Alonso Garcia, 35Glendale, AZ

2007011, May 17, 2007

Nov 17, 2005

11/282230

John Barrett - Mesa AZ, US
Alonso Garcia - Tucson AZ, US
Robert Kime - Chandler AZ, US

F04D 29/08

415170100

The present invention provides a turbine section of an engine that includes a shaft, a plurality of blades extending radially from the shaft, a bearing assembly, a flowpath housing, and a shroud. The bearing assembly is mounted to the shaft adjacent to the plurality of blades. The flowpath housing is coupled to the bearing assembly and includes an inner cylinder, an outer cylinder, and a strut. The inner and outer cylinders each include a strut attachment point between which the strut is coupled, and the outer cylinder includes an outer surface. The shroud is disposed concentric to the outer cylinder and has an inner surface including a groove formed therein that is substantially aligned with the outer cylinder strut attachment point. The groove has a depth that provides and maintains a gap between the outer cylinder outer surface and the shroud inner surface when the flowpath housing is exposed to heat and the strut radially expands.