J47 Ceramic Blades - Turbine Engines: A Closer Look

The turbine blades have had a ceramic thermal barrier coating applied, and now we install them into the J47 engine which will be installed in an F86-F Sabre.

[@spowyou]

its kind of hypnotic how perfect blades fit

[@Scott_C]

Watching the blades get inserted was so satisfying.

[@Blazs120gl]

Thanks for sparing me the comment. :)

[@RCrosbyLyles]

Yeah, but no, really. What is that?

[@ddegn]

I came down to write the same thing.

[@Wonkabar007]

Turbine blades are things of beauty, I got a Harrier Pegasus engine turbine blade, it has pride of place on my mantelpiece.

[@stephensmith799]

Agreed. It is as if they are 'designed by nature'

[@jessesteven3324]

You probably dont give a shit but does someone know of a method to log back into an Instagram account..? I stupidly forgot the password. I love any tips you can give me.

[@arjunterrence4149]

@Jesse Steven instablaster ;)

[@stephensmith799]

@@acbulgin2 The more I look at turbine blades the more sense they make of velocity, fluid dynamics, power transfer etc. They seem ‘truth-telling’ somehow 🤔

[@stephensmith799]

@@acbulgin2 Wonderful observations. Your post is also crafted beautifully. Made my day, though it is night here.

[@jackkatogh]

Bearings so smooth that the weight of a blade being added to one side makes it turn a bit.

[@exodu266]

Jack Bruce yup I was amazed by that

[@GamingAmbienceLive]

perpetual motion

[@alexanderdasko3444]

Lol

[@alexanderdasko3444]

I wonder what kind of bearings those are

[@peteholmes7780]

Amazingly smooth

[@tristandoran601]

That level of precision engineering is so satisfying. From the ceramic coated blades to the sound of instalment matched with perfect balancing it’s just pure bliss to the mechanically inclined individual.

[@AgentJayZ]

@rickey5353 Blades made in 1953 out of high nickel refractory alloy. Coated with ceramic Thermal Barrier Coating by Avanti Aerospace in 2011.

[@nicholasmaude6906]

They were made from some variant of Inconel?

[@mikehermesmeglio]

@@nicholasmaude6906 yes. There are a bunch of names for nickel based super-alloys.

[@tigersharkzh]

Awww, cute little blades. I assembled and serviced industrial turbo pumps for many years, some of the first stage blades were almost a meter long. the biggest was for a gas liquefaction plant on the Sakhalin Islands. It has an axial compressor feeding a radial compressor. The rotor of the axial compressor naked was just on 18 metric tons. Interesting is how the weight scatter on the blades is close to what these little ones are. I love the simple but efficient principles of turbines and how they sound. Thx for the uploads.

[@bonnielariviere6370]

I worked machining these exact parts for g.e. pratt and whitney etc,the man hours to produce these things was huge,the tolerances on fit was at times less than .005 of a thousand.of an inch. Precision machining is no joke at this level.

[@dixonpeter]

I find this video incredibly relaxing when the blades are being installed, that must be one of the most satisfying jobs when resurrecting a jet engine. Love the vids, keep it up!

[@REVIVAL-zq6mb]

Cool to think they were stored since a year before my father was born.. thanks for the video👍

[@deljeenomar789]

watching such amazing video makes everything clear regarding imagine the flow of gas through stator's and rotor's blades,which is much better than reading ,thank you so much for really precipus video that let me imaging the gas flow through blades,and imagine changes of velocity and pressure of gas through rotor and stator blades

[@pantherplatform]

This channel rules! This is what I really want to see, not just compilations of the same recycled videos.

[@Biankowska]

Beautiful. I’m dreaming about that job 😍

[@freeman3320]

This is truly the most fascinating video on the web.

[@blthetube1]

It's a thing of beauty to see a well made machine.

[@enzochoi923]

I love how informational this is!

[@AgentJayZ]

There is a single stage turbine, which extracts sufficient energy from the combustion gas stream to provide the torque required to turn the 12 stage compressor. Turbine blades have a very different aerodynamic function than compressor blades, and their appearance illustrates this difference.

[@user-yv3dx7os9q]

I don’t know why I feel comfortable and relaxed watching this😊

[@tt3233]

I have made those type of blades before. I worked in a machine shop that used electro chemical machining. It lets the finish and an shape form easy without stressing the metal

[@free_spirit1]

sliding the blades back in looks like such a satisfying thing!!

[@fkot]

Hey man, great work!! You really improve my theoreticall skills before making my attempt to ATPL theory exams :) Thanks.

[@sreetips]

I'm looking for a turbine blade that contains platinum. Are they available for purchase? Thank you.

[@Jangle2007]

From the blade weights that I was able to catch in the video, the blades vary in weight by as much as 12 grams from each other....approximately a third of an ounce. I'm guessing that such difference isn't critical to the integrity of each blade under load, but explains why the need to balance the entire turbine disc. But what variable in the manufacturing or coating process would account for as much as a 3-4% differing finished weight of the blades? In a field driven by high precision, I'm surprised at such variability.

[@AgentJayZ]

Now that is a question I don't really know the answer to. I would not be surprised if their was that much variability engineered into the production technique. But I don't know.

[@Jangle2007]

AgentJayZ Thanks. I couldn't even begin to guess. I'd be very interested in hearing the thoughts from others. Grahamj9101?

[@sgtjonmcc]

I would have to guess the 3-4% variability would come from the composition of the materials, depending on manufacturing techniques. the blades generally a made from a single ingot of metal, titanium and/or nickle tin alloys, these you say have a ceramic coating, which could also effect the weight, but specific impurities and imperfections on the alloy compositions could also explain the variance. It is most likely a combination of all three.

[@dave38x]

It's mostly to do with dimensional variation on the casting of the blades (not sure if these are cast, but similar story for wrought blades too). The alloy composition tends to be very strictly controlled, as does the mass of coatings. For a lost wax casting process you've got variation in wax pattern size, ceramic core size (though these look like solid blades) and ceramic shell size, all of which contribute to a varying size for the final casting. As Jangle points out, the difference does not affect the blade integrity :)

[@autotalon]

I wonder why they wouldnt just have a spot for balancing on the base or something then. Or if it's the blade itself's weight that's more critical?

[@Yaivenov]

So well balanced that adding the miniscule weight of a single blade causes the entire assembly to rotate. Very cool stuff, makes me want to build a functional miniature gas turbine engine.

[@galileohumphreys466]

Excellent soundtrack for the assembly video

[@jamesbarratt593]

Now I know how the blades fit into the main disk. Awesome. I am going to subscribe. Can’t wait for more video’s.

[@AgentJayZ]

@MrPocketWatch1 What may look like a turbine that turns the opposite direction is actually the turbine inlet nozzle. It's fixed to the engine cases, and directs combustion gases at the best angle to efficiently drive the single stage of turbine blades in this engine. There are no engines that use a turbine spinning the opposite direction as a nozzle for a subsequent turbine.

[@Helicopterpilot16]

What I meant by a partial career is at the moment I have no idea what I'd really like to do in the future. And if it takes more than two tries at finding my goal career, I'll do it. From the beginning I wanted to be an aerospace engineer, Now I want to be an airline pilot. Yet every time I see a turbine engine up close, they just fascinate me. Thanks to your videos that I've watched for a good 2-3 years now I really do understand how they operate. I'd still love to visit FSJ.

[@caturskak6936]

ohhh...gosh, that was my dream job, touching handling such a beautiful finest engineering product

[@aliyardimoglu5629]

..once as a thesis, developed a computer program in NPS, Monterey, blade sequence for minimum imbalance, since they weigh slightly different than each other, (i.e.,166blades, 166! factorial different way to place them), yet program used a heuristic way, also this video was very nicely put together....

[@brianmoore5498]

is there an wear coeffecient for the buckets as they spin through air? does a ceramic coating reduce it? if so is the wear dependent on temperature and humidity ?

[@bryanhead2670]

Love new old stock!!. I bought a nos mechanical wind up german alarm clock made in 1977,, i wanted back up in case my mobile died on me,,couldnt resist buying clock made when i was in first year of junior school!!

[@jimmysparks315]

i could watch this stuff all day....

[@Jakeyboyshow]

BEAUTIFUL! Engineering at it's best!!

[@nirfeintuch]

Hi AgentJayZ, i really love your channel ! i have a question that perplexes me for some time. some applications use this fir tree root with z-lock shrouds. i never understood how are they assembled. must they be assembled all together ?

[@gavincurtis]

Dare I ask what that set of new old stock blades cost before the ceramic treatment? After the ceramic treatment? Awesome work! :)

[@provetamin]

i buy that for a dollar!

[@searchthetruth1981]

Geezz this is awesome man....i like you re vids .....i like them a lot....very informative....keep up the good work!!!

[@Mr.1.i]

That was naughty banging 2 blades together

[@AgentJayZ]

@crazyrum They are a high temp roll pin. You gently tap them into their mounting holes until they protrude into the slots in the base of the blades.

[@brabhamfreaman166]

Bee. Ee. Ay. You-tiful. Perfection. Each one a miniature aerofoil, an aircraft wing all its own. Actually, given its function, ‘glider wing’ might be more appropriate because *like* a glider wing, the turbine is reliant entirely upon the accelerated airflow incident upon it for lift; or in this case, rotation. Thanks JayZ for all the years of awesome content. And greater thanks for fielding and even *attempting* to answer *some* of the hundreds of questions sent your way. Actually, I’ll rephrase that, to be more accurate: translating so many inquiries into questions that are answerable………and answering them. Thank you.

[@hellonepal1641]

Nice video..i m happy that i used to repair those blades...hpc and lpt..Airfoil..

[@pzgrenadier44]

Hello fella , I just would like to say tnks about your videos , Im are AMT instructor and inside of class room the students are just fascinated . My best regards from São Paulo Brasil. Alex

[@AgentJayZ]

@crazyrum It's a roll pin; it's a spring that is slightly larger than the hole you drive it into... and yes centrifugal force tends to push it into the hole.

[@JAMESWUERTELE]

Those are just beautiful

[@AgentJayZ]

Don't know for sure... but I would guess it is just the way things go in production.

[@rapaelisaya8194]

I appreciate your work great minds

[@irwins79]

As a Quality Engineer who takes pride in providing quality product to my customers, it bothers me that when we manufacture these blades with the ceramic coating, we have to wear clean white cotton gloves and absolutely no part to part contact.. The specs alone on handling of these parts is crazy, and just to watch you slap 2 parts together and manhandle them with your bare hands is very unnerving.

[@AgentJayZ]

Please note it was not me you had to watch. It's not a movie, and I do not direct the actions of others. Thanks.

[@Ray-xv7rh]

Worked on Rolls Wood group.. High standard... and I know exactly what you are saying. We do our best tho..

[@sparkymax4290]

Just when I thought I had some cool projects going on in my shop.

[@user-zi8jn1go8k]

Why are all blades mounted in the way that allows them to move a little and make this clicking sound? Is it clearance for heat expansion?

[@AgentJayZ]

Have a look at a short video I made about your question, called Jet Engine Turbine Blade Noise... Or something like that.

[@blthetube1962]

The best I can figure is that there is something amazing about the symphony of mechanical components working together that makes this so appealing... Of which, mostly men understand.

[@AgentJayZ]

Oh, we have some pretty awesome gearhead girls on the team.

[@blthetube1962]

@@AgentJayZ You're right.... I guess I gotta throw my two cents in because men never hear the end how we are holding women back. Great Video's ... glad you take to the time...

[@OzzieWozzieOriginal]

the ceramic can witstand heat but isnt it BRITTLE??

[@freddykurniawan7078]

I've ever seen how they balance the turbine blades in Solar Titan 130. But I wanna know who actually in GE frame balance blade formula ? Do you have any kind of reference ?

[@srgofcb]

Dear, AgentJayZ and MrPocketWatch. You guys are so close in your conversation when it comes to the next generation of tubine engines. I'll say no more because the patent is still in the works, and I don't have a Pending Patent, but you'll be pleasantly suprised at the simplitcity and also the complexity of things to come.

[@sarahivsutterb747]

In my childhood I got a fan blade from a pilot from the legendary aerobatic team Frecce Tricolori during an airshow, because I was sitting in the cockpit of his aircraft and told him all about it and how it is functioning and how to fly this aircraft! He was simply so astonished and fascinated from my knowledge about it and I told him that I am addicted to aircraft's and I am very excited to be in this cockpit and I am twelve years old! He said I should go with him to his car and as we went on his car he opened a suitcase and picked the fan blade out and gave it to me and he said it is a gift for me because I am so interested and well educated in flying and on the attachment point to the engine was a little hole in it with a ring inside and since this day I carry this little fan blade on a dogs collar on my neck and I eat sometimes my ice-cream or yogurt with it! The pilot told me that this little thing was once inside the engine of one of his aircraft's right behind the hottest part of the engine and it was from a Pratt&Whittney engine! I love it so very much and I am so proud to have it! 😍😍😍😍😍Lovely greetings from Sarah 🙋💖😍✈️👍

[@Ignignokt5150]

Ahh the question I had from another of your videos has been answered :D

[@eddiemetalblood1]

thanks for that awesome video!

[@mohammadzakir5924]

I like your work

[@SacoreyRugger]

I wonder what the part number is on those blades, I work for a facility that heat treats a substantial amount of ge Dayton blades. Although we specialize in inconel and titanium treatment

[@S3RG1020]

I work grinding those dovetail forms. I would like to know what’s the final of each Blade?

[@MrLrry1266]

Furtree

[@basavarajbh5869]

Thank you for putting this things in internet super sir

[@alexchoate8393]

so i just want to thank you for improving my knowledge of aircraft engines my question is what degree do you have i not really looking in to becoming a mechanic on aircraft but to simply increase my knowledge so could you point me out in the direction i should go also i like hands on

[@mackebest1995]

love how that guy cleaning the floor is just pushing it under the step ladder thing

[@crazyrum]

Just curious, how do you install the locking pin of the blades? Thanks

[@juliusbernotas]

I have a question, what temperature do these blades withstand? I assume that if there's fuel burning without lack of oxygen, it would melt most materials, like a gas welder.

[@ArtisanIndustry]

thanks for introduction，very nice！

[@rickstav9024]

Thanks. Its hard to get a get a look at that end.

[@tadrimmey8746]

Is that a YSZ (Yttrium Stabilized Zirconia) coating applied by EB-PVD? It looks like a good coating.

[@AgentJayZ]

It's described to me as a ceramic thermal barrier coating. I don't have any further knowledge of it.

[@RedDaLord]

watching this is extremely satisfying

[@AgentJayZ]

@FrontSideBus yes, it was the nozzle we opened first...

[@bayestraat]

Just curious... How were the fir tree attachments machined?

[@cosmos680]

That was one of the best videos I ever saw explaining how this thing really works! Thanks!

[@AgentJayZ]

When this engine was produced, the turbine blades were uncoated. We have applied a modern process to improve the heat tolerance of the blades. I believe a J47 back in the day went for about 55,000.00US

[@tanmaynagpals]

It looks like thermal barrier coating based on zirconia

[@austinfox4130]

why are the blade weights so different (4:20) is that on purpose or does it just happen during manufacturing?

[@Cainula]

I'm surprised the weight varies so much blade to blade. I wouldn't expect more than a gram or two difference in high precision, identical and relatively small parts but there is more than 10g between some of them.

[@AgentJayZ]

The high nickel alloy is quite heavy, and each blade is cast with a single use mould. There is no area on the blade where material van be removed to adjust the weight.

[@19LG99]

sounds like a great field of research: Making a blade that is adjustable after being cast

[@NavinF]

​@@AgentJayZ Can't you drill a little 1mm diameter hole into the face that's facing you when you insert the blades at 2:44? (I mean hypothetically. I know you can't ignore the repair manual IRL)

[@user-zs9nt6ns9y]

В 46. Году. Слесарь ..КОВАЛЕВИЧ за 4 месяца. Вручную сделал. 52. Лопатки на турбину. Разница в весе составила. Миллиграмы. Ну о размерах и говорить нечего....

[@daniz2536]

Hi, perfect. Good video.

[@sbreheny]

What are the four-digit numbers written toward the end of each blade? Is that perhaps the weight in grams?

[@AgentJayZ]

@Wonkabar007 picture?

[@reibass]

Is there any locking grease to apply in the locking position of a blade?

[@AgentJayZ]

Locking grease? Is that like the "rocking salt" I sprinkle on my guitar?

[@H8edsinclair]

I'm guessing that the ceramic coated the other question I had is are those ladies number because their shapes different or is that just a cataloging thing

[@johnAshpool]

Beautiful!

[@perseverance8]

I feel it would be very interesting for an agentjz however covering reciprocal, rotary engines.

[@emre3304]

How do you lock them to fix? I couldn't see that point.

[@AgentJayZ]

I have two vids on that subject. They are called Locking Blades, and Locking Blades 2. Try typing that into the search bar on my channel page, and more might appear.

[@prasadhlyalkar9746]

How you guys balance this wheel

[@GeorgeFriend79]

it was a good soundtrack. very nice

[@richardreddick5681]

I am guessing it's the hot section post combustion chamber part?

[@MayhemCanuck]

Love the soundtrack ;)

[@joshualewis4809]

Do you have any information on "shroud droop" vs turbine blade "creep"? Specifically on a cfm56

[@AgentJayZ]

Specifically for the CFM56? I don't have any experience working on those. Good engine, in my opinion!

[@campanaro_99]

I like how he tapped them together to make themvring.

[@kritikbyanju2543]

That's satisfying to watch

[@mark-1234]

Since this is an old video, I may not get an answer. Anyway, I'm assuming you numbered the blades because you wanted to keep the balance of the whole assembly. If those blades were recoated, wouldn't that make the numbering unnecessary? I would assume you'd have to balance the whole thing again since the blade weights would be different -- or would they?

[@AgentJayZ]

+Mark - The turbine was removed from the engine, then de-bladed. The blades were sent out for TBC coating. The turbine disk was carefully cleaned for at least a day. When the blades returned, they were weighed, and the weight printed on them. The blades were sorted to provide a reasonably even distribution of their weights. The turbine was placed on the balance machine. The blades were installed without locks. The assembly was balanced by moving blades around, and the positions of the blades was recorded 1-2-3 in the disk locations 1-2-3. The blades were removed and placed in storage. The engine was then reassembled in the vertical position to facilitate alignment of the turbine shaft with its bearings and the connection to the compressor. The engine was then placed in the horizontal position, the blades reinstalled in their recorded position ( this video), and locked into place. All this is necessary because the turbine can't be balanced while it is in the engine, and it's easier to install the turbine when the blades are not in it.

[@mark-1234]

AgentJayZ Now that I understand the sequence, makes sense. Thanks for the explanation -- and for all the videos. I worked on round motors; never got to the turbines, so it's nice to see the work.

[@halfabee]

Originally created in the Admiralty Materials laboratory in Holton Heath Dorset. Also where the space shuttle tiles were developed.

[@kunalmehra5347]

Which type of rotor is this ? Drum or disc

[@jaxv94]

"should i drop it on the floor?" lol

[@dilbert55]

These are withouten Coolsingel whiteboards Some of them ABB use for the first stage And Second stage blades with cooling And the Thierry stage also does not use Cooling holes

[@AgentJayZ]

You are not making any sense.

[@natebaker8896]

Hey, is the turbine stage impulse or reaction? Also, do you know any reasons why they would use a single stage of turbine to drive 12 compressor blades, other than weight savings? Thanks

[@harixav]

Nate Baker Turbine blades are combination of impulse and reaction.As for the single stage of turbine driving 12 stages of compressor it's because of the high torque that gets developed on the turbine rotor blades from the high velocity and temperature gas coming out of the combustion chamber. These rotor blades are rotating at about 2000 ft/sec.

[@sinephase]

@@harixav IDK if I should be amazed at the tech from the 50s/60s or if I should be unimpressed with the tech we have now? XD

[@fullmoon6661]

Do the blades have holes to mate with the locking pins?

[@fiskfisk33]

you can see the slot when they show that first blade from the box

[@martinpaulen7472]

Want see that bearings of main shaft. How its cooled and lubricated ? If flames throw aroun half part of engine.

[@AgentJayZ]

Have a look at my video: jet engine lube system.

[@AgentJayZ]

It slows the heat transfer into the blade from the hot gases, but does not affect the heat transfer out of the blade into the disc, and out of the disc into the cooling air it is supplied with. By how much? ...don't know. At the same fired temperature, it greatly prolongs blade and disc life. At the same projected service life, you can increase fired temp by 50F or so, giving increased power output.

[@gerard-nagle]

Can you comment on how the turbine was balanced and then in turn how the blades were numbered? I’ve read somewhere that RR sell fan blades in a pair so no balancing needed.

[@AgentJayZ]

Turbojet turbine blades are very different from Turbofan fan blades. The blades are weighed, the weight is written on them, and that is used in the balancing process. Then, once the assembly is balanced, sometimes the blades are numbered consecutively to indicate their position in the disc, which would have the slots also numbered.

[@dtiydr]

If you would have drop a blad (of course you wouldn´t) would that be scrapped even if there wouldn´t be a ny noticable cracks or similar?