Patent attributes
A vane assembly 10 suitable for a turbine engine features a refractory vane 12 with an internal cavity 20 and a pair of flexible metallic baffles 26 extending into the cavity from spanwisely opposite ends of the vane. A rigid fastener 48, such as a nut and bolt assembly applies a tensile load to the baffles. The tensile load is reacted out as a compressive load applied to the vane. In another embodiment, the baffle is relatively rigid but the fastener is flexible. The compressive loading exerted on the vane counteracts the brittleness customarily exhibited by refractory materials and imparts damage tolerance to the vane. The arrangement also allows the use of a metal baffle that can be easily secured to the vane and dispenses with any need for a potentially troublesome seal between the baffles and the spanwise extremities of the vane.
