Patents Examined by Steven Sutherland
  • Patent number: 9109842
    Abstract: A fuel air heat exchanger for a gas turbine engine having fuel and air conduits in heat exchange relationship with one another, and a distribution conduit in heat exchange relationship with a component to be cooled. The distribution conduit is in fluid communication with the outlet of each air conduit. The heat exchanger also includes a secondary air inlet in fluid communication with the distribution conduit and a flow selection member selectively movable between first and second configurations. In the first configuration, the flow selection member closes the fluid communication between the secondary inlet and the distribution conduit. In the second configuration, the flow selection member opens the fluid communication between the secondary air inlet and the distribution conduit.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 24, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2015
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventors: Lev Alexander Prociw, Eduardo Hawie
  • Patent number: 9103552
    Abstract: A burner assembly having a fuel distribution ring, number of fuel nozzles which are mounted on the fuel distribution ring in the direction of low is provided. The fuel distribution ring has a ring-shaped surface in the direction of flow and wherein the fuel distribution ring center and an opposite outer outer side and wherein there is at least one slot on the surface between the fuel nozzles and the at least one slot extends on the surface from the outside to the inside. There is at least one recess arranged on the surface and the at least one recess also partially includes the outside of the fuel distributor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 8, 2010
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
    Inventors: Andreas Böttcher, Tobias Krieger, Daniel Vogtmann, Ulrich Wörz
  • Patent number: 9103284
    Abstract: An approach for utilizing fuel gas to purge a dormant fuel gas circuit is disclosed. In one aspect, there is a fuel gas supply that supplies fuel to fuel gas circuits. Gas control valves, each coupled to one of the fuel gas circuits control the flow of fuel gas thereto from the fuel gas supply. A fuel purge system selectively purges fuel gas circuits from the fuel gas circuits that are dormant with fuel gas from the fuel gas supply.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2012
    Date of Patent: August 11, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Dean Matthew Erickson, Robert Lester Brooks, Douglas Scott Byrd, Joseph Robert Law
  • Patent number: 9097188
    Abstract: The disclosure provides a gas turbine device capable of producing a mixed gas in which three or more types of gases are evenly mixed, and of doing the like. To achieve this, in a gas turbine device configured to burn in a combustor a fuel gas supplied from a fuel gas supplier, together with a compressed air supplied from an air compressor, and to rotationally drive a gas turbine by a combustion gas generated at the burning, the fuel gas supplier includes two mixers, and is configured to produce a mixed gas by mixing three types of gases of a first gas, a second gas, and a third gas in the mixers in ascending order of specific gravity or in descending order of specific gravity, and to supply the mixed gas to the combustor as the fuel gas.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2015
    Assignee: MITSUBISHI HITACHI POWER SYSTEMS, LTD.
    Inventors: Hiroshi Tanabe, Noboru Hisaka
  • Patent number: 9091444
    Abstract: A fuel mixture is fed to a gas turbine combustor by an injection assembly, which has an outer body with combustion-supporting air inlets; a conical tubular portion housed inside the outer body and partly defining an inner conduit and an outer annular conduit; and a first and second feed circuit for feeding liquid fuel to the inner conduit and outer annular conduit respectively; the first circuit having a ring of conduits with respective axes parallel to a generating line of an outer surface of the conical tubular portion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 4, 2011
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2015
    Assignee: AVIO S.p.A.
    Inventors: Fabio Turrini, Antonio Peschiulli, Marco Motta
  • Patent number: 9091230
    Abstract: A variable area fan nozzles comprising an array of rigid petals hinged to a lip area at the downstream end of a thrust reverser sleeve (or half-sleeve). In one embodiment, the actuation system comprises a rotatable ring segment, a drive system for rotating the ring segment, a plurality of cams attached or integrally formed with the ring segment, a plurality of cam followers, and a plurality of petal linkages which operatively couple the petals to the cam followers. This actuation system controls the deflection of the petals, thereby controlling the amount of opening and the rate at which the fan nozzle throat area changes. Each cam may have forward- and rearward-facing camming surfaces that interact with the cam followers to force the petals to pivot outward or inward respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 16, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2015
    Assignee: The Boeing Company
    Inventors: Rainer Dittmann, Reid A. McCracken
  • Patent number: 9086017
    Abstract: A fuel injector includes a flow path for fuel air mixture to a combustor extending longitudinally through the fuel injector. The fuel injector may also include a liquid fuel gallery at least partially encircling the flow path. The gallery may include a plurality of fuel spokes configured to deliver liquid fuel from the gallery to the flow path. The fuel injector may also include an annular outer housing circumferentially positioned about the gallery to form an insulating air cavity at least partially around the gallery. The outer housing may include at least one purge hole to provide communication between the insulating air cavity and outside the outer housing of the injector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 22, 2012
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Assignee: Solar Turbines Incorporated
    Inventors: Christopher Zdzislaw Twardochleb, Jonathan Gerrard Duckers
  • Patent number: 9086219
    Abstract: A regulating device for regulating the course of a gas turbine plant has at least one sensor for sensing a measurement variable and for outputting a measurement signal which represents the measurement variable; at least one adjusting system for influencing air and/or fuel supply to a combustion chamber of the gas turbine plant on the basis of a correcting variable; and a regulator connected to the at least one sensor so as to receive the measurement variable and to the at least one adjusting system for outputting the correcting variable, the regulator being designed to determine the correcting variable on the basis of the measurement variable received and its deviation from a pilot variable. At least one sensor is designed to sense the variation in time of at least one burner or combustion chamber parameter as measurement variable.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 10, 2006
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2015
    Assignee: SIEMENS AKTIENGESELLSCHAFT
    Inventors: Eberhard Deuker, Stefan Pernau, Siegfried Bode, Andreas Diebels, Thomas Hahner, Thomas Hesse, Werner Krebs, Bernd Prade, Peter-Andreas Schneider, Dieter Simon, Berthold Sturm, Heinrich Thölking, Dieter Warnack, Andreas Bauer, Joachim Lepers, Martin Müller
  • Patent number: 9074554
    Abstract: The invention relates to a jet engine nacelle reverse thrust device (10) including a means for diverting at least one portion of a jet engine air flow and moreover includes at least one cowl (20) that is translatable in a direction substantially parallel to a longitudinal axis of the nacelle, the device having at least one flap (30) that is pivotably mounted, by one end, onto the translatable cowl, said translatable cowl (20) being capable of passing alternately from a closed position, wherein said cowl, with the flap (30) in a retracted position, ensures the aerodynamic continuity of the nacelle and covers the diverting means, to an open position, wherein said cowl opens a passage in the nacelle and uncovers the diverting means, the flap (30) being in a pivoted position wherein it is capable of sealing off a portion of an annular channel of the nacelle.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 22, 2010
    Date of Patent: July 7, 2015
    Assignee: AIRCELLE
    Inventor: Pierre Caruel
  • Patent number: 9068468
    Abstract: A thermal/electrical power converter includes a gas turbine with an input couplable to an output of an inert gas thermal power source, a compressor including an output couplable to an input of the inert gas thermal power source, and a generator coupled to the gas turbine. The thermal/electrical power converter also includes a heat exchanger with an input coupled to an output of the gas turbine and an output coupled to an input of the compressor. The heat exchanger includes a series-coupled super-heater heat exchanger, a boiler heat exchanger and a water preheater heat exchanger. The thermal/electrical power converter also includes a reservoir tank and reservoir tank control valves configured to regulate a power output of the thermal/electrical power converter.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 5, 2014
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2015
    Assignee: Hi Eff Utility Rescue LLC
    Inventor: William Edward Simpkin
  • Patent number: 9068506
    Abstract: A gas turbine engine recuperator system includes a heat recuperator positioned in a gas turbine exhaust gas duct for recovering heat from turbine exhaust gases to preheat a compressor flow being supplied to the combustor. A continuous bleed flow of the turbine exhaust gases is provided to bypass the heat recuperator. The continuous bleed flow of the turbine exhaust gases is adjustable to reduce turbine exhaust gas pressure loss at a high engine operation level and to provide efficient heat recovery at low and/or medium engine operation levels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2015
    Assignee: PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA CORP.
    Inventors: Andreas Eleftheriou, Daniel Alecu, David Menheere
  • Patent number: 9068512
    Abstract: A method can protect a gas turbine engine (10), which includes a compressor (11), a combustor (13), and a turbine (12), against high dynamical process values, especially in combustor/flame pulsations. Effective protection against high dynamical process values, especially in combustor/flame pulsations, can be achieved by: a) measuring the pulsations of the combustor (13) with a suitable sensor (18), b) dividing the frequency spectrum of the measured pulsation signal up into pre-defined band pass sections, c) computing the rms (root mean square) of the signal for each band, d) weighting the computed frequency/frequency band rms with predetermined weighting factors, e) cumulating the weighted frequency/frequency band rms values to get a Pulsation Limit Criterion (PLC) value, f) comparing the PLC value with at least one reference value (23), and g) operating the gas turbine engine (10) according to the result of the comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 3, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2015
    Assignee: ALSTOM TECHNOLOGY LTD.
    Inventors: Hanspeter Zinn, Ghislain Singla, Bruno Schuermans, Piotr Siewert
  • Patent number: 9062579
    Abstract: The invention provides systems and methods for electric power production and integrated combustion and emissions control. The invention may include an engine capable of receiving air and fuel, and producing power and an engine exhaust gas. The invention may also include a first reaction zone receiving the engine exhaust gas from the engine configured to combust fuel and air having an equivalence ratio of more than one, thereby generating a first product. The combustion may reduce nitrogen containing species. The invention may also include a second reaction zone receiving the engine exhaust gas from the engine configured to combust fuel and air having an equivalence ratio of less than one, thereby generating a second product. The combustion may reduce or minimize NOx. The invention may also include a mixing zone configured to receive the first product and second product, and mix and react the first and second products, thereby generating an exhaust with reduced NOx levels.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2015
    Assignee: Altex Technologies Corporation
    Inventors: John T. Kelly, Carlo Castaldini, Meladi Namazian
  • Patent number: 9062884
    Abstract: A combustor is provided for a turbine engine. The combustor includes a first liner having a first hot side and a first cold side; a second liner having a second hot side and a second cold side, the second hot side and the first hot side forming a combustion chamber therebetween. The combustion chamber is configured to receive an air-fuel mixture for combustion therein. The combustor further includes an insert having a body portion extending through the first liner and terminating at a tip, the body portion configured to direct air flow into the combustion chamber. The insert further includes a cooling hole defined in the body portion and configured to direct a first portion of the air flow toward the tip as cooling air.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 26, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 23, 2015
    Assignee: HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC.
    Inventors: Nagaraja S. Rudrapatna, Lowell Frye, William Landram
  • Patent number: 9057343
    Abstract: A control system comprises a TRAS actuator 14, a VAFN actuator 40, and a control arrangement 52 operable to control the operation of the TRAS actuator 14 and the VAFN actuator 40, wherein at least one control circuit 54 of the control arrangement 52 is a common control circuit, common to the operation of both the TRAS actuator 14 and the VAFN actuator 40.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 10, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2015
    Assignees: GOODRICH ACTUATION SYSTEMS LIMITED, ROHR, INC.
    Inventors: Richard John McKay, Gareth Edward Morris, Paul Hardy, Marc Holme, Nichola Ann Sanderson, Colin Roy Terrey
  • Patent number: 9057288
    Abstract: A combined cycle power plant system and methods of operation so as to minimize consumption of cooling water utilizes exhaust from a combustion turbine to generate steam for power generation in a steam turbine topping cycle. The exhaust steam from the steam turbine topping cycle is utilized to vaporize an organic working fluid in an organic working fluid bottoming cycle, where vaporized organic working fluid expanded across a turbine generates additional power. Exhaust gas from the organic working fluid bottoming cycle is condensed utilizing an air-cooled heat exchanger. Heat exchange bundles of the air-cooled heat exchanger are preferably arranged horizontally relative to the ground to maximize efficiency. Turbine inlet cooling is employed at the combustion turbine to recapture energy lost in the system. A thermal energy storage tank may be utilized in conjunction with the turbine inlet cooling to supply chilling water to the system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 16, 2013
    Date of Patent: June 16, 2015
    Assignee: TAS Energy, Inc.
    Inventors: Thomas L. Pierson, Herman Leibowitz
  • Patent number: 9052115
    Abstract: A system for supplying a working fluid to a combustor includes a fuel nozzle, a combustion chamber downstream from the fuel nozzle, and a flow sleeve that circumferentially surrounds the combustion chamber. Injectors circumferentially arranged around the flow sleeve provide fluid communication through the flow sleeve and into the combustion chamber. A valve upstream from the injectors has a first position that permits working fluid flow to the injectors and a second position that prevents working fluid flow to the injectors. A method for supplying a working fluid to a combustor includes flowing a working fluid through a combustion chamber, diverting a portion of the working fluid through injectors circumferentially arranged around the combustion chamber, and operating a valve upstream from the injectors to control the working fluid flow through the injectors.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: June 9, 2015
    Assignee: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Lucas John Stoia, Bryan Wesley Romig, Thomas Edward Johnson, Christian Xavier Stevenson
  • Patent number: 9046262
    Abstract: In an embodiment, a system includes a turbine fuel nozzle having a hub with an axis, a shroud surrounding the hub along the axis, an air flow path between the hub and the shroud, and a fuel flow path. The turbine fuel nozzle also includes a swirl vane extending between the hub and the shroud in a radial direction relative to the axis. The swirl vane includes a fuel inlet coupled to the fuel flow path, a fuel chamber extending from the fuel inlet, and a plurality of fuel outlets extending from the fuel chamber to the air flow path. The plurality of fuel outlets is positioned at an axial distance of at least approximately ? of an axial length of the fuel chamber downstream from an upstream point along an upstream edge of the fuel chamber.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 27, 2011
    Date of Patent: June 2, 2015
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Kwanwoo Kim, Nishant Govindbhai Parsania, Ajay Pratap Singh
  • Patent number: 9027324
    Abstract: One embodiment of the present invention is an engine. Another embodiment is a unique combustion system. Other embodiments include apparatuses, systems, devices, hardware, methods, and combinations for engines and combustion systems. Further embodiments, forms, features, aspects, benefits, and advantages of the present application will become apparent from the description and figures provided herewith.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 24, 2011
    Date of Patent: May 12, 2015
    Assignee: Rolls-Royce North American Technologies, Inc.
    Inventor: Philip H. Snyder
  • Patent number: 9016065
    Abstract: An air intake system for a gas turbine includes one or more coils in airflow communication with an inlet arrangement. Each coil is constructed and arranged to have a respective upstream face velocity that is intended to be within 20% of the other coils. Each coil utilizes a working fluid of a predetermined temperature range conveyed there through and a plurality of spaced fins. The fins are spaced apart to permit air to flow between adjacent fins as air flows through the coil. At least one of the coils has a number of fins per inch that is different from the number of fins per inch of the other coils. Alternatively, each individual coil has at least one section with fewer or greater numbers of fins per inch that the other sections of that coil.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 14, 2011
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2015
    Assignee: Donaldson Company, Inc.
    Inventor: Theodore Philip Bezat