Patent ID: 9109457
Filing Date: 2015-08-18
Classification: F01D,F05D,Y10T

Abstract:
1. A turbine assembly having an array of turbine blades that can be disassembled downstream without removing a turbine casing, the assembly comprising: a rotor disk having an axis of rotation and extending axially from a forward, intake side to an aft, exhaust side; said rotor disk having axially extending disk grooves spaced about its circumference; an array of turbine blades, each turbine blade having an airfoil terminating in a blade platform and blade root; a turbine casing arranged to radially surround the array of turbine blades; each blade root being axially mounted in one of said disk grooves; said rotor disk providing adjacent its aft, exhaust side a radially outward facing circumferential groove adjacent an inner tappet; each of the turbine blades providing a circumferential groove along its blade platform facing the circumferential groove of the rotor disk; each of said blade roots providing an outer tappet; a plurality of seal plates, each plate have an outer edge mounted in at least one of the turbine blade circumferential grooves, each plate having an inner edge mounted in rotor disk circumferential groove; said plurality of seal plates collectively at the aft, exhaust side of the rotor disk locking the turbine blades from axial movement by engagement with the inner and outer tappets, wherein the blades are axially secured from the aft, exhaust side and can be axially removed from the aft, exhaust side without lifting the turbine casing, wherein each blade root and platform are unrestrained from rearward axial movement by any structure on the forward, intake side of the rotor disk; and a spacer disk positioned on the forward, intake side of the rotor disk, said spacer disk including a radially extending sealing arm effective to engage the blade root of at least one of the turbine blades without axially restraining rearward axial movement of the blade root and platform, wherein said array of blades is removable in the aft, exhaust direction by access just to the aft, exhaust side of the rotor disk without removing or disassembling the turbine casing.