In various places in gas turbines, temperatures of many hundreds of degrees are encountered, placing severe strain on materials. To withstand these, various solutions have been implemented by gas turbine manufacturers, including the use of materials that can perform at high temperatures and the use of extensive cooling systems in the hottest areas of gas turbines.
Some of the hottest and most hostile environments in gas turbines are found adjacent to the hot gas flow in the compressor and the turbine. As a result, the blades and vanes used in these regions include cooling systems to reduce the blade/vane (rotating blade/stationary blade) temperature.
An example of a vane cooling system can be seen in EP 2256297 of Alstom Technology Ltd. While this provides effective cooling to the vane, it has been appreciated that further improvements can be made.
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