Patent ID: 8225614

Claim:
A shim for sealing two adjacent turbine transition pieces of a gas turbine combustor, each transition piece extending between the combustor and a stage one nozzle, wherein a transition piece seal assembly is located between each transition piece and the stage one nozzle, wherein each transition piece seal assembly comprises a left radial side-seal, a right radial side-seal, an outer circumferential seal with a radially outer-facing surface profile, and an inner circumferential seal with a radially inner-facing surface profile, where a plurality of outer circumferential seal form an annular array with a larger radial diameter than an annular array formed by a plurality of the inner circumferential seals, said shim installed in a radially inward or outward direction to cover a circumferential gap between two adjacent of said outer circumferential seals in a first configuration, or two adjacent of said inner circumferential seals in a second configuration, respectively, of adjacent first and a second transition piece seal assemblies, the shim comprising a circumferential portion with a first lateral flange and a second lateral flange, in the first configuration, the first lateral flange is shaped to slide over the outer radial surface profile of a right corner of the first transition piece seal assembly outer circumferential seal and the second lateral flange is shaped to slide over the outer radial surface profile of a left corner of the second transition piece seal assembly outer circumferential seal, in the second configuration, the first lateral flange is shaped to slide over the inner radial surface profile of a right corner of the first transition piece seal assembly inner circumferential seal and the second lateral flange shaped to slide over the inner radial surface profile of a left corner of the second transition piece seal assembly inner circumferential seal.