An influence of shroud design parameters on the static stresses of blade assemblies

Abstract

In this study, the structural analysis of the blade assemblies was carried out using the finite element method to determine the influence of design parameters of shroud couplings on the static stresses of turbine rotor blades with zigzag and slant shroud couplings. An angle of inclination of the shroud contact surfaces with respect to the rotor rotation axis was selected as the design parameter. Based on the calculation results, it has been found that irrespective of the type of the shroud coupling, the values of the contact pressure and the stresses in the shroud increase with the angle of inclination of the contact surfaces. Also, for the slant shroud coupling, the stresses increase in the blade airfoil portion with the increase of angle of inclination of the contact surfaces, while for the zigzag shroud coupling the contact stresses decrease with the increase of this angle. It was concluded that the zigzag shroud coupling causes the increase in static stresses when compared to the slant one.