Patent attributes
A turbine blade for use in a gas turbine engine, the blade having a trailing edge cooling circuit that includes a series of multiple pass serpentine flow cooling passages arranged along the trailing edge region of the blade in series such that the cooling air flowing through a lower serpentine passage will then flow into the serpentine passage located above in order to greatly increase the cooling air flow path through the trailing edge region. The last leg of each serpentine flow passage includes a row of cooling air exit holes to discharge cooling air from the serpentine passage out through the trailing edge of the blade. The rotation of the rotor blade acts to increase the cooling air pressure as the cooling air passes through the series of serpentine passages. Because the cooling air passes through the lower reaches of the rotor blade first, the lower reaches receives the most cooling while the upper reaches receives heated cooling air. Because the upper reaches of the blade require less cooling to maintain the metal temperature within limits, the series serpentine cooling passages of the present invention provides for a higher level of cooling while using minimal amounts of cooling air.
