Patents Examined by Scott J Walthour
  • Patent number: 11085636
    Abstract: A fuel oxygen conversion unit includes a stripping gas flowpath for a vehicle or an engine of the vehicle. The fuel oxygen conversion unit includes a stripping gas boost pump positioned in airflow communication with the stripping gas flowpath for increasing a pressure of a flow of stripping gas through the stripping gas flowpath; a contactor defining a stripping gas inlet in airflow communication with the stripping gas flowpath, a liquid fuel inlet, and a fuel/gas mixture outlet; a fuel gas separator defining a fuel/gas mixture inlet in fluid communication with the fuel/gas mixture outlet of the contactor, a stripping gas outlet, and a liquid fuel outlet; and a connection assembly mechanically coupling the stripping gas boost pump to the fuel gas separator, the connection assembly having a speed change mechanism such that the stripping gas boost pump rotates at a different rotational speed than the fuel gas separator.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Ethan Patrick O'Connor, Daniel Alan Niergarth, Brandon Wayne Miller, Richard Alan Wesling, Peter Allen Andrews, Jr.
  • Patent number: 11085633
    Abstract: A nozzle for a fuel injector of a gas turbine engine, the nozzle having an insulating air gap adjacent a conduit for carrying fuel, the air gap formed between a pair of concentrically arranged annular walls, wherein the pair of annular walls are arranged to move independently to accommodate differential thermal expansion, the nozzle further including: a channel extending circumferentially around a surface a first of the pair of annular walls, facing a second of the pair of annular walls; and a sealing member received in the channel, to close the insulating gap.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 15, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 10, 2021
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE plc
    Inventor: Mark Glover
  • Patent number: 11078808
    Abstract: Provided is a plant that includes: a boiler (30); a device connected to the boiler (30); a water supply source (41) that is configured to pool water; a water supply line (44) that supplies water from the water supply source (41) to the boiler (30); a cooler (50, 60g, 60s, 70g, 70s, 80) that transfers heat from a medium to be cooled to supply-water (W), which is the water flowing along the water supply line (44); a thermometer (59, 69, 79, 89) that determines a temperature of the medium to be cooled or the supply-water; and a temperature regulator (53, 62, 72, 82) that is configured to regulate the temperature of the medium to be cooled on the basis of the temperature determined by the thermometer (59, 69, 79, 89).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 8, 2017
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI POWER, LTD.
    Inventors: Hideyuki Uechi, Naoki Hisada
  • Patent number: 11078838
    Abstract: A method of operating a gas turbine engine compressor. The engine comprises a compressor having an environmental control system bleed port having an outlet in fluid communication with an aircraft environmental control system air duct, and an air turbine starter configured to rotate a compressor shaft of the gas turbine engine. The air turbine starter has an inlet in fluid communication with the environmental control system air duct via an air turbine valve. The method comprises determining a surge margin of the compressor, and where the surge margin of the compressor is determined to be below a predetermined minimum surge margin, opening the air turbine valve to supply air to the air turbine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 29, 2019
    Date of Patent: August 3, 2021
    Inventors: Craig W. Bemment, David P. Scothern
  • Patent number: 11073085
    Abstract: An intercooled cooling system for a gas turbine engine is provided. The intercooled cooling system includes a plurality of cooling stages in fluid communication with an air stream utilized for cooling. A first cooling stage of the plurality of cooling stages is fluidly coupled to a bleed port of a compressor of the gas turbine engine to receive and cool bleed air with the air stream to produce a cool bleed air. The intercooled cooling system also includes a pump fluidly coupled to the first cooling stage to receive the cool bleed air and increase a pressure of the cool bleed air to produce a pressurized cool bleed air. A second cooling stage of the plurality of cooling stages is fluidly coupled to the pump to receive and cool the pressurized cool bleed air to produce an intercooled cooling air, which is provided to the gas turbine engine.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: RAYTHEON TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
    Inventors: Joseph B. Staubach, Nathan Snape
  • Patent number: 11073103
    Abstract: An exhaust mixer arrangement for a gas turbine engine comprises an exhaust cone, a lobed exhaust mixer surrounding at least a portion of the exhaust cone and a cover mounted to an outer surface of the exhaust cone. The cover and the outer surface of the exhaust cone define a dead-end cavity for receiving a stiffener ring. A plurality of circumferentially spaced-apart struts interconnect at least a number of lobes of the lobed exhaust mixer to the stiffener ring.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventors: Philippe Boyer, Daniel Coutu
  • Patent number: 11073282
    Abstract: A heat transfer arrangement includes two or more heat transfer cells. The heat transfer cells together define a boundary between a higher temperature region and a lower temperature region. Each of the two or more heat transfer cells includes two or more walls defining a fluid tight cavity. One or more wick is fused to an inner surface of one or more of the walls to wick liquid from a lower temperature portion of the cavity to a higher temperature portion of the cavity. Combustors having heat transfer arrangements with heat transfer cells and methods of making heat transfer arrangements are also described.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 25, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 27, 2021
    Assignee: Delavan Inc.
    Inventors: Jason A. Ryon, Lev A. Prociw
  • Patent number: 11067035
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a main gas flow exhaust nozzle having an annular inner surface which, in use, bounds a flow of exhaust gas. The gas turbine engine further includes cooling passages having respective outlets therefrom to provide a flow of cooling air over a surface of the engine or an adjacent airframe component, thereby protecting the cooled surface from the exhaust gas flow. Adjacent cooling passages of the or each pair of the nested cooling passages are separated from each other by a respective dividing wall. The outlets from the nested cooling passages are staggered in the axial direction of the exhaust nozzle such that cooling air flowing out of an inner one of the adjacent cooling passages of the or each pair of the nested cooling passages flows over the dividing wall separating the adjacent passages.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE plc
    Inventors: Edward C Gower, Paul R Davies
  • Patent number: 11067279
    Abstract: A method, including: operating an industrial gas turbine engine having a plurality of combustor cans arranged in an annular array, each can having burner stages and a pilot burner arrangement having a premix pilot burner and a diffusion pilot burner; operating in asymmetric combustion, wherein at least one can is a warm can where respective burners stages are off and remaining cans operate as hot cans where respective burner stages are on; and while maintaining a constant rate of fuel flow to the pilot burner arrangement of the warm can, changing fuel fractions within the pilot burner arrangement of the warm can.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 12, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: Siemens Energy Global GmbH & Co. KG
    Inventors: Clifford E. Johnson, Weidong Cai, Krishna C. Miduturi, Ben Karanja, Michael Huth, Werner Krebs, Mark Seifarth, Thomas Primke, Yohannes Ghermay
  • Patent number: 11070109
    Abstract: Providing mobile electric power comprising a power generation transport configured to convert hydrocarbon fuel to electricity and an inlet and exhaust transport configured to: couple to at least one side of the power generation transport such that the inlet and exhaust transport is not connected to a top side of the power generation transport, provide ventilation air and combustion air to the power generation transport, collect exhaust air from the power generation transport, and filter the exhaust air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: TYPHON TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS, LLC
    Inventors: Jeffrey G. Morris, Adrian Benjamin Bodishbaugh, Brett Vann
  • Patent number: 11066999
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine includes a main compressor section having a downstream most location, and a cooling air tap at a location upstream of the downstream most location. A main turbine section, each of the main turbine section and the main compressor section are mounted within a housing, and each have rotatable components. A first heat exchanger is connected to the cooling air tap. The first heat exchanger is also connected to receive fuel to be supplied to a combustor in the gas turbine engine, and such that the fuel may cool the cooling air in the first heat exchanger. A boost compressor is connected to receive air downstream of the first heat exchanger and connected to deliver the cooling air to at least one of the rotatable components in at least one of the compressor and turbine sections.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 16, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 20, 2021
    Assignee: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: Joseph J. Sodaro, Thomas G. Phillips, Edmund E. Rochford
  • Patent number: 11060484
    Abstract: A nozzle wall for an air-breathing engine, the nozzle wall including a first wall surface subject to engine exhaust flow, a nozzle cooling system including at least one heat exchange fluid passage disposed adjacent the first wall surface so as to increase a temperature of a cooling fluid flowing from a fluid reservoir to at least a power extraction device, and the cooling fluid is ejected from the nozzle cooling system downstream from the power extraction device.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 29, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Joseph S. Silkey, Timothy H. Franklin, Richard S. Dyer
  • Patent number: 11060731
    Abstract: A fuel supply assembly for a gas turbine engine comprises a plurality of fuel injectors configured for mounting circumferentially to an engine casing of the gas turbine engine and to be serially interconnected. At least one pair of the plurality of the fuel injectors has a first fuel injector including a first manifold adapter having a first outlet defined around a first outlet axis, and a first stem connected to the first manifold adapter at the first outlet and extending longitudinally along a first stem axis; and a second fuel injector including a second manifold adapter having a second outlet defined around a second outlet axis, and a second stem connected to the second manifold adapter at the second outlet, the first and second outlet axes being disposed circumferentially between the first and second stem axes.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventors: Oleg Morenko, Aleksandar Kojovic, Bryan Micheal Bond
  • Patent number: 11060726
    Abstract: A compressor diffuser is disposed between cylindrical combustion chambers that are disposed around a rotational shaft to supply combustion gas to a turbine and a compressor that is rotatable about the rotational shaft to generate compressed air. The compressor diffuser includes one end connected to an outlet of the compressor; and another end connected to an air inlet of one of the combustion chambers. The one end defines an opening and has double arc portions curving about the rotational shaft, and the other end defines an opening shaped in conformance with the cylindrical shape of the one of the combustion chambers. The compressor diffuser is disposed continuously along an extending direction of the rotational shaft from the one end to the other end.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 13, 2021
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HEAVY INDUSTRIES, LTD.
    Inventors: Kuniaki Aoyama, Hiroyuki Yamamoto
  • Patent number: 11054135
    Abstract: A gas turbine fuel nozzle for a combustor of a gas turbine engine comprises a sleeve with an internal duct for premixed fuel gas flow; it further comprises a flame ionization sensor located on the sleeve externally to the duct; typically, the combustor has a single annular-shaped chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2016
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Assignee: NUOVO PIGNONE TECNOLOGIE SRL
    Inventors: Stefano Cioncolini, Michele D'Ercole, Antonio Asti
  • Patent number: 11054137
    Abstract: Provided is a combustion nozzle including a center cylinder having a cylinder shape, a middle cylinder coaxially disposed with the center cylinder and surrounding the center cylinder, an outer cylinder coaxially disposed with the middle cylinder and surrounding the middle cylinder, and a perforated plate disposed inside the center cylinder to create turbulent flow therethrough. In addition, the combustion nozzle further includes inner vanes disposed between the center cylinder and the middle cylinder and outer vanes disposed between the middle cylinder and the outer cylinder.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 22, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 6, 2021
    Inventor: Jung Jin Choi
  • Patent number: 11047301
    Abstract: A highly efficient gas turbine engine includes the fan of the gas turbine engine driven from a turbine via a gearbox, such that the fan has a lower rotational speed than the driving turbine, thereby providing efficiency gains. The efficient fan system is mated to a core that has low cooling flow requirements and/or high temperature capability, and which may have particularly low mass for a given power.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 14, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: ROLLS-ROYCE PLC
    Inventors: Pascal Dunning, Michael J Whittle, Roderick M Townes
  • Patent number: 11047316
    Abstract: The method can include, in sequence: varying the flow rate of fuel from the first flow rate to a second flow rate, thereby varying the rotor speed from a first speed to a second speed, varying the flow rate of fuel back to the first flow rate, and rotating the rotor at the first speed for a given period of time.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 9, 2019
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventor: Alex Raykowski
  • Patent number: 11047307
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine system includes a gas turbine engine and a fuel turbine system. The gas turbine engine includes a heat exchange system configured to transfer thermal energy from a first compressed air flow and an exhaust gas flow to a fuel to produce a gaseous fuel. The fuel turbine system includes a fuel turbine fluidly coupled to the heat exchange system and a combustor of the gas turbine engine, and a fuel pump fluidly coupled to the heat exchange system and configured to be driven by the fuel turbine. The fuel turbine is configured to extract energy from expansion of the gaseous fuel to produce the gaseous fuel at a lower pressure for delivery to the combustor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 29, 2021
    Assignee: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
    Inventor: Gary D. Roberge
  • Patent number: 11041439
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine system includes a gas turbine engine and a turbo-generator. The gas turbine engine includes a heat exchange system configured to transfer thermal energy from an air flow (i.e., inlet air flow or exhaust gas flow) to a fuel to produce a gaseous fuel. The turbo-generator includes a fuel turbine fluidly coupled to the heat exchange system and a combustor of the gas turbine engine, a fuel pump configured to be driven by the fuel turbine and fluidly coupled to the heat exchange system, and a motor/generator configured to be driven by the fuel turbine. The fuel turbine is configured to extract energy from expansion of the gaseous fuel to produce a gaseous fuel for combustion in the combustor. The motor/generator includes a cooling jacket, which is fluidly coupled to the fuel pump.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 14, 2018
    Date of Patent: June 22, 2021
    Assignee: Raytheon Technologies Corporation
    Inventor: Gary D. Roberge