EP-4741633-A2 - AIRFOIL TIP CLEANING AND ASSESSMENT SYSTEMS AND METHODS

EP4741633A2EP 4741633 A2EP4741633 A2EP 4741633A2EP-4741633-A2

Abstract

A method comprises: flowing a potted component in a liquid state over a tip (214) of an airfoil (210), the tip (214) of the airfoil (210) having a coating (220) disposed thereon, the coating (220) comprising a metal plating (221) and a plurality of protrusions (222), each protrusion in the plurality of protrusions (222) extending from the metal plating (221); allowing the potted component to harden to form a hardened potted component; and removing the hardened potted component from the tip (214) of the airfoil (210).

Inventors

PRIHAR, RON I.
PROPHETER-HINCKLEY, TRACY A.

Assignees

RTX Corporation

Dates

Publication Date: 20260513
Application Date: 20230424

Claims (15)

A method, comprising: flowing a potted component in a liquid state over a tip of an airfoil, the tip of the airfoil having a coating disposed thereon, the coating comprising a metal plating and a plurality of protrusions, each protrusion in the plurality of protrusions extending from the metal plating; allowing the potted component to harden to form a hardened potted component; and removing the hardened potted component from the tip of the airfoil.
The method of claim 1, wherein loose particles are coupled to the potted component in response to allowing the potted component to harden.
The method of claim 2, further comprising creating a mold of the tip of the airfoil with a second potted component.
The method of claim 3, further comprising analyzing a mold surface of the mold to determine whether the plurality of protrusions of the coating contain sufficient coverage of the tip of the airfoil.
The method of claim 4, further comprising replacing the coating in response to determining the coating does not maintain sufficient coverage.
The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein the hardened potted component defines a mold of the tip of the airfoil, the mold including a mold surface having a plurality of recesses.
The method of claim 6, further comprising: scanning the mold; and comparing a recess density for each local area of the mold surface to a recess density threshold corresponding to a protrusion density threshold of the plurality of protrusions.
The method of claim 7, further comprising determining, based on the comparison, whether the coating maintains sufficient coverage for the airfoil to be placed back in service, optionally further comprising replacing the coating in response to determining the coating does not maintain sufficient coverage.
A method, comprising: receiving, via a processor, scanner data for a mold corresponding to a tip of an airfoil of a bladed rotor, the tip including a coating disposed thereon, the coating comprising a metal plating and a plurality of protrusions; comparing, via the processor, a coating parameter of the coating to a coating parameter threshold for the tip of each airfoil of the bladed rotor based on the mold; and determining, via the processor, whether the coating parameter of the airfoil of the bladed rotor does not meet the coating parameter threshold.
The method of claim 9, further comprising receiving, via the processor, scanner data for a plurality of molds, each mold in the plurality of molds corresponding to a respective tip of a respective airfoil in a plurality of airfoils of the bladed rotor, and/or further comprising generating, via the processor, an indication the coating on the tip of the airfoil should be replaced in response to determining a recess density in a mold surface of the mold in a local area of the mold surface is below a recess density threshold corresponding to a protrusion density threshold of the coating.
The method of claim 9 or 10 , further comprising receiving, via the processor, an identifier for each mold in the plurality of molds, the identifier corresponding to the respective airfoil in the plurality of airfoils of the bladed rotor, and/or the method further comprising: determining whether the coating parameter for any airfoil in the plurality of airfoils of the bladed rotor does not meet the coating parameter threshold; and replacing the coating of the tip of the airfoil in response to determining the coating parameter of the coating does not meet the coating parameter threshold.
The method of any of claims 9, 10 or 11, wherein the coating parameter is protrusion density.
A coating assessment system, comprising: a scanner; a display; and a tangible, non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having instructions stored thereon that, in response to execution by a processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising: receiving, via the processor, scanner data for a mold corresponding to a tip of an airfoil of a bladed rotor, the tip including a coating disposed thereon, the coating comprising a metal plating and a plurality of protrusions; analyzing, via the processor, the mold to determine whether the coating is supplying sufficient coverage to the tip of the airfoil; and generating, via the processor and through the display, an indication that the coating should be replaced in response to determining a coating parameter does not meet a coating parameter threshold.
The coating assessment system of claim 13, wherein the coating parameter includes a protrusion density, and/or wherein the analyzing the mold includes comparing a recess density in a local area of a mold surface of the mold to a recess density threshold, the recess density corresponding to the coating parameter, the recess density threshold corresponding to the coating parameter threshold, and/or wherein the scanner is one of an optical scanner, a mechanical scanner, a laser scanner, a non-structured optical scanner, or a non-visual scanner.
The coating assessment system of claim 14, wherein the recess density corresponds to a number of recesses in the mold surface per unit area.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD The present disclosure relates generally to cleaning and assessment systems and methods, and more particularly to, cleaning and assessment systems and methods for a tip of an airfoil of a bladed rotor. BACKGROUND Gas turbine engines (such as those used in electrical power generation or used in modem aircraft) typically include a compressor, a combustor section, and a turbine. The compressor and the turbine typically include a series of alternating rotors and stators. A rotor generally comprises a rotor disk and a plurality of airfoils. The rotor may be an integrally bladed rotor ("IBR") or a mechanically bladed rotor. The rotor disk and airfoils in the IBR are one piece (i.e., monolithic, or nearly monolithic) with the airfoils spaced around the circumference of the rotor disk. Conventional IBRs may be formed using a variety of technical methods including integral casting, machining from a solid billet, or by welding or bonding the airfoils to the rotor disk. Tips of airfoils for IBRs are often coated with a coating having an abrasive material, such a as cubic boron nitride ("cBN") coating or the like. The abrasive material is configured to interface with an abradable material disposed radially adjacent to the airfoil tip and coupled to a case, or any other surrounding support structure in the gas turbine engine. Initially, the abrasive material of the coating cuts into the abradable material, forming a trench, a recess, or the like. The coating is configured protect the tips of airfoils for the IBRs from burning up during operation. At various maintenance intervals, or overhaul, for the gas turbine engine, each tip of an airfoil having the coating disposed thereon is inspected. Inspections are typically performed visually (i.e., in person or with pictures), which can be time consuming due to the number of airfoils in a compressor section of an aircraft, and provide inconsistent success criteria for determining whether a tip of an airfoil is acceptable for entry back into service. SUMMARY A method is disclosed herein. The method comprises: flowing a potted component in a liquid state over a tip of an airfoil, the tip of the airfoil having a coating disposed thereon, the coating comprising a metal plating and a plurality of protrusions, each protrusion in the plurality of protrusions extending from the metal plating; allowing the potted component to harden to form a hardened potted component; and removing the hardened potted component from the tip of the airfoil. In various embodiments, loose particles are coupled to the potted component in response to allowing the potted component to harden. The method can further comprise creating a mold of the tip of the airfoil with a second potted component. The method can further comprise analyzing a molded surface of the mold to determine whether the plurality of protrusions of the coating contain sufficient coverage of the tip of the airfoil. The method can further comprise replacing the coating in response to determining the coating does not maintain sufficient coverage. In various embodiments, the hardened potted component defines a mold of the tip of the airfoil, the mold including a mold surface having a plurality of recesses. The method can further comprise: scanning the mold; and comparing a recess density for each local area of the mold surface to a recess density threshold corresponding to a protrusion density threshold of the plurality of protrusions. The method can further comprise determining, based on the comparison, whether the coating maintains sufficient coverage for the airfoil to be placed back in service. The method can further comprise replacing the coating in response to determining the coating does not maintain sufficient coverage. A method is disclosed herein. The method comprises: receiving, via a processor, scanner data for a mold corresponding to a tip of an airfoil of a bladed rotor, the tip including a coating disposed thereon, the coating comprising a metal plating and a plurality of protrusions; comparing, via the processor, a coating parameter of the coating to a coating parameter threshold for the tip of each airfoil of the bladed rotor based on the mold; and determining, via the processor, whether the coating parameter of the airfoil of the bladed rotor does not meet the coating parameter threshold. In various embodiments, the method further comprises receiving, via the processor, scanner data for a plurality of molds, each mold in the plurality of molds corresponding to a respective tip of a respective airfoil in a plurality of airfoils of the bladed rotor. The method can further comprise receiving, via the processor, an identifier for each mold in the plurality of molds, the identifier corresponding to the respective airfoil in the plurality of airfoils of the bladed rotor. The method can further comprise: determining whether the coating parameter for any airfoil in the plurality of airfoils of the bladed rotor does n