US 12,188,358 B2
Seal assembly for a rotary machine
Santosh Potnuru, Bengaluru (IN); Pradeep Hemant Sangli, Bengaluru (IN); Ravindra Shankar Ganiger, Bengaluru (IN); Praveen Sharma, Bengaluru (IN); and Scott Alan Schimmels, Miamisburg, OH (US)
Assigned to GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, Evendale, OH (US)
Filed by General Electric Company, Schenectady, NY (US)
Filed on May 30, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/325,621.
Prior Publication US 2024/0401494 A1, Dec. 5, 2024
Int. Cl. F01D 11/08 (2006.01); F01D 11/02 (2006.01); F03G 7/06 (2006.01)
CPC F01D 11/08 (2013.01) [F01D 11/02 (2013.01); F01D 11/025 (2013.01); F03G 7/0614 (2021.08); F05D 2220/32 (2013.01); F05D 2240/55 (2013.01); F05D 2300/5021 (2013.01); F05D 2300/505 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A seal assembly for a rotary machine, the seal assembly comprising:
a rotor rotatable about a rotational axis and having a rotor seal face; and
a stator having a stator seal face, the stator seal face being positioned opposite the rotor seal face, the stator seal face facing the rotor seal face with a gap therebetween, wherein a portion of one of the rotor and the stator is formed of (i) a shape memory alloy or (ii) a first metal and a second metal, the second metal having a coefficient of thermal expansion different from the first metal, and
wherein the seal assembly is characterized by a seal clearance compliance ratio (SCCR) from 20% to 90%, the SCCR being given by:

OG Complex Work Unit Math
where Ga is a seal clearance gap ratio at assembly, Go is a seal clearance gap ratio at operation, and Ra is a ratio of thermal expansion.