Ceramic Matrix Turbine Blades

January 3 2017 ceramic matrix composite cmc materials are made of coated ceramic fibers surrounded by a ceramic matrix.

Ceramic matrix turbine blades.

They consist of ceramic fibers embedded in a ceramic matrix. To survive in this difficult environment turbine blades often use exotic materials like. 6 joining ceramic matrix composites. Ceramic matrix composites cmcs are a subgroup of composite materials as well as a subgroup of ceramics.

Ge aviation is creating adjacent factories in huntsville alabama to mass produce silicon carbide sic materials used to manufacture ceramic matrix composi. A particular problem is the brittleness of cmcs which means that tensile stresses in the joint must. They are tough lightweight and capable of withstanding temperatures 300 400 degrees f hotter than metal alloys can endure. Some of them are covered with a special yellow environmental coating.

If certain components were made with cmcs instead of metal alloys the turbine engines of aircraft and power plants could operate more. Cincinnati oh february 10 2015 ge aviation successfully tested the world s first non static set of light weight ceramic matrix composite cmc parts by running rotating low pressure turbine blades in a f414 turbofan demonstrator engine designed to further validate the heat resistant material for high stress operation in ge s next generation adaptive engine technology. Next generation ceramic matrix composites cmcs are being developed for future applications such as turbine blades top left these may use new technologies such as water like polymers that can be processed into 1700 c capable low density ceramics bottom or nanofibers grown onto silicon carbide sic reinforcing fibers for increased toughness top right. It may be necessary to join cmcs to themselves or to a metal fernie et al 1991.

Airfoil member and the platform member may be bonded together by an adhesive 20 after being fully cured. Cmcs are used in high temperature applications such as turbine blades piston engine valves and turbo charger components. A turbine blade is the individual component which makes up the turbine section of a gas turbine or steam turbine the blades are responsible for extracting energy from the high temperature high pressure gas produced by the combustor the turbine blades are often the limiting component of gas turbines. Because of the complex shape of stator vanes and turbine blades the development was first focused on the combustion chamber.

A ceramic matrix composite material cmc vane for a gas turbine engine wherein the airfoil member 12 and the platform member 14 are formed separately and are then bonded together to form an integral vane component 10. Ge aviation as the name implies composite materials such as cmc are made from separate materials which are then joined together.