 2001
    Date of Patent: December 2, 2003
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 6500283
    Abstract: A method for promoting the environmental resistance of nickel, iron and cobalt-base superalloys of the type alloyed to develop a protective oxide scale. The method entails a technique for removing sulfur during or subsequent to the casting operation. The method generally includes casting a superalloy article in a mold cavity, and then heat treating the article while surfaces of the article are in contact with a compound containing a sulfide and/or oxysulfide-forming element, such as yttria, calcium oxide, magnesia, scandia, ceria, hafnia, zirconia, titania, lanthana, alumina and/or silica. The heat treatment is performed at a temperature sufficient to cause sulfur within the superalloy article to segregate to the surfaces of the article and react with the sulfide-forming element, thereby forming sulfides at the interface with the compound.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 7, 1997
    Date of Patent: December 31, 2002
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy, Norman R. Lindblad
  • Publication number: 20020055004
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 11, 2001
    Publication date: May 9, 2002
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Publication number: 20020048683
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 10, 2001
    Publication date: April 25, 2002
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 6333121
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by furnishing an nickel-base article substrate having a free sulfur content of more than 0 but less than about 1 part per million by weight. A protective layer is formed at a surface of the article substrate. The protective layer includes a platinum aluminide diffusion coating. The protective layer may be substantially yttrium-free, or have a controlled amount of yttrium. A ceramic layer may overlie the protective layer.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 9, 1999
    Date of Patent: December 25, 2001
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Jon C. Schaeffer, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 5935353
    Abstract: A coated Ni base superalloy article is provided with improved microstuctural stability under a coating at least partially diffused into an article surface portion, by avoiding the formation, after exposure to elevated temperatures, of a constituent called SRZ which can affect detrimentally mechanical properties of the article. Such avoidance can result from neutralizing stress in the article surface portion prior to coating, for example by physically removing the stressed portion or by recrystallizing the stressed portion to a fine grained structure which subsequently can be consumed by diffusing elements in a coating method. Also, such avoidance can result from maintaining a Re segregation factor, Re.DELTA., between dendrite cores and interdendritic regions of the alloy cast structure at no greater than about 40%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 8, 1997
    Date of Patent: August 10, 1999
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Wendy H. Murphy, William S. Walston
  • Patent number: 5695821
    Abstract: A coated Ni base superalloy article is provided with improved microstructural stability under a coating at least partially diffused into an article surface portion, by avoiding the formation, after exposure to elevated temperatures, of a constituent called SRZ which can affect detrimentally mechanical properties of the article. Such avoidance can result from neutralizing stress in the article surface portion prior to coating, for example by physically removing the stressed portion or by recrystallizing the stressed portion to a fine grained structure which subsequently can be consumed by diffusing elements in a coating method. Also, such avoidance can result from maintaining a Re segregation factor, Re.DELTA., between dendrite cores and interdendritic regions of the alloy cast structure at no greater than about 40%.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 1995
    Date of Patent: December 9, 1997
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Wendy H. Murphy, William S. Walston
  • Patent number: 5538796
    Abstract: A coated article is prepared by melting and casting an article substrate formed of a nickel-base superalloy. The article substrate is heated in a hydrogen-containing atmosphere at a temperature of at least 2000.degree. F. for a period sufficient to desulfurize the substrate to a sulfur content of less than about 1 part per million. Optionally, an aluminum-oxide environmental coating is provided overlying the substrate. A ceramic thermal barrier coating is applied overlying the substrate. Significantly, there being no bond coat applied to the substrate prior to the application of the thermal barrier coating.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 13, 1992
    Date of Patent: July 23, 1996
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Jon C. Schaffer, Wendy H. Murphy, William B. Connor, Bangalore A. Nagaraj, Himanshu B. Vakil
  • Patent number: 5455120
    Abstract: A nickel base superalloy capable of being made into a single crystal article is provided with high temperature strength and improved stability by limiting the presence of an undesirable SRZ constituent. Significant to the control of formation of such undesirable constituents is the control of the amount of Re in the alloy in combination with elements such as Al, Cr, Ta, Mo, Co and W. A solution heat treatment is provided for additional control.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 29, 1993
    Date of Patent: October 3, 1995
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: William S. Walston, Earl W. Ross, Tresa M. Pollock, Kevin S. O'Hara, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 5240491
    Abstract: A series of braze materials for brazing superalloy substrates at effective brazing temperatures above about 2300.degree. F. is described. The braze materials are formulated as mixtures of cobalt- and nickel-base alloy powders. Each such braze material contains at least two components, one of which is predominantly liquid at the effective brazing temperature, and one of which remains substantially solid at that temperature. The brazing materials solidify by an isothermal solidification process. Unless otherwise limited by the temperature capability of the superalloy substrate being joined, these brazing alloys provide joints that have useful strength at temperatures significantly higher than joints made with prior art brazing alloys.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 8, 1991
    Date of Patent: August 31, 1993
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: David E. Budinger, Stephen J. Ferrigno, Wendy H. Murphy
  • Patent number: 4305761
    Abstract: An improved columnar grained, polycrystalline, anisotropic article is provided of a Ni-base, carbide fiber reinforced eutectic alloy by a method of providing a unidirectionally solidified cast body which includes such fibers aligned and embedded in a gamma-gamma prime structure. Such body is heated at a first temperature to fully solution the gamma-gamma prime without melting the carbide fibers; exposed to a second, lower, temperature to precipitate fine gamma prime in substantially cuboidal shape within the size range of 1-4 microns; and exposed to a third, still lower, temperature to perfect such cuboidal structure without refinement or coarsening. The resultant article is characterized by improved longitudinal stress rupture life.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 1980
    Date of Patent: December 15, 1981
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Charles A. Bruch, Wendy H. Murphy