Patents by Inventor Xiuzhang James Zhang

Xiuzhang James Zhang 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).

  • Publication number: 20170152752
    Abstract: A turbomachine blade is disclosed including an airfoil including a cooling fluid plenum extending therein and a trailing edge cooling opening extending from the cooling fluid plenum through a trailing edge of the airfoil. A platform may couple the airfoil to a shank, the platform including a trailing edge root extending downstream relative to the shank. At least one cooling conduit delivers a cooling fluid radially inward from at least one of the cooling fluid plenum and the trailing edge cooling opening to a wheel space that is adjacent the shank and radially inward from the trailing edge root. A related turbomachine is also disclosed.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 1, 2015
    Publication date: June 1, 2017
    Inventors: Melbourne James Myers, Camilo Andres Sampayo, Xiuzhang James Zhang
  • Publication number: 20170122111
    Abstract: In one aspect of the present disclosure, an airfoil for a rotor blade of a gas turbine includes a normalized pressure side wall portion thickness, a normalized suction side wall portion thickness, a normalized leading edge wall thickness, and a normalized trailing edge wall thickness. The values of theses thicknesses define the pressure side wall portion thickness, the suction side wall portion thickness, the leading edge wall thickness, and the trailing edge wall thickness, which improve heat transfer, flow distribution, and mechanical load transfer.
    Type: Application
    Filed: November 4, 2015
    Publication date: May 4, 2017
    Inventors: Adebukola Oluwaseun Benson, Xiuzhang James Zhang, Nicholas Alvin Hogberg, Kenneth Earl Williams
  • Patent number: 9527262
    Abstract: A layered arrangement, a hot-gas path component, and a process of producing a layered arrangement are disclosed. The layered arrangement includes a substrate layer, a ceramic matrix composite layer, and a non-metal spacer between the substrate layer and the ceramic matrix composite layer configured to define one or more pockets. The hot-gas-path component includes a nickel-based superalloy layer, a ceramic matrix composite layer, and a ceramic spacer between the nickel-based superalloy layer and the ceramic matrix composite layer. The ceramic spacer is mechanically secured to one or both of the substrate layer and the ceramic matrix composite layer, and the ceramic spacer is bonded to the substrate layer or the ceramic matrix composite layer. The process includes securing a non-metal spacer between a substrate layer and a ceramic matrix composite layer of the layered arrangement.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 28, 2012
    Date of Patent: December 27, 2016
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Haiping Wang
  • Publication number: 20160319673
    Abstract: A rotor blade includes an airfoil having a blade tip and a tip cavity formed at the blade tip. The tip cavity includes a tip cap that is recessed radially inwardly from the tip and surrounded continuously by pressure and suction side walls of the airfoil. The tip cap further includes an aperture that extends through the tip cap and provides for fluid communication between an internal cavity defined within the airfoil and the tip cavity. An exhaust port provides for fluid communication out the tip cavity through one of the pressure side wall, the suction side wall or the trailing edge. A portion of at least one of the suction side wall and the pressure side wall that defines the tip cavity extends obliquely outwardly from the tip cavity with respect to a radial direction.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Publication date: November 3, 2016
    Inventors: Jeffrey Clarence Jones, Xiuzhang James Zhang, Mitchell Allan Merrill
  • Publication number: 20160319672
    Abstract: A rotor blade includes an airfoil having a blade tip and a tip cavity formed at the blade tip. The blade tip defines a radially outer surface of the airfoil. The tip cavity includes a tip cap that is recessed radially inwardly from the tip and surrounded by pressure and suction side walls of the airfoil. The tip cap is in fluid communication with an internal cavity defined within the airfoil. A portion of at least one of the suction side wall or the pressure side wall that defines the tip cavity extends obliquely outwardly from the tip cavity. A plurality of slots is defined in at least one of the suction side wall or the pressure side wall along the radially outer surface proximate to the trailing edge of the airfoil.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Publication date: November 3, 2016
    Inventors: Jeffrey Clarence Jones, Xiuzhang James Zhang
  • Publication number: 20160319671
    Abstract: A turbine airfoil includes a leading edge and a trailing edge. Also included is a cooling channel extending in a radial direction and tapering inwardly toward the trailing edge, the cooling channel at least partially defined by a pressure side face and a suction side face. Further included is a first plurality of turbulators protruding from one of the pressure side face and the suction side face to define a first height, the first plurality of turbulators extending toward the trailing edge of the turbine airfoil and spaced radially from each other. Yet further included is a second plurality of turbulators protruding from one of the pressure side face and the suction side face to define a second height that is less than the first height, the second plurality of turbulators extending toward the trailing edge of the turbine airfoil and spaced radially from each other.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 29, 2015
    Publication date: November 3, 2016
    Inventors: Adebukola Oluwaseun Benson, Nicholas Alvin Hogberg, Gary Michael Itzel, Mitchell Allan Merrill, Xiuzhang James Zhang
  • Patent number: 9470096
    Abstract: A turbine bucket having an airfoil is disclosed. The airfoil may include a pressure side and a suction side extending between a leading edge and a trailing edge. In addition, the airfoil may include a tip. The tip may include a tip floor and a tip wall extending outwardly from the tip floor. The tip wall may include an inner surface defining an inner perimeter of the tip wall. Moreover, a plurality of notches may be defined by the inner surface around at least a portion of the inner perimeter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2016
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Niraj Kumar Mishra, Xiuzhang James Zhang, Murugesan Seerangan, Sachin Kumar Rai
  • Publication number: 20160298545
    Abstract: A turbine airfoil includes a leading edge, a trailing edge, a root and a tip. Also included is a pressure side wall extending between the leading edge and the trailing edge and between the root and the tip. Further included is a suction side wall extending between the leading edge and the trailing edge and between the root and the tip. Yet further included is a non-circular cooling channel defined by the turbine airfoil and extending radially from the root to the tip, the non-circular cooling channel routing a cooling air to an outlet hole formed in the tip. Also included is an exhaust hole defined by the turbine airfoil and extending from the non-circular cooling channel to the suction side wall, the exhaust hole radially located between the root and the tip.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 13, 2015
    Publication date: October 13, 2016
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Sandip Dutta, Gary Michael Itzel
  • Patent number: 9464536
    Abstract: A sealing arrangement for a turbine system includes a bucket having an outer tip and at least one bucket ridge extending radially outwardly from the outer tip, the at least one bucket ridge comprising an abradable material. Also included is a stationary shroud disposed radially outwardly from the outer tip of the bucket. Further included is at least one shroud ridge extending radially inwardly from the stationary shroud toward the outer tip of the bucket, the at least one shroud ridge comprising the abradable material.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 18, 2012
    Date of Patent: October 11, 2016
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Gary Michael Itzel, Ibrahim Sezer
  • Publication number: 20160258302
    Abstract: An airfoil includes a squealer tip at an outer radial end of the airfoil. A squealer tip pocket of the squealer tip has a convex side and a concave side, and a tip plate. A divider extends across the tip plate from the concave side to the convex side to divide the squealer tip pocket into a first pocket and a second pocket. At least one cooling passage through the tip plate in the second pocket provides fluid communication through the tip plate from an interior of the airfoil to the second pocket. The first pocket is fluidically disconnected from the interior of the airfoil.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 5, 2015
    Publication date: September 8, 2016
    Inventors: Adebukola Oluwaseun Benson, Lisa De Bellis, Xiuzhang James Zhang
  • Patent number: 9334742
    Abstract: A rotor blade includes an airfoil having a tip plate that extends across an outer radial end. A rim extends radially outward from the tip plate and surrounds at least a portion of the airfoil and includes a concave portion opposed to a convex portion. A plurality of dividers extend between the concave and convex portions to define a plurality of pockets between the concave and convex portions at the outer radial end. A plurality of cooling passages through the tip plate provide fluid communication through the tip plate to the plurality of pockets. A first fluid passage in at least one divider provides fluid communication between adjacent pockets across the at least one divider.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: May 10, 2016
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Adebukola Benson, Zhirui Dong
  • Patent number: 9297262
    Abstract: A turbine rotor blade for a gas turbine engine is described. The turbine rotor blade includes an airfoil that includes a tip at an outer radial end. The tip includes a rail that defines a tip cavity; and the rail includes a circumscribing rail microchannel. The circumscribing rail microchannel is a microchannel that extends around at least a majority of the length of the inner rail surface.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: March 29, 2016
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Aaron Ezekiel Smith, Anthony Louis Giglio, Brian Peter Arness, Benjamin Paul Lacy
  • Publication number: 20160017718
    Abstract: A casted turbine bucket having at least one machined plenum including a plenum chamber and at least one plenum passage connected to a plenum inlet at a root portion of turbine bucket, and a method to feed cooling flow to the turbine bucket using the machined plenum that receives cooling flow from the root portion of the turbine bucket.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 18, 2014
    Publication date: January 21, 2016
    Inventors: XIUZHANG JAMES ZHANG, LISA DeBELLIS, HAIPING WANG
  • Publication number: 20150345303
    Abstract: A rotor blade includes a mounting portion comprising a mounting body that is formed to receive a coolant therein. An airfoil portion extends substantially radially outwardly from the mounting body and includes an airfoil body. The mounting body and the airfoil body define a plurality of primary cooling passages that extend substantially radially therein for routing the coolant through the airfoil body. Each of the primary cooling passages includes a cooling flow outlet that is formed along a tip portion of the airfoil body. The airfoil body further defines a plurality of trailing edge cooling passages, each having a coolant outlet that is formed along a trailing edge portion of the airfoil body. At least a portion of the trailing edge cooling passages are formed along a radially outer portion of the trailing edge proximate to the tip portion of the airfoil body.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 28, 2014
    Publication date: December 3, 2015
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Zhirui Dong, Xiuzhang James Zhang, Jason Adam Neville
  • Publication number: 20150345301
    Abstract: A rotor blade includes and airfoil. The airfoil includes pressure and suction side walls which extend radially outwardly from a platform in span from a root to a tip and between a leading edge and a trialing edge. The tip includes a tip floor, a plurality of coolant outlets and a tip rail having a pressure side and suction side portions that extend radially outwardly from the tip floor. Cooling passages are circumscribed within the airfoil and are in fluid communication with one or more of the coolant outlets. A baffle extends radially outwardly from and transversely across the tip floor from the pressure side portion to the suction side portion to define first and second tip pockets. A slot is disposed along the suction side portion of the tip rail to provide for fluid communication out of one of the first or second tip pockets, thereby reducing pressure within the corresponding tip pocket.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 29, 2014
    Publication date: December 3, 2015
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, James William Vehr, Haiping Wang
  • Patent number: 9188012
    Abstract: A turbine rotor blade used in a gas turbine engine, which includes an airfoil having a tip at an outer radial edge, is described. The airfoil includes a pressure sidewall and a suction sidewall that join together at a leading edge and a trailing edge of the airfoil, the pressure sidewall and the suction sidewall extending from a root to the tip. The tip includes a tip plate and, disposed along a periphery of the tip plate, a rail. The rail includes a microchannel connected to a coolant source.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: November 17, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Benjamin Paul Lacy, Brian Peter Arness, Xiuzhang James Zhang
  • Patent number: 9121292
    Abstract: An airfoil includes an outer surface having a leading edge, a trailing edge downstream from the leading edge, and a convex surface between the leading and trailing edges. A cavity is inside the outer surface, and a platform is connected to the outer surface and defines a top surface around at least a portion of the outer surface. A first plurality of trenches is beneath the top surface of the platform upstream from the leading edge, wherein each trench in the first plurality of trenches is in fluid communication with the cavity inside the outer surface. A first plurality of cooling passages provide fluid communication from the first plurality of trenches through the top surface of the platform.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 5, 2012
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2015
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Stephen Paul Wassynger, Aaron Ezekiel Smith, Anthony Louis Giglio
  • Patent number: 9045988
    Abstract: A turbine bucket having an airfoil is disclosed. The airfoil may include a pressure side wall and a suction side wall extending between a leading edge and a trailing edge. In addition, the airfoil may include a base and a tip disposed opposite the base. The tip may include a tip floor and pressure and suction side tip walls extending outwardly from the tip floor. Moreover, the tip may include an intermediate tip wall extending outwardly from the tip floor between the pressure and suction side tip walls. The intermediate tip wall may define a height that is less than a height of the pressure and/or suction side tip walls.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 26, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Niraj Kumar Mishra, Xiuzhang James Zhang
  • Publication number: 20150075180
    Abstract: A turbine bucket is disclosed herein. The turbine bucket may include a platform and a shank portion extending radially inward from the platform. The shank portion may include a slash face, a radial seal pin groove formed in the slash face, and at least one cooling hole disposed in the slash face about the radial seal pin groove.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 18, 2013
    Publication date: March 19, 2015
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, James W. Vehr
  • Publication number: 20150064010
    Abstract: The present application provides a turbine bucket. The turbine bucket may include an airfoil and a tip shroud attached to the airfoil. The tip shroud may include a cooling core and an enhanced cooling surface.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 28, 2013
    Publication date: March 5, 2015
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Xiuzhang James Zhang, Melbourne James Myers, Robert Joseph Testa, Jr., Haiping Wang