Test rig design for thermo-mechanical fatigue life assessment of gas turbine blades

In this thesis a test rig for blade life assessment has been designed. The test article is a blade from the first stage of a gas turbine; it is made in DS nickel alloy and shows a polycrystalline zone in the first cooling hole at the base of the trailing edge. To assure test rig’s performances in term of strength, stiffness and service life Finite Element Methods have been widely used (i.e. large multi-body contact problems, anisotropic and temperature-dependent material properties). The test rig will be used to determine life/residual life of blades with/without polycrystalline defects; this can show if and how this defects reduce components’ life. Results from these tests are also useful to develop, validate or tune life assessment models