US2861776A - Reaction turbines - Google Patents

Description

H. L. MAGILL REACTION TURBINES Nov. 25, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 26, 1951 INVEINTOR. Herbert L. Magi/l BY NOV. 25, 1958 MAGILL 2,861,776

REACTION TURBINES Filed Dec. 26, 1951 I 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR [firberl L. Magi/l BY Atzys Nov. 25, 1958 H. MAGlLL REACTION TURBINEIS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 26, 1951 27b INVENTOR- Herberl LJfagi/l Atiys Nov; 25, 1958 H. L. MAGlLL 2,861,776

REACTION TURBINES Filed Dec. 26, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 mob F 9 INVEN TOR 7' 11 1 11! L.Magill B Mfl/LW W Attfys Nov. 25, 1958 H. MAGILL 2,361,776

' I REACTION TURBINES Filed Dec. 26, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 K I I 200 205 202 INVEN TOR 305 gjrberl' L. Magi]! Attys United States Patent min REACTION TURBINES Herbert L. Maglll, Chicago, Ill.

Application December 26, 1951, Serial No. 263,335

21 Claims. (Cl.- 253-81) The present invention relates to'reaction turbines, and more particularly to a simple, radial flow, single stage, reaction turbine wherein generation of velocity in a nozzle, attached to andro'tatable with the turbine rotor, due to the expansive force of a motive fluid causesthe fluid to leave tnezexit of the nozzle at a greater velocity than it had atentrance, thus causing a reactionthrust force effective on the said nozzle.

The presentinvention.operates on-the principle of jet propulsion employing the reaction thrust force produced by the discharge of a suitable motive fluid fromone or more jet nozzles attached to the peripheral region'of the turbine rotor and rotatable therewith'to rotate the-latter. Unlike other forms of modern reaction turbines, the reaction thrust force produced by the discharge of fluid is applied both tangentially to and directly in the plane of rotation of the turbine rotor.

The jet principle of propulsionemploys" the reaction thrust force produced by the change of momentum of a mass relative to another body'in separating from it, thus each pound of propulsive fluid discharged has its velocity changed as it produces useful work.

It'may'be pointed out, however, thatth'e density of the mediuminto which the jet is being discharged, s'ince' it forms a fluid resistance to the flow of the jet aswell-as toany forward movement of the body propellediby the reaction thrust force produced by the jet,'.influences :the

change in momentum obtained by the discharged mass 1 relative to the body it separates from and. therefore 'determines the relative efiiciency with which a given thrust force, under agiven condition, is produ'cedandth'e work done bythe jet in propelling the body.

From the above it will be seen that in the'case of jet propulsion,. mechanical work is performed and. all the work'so performed appears as the function of theichange of velocity or momentumof the propellant fluid used'relative to thebody-the latter is separatingfrom Inprior turbines of the pure reaction type whereinthe jettdischarge nozzle or nozzles rotate'in a circular'path, the discharged propellant fluid, when the turbine isrotating, influencedby centrifugalforce afterseparating from the nozzles tendsto follow an outward curvilinearpath with respect.to-th-e point at which his discharged while simultaneously the nozzles, rotating in the-opposite direction, continuously increasingly changes the angularity of their thrust axis relative to the same point,.the*two eflfects combining to destroy any continuity ofv the path of the fluid stream with the thrust axis of the nozzles. The nozzle design of theabove mentioned'turbines has been such that only a partial acceleration of the propellant fluid taking place within'control of the nozzle itself together with a little-further acceleration-secured relatively close to the exit of the nozzle is effective to'producea reaction thrust force applicable to rotate the turbine :rotor, and the further acceleration of the fluid eventually-to its ultimate velocity external of the nozzle, representing a considerable potential force, is lost as a propulsion means for the turbine.

Thus, due to the lack of an efllcient discharge nozzle capable of securing the acceleration of the propellant fluid Withincontrol of'the nozzle to substantially its ultimate velocity at or'close to the exit of the nozzle, little consideration has been given to pure reaction type turbines while the. development .of blade'type' impulse turbines or reaction turbines operating about'10% by impulse force has been extensively carried out.

Theipresent invention is designed to overoom'eitheabove noted limitations that areattendant upon the use of pure reaction type turbines which, to date, remainquite elementary in design. Toward this. end the invention'contemplates the provision of a reaction turbinehaving associated therewith a moving nozzle which operates upon the'principle of jet propulsion and which is capable of the efficient expansion of high .pressure fluid'tosecureacceleration of the fluid Within the nozzle tosubstantially its ultimate possible velocity at the-point of separation from'the nozzle and thus enable the fluid todevelop its maximum reaction thrust force and apply it with'maximum efiiciency directly tangential to the line'of thrust-of the nozzle and directly; in 'the" plane of: rotation of the turbine rotor for application of torque to the rotor to rotate the same.

The provision of a reaction turbine of the character briefly outlined above being among, the principal objects-ot the invention, afurther object is toprovidea turbine of this type wherein the reactive forces applied tothe turbine rotor for propulsion purposes maybe reversed-in direction to selectively rotate the turbine rotor in either direction or for the purpose of applyingb'raking..,-poWer to therotor toreduce its "speed or bring the same: to-a standstill when rotating in eith'er direction.

A still further object, in a radial flow turbine of this character, is to provide anovel means for increasing the velocity of the motive fluid moving radially toward the reaction nozzles of the turbine rotor, While at the same time augmentingtheir mass volume in orderthat arelatively large mass of fluidis available at a high velocity for the performance of useful Work, i. e. propulsivethrust, on the reaction nozzles. In carrying out this last rnentioned object, the invention contemplates the injection of air or other fluid medium into the radiallymoving fluid stream by the Venturi action .of. a series of radially directed jet nozzles forming a part of the rotor and which rotate with the rotor. By such an arrangement,

not only is the mass volume of the motive fluid thus augmented, but, additionally, the motive fluid thus augmented, is given additional velocity due to the action of centrifugal force so that it arrives-at the inlet openings oflthereaction nozzles at a relatively higher velocity than otherwise would be attainable.

Yet another object of the invention is predicated upon the fact that the fluid medium thus injected into the stream of motive fluid by Venturi action is introduced into the turbine casing and turbine rotor at strategic regions whereby this same fluid is employed for cooling purposes to cool the walls of the various nozzles and other moving or stationary parts of the turbine construction which otherwise would be subjected to the destructive action of .the heat of the combustion gases or other motive fluid employed in the operation of the turbine.

A similar and related object of' the invention. is to provide a means whereby the introduction of the massaugmenting and coolant fluid may be regulated; either manually or by automatic means, to thus control the operating temperature of various parts of the turbine, as'well as: of the overall operating temperature'of the turbine as a whole.

A further object of the invention is to provide a reaction turbine capable ofuse in apower plant assembly which is relatively simple in its construction; one which is comprised of a minimum number of moving parts and which consequently is unlikely to get out of order; one in which many of the inherent parts thereof, particularly the arrangement of the reaction nozzles employed, may be constructed of inexpensive sheet metal stampings; one which is rugged and durable; and one which otherwise is well adapted to perform the services required of it, are further desirable features that have been borne in mind in the production and development of the present invention.

In the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification, several embodiments of the invention have been shown.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is an end elevational view of a reaction turbine constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the turbine shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail sectional view taken substantially along the line 3--3 of Fig. l, in the direct-ion indicated by the arrows. In this view an electrical control circuit for controlling the operation of the turbine has been shown;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, sectional view taken substantially along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3, in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 5-5 of Fig. 4, in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 66 of Fig. 4, in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 77 of Fig. 4, in the direction shown by the arrows;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 88 of Fig. 4, in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 9 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 99 of Fig. 3, in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 10 is an enlarged sectional view taken subtantially along the line 10-10 of Fig. 3 in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 11 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 11-11 of Fig. 10 in the direction indicated by the arrows;

Fig. 12 is a side elevational view of the reaction turbine shown in Figs. 1 and 2 showing the same operatively assembled in a power plant including a pressure generator for supplying motive fluid to the turbine, together with a control valve for automatically controlling the operation of the turbine and pressure generator, or in other words, for controlling the operation of the entire power plant;

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary side elevational view of the throttle valve shown in Fig. 12, together with the connections leading thereto. In this view the valve control handle is shown in the closed position of the valve;

Fig. 14 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 14-44 of Fig. 12 in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

Fig. 15 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 15-15 of Fig. 13 in the direction indicated by the arrows;

In all of the above described views similar characters of reference have been employed to designate similar parts throughout.

General description The reaction turbine comprising the present invention is literally a reaction turbine in that it employs only the reaction force of its motive fluid. Specifically, the present turbine is in the form of a single stage, radialflow reaction turbine in which the motive fluid supplied under relatively high pressure flows radially outwardly from a central chamber provided in the turbine rotor through one or more jet forming nozzles all working at the same pressure, resulting in a jet of high velocity, which enters a series of blade passages which constitute the expansion nozzle elements of a jet reaction nozzle carried at the outer end of a jet producing nozzle and, by exerting a reaction thrust force by reason of its discharge therefrom upon the said reaction nozzle, turns the turbine rotor. The moving reaction nozzles at the end of the radially directed jet producing nozzles are so designed that the motive fluid stream leaves the exit of the reaction nozzle at a greater velocity than that at which it approaches and enters the blade passages of the said nozzle. Thus, the present turbine depends solely for its operation upon the reaction thrust force exerted on the jet reaction nozzles at the ends of the radially directed jet producing nozzle arms.

The present turbine has been illustrated and described herein as employing for its motive fluid a com-- bustion gas which may be supplied thereto under pressure from a suitable gas generating device, as for example, the gas generator shown and described in my prior Patent No. 2,557,128, dated July 19, 1951, for Pulsating Discharge Power Gas Generator With Pressure-Actuated Inlet and Outlet Valves. The turbine may, however, with or without modification employ for its motive fluid other heat-accelerated fluids such as steam or the like, or other expansible fluids, such as liquid CO In brief, the motive fluid for driving the present turbine may be either a gas or liquid fluid medium which is supplied under pressure and from which its kinetic energy may be extracted for purposes of driving the turbine rotor. Since the invention has been illustrated and described in connection with the use of a generated gas which is supplied to the turbine under pressure and at a relatively high temperature, the invention in this illustrated form further contemplates a means whereby the mass flow of motive fluid supplied to the turbine is augmented by the Venturi injection of a cooling fluid such as air, which not only performs the function of controlling the volume, pressure, and temperature of the fluid stream, but which also serves to cool certain structural parts of the rotor itself.

The reaction nozzles which are carried at the outer ends of the jet producing nozzles comprise a reaction nozzle assembly designed to include two jet reaction nozzles having their respective exits pointed in an opposite direction to each other so that the motive fluid may be diverted in opposite directions whereby the reaction thrust force applied to rotate the turbine rotor is reversible in direction. By such an arrangement the turbine rotor is selectively rotatable in opposite directions and, additionally, this reversing of the reaction thrust forces may also be applied to the turbine rotor to effect a braking action thereon to rapidly decelerate the movement of the rotor and, if desired, bring the same to a standstill.

In order to control such a reversal of direction of the reaction thrust forces which are applied to rotate the turbine rotor by the reaction nozzles at the outer ends of the jet producing rotor arms, each of the said reaction nozzle assemblies has associated therewith a diverter plate or valve for changing the direction of flow of the motive fluid and selectively directing the same to one or the other of the series of blade passages associated with either of the jetreactionv nozzles included in the are :operable under control of a suitable gear train and :the operating. of this gearing may in turn be controlled by opposingsolenoids having electric circuits which are selectively operable under the control of asuitable manually operable switch.

According to thepresent invention, when the present reaction turbine is installed .ina power plant and is supplied with motivefiuid-from a pressure generator of the combustion type, the control switch for the diverter valve actuating. solenoids is. automatically operable under control of a throttle valve which regulates thefiow of motive fluid issuing fromthe generator as wellas regulation of the flow of coolant air to the turbine.

In the following disclosure a full and detailed description of the improved reaction turbine will be given, followed by a descriptionof its operationwhen installed in a complete power plant and supplied with motive fluid from a pressure generator. Finally, an operative installation of' such a power plant as applied to a railway car or locomotive will be briefly outlined for illustration of one of the many practical uses to which the present invention may'be applied.

The reaction turbine per se "Referring now to Figsrl to 4 inclusive, the reaction turbine of the present invention is designated in its entirety as-20 and comprises generally a stationary casing 21 which is of circular design and into which there extendsthe rotor shaft 22 of the turbine. The rotor shaft 22 is rotatably mounted in anti-friction bearings 23 carried in a mounting block- 24. The turbine driven shaft 22 is adapted to be driven-by means of reaction forces in a manner that will: be described presently and thus this'shaf-tconstitutes the-output shaft of the turbine. The shaft 22 thus constitutes. a driving shaft for transmitting power to'a large variety of driven instrument'alities as for example an electrical generator, compressor, or any other machine for performing useful work, or the driving or propelling shaft of. a moving vehicle.

The inner end of the shaft 22 within the turbine casing 21 has operatively mounted thereon a rotor 25 including a jet nozzle assembly 26 consisting of two oppositely extending radially disposed identical nozzle instrumentalities each of which carries at its outer end a reaction nozzleassembly 27.

The terms jet nozzle assembly and reaction nozzle assembly applied to the instrumentalities 26 and 27 respectively have been selected for purposes of distinguishing between these two assemblies upon further reference thereto. The term jet nozzle assembly as applied to the instrumentalities 26 is not to be confused with the principle ofjet propulsion, since these nozzle assemblies present no tangential or'torque applying reaction to the rotor as a Whole. Any reaction force applied to the nozzle assemblies 26 by virtue of expansion of motive fluid therein is directed radially inward of the rotor and hence has no effect on the propulsion of the latter in either direction. The term jet nozzle assembly as applied to the instrumentalities 26 is employed inasmuch as these assemblies produce a jet of high velocity of motive fiuid for subsequent application to the reaction nozzle assemblies 27, which in themselves actually perform their function by the principles of jet propulsion. These so-called reaction nozzles 27 are therefore in reality jet propulsion nozzles, but they have not been termed as such to avoid confusion and also because the term reaction nozzle assembly is equally as appropriate.

The reaction nozzle assemblies 27 are in the form of controllable, torque transmitting, jet devices by means of which the kinetic energy acquired by the motive fluid is converted into rotary motion of the rotor 25 as a Whole and the expended motive fluid discharged into the 6. circumferential regions of the turbine casing 21. The peripheral regions of the casing 21 communicate through a series of directional blades or vanes 29a with a collector duct or exhaust hood 29 which constitutes the low pressure end of the turbine and through which the substantially expended motive fluid is conducted to a discharge outlet or port 30 and from thence to an exhaust conduit 31. The vanes 29a are inclined at a slight angle in the direction of the outlet port 30.

The invention is in a large measure concerned with the constructionfdesign, and operation of the reaction nozzle assembly 27. These nozzles constitute the sole means whereby the energy of the motive fluid introduced thereto at relatively high pressure may be converted into mechanical energy appearing as velocity. It is through these nozzles 27' that the gas is accelerated and, conversely, it is these nozzles upon which the gas acts and it is these nozzles thattake all'of the push that is obtainable to produce a tangential thrust upon therotor assembly. -A full and detailed description of the nozzles 27 both as regards their design and their operation, will be given subsequently. For the present it is pointed out that the nozzles-27 when utilized in: the manner illustrated herein precisely fit all accepted turbine-engineering definitions for reaction turbineswhich, in one instance, has been defined as one that depends principally upon the reactive force produced by fluid jets as they leave the nozzles of a turbine rotor at a greater velocity than that at which they approached the nozzles. As will appear subsequently, the reaction nozzle assemblies 27 render the applicants turbine a rather pure form of reaction turbine in that the turbine depends not only principally, but solely on the reactive force of the fluid jets as they leave the jet nozzle assemblies 27, so that the present turbine is a pure reaction turbine as distinguished from practically all commercial so-called reaction turbines which employ stationary nozzle blading in combination with the movable reaction nozzle blading. However,-this statement should not be taken as implying that certain features of stationary impulse or nozzle blading may not under some circumstances be deemed desirable.

Each of the jet assemblies 27 is reversible in that it is divided into two jet reaction nozzles 27a and 27b as shown in Fig. 10 with the outlets or exits of the two nozzles being directed in opposite, tangential directions relative to the circumferential sweep of the turbine rotor 25. The throat portions of the blade passages 161 of the nozzles 27a and 27b communicate with a common fluid inlet 93 and a suitable flap-type closure valve 32 in the form of a diverter vane is provided for selectively blocking the throat entrance of either set of blade passages 101 as the case may be. In this manner, and as will be more fully described subsequently, the reaction forces acting on the turbine rotor may be reversed either for reversal of the direction of movement of the rotor or for rotor braking purposes.

The control mechanism for operating the diverter valves 32 includes a power train in the form of a system of gearing 33 (Fig. 3) adapted to be operated by means of a worm and collar arrangement 34 contained within the mounting block 24 and operable under the control of a reverse acting solenoid 35 having an electrical control circuit which is in turn controlled by means of a manually operable switch S. The rotor 25 is of the radial flow type which according to definition requires that the motive fluid flow substantially radially outward to jet nozzles which are positioned circumferentially around the axis of rotation of the rotor and thusit is a requisite that the motive fluid be introduced at the center of the rotor. Accordingly, a supply nozzle assembly 36, which may communicate with or which may constitute the discharge nozzle of asuitable gas generator 37 (Fig. 12) or other source of motive fluid under pressure, serves to direct the motive fluid into the interior of the turbine casing 21 in the central region thereof from whence these gases are directed into the turbine rotor 25 and radially outwardly into the jet nozzle assemblies 26 by means of a distributor duct assembly 38 in communication with the nozzle assembly 36. The supply nozzle assembly 36 may also have associated therewith means whereby a coolant fluid such as atmospheric air, compressed air or other fluid may be supplied to the interior of the casing 21 both for coolant purposes and to augment the mass volume, pressure and temperature of the motive fluid stream supplied to the jet nozzle assemblies 27. Toward this end, valve controlled conduits 39 and 40 are provided which communicate with the nozzle assembly in such a manner that one stream of coolant fluid is directed into the casing 21 for direct and immediate admixture with the gases entering the distributor duct 38 and another stream is directed into the casing for subsequent admixture with the previously mixed air or other fluid and gases at regions existing at the intake ends of the jet nozzle assemblies 26 and between their discharge ends and the throat entrance tothe reaction nozzle assemblies 27.

The turbine casing and other stationary parts thereof Referring now to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the casing 21 is in the form of a vertically split shell which may be formed of cast metal or of sheet metal parts and includes a main section 50 which is generally of cup-shape design and a closure section 51 which provides a circular collector duct or exhaust hood 29 leading to the discharge port 30. The sections 50 and 51 are provided with mating marginal flanges adapted to be secured together by means of suitable clamping bolts 53. The casing section 50 is provided with a central opening 54 through which the rotor shaft 22 extends.

The mounting block 24 is formed with an annular flange 55 by means of which it may be secured to the casing section 50 for supporting the latter. The other end of the supporting block 24 is provided with an attachment flange 56 by means of which it may be secured to a suitable support (not shown) with which the turbine is associated. Suitable packing glands 57' are provided at the opposite ends of the supporting block 24 and serve to seal the latter around the rotor shaft 22. The solenoid 35 which controls the operations of the diverter vanes 32 may be mounted on the support block 24 in a manner that will be made clear subsequently.

The casing section 51 is provided with a central opening 58 thereon and a tubular supporting bracket 60 surrounds the opening 58 and is secured to the outer face of the casing section 51 in any suitable manner in alignment with the axis of the rotor shaft 22. The supporting bracket 60 constitutes a support for the discharge nozzle assembly 36 leading from the pressure generator 37 or other source of motive fluid under pressure.

The rotor assembly Referring now to Fig. 3, the rotor assembly 25 is comprised of all the moving parts within the reaction turbine casing 21 which are mounted upon and which, rotate bodily with the rotor shaft 22.

These parts include the distributor duct assembly 38, the two jet nozzle assemblies 26, the reaction nozzle assemblies 27 which are carried at the outer ends of the jet nozzle assemblies 26, and certain portions of the gear train control mechanism 33 by means of which the diverter closure valve members 32 are controlled. The arrangement and assembly of these various rotor parts and the individual construction thereof will be individually treated subsequently in appropriate order.

The distributor duct assembly The distributor duct assembly 38 is best seen in Figs. 3, 4 and 5. This assembly is composed of two sheet metal members 61 and 62 having opposed meeting flanges 63 which are secured together in any suitable manner, as by welding, to provide a three-way fitting having an inlet end 64 rota-tably. and telescopically positioned over the outlet orifice of the discharge nozzle assembly 36 and having oppositely-directed discharge ends 65 communicating with the inner ends of the jet nozzle assemblies 26.

A tubular extension 66 carried by the rotor 25 and concentric with the axis of the shaft 22 is secured to the inlet end 64 of the distributor duct casing and is also secured to the rotor to thus support the distributor assembly 38 from the rotor for rotation in unison therewith. The tubular member 66 is provided with a multiplicity of openings 67 therein in communication with the annular space or chamber 68 existing between the tubular supporting bracket 60 and the body portion of the discharge nozzle assembly 36, these openings being provided for the purpose of admitting air or other fluid to the interior of the hub chamber 70 of the rotor 25 in a manner and for a purpose that will be made clear presently.

The radial jet nozzle assemblies one of the discharge ends of the distributor duct 38.

Each gas duct 71 is composed of two similar members 74 and 74a having laterally extending abutting flanges directed jet nozzle assemblies.

75 projecting into recesses 76 provided in the outer nozzle casing 72 and secured therein by means of bolts 77. The gas duct 71 is also provided with the oppositely disposed slots adapted to engage the abutting flanges 63 of the distributor duct 38 within the outwardly turned lips 86 of the flanges 63 thereby serving to maintain the gas ducts 71 and the discharge ends of the distributor duct 38 in alignment and otherwise provide a support means for the latter.

Whereas the gas duct 71 of each jet nozzle assembly 26 consists of two identical members 74 and 74a preferably welded together to form an integral unit, the casing portion 72 of the two jet nozzle assemblies consists of two members 78 and 79. each serving both of the oppositely The members 78 and 79 are provided with meeting flanges 80 which are preferably bolted or riveted together to facilitate assembly or disassembly and the central regions of the members 78 and 79, as well as the tubular extension 66, in combination, provide a rotor hub through which the distributor duct 38 projects.

The hub thus formed encloses the hub chamber 70 into which pressure fluid is admitted by way of the distributor duct 38 and into which coolant air or fluid is admitted exteriorly of the distributor duct.

The operation of the jet nozzle assemblies 26 in relation to the distributor duct 38 and to the reaction nozzle assemblies 27 carried at the outer ends of the jet nozzles will be discussed in detail presently, but for the present it is deemed suflicient to point out that the inner duct 71, in combination with the outer nozzle casing 72, provides a Venturi passage 81 having an annular inlet end 82 and an annular discharge 'or suction end 83 surrounding the discharge end of the gas duct 71. The gas duct 71, in combination with its respective discharge end 65 of the distributor duct 38, forms a similar Venturi passage 84.

The reaction nozzle assembly The reaction assemblies 27 are illustrated in Figs. 3, 4, l0, and 11. Since these two nozzle assemblies are substantially identical in construction a description of one will suflice for the other. Each reaction nozzle assembly comprises a two-piece casing consisting of similar casing sections and 91 having opposed meeting flanges 92 and a pair of discharge nozzle orifices 95. The casing sections 90 and- 91 are provided with lower attachment flanges 97 which are suitably secured as for example by bolt assemblies 98 to similar attachment flanges 99pm vided at the end of the outer nozzle casing 72 of the jet nozzle assembly 26.

The assembly 27 may thus-be regarded as being comprised of two oppositely directed nozzle units 27a and 27b having the inlet opening 94 in common andthe oppositely directedoutlet orifices 95. The nozzle sections 27a and 27b have mounted therein a series of shaped blades 28 formingthe reviousl mentioned blade passages 102. The blades 2821 constitute a part of a blade pack assembly designated in its entirety as 100a and the blades 28b likewise constitute apart of a similar'blade pack assembly'1'00b (Figs. land 11).

The'blade pack assemblies 100a and 100b are in the form of identical prefabricated and assembled units which are welded in position in therespective throat portions or sections 101' of the two nozzle units 27a and 2712. Each blade pack is in the form of a series of the curved nested blades 28' which are formed from rectilinear sheet metal stock and which cooperate with each other to form a series of relatively narrow fluid expansion passages 102 therebetween. The individual blades 28 are provided with interlocking flanges 103 which overlap each other and which are so designed that the blades may be readily assembled in proper alignment for final assembly of the units in the throatportions 101 of the nozzle units 27a and27b.

The blades 28 may, for convenience of manufacture, be in the form of substantially identical metal stampings and in the assembled structure the inner edges of the blades may terminate along a base plane XX extending across the inlet throat opening of the nozzle unit in which the blade pack is assembled. The outer edges of the individual-blades 28 terminate along a base plane Y-Y extending across the throat opening 101 and roughly parallel to the plane XX. The lower edges of the blades 28 may be reversed upon each other as at 104 for reinforcing purposes.

The plane XX of the lower edges of the blades 28 may for purposes of discussion, and as mentioned above, define an entrance or throat inlet opening 105 for each nozzle section 27a or 27b as the case may be. 'While for uniformity of blade construction it is preferred that the blades 28 terminate along the line YY, it should be understood that they may terminate at any suitable point in the throat section up to and including the face 95 of the orifice.

The specific shape of the throat passage or section 101 of the nozzle units'27a' and 2712, including the Wall contours and the specific forms of the fluid passages 102 existing between adjacent blades 28 in each blade pack,

- together with the manner in which these nozzle units function when the turbine is in operation, will be described in detail subsequently, it being deemed sufficient for the present to state that the blades are slightly divergent in the direction of fluid discharge through the passages 102 to permit the most effective and desired expansion of the motive fluid (especially when a gas clockwise rotation of therotor, and also, under certain circumstances, in order that the reaction force, may be employed for-rotor braking purposes, the diverter valve 32 is operatively mounted Withinthe inlet chamber 93:

The valve element per se is in the form of a relatively thin, generally flat, rectangular vane or plate of tapering thickness which is mounted along its thick edge on a rock shaft 110 mounted in bearings 111 (Fig. 3) suit- 7 ably supported within the casing sections 90 and 91 and extending across the apexof'the triangular-shaped inlet chamber 93. The extent of the valve member 32 is such that it is capable of completely closing off either throat portion101 of the nozzle-units 27aor 27b at will.

When the valve member 32 assumes the full line position shown in Fig. 1 0it spansthe distance across the inlet opening 94 of the nozzle unit100b and has its thin edge region bearing against a wall of the casing of the reaction nozzle -assembly 27- so as to effectively seal the passages 102 of the unit- 100b against passage of fluid therethrough while atthe same time exposing the inlet opening 94 of the unit 1001: to motive fluid issuing from the jet nozzleassei'nbly 26. When the valve member 32isin the dotted line'position, the throat passage 101 of the-nozzle unit-27a is sealed-against ingress of motive fluid while theinlet of the nozzle-unit 1 00b is exposed to the fluid issuing from:the jet nozzle assembly.

The diver-tar va lve- 'c0nti'0lmechanism The diverter valves 32 are adapted to be actuated during operation of the reactionturbine either manually froma point of remote control or they are adapted'to be-actuated by a suitable controllable power mechanism other end to'a movable power transmitting member from which power is applied through the train to move the diverter valves 32 in opposite directions. 7

Whilethe movable member may be manually shifted, the invention contemplates that it sha'1lbe moved'from one position to another by a suitable power means such as /the solenoid 35.

. Still referring'to Flg. 3, each rock shaft carries at one end thereof a bevel gear segment 112 which meshes with a similar bevel gear segment 113 mounted on the upper end of a radially extending shaft 114 which extends inwardly toward the axis of the rotor to a region adjacent the center thereof. The inner end of the shaft 114 has mounted thereon another bevel gear segment 115 which meshes with a central bevel gear 116 mounted on one end of a continuous rotatable worm shaft 117 rotatably mounted in anti-friction bearings 113 disposed within an axial bore 119 provided in the rotor shaft 22.

The radial shaft 114 is enclosed within a tubular casing 120- supported adjacent its outer end in a=bracket 121 welded or otherwise secured to the member 78 of the outer nozzle casing 72 of'the jet nozzle assemblies 26 andthreadably' received as at 1-22 at-its inner end in a radial bore123 provided in the hub 1 24forrned on the inner end of the rotor shaft 22' and towhich hub the nozzle casing member 78 is secured. Bearings 125 provided at the upper end of the casing 120 and in the tubular bore 123 serve to rotatably support the shaft 114 in its radially disposed position.

The worm shaft 117 is provided with a worm 126 having threads of relatively long pitch and an actuating worm sleeve 127 having internal teeth formed therein and engaging the threads of the worm 126 is slidably disposed within the bore 119 of the rotor shaft 22. The sleeve 127 within the bore 119 is operatively connected to a shift collar 128 surrounding the drive shaft 22 by means of radial pins 129 projecting through slots 130 formed in the wall of the shaft 22. An anti-friction bearing ring 131 surrounds the shift collar 128 and is adapted to be secured in position thereon by means of a clamping nut 132 threadedly received on one end of the shift collar. A shift fork 133 has its upper end fixedly secured to the movable core 134 of the solenoid 35 and engages the bearing 131 and is adapted upon movement of the solenoid core 134 in opposite directions to transmit motion to the shift collar 128 and consequently to the worm sleeve 127.

From the above description it will be seen that shifting movement of the worm sleeve 127 in one direction or the other will, by virtue of the long pitch of the threads on the worm 126, impart a limited amount of rotational movement to the worm shaft 117. Such turning movement of the worm shaft 117 will transmit motion through the bevel gear 116, gear segment 115, shaft 114, and gear segments 113 and 112 and thus cause turning movement of the rockshaft 110 in one direction or the other to actuate the diverter valve 32 and move the same from one extreme position to the other.

It is to be noted that during rotation of the rotor at high speeds the effect of centrifugal force applied to the diverted valve elements 32 is relatively small insomuch as the valve vane element is tapered toward its free end and thus possesses small mass in the centrifugally unbalanced region thereof. If desired, however, suitable centrifugal counterbalancing facilities may be provided for the diverter vanes to place them in complete rotational balance against the effect of centrifugal force. The valve elements 32 are not however balanced against the effect of fluid pressure acting thereon so that when these valve elements are in one or the other of their extreme positions, the components of thrust applied thereto tend to force the valves tightly against their seats and over the throat openings 105 of the particular nozzle units 27a or 27b as the case may be with which they happen to be in sealing relationship.

Thus the control mechanism just described may readily be actuated to move the valves 32 to one extreme position or the other when no motive fluid is being supplied to the turbine, even though the latter be rotating at a high rate of speed. However, when the motive fluid is supplied to the turbine for the application of power thereto, the pressure of fluid against the face of the valves will prevent them from being shifted as long as the power is applied.

The control solenoid and its electrical circuit The distributor duct assembly 38, the radial jet nozzle assemblies 26, the reaction nozzle assemblies 27, and the rotating parts of the diverter valve control mechanism including the inner race of the bearing ring 131, but not the outer race thereof, may be regarded as constituting the rotor assembly 25 and these rotating parts taken in conjunction with the stationary casing 21, the mounting block and discharge nozzle assembly may be regarded as the entire reaction turbine per se.

The control means for shifting the shift collar 128 may assume various forms, but in the preferred and illustrated form the solenoid 35 is employed for this purpose. This solenoid is of the reverse acting type and includes a pair of coils 140 and 141, respectively, mounted at the opposite ends of a casing or block 142 having suitable bearings 144 adjacent each of the coils in which the solenoid core 134 is slidably supported so that the ends thereof register with the coils 140 and 141 and are adapted to be selectively projected thereinto, depending, of course, upon the selected energization of the two coils. As the core 134 is moved in either direction, as viewed in Fig. 3, the shift collar 128 is moved simultaneously therewith to cause reversal of the diverter valves 32.

The reverse acting solenoid 35 may be manually controlled by means of the electric circuit shown in Fig. 3

and including the previously mentioned manually controlled switch S. The circuit includes a pair of normally open contactscl and c2 selectively operable under the control of a manual switch S, so that when one of the pairs of contacts becomes closed, the other pair remains open. Movement of the switch lever 143 to the left, as viewed in Fig. 3, serves to close the switch 01 and establish an electrical circuit extending from the positive side of the source B (which may be a battery) through leads a, b, contacts 01, lead c, solenoid coil 141 and lead d to the negative side of the line.

The pair of contacts 02 being open cause the solenoid coil 140 to remain de-energized so that the core 134 is moved to the right as viewed in Fig. 3, thus carrying with it the shift collar 128 and causing the diverter valves 32 to be moved through the train of gearing 33 previously described, assuming the worm 126 to have right-hand threads, to a position wherein the nozzle sections 27b are blocked against ingress of fluid while the nozzle sections 2711 are exposed to the fluid issuing from the jet nozzle assemblies 26. When the switch lever 143 is moved to the right, as viewed in Fig. 3 a circuit will exist from the positive side of the battery B through leads a, e, contacts 02, lead 1, solenoid coil 140 and leads g and d to the negative side of the line. Energization of the coil 140 will move the core 134 to the left, as viewed in Fig. 3, thus moving the diverter valves 32 to the dotted position shown in Fig. 10, wherein the reaction nozzle units 27a are rendered inoperable while the nozzle sections 27b are rendered operative.

The motive fluid supply nozzle The supply nozzle 36 includes a casing 41 having integrally formed therewith a discharge nozzle 42 for the combustion gases and a second nozzle 43 in alignment therewith, a conical Venturi throat 44 is formed at the base of the nozzle 43 and an opening 45 in the casing communicate with the conduit 40 whereby coolant air or other fluid may be drawn into the casing 41 for admixture with the gases associating from the nozzle 42. A manually controlled valve 46 which is shown as being of the butterfly type is disposed within the conduit 40 for control of the coolant fluid therethrough. The previously mentioned tubular supporting bracket is provided with an opening 47 therein in communication with the conduit 39 so that coolant air or other fluid issuing from the conduit 39 may also be drawn into the hub chamber of the turbine at a region surrounding the wall of the throat 44 in a manner that will be made clear presently. A manually operable valve 48 is disposed within the conduit 39 for controlling the flow of coolant air or other fluid therethrough.

The operation of the reaction turbine with special reference to reaction nozzle design As previously stated the improved reaction turbine of the present invention may use for its motive fluid any fluid medium either gas or liquid under pressure and possessed of kinetic energy, either by virtue of the pressure at which it is supplied, or by virtue of it temperature, or both.

In the illustrated form of the turbine it is contemplated that the motive fluid supplied thereto for reaction purposes shall be in the form of a previously generated combustion gas which is supplied to the hub chamber 70 at a relatively high pressure and temperature from the discharge nozzle assembly 36 leading from a suitable ga generator such as that shown and described in my prior Patent No. 2,557,128 previously referred to.

As explained in this patent, combustion of substantially constant pressure, volume, and composition charges of a combustible fluid mixture supplies a source of combustion gas at a high pressure and temperature whose output is varied by varying the frequency rate per min- A 13 ute at which the charges are produced, ignited, and discharged from the pressure generator.

Referring now to Fig. 3, the operation of the'turbine the hot combustion gases leaving the discharge nozzle assembly 36 at relatively high pressure enter the distributor duct 38. These gases which possess initially high velocity are divided at the base of the assembly 38 and, since, the orifice openings of the discharge ends 65 are equal in area, one half of these combustion gases passes radially outwardly in one direction into the upper jet nozzle assembly 26 and the other half passes in the opposite direction and enters the lower jet assembly 26. The action of the propulsive gases entering the oppositely directed radially disposed jet assemblies 26 is identical in the case of each nozzle assembly and its subsequent action in passing through the two reaction nozzle assemblies 27 is identical so that as the description of the reaction turbine continues reference will be made only to the passage of the divided portion of the propulsive gases which pass through one radial section of the rotor.

The stream of fluid passing through the discharge nozzle 43' creates a pressure drop in the regions of the Venturi throat 45 thus drawing coolant air or other fluid from the conduit 40 into the casing 41 for admixture with the gases issuing from the nozzle 42 to augment the volume thereof, as well as to provide a cooling means for the end regions of the nozzle 42, for the nozzle 43, and for the wall surfaces of the distributor duct 38.

The combined coolant air and combustion gas under pressure and accelerating in velocity through the distributor duct 38 is discharged from the ends of the nozzles 65' of the duct into the radially extending ducts'71 thereby producing a Venturi injection action upon the Venturipassage 34 formed by the cooperating ends of the said ducts which acts to draw coolant air or fluid from the hub chamber '70 into the interior of the duct 71 to flow therein generally adjacent to the Walls of the duct to provide an internal cooling means for the walls of the duct and to further augment the mass flow of the fluid stream discharged therein from the nozzles 65 of the distributor duct 38.

The coolant air or fluid and combustion gas becoming admixed as they travel outwardly through the radially extending gas duct 71, acquires additional velocity. This acquired velocity is due in part to the fact that the rotor 25 is rotating at high speed so that the generated centrifugal force acts upon the moving fluid mass in the duct 71 and due in part to the normal expansion of pressure of the gas that ordinarily occurs in an open ended conduit. The walls of the duct 71 are tapered slightly inwardly in an outward radial direction thus tending to conserve the pressure of the outwardly moving fluid stream and, when the latter leaves the discharge nozzle end 87 of the duct '71, it acquires a considerable increase in velocity and tends by Venturi action to create a partial vacuum in the Venturi throat or chamber existing between the walls of the outer casing 72 and those of the duct 71, which in conjunction with the similar Venturi injection action produced as above mentioned in the Venturi passage 84 acts to draw the coolant air or other fluid from the conduit 39 through the opening 47 in the tubular member 60, the openings 67 in the'tubular extension 66 into the hub chamber 70 for flow therefrom radially outward both internally of the wall of the duct 71 for cooling the interior surfaces of the said walls and by admixture to the combustion gas stream to augment its mass volume, and externally of the duct 71 through the passage 81 formed between the walls of the outer casing 72 and those of the duct 71 to provide a coolant means for both, and by Venturi injection action to further augment the fluid stream issuing from the outer end 87 of the duct 71.' Any heat energy which otherwise might be lost due to radiation through the walls of the duct 71 is therefore assimilated by the 14 coolant fluid passing through the passage 81' and is returned to the admixed combustion gas stream as the latteris discharged from the duct 71 into the outer regions of the tubular casing 72.

The high speed of the rotor 25 not only imparts a centrifugal force to the admixedfluid stream of motive fluid in the duct 71, but it also augments the speed of flow of all the fluid streams involved in connection with the nozzle assembly 26 asthely move radially outward, thereby 'accelerating their velocity from the moment they leave either the distributor duct 38- or the hub chamber 70 until they have been emitted from the nozzle assembly 26 into the chamber 93 and thereafter as they pass into the entranceregions of the reaction nozzles-27.

From the above description; it will .be seen that the several fluid streams moving'radially outwardly through the nozzle assembly 26 are possessed of kinetic energy acquired in part due to an increase in velocity by reason of centrifugal force and in part to the increase in velocity that a gas acquires in flowing through an opening from a region of high pressure to one of low pressure.

The gas streams leaving the nozzle assembly 26 are discharged directly into the inlet chamber 93 of the associated reaction nozzle 27' in which they are brought to a common condition of pressure; temperature, and velocity'prior to their subsequent discharge through one or the other of the reaction nozzle assemblies 27a or The inlet chamber 93 may thus be regarded as an equalizing chamber wherein the restriction to flow of the stream, due to thereduced intake areas of the fluid expansion passages 102 at the nozzle entrance 1055,

creates a back pressure in the chamber proportionate to the degree of restriction imposed on the overall intake area of the passages 102. The effect of thus restricting the outlet area of the chamber ?3 with-respect to its inlet area, since the fluid streams entering the chamber are possessed of a considerable kinetic energy force, is to increase the pressure and temperature of the fluid mass within the chamber 93 to a value which can be controllably determined, as stated above, by the extent of the restriction.

It is to be pointed out that in connection with the reaction thrust force produced by the discharge of a fluid mass under'pressure from a jet nozzle, that the fluid jet suffers an expenditure of some of its energy by the side-wise expansion of the jet stream relative to the line of its movement against the fluid resistance of the medium into which the fluid stream is being discharged which detracts from the energy available to accelerate its velocity in the general line of its movement away from the nozzle, and upon ultimate expansion of the pressure of the fluid stream to ambient pressure, at which time it obtains its maximum or ultimate velocity, much of the molecules of the fluid mass are then moving in some angular direction to the direct line of thrust of the nozzle from which it was discharged. T he elfective velocity of the fluid to produce usable reaction thrust force therefore represents an average of the components of all the molecules of the mass and a value considerably less than the actual velocity obtained by the fluid. In consequence, a considerable amount of energy avilable but ineffective to produce useful work results from the uncontrolled expansion of the pressure of the propellant fluid after separation from the nozzle.

The nozzles 27a and 27b of the present turbine are designed to obtain the maximum possible reaction thrust forceproducible by the discharge of a fluid mass therefrom under an existing condition of operation, and effectively apply this force to do work as a propulsion means.

The above is accomplished by providing a nozzle structure capable of the eflicient expansion of the pressure of a high pressure fluid as it passes through the nozzle whereby it separates from the nozzle substantially at or close to ambient pressure and therefore accelerated to approximately its possible ultimate velocity, thereby insuring that all of the available energy of the motive fluid is employed to produce a useful reaction thrust force etflciently applied as a propulsion means; and the fluid stream, thus being possessed of substantially its maximum possible kinetic energy force as it separates from the nozzle, therefore has all its potential force available to overcome subsequent fluid resistance to its movement by whatever fluid medium it is being discharged into. The motive fluid thus is enabled to obtain an ultimate velocity greater than would normally be possible otherwise.

The nozzles 27a and 27b therefore represent a nozzle form which efficiently employs all the available energy of the motive fluid to produce usable reaction thrust force to do work as a propulsion means as may be possible under an existing condition determined by the presence of some fluid medium into which the jet is being discharged and the body being propelled by it may also be moving.

The Work done by a reaction jet of this type obviously obtains a maximum when the forward velocity of the nozzle is equal to that of the jet rearwardly separating from it. The expansion of the pressure of the motive fluid mass thus produces the maximum possible acceleration of the velocity of the fluid stream relative to the nozzle in separating from it.

The above however represents a condition possible only in a vacuum.

When the jet and nozzle, however, operate within a fluid medium having a mass densityvalue, work necessarily is expended in overcoming the fluid resistance of the medium to the movement of a body through it and therefore less energy remains available to accelerate the velocity of the motive fluid in separating from the nozzle and to accelerate the velocity of movement of the nozzle the jet acts to propel.

The above is substantially the state of affairs which the present nozzle is designed to obtain. The maximum possible reaction thrust force producible by the discharge of a given mass per second as such may be determined by the existence of conditions external to the jet nozzle affecting the velocity at which the mass may separate from the nozzle, and the application of this force with maximum efliciency at the point of separation of the mass from the exit of the nozzle, in the present instance is tangential to the circumferential path of movement of the rotor 25 and directly in its plane of rotation. Under such circumstances none of the available energy of the fluid mass is lost by uncontrolled expansion of the latter after separation from the nozzle, and it leaves the nozzle possessed of the maximum possible kinetic energy force as it initially enters whatever fluid medium it is being discharged into to overcome any fluid resistance therefrom to its movement.

From the above description, it will be appreciated that the optimum condition that can be attained by a reaction nozzle of the type herein employed is one wherein the propellant fluid is discharged from the nozzle at substantially ambient pressure and temperature.

If this condition obtains, the fluid will separate from the nozzle at approximately its ultimate velocity and substantially all of the heat possessed by the gas on entering the nozzle will be dissipated in the form of work thus rendering the gas relatively cool as it leaves the nozzle.

From the above it is evident that in order to get the maximum work from the energy that is available when the gas enters the nozzle assembly 27, the specific design of the nozzle is of paramount importance.

The basic desideratum of efficient nozzle design is minimum divergence angle of the nozzle combined with maximum length fora given ratio of expansion, i. e. ratio of the exist area to the inlet area of the nozzle.

However, in handling high pressure fluidsinvolving 16 high ratios of expansion, the above represents an impossible condition for a conventional form of nozzle because of design considerations placing a limitation on both length and weight. The series of relatively narrow expansion passages employed in the present nozzle, thereby separating the fluid flow into a series of smaller streams, enables a reduction in the angle of divergence of the nozzle passage for a given ratio of expansion and a given length of nozzle to a fraction of that of a single conventional nozzle of equivalent capacity approximately represented by 1 divided by the number of the smaller nozzle passages involved.

Thus it becomes possible within the scope of practical design to combine nozzle efficiency with relatively high ratios of expansion in a nozzle of a given length, thereby enabling the efiicient controlled expansion of the relatively high pressure motive fluids contemplated by the present turbine and such as can be supplied by the previously mentioned pressure generator. It may be pointed out that the employment of small divergence angles for the expansion passage elements of the present nozzle insures that the expanding fluid stream tends to follow the contour of the passage walls without springing away from them thus causing a condition of excessive fluid friction and disturbance of the flow of the fluid stream.

The blades 28, forming the multiplicity of passages 102 therebetween, by proper design of their contour can define the shape of the passages in accord with a selected length of the passage from the nozzle intake to the nozzle exit to provide a substantially eflicient nozzle form having a relatively small angle of divergence and compatible with the pressure-velocity character of the motive fluid passing therethrough, whereby the pressure of the fluid can be controllably expanded within the nozzle.

The plates 28 insure the controlled expansion of the pressure of the motive fluid passing through the passages 102 so that, when the gas leaves the nozzle in the direction in which its exit orifice is pointed, it will have attained substantially its maximum possible velocity and on separation from the nozzle will impart to it the maximum possible reaction thrust force it is capable of producing.

According to the present invention, the section of the nozzle between the inlet entrance to the passages 102 and the mouth or exit 95 is an expanding section of a pre-determined character, and as the gas or fluid passes through this part of the nozzle the cross-sectional area increases toward the mouth 95. This section has straight sides and the blades diverge from each other outwardly at a relatively small angle thus providing a nozzle form of a rectangular cross-section conforming in general to the basic requirement of efficient nozzle design. It is pointed out, however, that the nozzle form above described represents a preferable form of the principles involved, and that other arrangements and variations in design for the nozzles 27 may be employed within the scope of the principles described.

From the above description, it will be seen that the nozzles designed according to the principles of the present invention make full and eflicient use of the expansion of the motive fluid or gas as it passes through the nozzles.

The power output of the reaction turbine 20 may be controlled by controlling the mass volume of motive fluid supplied through the supply nozzle assembly 36 and the direction of rotation of the turbine rotor 25 is determined by the setting of the control switch S to actuate the solenoid 35 in the manner previously described. In order to maintain the operating temperatures of the various fluid passages in the turbine rotor at a desirable value, the supply of coolant fluid or air through the conduits 39 and 40 may be regulated by manipulation of the valves 46 and 48. These valves may be operated in proper relationship to the rate of flow of the motive fluid and to its temperature whereby the operating temperature as above mentioned may be maintained substantially uniform as the power output of the turbine may be varied.

While in a turbine of the type herein described for use under a generally constant condition of altitude or barometric pressure the air supplied through the valves 46' and 48 and the conduits 39 and 40 could be supplied directly from the atmosphere, the arrangement herein shown in Fig. 12 is.a preferable means since variation of barometric pressure through a pre-selected altitude operating range can be compensated for by the compressed air supply means associated with the pressure generator 37, as mentioned in my previously referred to prior patent, whereby both the said pressure generator and the turbine are operable under a substantially constant condition irrespective of changes of altitude of operation of the power plant within the preselected altituderangel 1 Typical installation of the reactiontu'rbine in a power plant for automatic control thereof bReferring now to Figs; 12 to 15inclusive, the reaction turbine. 20 of the present invention is shown as being assembledin apower plant wherein it receives its motive fluid directly from the pressure generator 37 which may be of the type shown in and described in my above mentioned patent. In such an installation compressed air issuing from a suitable source such as a compressed airconduit 200 is delivered at a constant pressure and temperature to a valve 201 whereby it may be distributed ,through conduits. 202, 203,; and 204 leading to the port 1410f the reaction turbine 20, the combustion'chamber source 37.. The valve201' includes a casing 205 having .a rotary valve body 206' di'sposed therein and provided with a series of parallel ports 207 formed therein and designed for simultaneous communication with the con- , duits 202, 203,, and 204, The valve body206' carries an operating handle 208 eXteriorly of the casing and, when the handleassumes thejposition shown in Fig. 14, the valve is closed so that passage of the fluid therethrough iis prevented When the valve handle 208 assumes the position shown inFig. 12 .the valve passages 207 are in register with the conduits 202, 203, and 204' so that compressed air maypass through the valve from the mani-- fold conduit 200 to the conduits 2 02, 203, and 204. 'A suitable solenoid controlled pressure relief valve 209 is provided to relieve the combustion or pressure chamber of 'the' pressure generator of any existing pressure prior :of' the'pressure generator 37, and the cooling jacket of the pressure generator, respectively. v In the form of the to starting thepperation of the latter so that upon starting thereof a normalexplosive charge will be inducted thereintorfor the initial explosion. The previously described control circuit of Fig. 3 for the solenoid is adapted to be energized under. the. control'of a rotary switch assembly S1 operable under the control of the operating handle 208' for the valve 201. The switch assembly S1 is substantially the same as theswitch assembly shown in Fig 3 exceptfor the fact that an additionallpair of contactsvfor controlling the-solenoid circuit of the pressure relief valve 209 have been added and the contour of the actuating cam 210 of the contacts are mo dified whereby .the respective circuits mentioned are only momentarily closed by the rotation of the cam through an initial. movement of the lever 208 from the neutral position shown in Fig. 13 in one direction or the other therefrom. Movement of the lever 208 as above mentioned serves to first close the appropriate contacts for operationof the solenoid 35 in such a manner as to i'cause-movement of the. diverter valves 32 to one or the other of their extreme positions to determine the v direction of rotation of the turbine, and similarly for operation of the solenoid controlled relief valve 209 to bleed the combustion chamber of the pressure generator 37 to the atmosphere, and thereafter further movement of the lever 208 initially acts to break the above mentioned circuits and thereafter to either of its extreme positions-to completely open the valve 201 to supply compressed air to the conduits 202, 203, and 204 for normal operation of the. pressure generator 37 and the turbine 20, the degree of the opening of the valve 201 functioning to determine the output of the pressure gener'ator and the turbine 20. It may be pointed out, that in the foregoing arrangement-the pressure generator is inoperative during the time movement ofnthe lever 208 acts to actuate operation of the diverter valves 32 and thetpressure relief valve 209.

The invention is not to be limited to the exact arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawings or described in this specification as various changes in the details of constructionimaybe resorted to without departing from the'spirit of the invention. l claim:

1. In a reaction turbine, arotor having a central hub chambena pure reaction nozzle mounted on said rotor at the outer region, thereof and projecting outwardly be V yond the periphery of said rotor, said nozzle being provided with a radially directed fluid inlet and a--pair of fluid outlets in communication with said fluid inlet, said I fluid outlets being .directed generally perpendicular to the 'radial direction of saidinlet and facing inoppositedi- :hubcharnber. I t t I 2. ,In a reaction turbine, a rotor having a central hub chamber, a plurality of pure reaction nozzles mountedon said rotor. at the outer regions thereof and projecting outwardly beyond the .peripheryof said rotor, each of said nozzles having a radially directed fluid inlet chamber therein and-a pair of discharge outlets in communication with said inlet chamber, said fluid outlets being directed generally perpendicular to the radial direction of said inlet chamber andfacing in opposite directions, means establishing communication between each of said fluid inlet chambers and the central hub chamber, a diverter [valve in each of said fluid inlet chambers and selectively movable froma position whereinit obstructs the flow of motive fluid from the inlet chamber to one of the fluid outlets in communication therewith to another position wherein it obstructs the flow of motive fluid from the chamber to the other fluid outlet, means for supplying motive fluid under. pressure to said central hub chamber, and means for moving said diverter valves in unison.

3; A reaction turbine including a rotor having a central hub chambena plurality of reaction nozzles mounted on .said rotor at the outer regions thereof, each of said nozzles having a fluid. inlet and a fluid outlet, said fluid outlet being directed substantially. tangential to the circular peripheral sweep of the rotor, means for supplying a hot expanding gaseous. medium under pressure to the interior of said hub chamber, and means for. conducting the gaseous medium supplied to said hub chamber to each of said fluid inlets, said conducting means comprising a jet-producing nozzle having itsinlet end in direct communication with said hub chamber and its discharge end in communication with the fluid inlet of its respective reaction nozzle.

ing a hot expanding gaseous medium under pressure to the interior of said hub chamber, and means for conducting the gaseous medium supplied tosaid hub chamber to each of said fluid inlets, said means'comprising a radially extending conduit having'its inner end in communication with said hub chamber and its outer end in communication with the gas inlet of its respective reaction nozzle, and a jet-producing nozzle disposed within said conduit and having its inner end in direct communication with the hub chamber and its outer end terminating short of its respective reaction nozzle to produce a low-pressure region of high velocity gas flow in said conduit adjacent said fluid-inlet.

" 5. A reaction gas turbine including a rotor having a central hub chamber, a reaction nozzle mounted on the "periphery of said rotor, saidnozzle having a gas inlet and a gas outlet, the unbalanced-reaction forces of gas passing through said nozzle having a vector component of thrust on the walls of the'nozzl'e ina direction tangential to the peripheral sweep of'the rotor, means for supplying gas under pressure to said "hub chamber, a radially extending conduitestablishing communication between the hub chamber and gas inlet for radial'flow of gas outwardly therethrough under the influence of the internal pressure inherent inthe supplied gas and underfthe influence of centrifugal forces acting on the gas flowing in the conduit due to rotation of the rotor, and means disposed in said conduit for creating a pressure drop in the gas passing'therethrough to increase the velocity thereof prior to entry of the gas into-said gas inlet.

6. In areaction gas turbine of the character described, a rotor having a central hub chamber, a reaction nozzle jmounted on the periphery of said rotor, said nozzle having a gas inlet and a gas outlet, means for supplying "gas under pressure to said hubchamber, means for supplying air to the interior of said hub chamber, a radially disposed conduit establishing communication between the hub chamber and inlet nozzle for radial flow of gas outwardly therethrough under the influence of the internal pressure inherent in the supplied gas and under the 'influence of centrifugal forces acting on the gas flowing in the conduit due to rotation of the rotor, a jet-producing nozzle disposed within said conduit in the form of a tubular member having its walls spaced from the Walls of said conduit and provided with an inlet end in communication with said hub chamber and an outlet end terminating short of the nozzle inlet, means disposed Within said hub chamber for directing gas introduced thereinto into the inlet end of said tubular jet-producing nozzle, the space existing between the walls of said tubular member and conduit constituting a'Venturi throat for passage of the air introduced into said hub chamber around said jet-producing nozzle for cooling purposes and for admixture with the gases issuing from the jet-producing nozzle prior to their entry-into said nozzle inlet.

7. In a reaction gas turbine, a generally circular, stationary casing having a rotor disposed therein, there being an annular discharge opening in the peripheral regions of the casing, said casing being provided with a hub chamber, said rotor likewise being provided with a hub chamber, a source of gas under pressure, a plurality of reaction nozzles mounted on the periphery of said rotor, each of said nozzles having a gas inlet and a gas outlet, a plurality of radially disposed conduits establishing communication between the hub chamber-of the rotor and said gas inlets, a jet-producingnozzle in the form of an open-ended tubular member disposed within each conduit and having its inner end projecting into the hub chamber of the rotor and its outer end terminating short of the reaction nozzle associated with the conduit in which it is disposed, a distributor duct having :one end thereof in communication with said source of gas and having a branch end projecting into each of said tubular jet-producing nozzles, means for admitting a coolant gas into the hub chamber of said stationary casing exteriorly of '7 said distributor duct, the *annular spaces existing between the walls of said conduits'and'their enclosed tubular jetproducing nozzles constituting Venturi passages for the radial flow of coolant gas around the'jet-producingnozzles for admixture 'with the jets produced thereby prior to their entry into said nozzle inlets.

- "8. In a reaction turbine, a rotor shaft, a hollow rotor fixedly'mounted on said shaft and rotatable in unison therewith a plurality of pure reaction nozzles mounted on said rotor at the outer regions thereof, each of said nozzles having a fluid inlet chamber and a pair of discharge outlets in communication therewith, said fluid outlets being directed substantially tangential to the circular peripheral sweep of the rotor and facing in opposite directions, means for introducing motive fluid under pressure into said rotor adjacent the axis of rotation thereof and for conducting the fluid radially outwardly through the rotor and into said fluid inlet chambers, a rockshaft mounted for oscillation in each inlet chamber, a diverter valve member on each rockshaft and movable upon oscillation. of the shaft in opposite directions into fluid-obstructing position with respect to one of said fluid outlets, a gear on each rockshaft, gearing controlling the movements of said gears and consequently of said rockshafts and valve members, said gearingincluding a sun gear mounted on the rotor shaft for limited angular turning movement thereon, and a planet gear operatively connecting said sun gear and each of said rockshaft gears, and means for adjusting the angular position of said sun gear relative tothe rockshaft.

9. For use, for example, in the peripheral regions of the rotor of a gas reaction turbine which derives its driving torque primarily by the passage of gas under pressure through one or more reaction nozzles of the unequal pressure type, a reaction nozzle having a gas inlet and a gas outlet in communication therewith through a curved throat section, the walls of said throat section flaring outwardly from the inlet to the outlet, and a plurality of curved gas-deflecting blades disposed in said throat section and following the general curvature of the throat walls, said blades being spaced from one another and defining therebetween a series of curved narrow outwardly flaring gas passages.

10. For use, for example, in the peripheral regions of the rotor of a gas reaction turbine which derives its driving torque primarily by the passage of gas under pressure through one or more reaction nozzles of the unequal pressure type, a reaction nozzle having a gas inlet and a gas outlet in communication therewith through a curved throat section, the walls of said throat section flaring outwardly from the inlet to the outlet, and a plurality of curved gas-deflecting blades disposed in said throat section and following the general curvature of the throat walls, said blades being spaced from one another and defining therebetween a .series of curved narrow outwardly flaring gas passages having blade walls which diverge at an angle of approximately 7 7 11. For use, for example, in the peripheral regions of a rotor of a reversible gas reaction turbine which derives its driving torque in either direction primarily by the passage of fluid under pressure through one or more reaction nozzles of the unequal pressure type, a reaction nozzle comprising a hollow body member having a fluid inlet and a pair of oppositely facing fluid outlets, means defining a curved throat section between said fluid inlet and each of said fluid outlets, a blade pack disposed in each throat .section and comprising a plurality of curved gas-deflecting blades having interlocking side flanges, said blades defining therebetween a plurality of outwardly flaring gas passages, the inner ends of the blades of each blade pack being arranged in a common plane, the planes of the inner ends of the blades of said packs converging inwardly from the sides of said fluid inlet and defining, in combination with said fluid inlet, a fluid equalizing chamber of generally triangular cross-sectional shape, a

' 21 diverter valve member pivotallymounted within said chamber adjacent the apex thereof, said blade being movable between an extreme position wherein it obstructs one of said throat sections and another extreme position wherein it obstructs the other throat section.

12. A reaction jet discharge nozzle comprising a nozzle casing providing an internal intake chamber and having a discharge outlet, means providing a plurality of closely-spaced, generally parallel, expansion passages within said casing, each passage having an inlet orifice communicating with said intake chamber .and an outlet orifice directed towardand in register with the discharge outlet of the casing, said expansionpassages increasing in cross-sectional area from the inlet orifices thereof toward the discharge outlets thereof whereby fluid supplied under pressure to said intake chamber is divided into a series of streams-in which the pressure of the fluid is expended as it passes 'therethrough to accelerate the velocity of the fluid'to substantially its ultimate velocity for discharge from said discharge outlet and whereby the kinetic energy of the fluid becomes elfective to produce a developed reaction thrust force on the nozzle substantially at the point of separation of the fluid from the nozzle.

13. A reaction jet discharge nozzle comprising a nozzle casingproviding an internal intake chamber and having a discharge outlet, said'nozzle providing a passage forflow of fluid therethrough in one direction, means providing a plurality of closely-spaced, generally parallel, expansion passages within said casing, each passage having an inlet .orifice communicating with said intake chamher and an outlet orifice directed toward and in register being directed generally upstream in the casing, said expansion passages increasing in cross-sectional area from the inlet orifices thereof toward the discharge outlets thereof whereby a fluid supplied under pressure to said chamber is divided into a series of streams in which the pressure of the fluid is expended as it passes therethrough to accelerate the velocity thereof to substantially its ultimate velocity for discharge from said outlet and whereby the kinetic energy of the fluid becomes effective to produce a reaction thrust on the nozzle substantially at its region of separation from the nozzle.

14. A reaction jet discharge nozzle comprising a nozzle casing providing an internal intake chamber and having a discharge outlet, means providing a plurality of closely-spaced, generally parallel, expansion passages within said casing, each passage having an inlet orifice communicating with said intake chamber and an outlet orifice directed toward and in register with the discharge outlet of the casing, said inlet orifices being arranged in general transverse alignment relative to the expansion passages, said expansion passages increasing in crosssectional area from the inlet orifices thereof toward the discharge outlets thereof whereby fluid supplied under pressure to said intake chamber is divided into a series of streams in which the pressure of the fluid is expended as it passes therethrough to accelerate the velocity of the fluid to substantially its ultimate velocity for discharge from said discharge outlet and whereby the kinetic energy of the fluid becomes effective to produce a developed reaction thrust force on the nozzle substantially at the point of separation of the fluid from the nozzle.

15. A reaction jet discharge nozzle comprising a nozzle casing providing an internal intake chamber and having a discharge outlet, means providing a plurality of closelyspaced, generally parallel, expansion passages within said casing, each passage having an inlet orifice communicating with said intake chamber and an outlet orifice directed toward and in register with the discharge outlet of the casing, said inlet orifices being arranged in general transverse alignment relative to the expansion passages, said outlet orifices being arranged in general transverse alignment and substantially parallel to the alignment axis with the discharge outlet of the casing, said inlet orifices of the inlet orifices, said expansion passages increasing in cross-sectional area from the inlet orifices thereof toward the discharge outlets thereof whereby fluid supplied under pressure to said intake chamber is divided into a series of streams in which the pressure of the fluid is expended as it passes therethrough to accelerate the velocity of the fluid to substantially its ultimate velocity for discharge from said discharge outlet and whereby the kinetic energy of the fluid becomes effective to produce a developed reaction thrust force on the nozzle substantially atthe point of separation of the fluid from the nozzle. Y

16. In a reaction turbine of the characted described,

a rotor including a plurality of, pure reaction discharge nozzles having inlet orifices and discharge orifices in n'ght angular relationship therewith, said nozzles beingmounted on the outer regions of said rotor and projecting outwardly beyond the periphery of said rotor with said inlet orifices directed along a radial lineof the rotor, certain of the nozzles having their discharge outlets directed oppositely to the discharge nozzles of certain othernozzles, means for supplying motive fluid under pressure to said inlet orifices, and means for selectively directing the fluid supplied to said inlet orifices to said former and latter nozzles to eifect rotation of the rotor in opposite directions.

17. In a reaction turbine, a rotor having a central hub chamber formed therein, discharge meansincluding a fluid inlet and a pair of oppositely facing fluid outlets extending along a line perpendicular to the direction of said inlet, said discharge means being mounted at the peripheral regions of said rotor and extending outwardly therebeyond with said inlet directed along a radial line of said rotor and said outlets extending in the plane of rotation of said rotor, means establishing communication between said hub chamber and said discharge means, means for supplying motive fluid under pressure to said hub chamber, and means for controlling the direction of discharge of fluid by said discharge means.

18. In a reaction turbine, a rotor having a central hub chamber formed therein, discharge means including a fluid inlet and a pair of oppositely facing fluid outlets extending along a line perpendicular to the direction of said inlet, said discharge means being mounted at the peripheral regions of said rotor and extending outwardly therebeyond with said inlet directed along a radial line of said rotor and said outlets extending in the plane of rotation of said rotor, means establishing communication between said hub chamber and said discharge means, means for supplying motive fluid under pressure to said hub character, and means for controlling the direction of discharge of fluid by said discharge means, said control means being operable during rotation of the rotor in either direction whereby a braking effect may be applied to the rotor.

19. In a reaction turbine, a rotor having a central hub chamber, a plurality of reaction nozzles each having an inlet orifice and an outlet orifice in right angular relationship mounted on the rotor at the outer regions thereof and projecting beyond the periphery thereof, said inlet orifices being directed along a radial line of said rotor,

certain of said nozzles having their outlet orifices directed oppositely to the discharge nozzles of certain other nozzles, means establishing fluid communication between said hub chamber and nozzle inlet orifices, means to supply motive fluid under pressure to said hub chamber, and means for selectively directing the fluid issuing from said hub chamber to said former and latter nozzles to effect directional rotation of the rotor, said directing means being operable during rotation of the rotor in either direction whereby a reaction thrust opposed to the direction of rotation thereof may be applied to the rotor for braking purposes.

20. In a reaction turbine, a generally circular, staitionary 'c'asinghaving a rotor disposed therein, there being an annular discharge opening in the peripheral regions of the casing, saidcasing'being provided with a hub chamber, said *rotor likewise being provided with a hub chamber, discharge means including 'a fluid inlet and a pair of oppositely facing fluid outlets extending along a line perpendicular to-the direction of said inlet, said discharge means being mounted at .the peripheral regions of saidrotor and extending outwardly therebeyond with said "inlet directed along a radial line of said rotor and said outlets extending in the plane of rotation of said rotor, means establishing communication between said rotor hub and'said discharge means, a source of gas under pressure, and means for controlling the direction of discharge of tfiuid from said discharge means.

21. A reversible thrust reaction jet discharge nozzle comprising a hollow'nozzle casing having a fluid inlet and a pair of fluid outlets, said casing having internal Walls defining curvedthroat sections between said inlet and said outlets with said Walls flaring outwardly along 'saidthroat sections from inlet to outlet, said outlets being generally diametrically oppositely directed along a line angularly related to the direction of said inlet, a blade *pack for each throat section, each pack comprising a plurality of curved gas-deflecting blades disposed in and following the general curvature of the internal Walls of the associated throat section, said blades being spaced from one another and defining therebetween a series of curved outwardly flaring gas passages, means for supplying a motive fluid under pressure to said fiuid'inlet, and valve means 'shiftable in said fluid inlet to selectively direct the "motive fluid supplied thereto to either of the said fluid outlets in Whole or in part to thereby produce a propulsion -force in either-direction or for braking purposes by a reversal 'of the direction of thrust.

1 References Cited in the fileof this patent UNITED STATES-PATENTS I 362,610 Collins May 10, 1887 439,935 Denke Nov. 4, 1890 444,9.38 Kinkaid Jan. 20, 1891 713,920 Procner Nov. 18, 1902 726,315 Lindmark Apr. 28, 1903 833,591 Duc Oct. 16, 1906 999,776 Gill Aug. 8, 1911 1,003,708 Coleman Sept. 19, 1911 1,133,660 Papin et al. Mar. 30, 1915 2,397,357 Kundig Mar. 26, 1946 2,449,931 Dematteis Sept. 21, 1948 2,457,936 Stalker Jan. 4, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 7,058 Great Britain of 1911 169,621 Germany Apr. 17, 1906 633,136 France Oct. 22, 1927 905,544 France Apr. 23, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No, 2,861,776 November 25, 1958 Herbert L Magill It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column 22, line 51, for "character" read chamber Signed and sealed this 24th day of March 1959.,

SEAL) Attest:

KARL H, AXLINE ROBERT C. WATSON Attesting Olficer Commissioner of Patents

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