Turbine airfoil and method of controlling a temperature of a turbine airfoil

Abstract

According to one aspect of the invention, a turbine airfoil includes a platform and a blade extending from the platform. The airfoil also includes a slot formed in a slashface of the platform, the slot being configured to receive a pressurized fluid via passages and configured to direct the pressurized fluid to a selected region of the turbine airfoil to improve airfoil life.

1 . A turbine airfoil comprising:
 a platform;   a blade extending from the platform; and   a slot formed in a slashface of the platform, the slot being configured to receive a pressurized fluid via passages and configured to direct the pressurized fluid to a selected region of the turbine airfoil improve airfoil life.   
     
     
         2 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 1 , wherein the slot is configured to direct the pressurized fluid to lower mixing loss regions to improve aerodynamic performance. 
     
     
         3 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 1 , wherein the blade is configured to extend into a hot gas path and the slot is configured to form a barrier with the pressurized fluid to restrict flow of hot gas across the slashface to a shank cavity. 
     
     
         4 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 1 , wherein the slot is configured to be joined to an adjacent slashface of an adjacent airfoil. 
     
     
         5 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 4 , wherein the adjacent slashface comprises an adjacent slot to receive the pressurized fluid from the passages in the slashface. 
     
     
         6 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 4 , wherein the passages in the slashface are configured to provide the pressurized fluid to an adjacent airfoil via the adjacent slashface. 
     
     
         7 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 6 , wherein the adjacent slashface comprises an adjacent slot with a passage to receive the pressurized fluid. 
     
     
         8 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 1 , wherein the slot comprises one open end to allow the pressurized fluid to flow out from the turbine airfoil. 
     
     
         9 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 1 , wherein the slot comprises a cross sectional geometry of one selected from the group consisting of: a semicircle, a trapezoid and a rectangle. 
     
     
         10 . The turbine airfoil of  claim 1 , comprising features in the slashface to enable flow of the pressurized fluid on an upper surface of the platform. 
     
     
         11 . A turbine component assembly comprising:
 a first component with passages in a body of the first component for flow of pressurized fluid;   a first slot formed in a first slashface of the body of the first component, the first slot being configured to receive the pressurized fluid via the passages; and   a second component with a second slashface on a body of the second component, wherein the first slot is configured to form a barrier with the pressurized fluid to restrict fluid communication across the first and second slashfaces.   
     
     
         12 . The assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the first slot, when joined to the second slashface, is configured to form a barrier with the pressurized fluid to restrict flow of hot gas across the first and second slashfaces to improve component life by controlling a temperature of at least one of the first and second components. 
     
     
         13 . The assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the passage in the first slashface is configured to provide the pressurized fluid to the second component. 
     
     
         14 . The assembly of  claim 11 , wherein the first component and second component each comprise an airfoil. 
     
     
         15 . The assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the second slashface comprises a second slot. 
     
     
         16 . The assembly of  claim 14 , comprising a passage in the second slot to receive the pressurized fluid into passages within the second component. 
     
     
         17 . A method for controlling a temperature of a turbine airfoil, the method comprising:
 flowing a pressurized fluid into a passage formed in a platform of the turbine airfoil; and   flowing the pressurized fluid from the passage into a slot formed in a slashface of the platform, the slot being configured to direct the pressurized fluid to a selected region of the turbine airfoil to improve airfoil life.   
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein flowing the pressurized fluid from the passage into the slot comprises forming a barrier with the pressurized fluid to restrict flow of hot gas across the slashface. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , comprising joining the slot in the slashface to an adjacent slashface of an adjacent airfoil. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein the adjacent slashface comprises an adjacent slot to receive the pressurized fluid from the passages in the slashface.