Columbia Technology Ventures

Radiation-shielding thermal barrier coating for improved gas turbine efficiency

This technology is a multilayer thermal barrier coating that can decrease the radiative load on underlying metal substrates by almost two orders of magnitude, reducing cooling and increasing efficiency of coated gas turbines.

Unmet Need: Method to shield turbines from thermal radiation emitted by combustion gases

Current state-of-the-art thermal barrier coatings that provide thermal resistance and enhance the durability of metal parts in gas turbines do not effectively shield from the thermal radiation emitted by combustion gases. This limits the maximum turbine inlet temperature and, thus, the efficiency of gas turbines.

The Technology: Thermal barrier coating that shields radiation to improve turbine efficiency

This technology is a multilayer thermal barrier coating that can enhance the efficiency of gas turbines by shielding thermal radiation emitted by the combustion gases within. The coating is comprised of multiple layers of thin films that shield the metal them from both visible and infrared thermal radiation wavelengths. The coating reflects most of the thermal radiation from combustion gases at temperatures around 2000 K to decrease the radiative load on underlying metal substrates by almost two orders of magnitude. This leads to reduced cooling and greater efficiency of coated gas turbines.

Applications:

  • Thermal barrier coating (TBC) for gas turbines
  • TBC for aircraft jet engines, commercial or military
  • TBC for generators and boilers in power plants (land and marine)
  • Coating for surfaces on space shuttles, rockets, and satellites

Advantages:

  • Reduces radiative thermal load by almost two orders of magnitude on metal substrates
  • Reduces cooling and improves efficiency of gas turbines
  • Fabricated by industry-standard film deposition techniques
  • Cost effective

Lead Inventor:

Arvind Narayanaswamy, Ph.D.

Patent Information:

Patent Pending

Related Publications:

Tech Ventures Reference: