Enclosure for power generation system   

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to power generation systems, and more particularly to enclosures for housing power generation systems.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Many varieties of power generation systems are utilized in fields such as power generation. For example, one type of power generation system is a gas turbine system. A conventional gas turbine system includes a compressor, a combustor, and a turbine. In a conventional gas turbine system, compressed air is provided from the compressor to the combustor. The air entering the combustor is mixed with fuel and combusted. Hot gases of combustion flow from the combustor to the turbine to drive the gas turbine system and generate power.

Power generation systems, such as gas turbine systems, are generally housed in enclosures which include various features for protecting and maintaining the systems. A typical prior art enclosure includes a roof bolted to four sidewalls about the periphery of the roof with a plurality of nut/bolt fasteners. The roof and sidewalls thus form a generally hollow, rectangular enclosure.

Typically, when the system requires maintenance, the roof of the enclosure must be removed to access various system components, such as the turbine casing, rotor, and combustor cans of a gas turbine system. However, before the roof may be removed for maintenance, it must be unfastened from the sidewalls. Unfastening the large number of nut/bolt fasteners that surround the periphery of the roof, and then refastening the nut/bolt fasteners after maintenance is complete, is a time-consuming, inefficient process. Additionally, the roof must be aligned with the sidewalls after it is replaced before fastening the roof and sidewalls together, adding more time to the maintenance process. Further, maintenance crews may have to wait for a relatively long period of time after the system has been shut down, to allow the system and enclosure to cool down, before beginning to unfasten the nut/bolt fasteners. This leads to further inefficiencies in the maintenance process. The longer duration of this maintenance period could lead to increased losses in power and revenue generation from the system.

Thus, an improved enclosure for a power generation system would be desired in the art. For example, an enclosure that provides for relatively faster fastening and unfastening of the roof to the sidewalls would be advantageous. Additionally, an enclosure that includes features for quickly aligning the roof and sidewalls would be desired.

Aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the following description, or may be obvious from the description, or may be learned through practice of the invention.

In one embodiment, an enclosure for a power generation system is disclosed. The enclosure includes a plurality of sidewalls and a roof extending generally transverse to the plurality of sidewalls. The enclosure further includes a plurality of latches, each of the plurality of latches associated with one of the roof or a sidewall, and a plurality of engagement features, each of the plurality of engagement features associated with the other of the roof or a sidewall. Each of the plurality of latches is configured to engage one of the plurality of engagement features to releasably fasten the roof to the plurality of sidewalls.

These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following description and appended claims. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A full and enabling disclosure of the present invention, including the best mode thereof, directed to one of ordinary skill in the art, is set forth in the specification, which makes reference to the appended figures, in which:

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of an enclosure according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is an assembled perspective view of the enclosure shown in FIG. 1 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a front view of a latch and an engagement feature according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view along the line 4-4 of FIG. 2 illustrating a latch and an engagement feature according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a front view of a latch and an engagement feature according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view along the line 6-6 of FIG. 2 illustrating a latch and an engagement feature according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view along the line 7-7 of FIG. 1 illustrating a shear pin and a bore hole according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a sectional view along the line 8-8 of FIG. 1 illustrating a shear pin and a bore hole according to another embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 9 is a sectional view along the line 9-9 of FIG. 2 illustrating a mechanical fastening device fastening adjacent roof sections together according to one embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference now will be made in detail to embodiments of the invention, one or more examples of which are illustrated in the drawings. Each example is provided by way of explanation of the invention, not limitation of the invention. In fact, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. For instance, features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment can be used with another embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers such modifications and variations as come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, one embodiment of an enclosure 10 for a power generation system, such as a gas turbine system (not shown) is illustrated. It should be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to gas turbine systems, but rather that any suitable power generation system, including, for example, steam turbine systems, is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. The enclosure 10 may generally include a plurality of sidewalls 12 and a roof 14. As shown, in exemplary embodiments, the enclosure includes four sidewalls, such as a forward sidewall 20, an aft sidewall 22, a righthand sidewall 24, and a lefthand sidewall 26. However, it should be understood that the enclosure 10 of the present disclosure is not limited to four sidewalls 12. Rather, any suitable number of sidewalls 12, including sidewalls 12 greater than or less than four, is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. The sidewalls 12 may further, in exemplary embodiments, extend generally perpendicular to the ground. However, it should be understood that sidewalls 12 extending at any angle with respect to the ground are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

The roof 14 may extend generally transverse to the sidewalls 12. For example, the roof 14 may be generally perpendicular to the sidewalls 12, or may extend at a slight upward and/or downward angle between various of the sidewalls 12. Further, the roof 14 may include a plurality of roof sections 28. For example, in exemplary embodiments, the roof 14 may include two roof sections 28. However, it should be understood that the enclosure 10 of the present disclosure is not limited to two roof sections 28. Rather, any suitable number of roof sections 28, including roof sections 28 greater than or less than two, is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

The enclosure 10 according to the present disclosure may include various features that provide for relatively fast fastening and unfastening of the roof 14 to the sidewalls 12. For example, the enclosure 10 may include a plurality of latches 30 and a plurality of engagement features 32. Each engagement feature 32 may be coupled with a latch 30. Each of the latches 30 may be associated with the roof 14 or one of the sidewalls 12. Further, each of the engagement features 32 may be associated with the roof 14 or one of the sidewalls 12. Thus, for latches 30 associated with the roof 14, the mating engagement feature 32 that the latch 30 is coupled to may be associated with a sidewall 12. For latches 30 associated with a sidewall 12, the mating engagement feature 32 that the latch 30 is coupled to may be associated with the roof 14.

Each of the latches 30 may be configured to engage the mating engagement feature 32 that the latch 30 is coupled with. For example, the latches 30 and engagement features 32 may be disposed about the periphery of the roof 14 and about the top edges of the sidewalls 12, and may further be positioned to engage each other, as discussed below. Upon engagement of each latch 30 to an engagement feature 32, the latch 30 and engagement feature 32 may releasably fasten the roof 14 to a sidewall 12.

It should be understood that all of the latches 30 need not be associated with only the roof 14 or only the sidewalls 12, and that all of the engagement features 32 need not be associated with only the other of the roof 14 or the sidewalls 12. For example, any portion of the latches 30, such as one or more latches 30, may be associated with various of the sidewalls 12, while the remainder of the latches 30 may be associated with the roof 14. Further, any portion of the engagement features 32, such as one or more engagement feature 32, may be associated various of the sidewalls 12, while the remainder of the latches 30 may be associated with the roof 14. In some embodiments, for example, one or more sidewalls 12 may include only latches 30 or only engagement features 32 thereon, while other sidewalls 12 include only the other of latches 30 or engagement features 32 thereon. In one exemplary embodiment, the righthand sidewall 24 and lefthand sidewall 26 may include latches 30 thereon, such that a portion of the latches 30 are associated with the righthand sidewall 24 and lefthand sidewall 26 and the remainder of the latches 30 are associated with the roof 14 adjacent the forward sidewall 20 and the aft sidewall 22. Further, the forward sidewall 20 and aft sidewall 22 may include engagement features 32 thereon, such that a portion of the engagement features 32 are associated with the forward sidewall 20 and aft sidewall 22 and the remainder of the engagement features 32 are associated with the roof 14 adjacent the righthand sidewall 24 and lefthand sidewall 26. As discussed above, however, it should be understood that each of the sidewalls 12 may include latches 30 and/or engagement features 32, and that the roof 14 may include the other of the latches 30 and/or engagement features 32 with respect to each of the various sidewalls 12.

As discussed above, in some embodiments, a latch 30 may be associated with a sidewall 12, while a mating engagement feature 32 may be associated with the roof 14. In one exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the latch 30 may include a U-bolt 40 configured to engage the respective mating engagement feature 32. The latch 30 may further include a handle 42 pivotable about a pivot point 44 to releasably fasten the latch 30 to the engagement feature 32. Thus, the latch 30 may be pivotable to releasably fasten the roof 14 to the respective sidewall 12. The U-bolt 40 and handle 42 may be mounted to a mount plate 46, and the mount plate 46 may be mounted to the sidewall 12. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, in one embodiment, the sidewall 12 may include an upper I-beam 48. An L-beam 50 may be mounted thereto, such as through welding, mechanically fastening, or any other suitable mounting process, and the mount plate 46 may be mounted to the L-beam 50. The engagement feature 32 may include a hook 52 configured to engage the respective latch 30, such as the U-bolt 40. The hook 52 may be mounted to a mount plate 54, which may be mounted to an edge 56 of the roof 14. The latch 30 and engagement feature 32 may be positioned such that the U-bolt 40 and hook 52 may engage each other. Thus, in operation, the U-bolt 40 may be moved to engage the hook 52, and the handle 42 may then be pivoted to releasably fasten the roof 14 to the respective sidewall 12.

It should be understood, however, that latch 30 and engagement feature 32 are not limited to the embodiment as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and described above. For example, the latch 30 need not include a U-bolt 40, but rather may include, for example, any suitable bolt, hook, protrusion, electromagnetic device, or any other suitable latching mechanism that provides for engagement of an engagement feature 32 and releasable fastening of the roof 14 to the sidewall 12. Additionally, the engagement feature 32 need not include a hook 52, but rather may include, for example, any suitable bolt, protrusion, depression or bore hole, ring, electromagnetic device, or any other suitable engagement mechanism that provides for engagement of a latch 30 and releasable fastening of the roof 14 to the sidewall 12. Further, the latch 30 need not be pivotable to releasably fasten the roof 14 to the sidewalls 12. For example, the latch 30 may include a clamping mechanism, a pneumatic or hydraulic mechanism, or any other suitable apparatus for releasably fastening the roof 14 to the sidewalls 12.

Additionally, the construction of the roof 14 and sidewalls 12 is not limited to the embodiment as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and described above. For example, the sidewall 12 need not include an I-beam 48 and L-beam 50. Rather, any suitable sidewall 12 and roof 14 constructions which allow for mounting of a latch 30 and engagement feature 32 as discussed herein is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

Further, it should be understood that the latch 30 as described above and shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 need not be mounted to the sidewall 12, and the engagement feature 32 as described above and shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 need not be mounted to the roof 14. For example, in an alternative embodiment, the latch 30 may be mounted to the roof 14 and the engagement feature 32 may be mounted to the sidewall 12.

As discussed above, in some embodiments, an engagement feature 32 may be associated with a sidewall 12, while a mating latch 30 may be associated with the roof 14. In one exemplary embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the latch 30 may include a U-bolt 60 configured to engage the respective mating engagement feature 32. The latch 30 may further include a handle 62 pivotable about a pivot point 64 to releasably fasten the latch 30 to the engagement feature 32. Thus, the latch 30 may be pivotable to releasably fasten the roof 14 to the respective sidewall 12. The U-bolt 60 and handle 62 may be mounted to a mount plate 66, and the mount plate 66 may be mounted to the top surface 68 of the roof 14. The engagement feature 32 may include a hook 72 configured to engage the respective latch 30, such as the U-bolt 60. The hook 72 may be mounted to a mount plate 74, which may be mounted to an outer surface 76 of the sidewall 12. The latch 30 and engagement feature 32 may be positioned such that the U-bolt 60 and hook 72 may engage each other. Thus, in operation, the U-bolt 60 may be moved to engage the hook 72, and the handle 62 may then be pivoted to releasably fasten the roof 14 to the respective sidewall 12.

It should be understood, however, that latch 30 and engagement feature 32 are not limited to the embodiment as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 and described above. For example, the latch 30 need not include a U-bolt 60, but rather may include, for example, any suitable bolt, hook, protrusion, electromagnetic device, or any other suitable latching mechanism that provides for engagement of an engagement feature 32 and releasable fastening of the roof 14 to the sidewall 12. Additionally, the engagement feature 32 need not include a hook 72, but rather may include, for example, any suitable bolt, protrusion, depression or bore hole, ring, electromagnetic device, or any other suitable engagement mechanism that provides for engagement of a latch 30 and releasable fastening of the roof 14 to the sidewall 12. Further, the latch 30 need not be pivotable to releasably fasten the roof 14 to the sidewalls 12. For example, the latch 30 may include a clamping mechanism, a pneumatic or hydraulic mechanism, or any other suitable apparatus for releasably fastening the roof 14 to the sidewalls 12.

Additionally, as discussed above, any suitable sidewall 12 and roof 14 constructions which allow for mounting of a latch 30 and engagement feature 32 as discussed herein are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

Further, it should be understood that the latch 30 as described above and shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 need not be mounted to the roof 14, and the engagement feature 32 as described above and shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 need not be mounted to the sidewall 12. For example, in an alternative embodiment, the latch 30 may be mounted to the sidewall 12 and the engagement feature 32 may be mounted to the roof 14.

Notably, in the exemplary embodiment as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 and described above, the latch 30, and particularly the handle 62, is mounted in a position adjacent to the top surface 68 of the roof 14. Thus, beneficially, latches 30 and engagement features 32 according to this exemplary embodiment may be implemented on enclosures 10 in areas where there is little clearance between a sidewall 12 of the enclosure 10 and a sidewall 12 of an adjacent enclosure 10 or other structure. For example, in some embodiments, one or more of the forward sidewall 20, aft sidewall 22, righthand sidewall 24, and/or lefthand sidewall 26 of the enclosure 10 may be positioned relatively close to an adjacent structure, such that there is little clearance therebetween for a worker to engage and releasably fasten a latch 30 mounted to the sidewall 12. In these embodiments, latches 30 may be mounted to the top surface 68 of the roof proximate these sidewalls 12 to allow a worker to relatively quickly and easily engage and releasably fasten the latches 30 and engagement features 32.

The enclosure 10 according to the present disclosure may further include various features that provide for quickly aligning the roof 14 and sidewalls 12. For example, as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 7, and 8, the enclosure 10 may include a plurality of shear pins 80 and may define a plurality of bore holes 82. Each bore hole 82 may be coupled with a shear pin 80. Each of the shear pins 80 may be associated with the roof 14 or one of the sidewalls 12. Further, each of the bore holes 82 may be associated with the roof 14 or one of the sidewalls 12. Thus, for shear pins 80 associated with the roof 14, the mating bore hole 82 that the shear pin 80 is coupled to may be associated with a sidewall 12. For shear pins 80 associated with a sidewall 12, the mating bore hole 82 that the shear pin 80 is coupled to may be associated with the roof 14.

Each of the bore holes 82 may be configured to accept the mating shear pin 80 that the bore hole 82 is coupled with. For example, the shear pins 80 and bore holes 82 may be disposed and defined about the periphery of the roof 14 and about the upper portions of the sidewalls 12. As discussed below, upon acceptance by a bore hole 82 of a mating shear pin 80 therein, the shear pin 80 and bore hole 82 may operate to align the roof 14 with a respective sidewall 12 that includes the shear pins 80 and/or defines the bore holes 82.

As mentioned above, the shear pins 80 and bore holes 82 may operate to align the roof 14 with the sidewalls 12. The shear pins 80, for example, may have any suitable cross-sectional profile. For example, a shear pin 80 may have a circular or oval cross-sectional profile, rectangular or square profile, triangular profile, or a profile having any suitable polygonal shape. Further, in some embodiments, the cross-sectional profile of a shear pin 80 may be constant throughout the length of the shear pin 80. In alternative embodiments, the shear pins 80 may taper at least partially between a base 84 and a tip 86 of the shear pin 80. For example, as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 7, and 8, the shear pin 80 may be a generally conical shear pin 80. Alternatively, the shear pin 80 may be pyramidal, or may have any other suitable tapering structure.

The bore holes 82 may be generally configured to mate with, and thus accept, the shear pins 80. Thus, the bore holes 82 may have cross-sectional profiles generally equal to the cross-sectional profiles of the shear pins 80. For example, in embodiments wherein the cross-sectional profile of a shear pin 80 is constant throughout the length of the shear pin 80, the bore hole 82 may have a generally equal cross-sectional profile such that the bore hole 82 may accept the shear pin 80 therein, locating the shear pin 80 and thus aligning the roof 14 with the respective sidewall 12 that includes the shear pin 80 or defines the bore hole 82.

In alternative embodiments wherein a shear pin 80 tapers, the bore hole 82 may be configured to mate with the base 84 of the shear pin 80. Thus, in these embodiments, the bore hole 82 may have a cross-sectional profile generally equal to the cross-sectional profile of the base 84 of the shear pin 80. The bore hole 82 may accept the shear pin 80 therein, locating the shear pin 80 and thus aligning the roof 14 with the respective sidewall 12 that includes the shear pin 80 or defines the bore hole 82. Beneficially, the tapering feature of the shear pin 80 may allow for the correction of misalignments between the shear pin 80 and the bore hole 82 due to, for example, deformation of the roof 14 or a sidewall 12.

As discussed above, each shear pin 80 may be associated with the roof 14 or a sidewall 12, and each mating bore hole 82 may be associated with the other of the roof 14 or a sidewall 12. In some exemplary embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, each of the plurality of shear pins 80 may be associated with a sidewall 12, and the roof 14 may define the plurality of bore holes 82. For example, FIG. 7 illustrates one embodiment of a shear pin 80 associated with a righthand sidewall 24 and a mating bore hole 82 defined in the roof 14. FIG. 8 illustrates one embodiment of a shear pin 80 associated with a forward sidewall 20 and a mating bore hole 82 defined in the roof 14. The shear pins 80 as shown include threaded ends 88 extending from the bases 84 through the sidewalls 20, 24. Nuts 89 are coupled with the threaded ends 88 to mount the shear pins 80 to the sidewalls 20, 24. The mating bore holes 82 are defined in the bottom surface 90 of the roof 14. As shown, when the roof 14 is lowered onto the sidewalls 20, 24, the shear pins 80 may engage the bore holes 82, adjusting, locating, and aligning the roof 14 with the respective sidewalls 20, 24.

It should be understood that the shear pins 80 need not be mounted through the use of threaded ends 88 and nuts 89. For example, the shear pins 80 may be welded, clamped, fastened using any other suitable mechanical fasteners, or otherwise mounted using any suitable mounting device.

It should further be understood that the shear pins 80 and bore holes 82 as described above with respect to the forward sidewall 20 and righthand sidewall 24 may similarly be associated with the aft sidewall 22 and the lefthand sidewall 26. Additionally, as discussed above, any suitable sidewall 12 and roof 14 constructions which allow for mounting of a shear pin 80 and defining of a bore hole 82 as discussed herein are within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

Notably, the shear pins 80 and bore holes 82, in addition to locating the roof 14 with respect to the sidewalls 12, may beneficially provide shear resistance for the roof 14 with respect to the sidewalls 12. For example, the roof 14 of the enclosure 10 may be subjected to various lateral movements resulting from seismic and/or wind loads. As a result of these loads, the roof 14 may tend to shear with respect to the sidewalls 12. However, the provision of shear pins 80 and bore holes 82 may beneficially resist this shear movement, and may thus provide stability and durability to the roof 14 and the enclosure 10 in general.

As discussed above, the roof 14 according to the present disclosure may include a plurality of roof sections 28. In some embodiments, the roof sections 28 may be fastened together. For example, FIG. 9 illustrates one embodiment of the roof 14 of the present disclosure including two roof sections 28. The roof sections 28 may include various components to allow for fastening of the roof sections 28 to each other. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, each of the roof sections 28 may include an L-beam 94 mounted to the roof section 28. The L-beams 94 may be disposed proximate each other. Further, a plurality of mechanical fasteners 96 may be provided, the mechanical fasteners 96 configured to fasten the roof sections 28 together. For example, as shown in FIG. 9, the mechanical fasteners 96 may be nut/bolt combinations. The bolts may extend through the L-beams 94, and the nuts may be threaded onto the bolts, to fasten the adjacent roof sections 28 together. Alternatively, the mechanical fasteners may be, for example, clamps, rivets, screws, latching devices, electromagnetic devices, protrusion/depression combinations or male/female device combinations, or any other suitable mechanical fastening devices. Beneficially, in some embodiments, the mechanical fasteners 96 may be unfastened such that the roof sections 28 may be individually removed from the enclosure. Alternatively, the mechanical fasteners 96 may permanently fasten the roof sections 28 together.

It should be understood that the roof sections 28 need not include L-beams 94. Rather, any suitable roof section 28 construction which allows for fastening of adjacent roof sections 28 together as discussed herein is within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.

Thus, as discussed above, the enclosure 10 of the present disclosure beneficially provides for relatively faster fastening and unfastening of the roof 14 to the sidewalls 12. Further, the enclosure 10, in exemplary embodiments, includes features for quickly aligning the roof 14 and sidewalls 12. Thus, the present enclosure 10 allows for quicker, more efficient maintenance of the power generation system therein.

This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they include structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal languages of the claims.