Passive Wireless Temperature Sensor for Harsh Environments

Wireless Sensor Technologies has for several years been developing a passive Wireless Temperature Sensor (WTS) for gas turbine engine and other harsh environment applications under the under sponsorship of the Air Force (Non-destructive Test Program) and the Navy (SBIR Topic N08-004). Once productized, the functional and operational goals for the sensor as they relate to the gas turbine engine are to: ? Measure the surface temperature of the Yttria Stabilized Zirconia Thermal Barrier Coatings (YSZ TBC's) typically applied to turbine blades in the hot section of the gas turbine engines ? Measure temperature at specific locations on the surface of the combustor liner to determine both radial and circumferential temperature variations (pattern factor) o Thin film passive wireless sensors will be arrayed in an annular ring around the combustor to determine pattern factor in an effort to sense the uniformity of combustion downstream from the fuel injectors. ? Measure the surface temperature of any area of interest using a weldable coupon version of the wireless temperature sensor ? Measure heat flux across the section thickness of thermal barrier coatings by pairing several of the proposed wireless temperature sensors (for the surface temperature measurement of TBC's. This program will characterize the longterm drift and reliability of the WTS and in Phase 2 result in a sensor with a TRL level of 6 to 7. More »