Patent ID: 7114923

Claim:
A turbine blade, comprising: a generally elongated blade formed front an outer wall and having a leading edge, a trailing edge, a tip at a first end, a root coupled to the blade at an end generally opposite the first end for supporting the blade and for coupling the blade to a disc, a longitudinal axis extending from the tip to the root, and at least one cooling cavity forming at least a portion of a cooling system; a plurality of exhaust orifices in the leading edge of the blade forming a showerhead and extending nonorthogonally from an outer surface of the turbine blade to the at least one cooling cavity and in a chordwise direction; wherein the exhaust orifices form at least one first row of orifices positioned alone the longitudinal axis of the blade and offset from a second row of orifices in a direction generally orthogonal to the longitudinal axis; and wherein at least a portion of the orifices forming the first row of orifices extend at a first angle relative to a longitudinal axis of the blade in a plane generally orthogonal to the chordwise direction through the outer wall to the at least one cooling cavity that differs from a second angle relative to a longitudinal axis of the blade in a plane generally orthogonal to the chordwise direction at which at least a portion of the second row of orifices extends through the outer wall; wherein the first angle is measured moving from the longitudinal axis in a first direction, and the second angle is measured moving from the longitudinal axis in a second direction that is generally opposite to the first direction; wherein at least a portion of the orifices forming the at least one first row of orifices form an alternating pattern of orifices positioned in the first and second angles relative to the longitudinal axis.