Method for manufacturing a TiAl blade of a turbine engine

Abstract

A method for manufacturing a titanium aluminide blade of a turbine engine, including production of a titanium aluminide ingot, extrusion of the ingot through an opening in a die having one main arm and at least one side arm, such as to obtain a extruded ingot having the shape of a bar with a cross-section having one main arm and at least one side arm substantially perpendicular to the main arm, transverse cutting of the extruded ingot such as to obtain sections of extruded ingot, forging of each section of extruded ingot such as to obtain a turbine engine blade.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a turbine engine blade, made of titanium aluminide, comprising: forming a titanium aluminide ingot; extruding the titanium aluminide ingot through an opening of a die, the opening having a main slot and at least one side slot which extends from one of the ends of the main slot substantially perpendicular to said main slot, so as to obtain an extruded ingot having the shape of a bar with a cross-section having a main branch and at least one side branch substantially perpendicular to the main branch; transverse cutting of the extruded ingot so as to obtain sections of extruded ingot; forging of each section of extruded ingot so as to obtain a turbine engine blade, wherein said forging is carried out in hot dies with a temperature comprised between 600 and 950 C., wherein the titanium aluminide ingot is formed by powder spraying, said method further comprising cladding the titanium aluminide ingot prior to said extruding and stripping between said extruding and the forging.

2. The method for manufacturing a turbine engine blade according to claim 1, wherein the opening of the die has a single side slot which extends from one of the ends of the main slot, perpendicular to said main slot, so as to obtain the extruded ingot in the form of a bar with a cross-section having the main branch and a single side branch which extends from one of the ends of the main branch, perpendicular to said main branch.

3. The method for manufacturing a turbine engine blade according to claim 1, wherein the opening of the die has a first side slot winch extends from one end of the main slot, substantially perpendicular to said main slot, and a second side slot which extends from the other end of the main slot substantially perpendicular to said main slot, so as to obtain the extruded ingot in the form of a bar having a cross-section having the main branch, a first side branch extending substantially perpendicular to the main branch from one end thereof, and a second side branch extending substantially perpendicular to the main branch from the other end thereof.

4. The method for manufacturing a turbine engine blade according to claim 1, said forging being carried out in the open air.

5. The method for manufacturing a turbine engine blade according to claim 1, further including machining after said forging.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

(1) Other objectives, features and advantages will be revealed by the detailed description which follows, with reference to the drawings given by way of non-limiting illustration among which:

(2) FIG. 1a, discussed above, shows a turbine engine moving blade.

(3) FIG. 1b, discussed above, shows the different TiAl forming methods of the prior art.

(4) FIG. 2a, illustrates the flow stress of an ingot made of 48-2-2 alloy, as a function of the deformation exerted, for an ingot prior to extrusion (dotted line) and for an extruded ingot (solid line).

(5) FIG. 2b is a section of an ingot made of 48-2-2 alloy prior to extrusion.

(6) FIG. 2c is a section of an ingot made of 48-2-2 allow after extrusion.

(7) FIG. 3 illustrates the different steps of the method according to the invention, based on several possibilities.

(8) FIGS. 4a to 4f illustrate the first embodiment of the method according to the invention in particular,

(9) FIG. 4a shows an ingot prior to extrusion;

(10) FIG. 4b shows a front view of an ingot;

(11) FIG. 4c shows an ingot after extrusion;

(12) FIG. 4d shows an ingot cut into sections;

(13) FIG. 4e illustrates schematically the forging step;

(14) FIG. 4f shows the ingot section after the forging step.

(15) FIGS. 5a to 5e illustrate the second embodiment of the method according to the invention. In particular,

(16) FIG. 5a shows an ingot before extrusion;

(17) FIG. 5b shows a front view of the die;

(18) FIG. 5c shows an ingot after extrusion;

(19) FIG. 5d shows an ingot cut into sections;

(20) FIG. 5e illustrates schematically the forging step;

(21) FIG. 5f shows the ingot section after the forging step.

(22) FIGS. 6a to 6d illustrate the extrusion step, FIGS. 6a and 6b illustrating extrusion without cladding and FIGS. 6c and 6d illustrating extrusion with cladding.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(23) As illustrated in FIG. 3, the method for manufacturing a turbine engine blade includes steps of: E1 formation of a titanium aluminide ingot 1; E2 extrusion of the ingot 1; E3 transverse cutting of the extruded ingot 2 so as to obtain sections of extruded ingot; E4 forging of the sections 3 of extruded ingot so as to obtain a turbine engine blade 4.
Formation of an Ingot 1

(24) Step E1 consists of forming an ingot 1 in titanium aluminide.

(25) The method can be applied to any type of titanium aluminides.

(26) In particular, the method can be applied to the Ti-48Al-2Cr-2Nb (atomic %)) alloy, hereafter denoted TiAl 48-2-2. II constitutes an acceptable compromise in terms of mechanical properties.

(27) In particular, the method can be applied to so-called beta alloys of the type represented by the formula TiAl(a)Nb(b)Mo(c)B(d) in which a, b, c and d are expressed in atomic percentage, a varying between approximately 44 and approximately 48, b varying between approximately 2 and approximately 6, c varying between approximately 0 and approximately 2 and d varying between approximately 0.01 and approximately 1.0. These alloys have excellent strength and hardness.

(28) The method can also be applied to alloys of the type represented by the formula TiAlCrNbSiFeMoZr, such as for example an alloy containing atomically 44 to 49% aluminum, 0.5 to 3% zirconium, 0.5 to 3% iron, 0.5 to 2% molybdenum, 0.2 to 0.5% silicon, 0 to 3% niobium, the complement to reach 100% being titanium and inevitable impurities.

(29) The ingot is typically prepared by liquid metal casting (method currently called VIM for vacuum induction melting). During liquid metal casting, different constituents intended to form the alloy are melted by heating, then the molten metal bath is cast into a container under vacuum. The ingot 1 is typically of cylindrical shape with a circular cross-section. For this purpose, the container has a hollow cylindrical shape.

(30) In the case where the ingot is made by casting in a container under vacuum, the structure obtained is a relatively heterogeneous solidification structure with a very large cast grain size (on the order of 300-500 m). In this case, extrusion will homogenize and refine the initial coarse grain structure until small grain size on the order of 50 m is obtained.

(31) Beta type alloys have a tendency to segregate chemically during their preparation.

(32) Extrusion allows the grain size to be acted upon but has no impact on the chemical homogeneity of the alloy. That is why, for the latter, it can be attractive to start with powders in order to form an intermediate product, prior to forging, that is more homogeneous chemically. To this end, the liquid metal casting is followed by powder spraying. This method consists of spraying a stream of material obtained from a bath of melted metal. The droplets of material solidify in an atomization chamber thanks to convective exchange with the surrounding gas, typically argon, and yield a powder. This is collected at the atomization gas outlet and placed in a cladding 7, which can be machined in a different material from that of the powders, such as stainless steel for example. The cladding 7 typically has a hollow cylindrical shape. The use of powder metallurgy makes it possible to correct the homogenization difficulties of segregating alloys. All the operations for handling the powder, filling the cladding as well as its sealing, must be carried out under a neutral atmosphere or under vacuum so as to limit the contamination of the latter by oxygen. The combined use of a fine powder and extrusion allows bars to be obtained having a chemically homogeneous microstructure and having small grain size. In the case where the ingot is prepared by powder spraying, the extrusion step allows grouping into a single step the compaction of the powder, its sintering, its forming and especially retaining a fine microstructure, which can be grown if necessary.

(33) Extrusion of the Ingot 1

(34) During step E2, the ingot is subjected to forming by extrusion. Extrusion allows the ingot to be formed by compression. The ingot formed by extraction is called the extruded ingot 2.

(35) Step E2 consists of having the ingot (possibly made ductile by heating to the so-called extrusion temperature) pass through an opening 52 of a die 53, as illustrated in FIGS. 6a and 6b. As illustrated in FIG. 6a, the ingot 1, generally placed in a container 51, is pushed into the die 53 by means of a press 54, typically a hydraulic press, a pump or an extruder screw, so as to make it remerge from the opening 52 by exerting thrust. Beginning with a certain force exerted by the press 54, there is plastic flow of the ingot through the opening 52 of the die 53, as illustrated in FIG. 6b. The extruded ingot 2 therefore has a shape with a transverse section corresponding to the shape of the opening 52.

(36) Extrusion makes it possible to homogenize and very strongly refine the structure of the alloy, consequently to reduce the flow stress, namely the stress necessary to cause plastic deformation of the alloy.

(37) As can be seen in FIG. 2b, which is a section of an ingot made of 48-2-2 alloy prior to extrusion, and FIG. 2c, which is a section of an ingot made of 48-2-2 alloy after extrusion, extrusion allows refining the structure of the alloy, i.e. reducing the size of the grains of the alloy. The results of the inventors, illustrated in FIG. 2a, show that the extrusion step allows reducing by 30 to 40% the flow stress of the 48-2-2 alloy. The inventors have obtained similar results with other TiAl alloys and especially with a Ti-45Al-2.4Si alloy.

(38) Extrusion allows, at the same time, giving an extruded ingot the shape defined by the shape of the opening 52 of the die 53. The shape of the opening 52 of the die 53 is selected so that the shape of the extruded ingot approximates that of the final part, which allows a reduction in the deformation necessary during the final step of conventional forging. It is then possible to obtain by conventional forging a part near the shape of the final part, and thus to delimit the final machining step.

(39) To this end, the ingot 1 is extruded in a die, the opening 52 whereof has a main slot 55 and at least one side slot 56. The side slot 56 extends perpendicularly to the main slot 55, from one of the ends thereof, and both sides thereof, as illustrated in FIGS. 4b and 5b. An extruded ingot 2 is thus obtained having the shape of a bar with a cross-section having a main branch 25 and at least one side branch 26 perpendicular to the main branch 25, as illustrated in FIGS. 4c and 5c.

(40) Here, the side branch is substantially perpendicular to the main slot. However, a side branch slightly inclined with respect to the main branch can be considered, this inclination possibly being a few degrees to ten degrees or thirty degrees.

(41) In a first embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 4a to 4f, the opening 52 of the die 53 has a main slot 55 and a single side slot 56 which extends from one of the ends of the main slot 55 perpendicular to it, as illustrated in FIG. 4b. In other words, the opening 52 of the die 53 has the shape of a T. The ingot is extruded so as to obtain an extruded ingot 2 in the form of a bar with a cross-section in the shape of a T, having a main branch 25 and a side branch 26 perpendicular to the main branch 25, as illustrated in FIG. 4c. The vane 30 will be forged in the main branch 25 while the root 10 of the blade will be forged in the side branch 26.

(42) In a second embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 5a to 5f, the opening 52 of the die 53 has a main slot 55, a first side slot 56 which extends from one end of the main slot 55 perpendicular to it, and a second side slot 57 which extends from the other end of the main slot 55 perpendicular to it, as illustrated in FIG. 5b. In other words, the opening 52 of the die 53 has an H-shaped section. The ingot is extruded so as to obtain an extruded ingot 2 in the form of a bar having an H-shaped section, having a main branch 25, a first side branch 26, extending perpendicular to the main branch 25 from one end thereof, and a second side branch 27 extending perpendicular to the main branch 25 from the other end thereof, as illustrated in FIG. 5c. As in the first embodiment, the vane 30 will be forged in the main branch 25 while the root 10 of the blade will be forged in the first side branch 26. In addition, the heel 20 of the blade will be forged in the second side branch 26.

(43) For the TiAl 48-2-2 alloy, extrusion is a relatively delicate step. Tests of unclad extrusion of ingots formed by casting often show deep cracks in certain zones of the bar. In this case, the ingot 1 is advantageously surrounded by a cladding 7, made of stainless steel for example, during a cladding step E1, so as to reduce parietal cooling of the ingot during extrusion and thus avoid deformation at a temperature that is too low locally which can cause cracks. The ingot 1 surrounded by its cladding 7 is raised to the extrusion temperature prior to passing through the die 53 through an extrusion cup 51. In this case, after extrusion, it is necessary to provide a stripping step E6 for the extruded ingot 2 which consists of eliminating the cladding, for example by turning, before forging. It can also be advantageous to eliminate the cladding material by chemical removal.

(44) For beta type alloys on the other hand, less loaded with Al but with more Nb and Mo loading, conferring on them better forgeability than 48-2-2, extrusion can be carried out without cladding.

(45) Heat after-Treatment

(46) Depending on the mechanical properties sought for the functionality of the final part, a conventional heat treatment can be necessary for regenerating a controlled microstructure. In fact, the structures after forging will be fine or very fine. Certain properties, such as creep, will not be optimal after forging.

(47) Cutting the Extruded Ingot into Sections

(48) During step E3, the ingot is cut into sections. To this end, the ingot is cut along transverse planes by conventional metal cutting techniques such a water-jet cutting, laser cutting, or wire cutting.

(49) Forging

(50) As explained above, extrusion makes it possible, prior to forging, to refine the structure of TiAl alloys so as to reduce the flow stress of the alloy, namely the stress necessary to cause plastic deformation of the alloy. It is then possible to employ, after extrusion, conventional forging means allowing a part near the final shape of the blade to be obtained, which was not possible in the prior art. What is meant by conventional forging is forging in the open air and with a hot die, unlike isothermal forging.

(51) Forging consists of applying a considerable force to the extruded ingot 2 so as to force it to assume the shape of the final part, namely the turbine engine blade.

(52) Forging is carried out by applying a considerable force to the extruded ingot 2 by means of an impact device 41, such as a die moved hydraulically at a controlled speed, and a support 42, such as an anvil or a fixed die, as illustrated in FIGS. 4e, and 5e.

(53) The extruded ingot 2 having a cross-section shape having a main branch 25 and at least one side branch 26 perpendicular to the main branch 25, the vane 10 of the blade is forged in the main branch 25, and the root 10 of the blade is formed by forging in the side branch 26. If the cross section of the extruded ingot has two side branches 25 and 27, the root 10 of the blade will be formed by forging in one of the side branches 25, and the heel 20 in the other side branch 26. Thus, the shape of the extruded ingot 2 approximates that of the final part 4, which allows a reduction in the deformation necessary during the forging step.

(54) The blades 4 obtained by forging are more resistant to mechanical stresses because the deformation of the metals generates a large number of metallurgical phenomena, both at the microscopic and the macroscopic levels.

(55) In particular, extrusion causes, due to the shape of the extruded ingot, an orientation of the lamellar grains of the alloy, through the influence of the work of deformation, in the direction perpendicular to the loading axis of the blade. The orientation of the lamellar grains of the alloy in the direction perpendicular to the loading axis of the blade allows an increase in the resistance of the blade to mechanical stresses to which it will be subjected in operation.

(56) Forging need not be isothermal (isothermal forging requires that tooling be brought to temperatures for heating the metal to be forged greater than 1000) and can be carried out in the open air on hot dies with a tooling temperature typically comprised between 600 and 950 C.