Patents by Inventor Willy S. Ziminsky

Willy S. Ziminsky 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).

  • Patent number: 8534075
    Abstract: A method of regulating the Wobbe number of a multi-composition gas fuel supplied to one or more combustors of a gas turbine includes: (a) providing a control system for regulating fuel and air flow to the one or more combustors; and (b) reforming a fraction of the gas fuel upstream of the one or more combustors to form hydrogen and carbon monoxide to be supplied to the one or more combustors with a remaining fraction of the fuel; wherein the fraction of fuel reformed is adjusted to maintain the Wobbe number of the fuel supplied to the one or more combustors within a predetermined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 31, 2011
    Date of Patent: September 17, 2013
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Willy S. Ziminsky, Gilbert O. Kraemer, Girard A. Simons, Mark A. Hadley
  • Patent number: 8443607
    Abstract: An air/fuel premixer comprising a peripheral wall defining a mixing chamber, a nozzle disposed at least partially within the peripheral wall comprising an outer annular wall spaced from the peripheral wall so as to define an outer air passage between the peripheral wall and the outer annular wall, an inner annular wall disposed at least partially within and spaced from the outer annular wall, so as to define an inner air passage, and at least one fuel gas annulus between the outer annular wall and the inner annular wall, the at least one fuel gas annulus defining at least one fuel gas passage, at least one air inlet for introducing air through the inner air passage and the outer air passage to the mixing chamber, and at least one fuel inlet for injecting fuel through the fuel gas passage to the mixing chamber to form an air/fuel mixture.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 20, 2009
    Date of Patent: May 21, 2013
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: William D. York, Willy S. Ziminsky, Benjamin P. Lacy
  • Patent number: 8371101
    Abstract: A combustor may include an interior flow path therethrough, a number of fuel nozzles in communication with the interior flow path, and an inlet guide vane system positioned about the interior flow path to create a swirled flow therein. The inlet guide vane system may include a number of windows positioned circumferentially around the fuel nozzles. The inlet guide vane system may also include a number of inlet guide vanes positioned circumferentially around the fuel nozzles and adjacent to the windows to create a swirled flow within the interior flow path.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 15, 2009
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Baifang Zuo, Derrick Simons, William York, Willy S. Ziminsky
  • Patent number: 8240150
    Abstract: A nozzle for a gas turbine combustor includes a first radially outer tube defining a first passage having an inlet and an outlet, the inlet adapted to supply air to a reaction zone of the combustor. A center body is located within the first radially outer tube, the center body including a second radially intermediate tube for supplying fuel to the reaction zone and a third radially inner tube for supplying air to the reaction zone. The second intermediate tube has a first outlet end closed by a first end wall that is formed with a plurality of substantially parallel, axially-oriented air outlet passages for the additional air in the third radially inner tube, each air outlet passage having a respective plurality of associated fuel outlet passages in the first end wall for the fuel in the second radially intermediate tube.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 8, 2008
    Date of Patent: August 14, 2012
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Balachandar Varatharajan, Willy S. Ziminsky, John Lipinski, Gilbert O. Kraemer, Ertan Yilmaz, Benjamin Lacy
  • Publication number: 20110225976
    Abstract: A method of regulating the Wobbe number of a multi-composition gas fuel supplied to one or more combustors of a gas turbine includes: (a) providing a control system for regulating fuel and air flow to the one or more combustors; and (b) reforming a fraction of the gas fuel upstream of the one or more combustors to form hydrogen and carbon monoxide to be supplied to the one or more combustors with a remaining fraction of the fuel; wherein the fraction of fuel reformed is adjusted to maintain the Wobbe number of the fuel supplied to the one or more combustors within a predetermined range.
    Type: Application
    Filed: May 31, 2011
    Publication date: September 22, 2011
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: Willy S. ZIMINSKY, Gilbert O. Kraemer, Girard A. SIMONS, Mark A. HADLEY
  • Patent number: 7980082
    Abstract: A method of regulating the Wobbe number of a multi-composition gas fuel supplied to one or more combustors of a gas turbine comprising: (a) providing a control system for regulating fuel and air flow to the one or more combustors; and (b) reforming a fraction of the gas fuel upstream of the one or more combustors to form hydrogen and carbon monoxide to be supplied to the one or more combustors with a remaining fraction of the fuel; wherein the fraction of fuel reformed is adjusted to maintain the Wobbe number of the fuel supplied to the one or more combustors within a predetermined range.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 1, 2007
    Date of Patent: July 19, 2011
    Assignee: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Willy S. Ziminsky, Gilbert O. Kraemer, Girard A. Simons, Mark A. Hadley
  • Publication number: 20110061389
    Abstract: The present application thus provides a combustor. The combustor may include an interior flow path therethrough, a number of nozzles in communication with the interior flow path, and an inlet guide vane system positioned about the interior flow path to create a swirled flow therein.
    Type: Application
    Filed: September 15, 2009
    Publication date: March 17, 2011
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Baifang Zuo, Derrick Simons, William York, Willy S. Ziminsky
  • Publication number: 20100212322
    Abstract: An air/fuel premixer comprising a peripheral wall defining a mixing chamber, a nozzle disposed at least partially within the peripheral wall comprising an outer annular wall spaced from the peripheral wall so as to define an outer air passage between the peripheral wall and the outer annular wall, an inner annular wall disposed at least partially within and spaced from the outer annular wall, so as to define an inner air passage, and at least one fuel gas annulus between the outer annular wall and the inner annular wall, the at least one fuel gas annulus defining at least one fuel gas passage, at least one air inlet for introducing air through the inner air passage and the outer air passage to the mixing chamber, and at least one fuel inlet for injecting fuel through the fuel gas passage to the mixing chamber to form an air/fuel mixture.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 20, 2009
    Publication date: August 26, 2010
    Applicant: GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY
    Inventors: William D. York, Willy S. Ziminsky, Benjamin P. Lacy
  • Publication number: 20100162711
    Abstract: The primary nozzles of a Dry Low NOx (DLN) combustor are configured to alternatively burn a first gas fuel or a second gas fuel, where the two gas fuels may have widely disparate energy content. Natural gas may be the first gas fuel and syngas may be the second gas fuel. An inner fuel circuit and an outer fuel circuit are provided to allow effective control of fuel/air mixing profiles, dynamics, primary pre-ignition and emission control by changing the fuel split between the two fuel circuits. The inner fuel circuit may be run in a diffusion combustion mode on many gas fuels.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 30, 2008
    Publication date: July 1, 2010
    Inventors: Baifang Zuo, Willy S. Ziminsky, Gilbert Otto Kraemer, Abdul Rafey Khan, Christian X. Stevenson, Chunyang Wu
  • Publication number: 20100031661
    Abstract: A nozzle for a gas turbine combustor includes a first radially outer tube defining a first passage having an inlet and an outlet, the inlet adapted to supply air to a reaction zone of the combustor. A center body is located within the first radially outer tube, the center body including a second radially intermediate tube for supplying fuel to the reaction zone and a third radially inner tube for supplying air to the reaction zone. The second intermediate tube has a first outlet end closed by a first end wall that is formed with a plurality of substantially parallel, axially-oriented air outlet passages for the additional air in the third radially inner tube, each air outlet passage having a respective plurality of associated fuel outlet passages in the first end wall for the fuel in the second radially intermediate tube.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 8, 2008
    Publication date: February 11, 2010
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Balachandar Varatharajan, Willy S. Ziminsky, John Lipinski, Gilbert O. Kraemer, Ertan Yilmaz, Benjamin Lacy
  • Publication number: 20090031731
    Abstract: A method of regulating the Wobbe number of a multi-composition gas fuel supplied to one or more combustors of a gas turbine comprising: (a) providing a control system for regulating fuel and air flow to the one or more combustors; and (b) reforming a fraction of the gas fuel upstream of the one or more combustors to form hydrogen and carbon monoxide to be supplied to the one or more combustors with a remaining fraction of the fuel; wherein the fraction of fuel reformed is adjusted to maintain the Wobbe number of the fuel supplied to the one or more combustors within a predetermined range.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 1, 2007
    Publication date: February 5, 2009
    Applicant: General Electric Company
    Inventors: Willy S. Ziminsky, Gilbert O. Kraemer, Girard A. Simons, Mark A. Hadley