Abstract: A system for drying fruits, spices, vegetables and the like comprises a heating compartment having an inlet for introducing a flow of drying gas and heating arrangement for elevating the temperature of the drying gas. A drying compartment is connected to and in communication with the heating compartment for holding the material to be dried. A driving arrangement is disposed in the heating compartment for directing heated drying gas through the heating compartment and into drying relationship with the material to be dried in the drying compartment. An exhaust arrangement is provided in the drying compartment for withdrawing a portion of the spent drying gas and recirculating another portion of the spent drying gas back onto the drying compartment.

Abstract: A wide gap braze repair, particularly for a gas turbine engine vane or a component in the hot section of the engine. The repair is characterized by a braze filled void in a damaged area of the component, a laser shock peened surface over the repaired area of the braze filled void, and a region of deep compressive residual stresses imparted by laser shock peening (LSP) extending from the laser shock peened surface into the repair.

Abstract: A bore-hole pump for pumping a highly viscous fluid, into which is fed a solvent which has a low viscosity and which is miscible with the fluid. A shutoff device is disposed between an inlet of the bore-hole pump and an actual inlet of the pump part. The shut-off device is activated by the solvent.

Abstract: A fan device for an integrated circuit includes a finned plate, a fan having a rotor shaft, and a board member mounted to the finned plate. The finned plate includes a plurality of rows and columns of fins extending upwardly from an upper side thereof and a space defined in a center of the upper side, each two adjacent fins having a gap defined therebetween. The board member includes a hole defined in a mediate portion thereof, a support member provided in the hole, and a plurality of ribs extending downwardly from a periphery defining the hole to the support member, the support member including a stud formed on an upper side thereof and having a second hole defined therein for rotatably receiving the rotor shaft of the fan.

Abstract: In a bladed rotor of an axial-flow turbomachine, the blades essentially consist of a blade body and a blade root. They are fastened with their blade roots in rows in encircling blade grooves having lateral supporting prongs. A shoulder serving to assemble the blades on the rotor is attached between blade body and blade root. The blade grooves are shaped symmetrically to the associated planes of symmetry by a plurality of radii (R1-R4), the preceding radius (R1) in each case being larger than the following radius (R2). The circular arcs formed by the radii (R1-R4) have a common tangent (T) at their contact points.

Abstract: An apparatus for the treatment of a multiphase fluid, comprising a rotatable shaft having a fluid flow path coaxial with the shaft. A fixed guide member surrounds the shaft and comprises annular plural helical channels for imparting centrifugal forces to the fluid to concentrate heavier fluid into an outer annular flow path around an inner flow path for lighter fluid. An impeller is supported on and driven by the shaft. The flow in the outer flow path is diverted, so as to divert the flow of the fluid of greater specific gravity into an annular channel member having an impeller. A stationary scoop extracts fluid from the channel member. The impeller comprises generally radially outwardly extending disks receiving fluid flowing on the inner flow path between them. Guide vanes are carried by the disks for guiding the fluid radially outwardly. A discharge chamber in the form of a volute is provided for the lighter fluid on the inner flow path issuing from between the disks.

Abstract: A turbine blade having a preestablished rate of thermal expansion is attached to a turbine flange having a preestablished rate of thermal expansion being greater than the preestablished rate of thermal expansion of the turbine blade. The turbine flange includes a first upstanding flange and a second upstanding flange having a groove formed therebetween. The turbine flange further includes a recess. Each of the first and second upstanding flanges have a plurality of bores therein. A turbine blade has a first member and a second member positioned in one of the groove and the recess. Each of the first member and the second member have a plurality of bores therein. And, a pin is positioned in respective ones of the plurality of bores in the first and second upstanding members and the first and second members and attach the blade to the turbine flange. The pin has a preestablished rate of thermal expansion being substantially equal to the rate of thermal expansion of the blade.

Abstract: A stage of fan blades in a ducted fan gas turbine engine have the spaces between them filled by a rotary annulus wall filler which has a leading portion made from metal and a trailing portion made from a composite material. The metal portion resists the impact damage from the ingress of foreign bodies and the trailing portion provides a lighter structure.

Abstract: A valve with presetting facility has a valve housing with a rotatable sleeve. To form a present throttle, a control opening at the base of the sleeve co-operates with a control opening at a base face of the valve housing. The control opening in the base face is formed by an eccentric bore. The control opening in the end face of the base is formed by a channel which extends over a circular arc of less than 360.degree. , is connected at one end by way of an eccentric bore to the inner space of the sleeve and has a cross section that reduces towards the other end. That allows presetting to be very precise and manufacture to be inexpensive.

Abstract: A reaction turbine capable of providing unidirectional rotation under a reversible fluid flow is disclosed. The turbine comprises inflow and outflow fluid channels, a turbine chamber, and a working wheel with a plurality of airfoil-shaped blades mounted transversely to the direction of fluid flow for rotation in a plane parallel to the fluid flow. A channel directs the fluid flow to the blades. In the turbine chamber, the channel has a curved configuration having opposed changes in elevation or bulges directed towards the center of the turbine in a plane parallel to the flow of fluid to optimize the angle of attack of the fluid on the blades. In one embodiment, the channel also has a V or other linear or non-linear shape in transverse cross-section in the turbine chamber to smooth and direct the fluid flow. In another embodiment, the blades have a delta or other curvilinear shape, which smooths and directs the fluid flow and allows the channel to have a simpler rectangular cross-section.

Abstract: A gas turbine cooling blade maintains a cooling effect and prevents sticking of deposits to the belly surface of the blade. The blade is provided with a relatively big cooling hole formed on the belly part of a hollow stator blade at an acute angle with the blade surface for blowing out cooling air. A relatively small cooling hole is disposed downstream of the big hole at a more acute angle with the blade surface to bring a jet of cooling air along the blade surface.

Abstract: A high efficiency fan and stator arrangement for generating an airflow through a heat exchanger is disclosed herein. The fan is rotated about its rotational axis by an electric motor, and includes eight blades extending radially from a hub to a circular band. Each fan blade has a stagger angle and chord lengths which vary along the span of the blades. Each fan blade also includes a trailing edge having a flat surface extending along the edge. The flat surfaces of each fan blade are coincident with a plane perpendicular to the rotational axis. The fan produces an airflow when rotated about the rotational axis, wherein a component of the airflow occurs at a first angle to the rotational axis. The fan support has a central bearing support and twenty elongated airfoils extending radially outward from the bearing support. Each airfoil has substantially the same length as the fan blades and includes a curved airflow guiding surface having a leading edge and a trailing edge downstream from the leading edge.

Abstract: In a drum rotor (1) for an axial-flow turbomachine, the blades are fastened with their roots (3) in rows in encircling blade grooves (10) having lateral supporting prongs. At least the first blade groove (10), on the inlet side of the working medium, is shaped in an axially asymmetrical manner by a plurality of radii (R1-R4). The preceding radius (R1) in each case is larger than the following radius (R2), and the circular arcs (21-24) formed by the radii (R1-R4) have a common tangent (T) at their contact points.

Abstract: An apparatus for modulating a flow of cooling air from a compressor to a turbine in a gas turbine engine is disclosed. The apparatus includes a support member which forms a channel for receiving the cooling flow and has a throat at a downstream end with a radial orientation. A radial flow inducer is connected to the support member adjacent to the channel downstream end for accelerating the cooling flow through the throat of the support member. Apparatus for modulating the quantity of the cooling air flowing through the throat and into the turbine is provided in the form of an axially translating endwall, wherein variation of the throat area is accomplished through modulation of the endwall with respect to the support member. The support member may also house either a stationary, unmodulated axial flow inducer or a second modulated radial flow inducer in addition to the modulated radial flow inducer.

Abstract: Apparatus for the treatment of a multiphase fluid, comprises a pretreatment stage (60) upstream of a treatment stage, the pretreatment stage being arranged to cause an incoming flow of multiphase fluid to concentrate fluids of greater and lesser specific gravity into respective flow paths for subsequent treatment in the treatment stage and the pretreatment stage comprising a cyclonic separator device (60) concentrating fluid or fluids of greater specific gravity into an outer annular flow path around an inner flow path for fluid or fluids of lesser specific gravity. The treatment stage comprises a centrifuge having a separator drum (65) rotatable about the axis (66) thereof with an inlet end portion next to the cyclonic separator device (60) comprising concentric inner and outer walls (76, 70) and helical vanes (75) between the walls.

Abstract: A zoom lens is disclosed comprising, from front to rear, a first lens unit of negative refractive power, a second lens unit of positive refractive power, a third lens unit of negative refractive power and a fourth lens unit of positive refractive power, zooming from a wide-angle end to a telephoto end being performed by moving at least the first, second and fourth lens units in such a way that an air separation between the first and second lens units decreases, an air separation between the second and third lens units increases and an air separation between the third and fourth lens units decreases, wherein the form and the construction and arrangement of the members of the lens units and, if an aspheric surface is in use, its shape, are appropriately determined.

Abstract: Disclosed is an apparatus for emergency enablement of a boat propeller. The apparatus includes a central mounting plate having an aperture for engagement with one end of the propeller shaft to which the propeller is attached. A drive plate is affixed to the central mounting plate for drive engagement with the propeller. Upon striking an underwater object, bolts connecting the drive and mounting plate will shear to protect the boat's engine from damage. One or more cantilevered members, the proximal ends of which are fixed around the periphery of the central mounting plate, extend from the mounting plate for disposal within longitudinal spaces of the boat propeller.

Abstract: A high strength, forged monolithic shrouded impeller is made from a single forged blank by a method that includes the following four steps: Turning and boring a rough forging to an impeller profile; using a three-dimensional CNC milling machine with end mills, removing as much material as possible from what are to be passageways in the impeller, defining leading and trailing edge zones of vanes defining the passageways by removing material in direct line of sight from the outside diameter or from the eye of the impeller or both; forming a hole through a central zone of what will be each impeller passageway, and removing the remainder of the material to define the passageways by three-dimensional planing controlled by the CNC machine.

Abstract: An apparatus is provided that includes a bladed device having a hub which is rotatable about an axis and one or more blades attached to the hub by self-energizing, self-locking, insertion and retention features which are formed integrally with the blade and hub. The insertion and retention features include a locking tang formed integrally with the root of the blade, and detent features which are part of the locking tang and hub. As the blade is inserted axially into the hub, the locking tang deflects radially inward and then snaps radially outward by spring action of the tang to engage the detent feature of the hub, and thereby lock the blade against further axially or radially movement with respect to the hub. The locking tang is oriented and configured in such a manner that the locking tang is self-energizing, thereby causing the tang to grip the hub more tightly as rotational speed of the bladed device increases.

Abstract: A steam turbine having improved stationary parts in which a moisture removal slot is formed in a blade ring cylinder immediately upstream of the last row of rotating blades. The slot has a reduced width inlet throat portion and an enlarged manifold portion. The manifold portion of the slot distributes the moisture collected to a plurality of radially oriented discharge holes formed in the blade ring. The inlet throat serves to insolate the manifold from the swirling steam flowing through the turbine, thereby preventing entrainment of the moisture droplets into the steam flow. The blade ring encircles the tips of the last row of rotating blades and the outer flow guide is integrally formed on the blade ring. The steam turbine also has a new inner flow guide that matches a new last row of rotating blades. The new inner flow guide is attached to the existing inner flow guide by welds.