Abstract: A small scale, high speed turbomachine is described, as well as a process for manufacturing the turbomachine. The turbomachine is manufactured by diffusion bonding stacked sheets of metal foil, each of which has been pre-formed to correspond to a cross section of the turbomachine structure. The turbomachines include rotating elements as well as static structures. Using this process, turbomachines may be manufactured with rotating elements that have outer diameters of less than four inches in size, and/or blading heights of less than 0.1 inches. The rotating elements of the turbomachines are capable of rotating at speeds in excess of 150 feet per second. In addition, cooling features may be added internally to blading to facilitate cooling in high temperature operations.
Type:
Grant
Filed:
February 6, 2015
Date of Patent:
June 26, 2018
Assignee:
ASTRA SPACE, INC.
Inventors:
Adam P. London, Lloyd J. Droppers, Matthew K. Lehman, Amitav Mehra