Patent ID: 8307681

Claim:
A method of burnishing blading members affixed to a central rotor used in rotating turbines and turbo machinery, the method comprising the steps of: positioning the rotor to permit the engagement of a burnishing tool with an individual blading member; engaging the burnishing tool with the blading member so as to simultaneously induce a desired compressive residual stress distribution in both sides of the blading member wherein said burnishing tool having an anterior surface shaped to facilitate insertion between the blading members to perform burnishing along the surface of the blading member; traversing the burnishing tool over the surface of the blading member to induce a continuous zone of compressive residual stress in the surface of the blading member; disengaging the burnishing tool from the blading member; rotating the rotor; repeating the process until compressive residual stress has been induced in each blading member affixed to the rotor.