Turbine tip shroud removal feature

Abstract

A tip shroud, comprising a plurality of tip shoes encircling a rotor assembly, in a turbine may deform due to thermal gradients experienced during operation of the turbine. This can make it difficult to remove the tip shroud during disassembly of the turbine. In an embodiment, to facilitate consistent and reliable removal of the tip shroud during each disassembly of the turbine, one or more, including potentially all, of the tip shoes of a tip shroud may be provided with one or more radially protruding puller hooks. Each puller hook enables an axial force to be transferred by one or more tools to an axially inner surface of the puller hook, to thereby produce axial movement of the tip shoe out of the tip shroud.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A tip shoe comprising:
 a body with an upstream end and a downstream end, relative to a longitudinal axis; and   at least one puller hook protruding from the downstream end of the body along a radial axis that is orthogonal to the longitudinal axis.   
     
     
         2 . The tip shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one puller hook comprises two or more puller hooks, separated by a distance along a circumference of the body of the tip shoe. 
     
     
         3 . The tip shoe of  claim 2 , further comprising a radial aperture between a first one of the two or more puller hooks and a second one of the two or more puller hooks, wherein the radial aperture is configured to receive a radially oriented pin. 
     
     
         4 . The tip shoe of  claim 2 , wherein the at least one puller hook consists of two puller hooks. 
     
     
         5 . The tip shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the tip shoe consists of a single continuous puller hook. 
     
     
         6 . The tip shoe of  claim 5 , wherein the single continuous puller hook extends along an entire circumference of the body of the tip shoe. 
     
     
         7 . The tip shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the at least one puller hook protrudes radially outward from the body. 
     
     
         8 . A tip shroud comprising a plurality of the tip shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of tip shoes are joined into an annulus around the longitudinal axis. 
     
     
         9 . A turbine comprising:
 one or more rotor assemblies;   a tip shroud encircling at least one of the one or more rotor assemblies and concentric with the at least one rotor assembly around a longitudinal axis of the turbine,   wherein the tip shroud includes a plurality of tip shoes, and each of the plurality of tip shoes comprises a body with an upstream end and a downstream end, relative to the longitudinal axis, and
 at least one puller hook protruding from the downstream end of the body along a radial axis that is orthogonal to the longitudinal axis. 
   
     
     
         10 . The turbine of  claim 9 , comprising a plurality of rotor assemblies, and a plurality of the tip shroud, wherein each of the plurality of tip shrouds encircles one of the plurality of rotor assemblies and is concentric with the one rotor assembly. 
     
     
         11 . The turbine of  claim 10 ,
 wherein a first one of the plurality of tip shrouds encircles a first one of the plurality of rotor assemblies representing a first stage of the turbine, and   wherein a second one of the plurality of tip shrouds encircles a second one of the plurality of rotor assemblies representing a second stage of the turbine.   
     
     
         12 . The turbine of  claim 11 , wherein the at least one puller hook of each of the plurality of tip shoes in the first tip shroud comprises two or more puller hooks, separated by a distance along a circumference of the body of the tip shoe. 
     
     
         13 . The turbine of  claim 12 , wherein each of the plurality of tip shoes in the first tip shroud comprises a radial aperture between a first one of the two or more puller hooks and a second one of the two or more puller hooks, wherein the radial aperture is configured to receive a radially oriented pin. 
     
     
         14 . The turbine of  claim 12 , wherein the at least one puller hook of each of the plurality of tip shoes in the first tip shroud consists of two puller hooks. 
     
     
         15 . The turbine of  claim 12 , wherein the at least one puller hook of each of the plurality of tip shoes in the second tip shroud consists of a single continuous puller hook. 
     
     
         16 . The turbine of  claim 15 , wherein the single continuous puller hook of each of the plurality of tip shoes in the second tip shroud extends along an entire circumference of the body of each of the plurality of tip shoes in the second tip shroud. 
     
     
         17 . The turbine of  claim 9 , wherein the at least one puller hook of each of the plurality of tip shoes protrudes radially outward from the downstream end of the body. 
     
     
         18 . A gas turbine engine comprising:
 a compressor;   a combustor downstream from the compressor; and   the turbine of  claim 11 , downstream from the combustor.   
     
     
         19 . A method of removing a tip shoe from a turbine, the tip shoe comprising a body and at least one puller hook protruding from the body along a radial axis that is orthogonal to a longitudinal axis, the method comprising:
 placing a first end of a tool in contact with an axially inner surface of the at least one puller hook; and   applying a force at a second end of the tool that transfers force to the axially inner surface of the at least one puller hook to move the tip shoe in a first axial direction that is parallel to the longitudinal axis.   
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 19 , wherein the tool comprises a pry bar, and wherein the method further comprises applying the force to the second end of the pry bar in a second axial direction that is opposite to the first axial direction.