Next generation turbine power plants will require high efficiency gas turbines with higher pressure ratios and turbine inlet temperatures than currently available. These increases in gas turbine cycle conditions will tend to increase NOx emissions. As the desire for higher efficiency drives pressure ratios and turbine inlet temperatures ever higher, gas turbines equipped with both lean premixed combustors and selective catalytic reduction after treatment eventually will be unable to meet the new emission goals of sub-3 ppm NOx. New gas turbine combustors are needed with lower emissions than the current state-of-the-art lean premixed combustors.In this program an advanced combustion system for the next generation of gas turbines is being developed with the goal of reducing combustor NOx emissions by 50% below the state-of-the-art. Dry Low NOx (DLN) technology is the current leader in NOx emission technology, guaranteeing 9 ppm NOx emissions for heavy duty F class gas turbines. This development program is directed at exploring advanced concepts which hold promise for meeting the low emissions targets.The trapped vortex combustor is an advanced concept in combustor design. It has been studied widely for aircraft engine applications because it has demonstrated the ability to maintain a stable flame over a wide range of fuel flow rates. Additionally, it has shown significantly lower NOx emission than a typical aircraft engine combustor and with low CO at the same time. The rapid CO burnout and low NOx production of this combustor made it a strong candidate for investigation. Incremental improvements to the DLN technology have not brought the dramatic improvements that are targeted in this program. A revolutionary combustor design is being explored because it captures many of the critical features needed to significantly reduce emissions.Experimental measurements of the combustor performance at atmospheric conditions were completed in the first phase of the program. Emissions measurements were obtained over a variety of operating conditions. A kinetics model is formulated to describe the emissions performance. The model is a tool for determining the conditions for low emission performance. The flow field was also modeled using CFD.A first prototype was developed for low emission performance on natural gas. The design utilized the tools anchored to the atmospheric prototype performance. The 1/6 scale combustor was designed for low emission performance in GE's FA+e gas turbine.A second prototype was developed to evaluate changes in the design approach. The prototype was developed at a 1/10 scale for low emission performance in GE's FA+e gas turbine. The performance of the first two prototypes gave a strong indication of the best design approach.Review of the emission results led to the development of a 3 rd prototype to further reduce the combustor emissions. The original plan to produce a scaled-up prototype was pushed out beyond the scope of the current program. The 3 rd prototype was designed at 1/10 scale an...
Future high-efficiency, low-emission generation plants that produce electric power, transportation fuels, and/or chemicals from fossil fuel feed stocks require a new class of fuelflexible combustors. In this program, a validated combustor approach was developed which enables single-digit NO x operation for a future generation plants with low-Btu off gas and allows the flexibility of process-independent backup with natural gas. This combustion technology overcomes the limitations of current syngas gas turbine combustion systems, which are designed on a site-by-site basis, and enable improved future co-generation plant designs. In this capacity, the fuel-flexible combustor enhances the efficiency and productivity of future co-production plants.In task 2, a summary of market requested fuel gas compositions was created and the syngas fuel space was characterized. Additionally, a technology matrix and chemical kinetic models were used to evaluate various combustion technologies and to select two combustor concepts. In task 4 systems analysis of a co-production plant in conjunction with chemical kinetic analysis was performed to determine the desired combustor operating conditions for the burner concepts.Task 5 discusses the experimental evaluation of three syngas capable combustor designs. The hybrid combustor, Prototype-1 utilized a diffusion flame approach for syngas fuels with a lean premixed swirl concept for natural gas fuels for both syngas and natural gas fuels at FA+e gas turbine conditions. The hybrid nozzle was sized to accommodate syngas fuels ranging from ~100 to 280 btu/scf and with a diffusion tip geometry optimized for Early Entry Co-generation Plant (EECP) fuel compositions. The swozzle concept utilized existing GE DLN design methodologies to eliminate flow separation and enhance fuel-air mixing. With changing business priorities, a fully premixed natural gas & syngas nozzle, Protoytpe-1N, was also developed later in the program. It did not have the diluent requirements of Prototype-1 and was demonstrated at targeted gas turbine conditions. The TVC combustor, Prototype-2, premixes the syngas with air for low emission performance. The combustor was designed for operation with syngas and no additional diluents. The combustor was successfully operated at targeted gas turbine conditions. Another goal of the program was to advance the status of development tools for syngas systems. In Task 3 a syngas flame evaluation facility was developed. Fundamental data on syngas flame speeds and flame strain were obtained at pressure for a wide range of syngas fuels with preheated air. Several promising reduced order kinetic mechanisms were compared with the results from the evaluation facility. The mechanism with the best agreement was selected for application to syngas combustor modeling studies in Task 6. Prototype-1 was modeled using an advanced LES combustion code.The tools and combustor technology development culminate in a full-scale demonstration of the most promising technology in Task 8. The combusto...
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