scholarly journals Thermodynamic modelling and efficiency analysis of a class of real indirectly fired gas turbine cycles

2009 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 41-48
Author(s):  
Zheshu Ma ◽  
Zhenhuan Zhu

Indirectly or externally-fired gas-turbines (IFGT or EFGT) are novel technology under development for small and medium scale combined power and heat supplies in combination with micro gas turbine technologies mainly for the utilization of the waste heat from the turbine in a recuperative process and the possibility of burning biomass or 'dirty' fuel by employing a high temperature heat exchanger to avoid the combustion gases passing through the turbine. In this paper, by assuming that all fluid friction losses in the compressor and turbine are quantified by a corresponding isentropic efficiency and all global irreversibilities in the high temperature heat exchanger are taken into account by an effective efficiency, a one dimensional model including power output and cycle efficiency formulation is derived for a class of real IFGT cycles. To illustrate and analyze the effect of operational parameters on IFGT efficiency, detailed numerical analysis and figures are produced. The results summarized by figures show that IFGT cycles are most efficient under low compression ratio ranges (3.0-6.0) and fit for low power output circumstances integrating with micro gas turbine technology. The model derived can be used to analyze and forecast performance of real IFGT configurations.

1978 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. F. McDonald

With soaring fuel costs and diminishing clean fuel availability, the efficiency of the industrial gas turbine must be improved by utilizing the exhaust waste heat by either incorporating a recuperator or by co-generation, or both. In the future, gas turbines for power generation should be capable of operation on fuels hitherto not exploited in this prime-mover, i.e., coal and nuclear fuel. The recuperative gas turbine can be used for open-cycle, indirect cycle, and closed-cycle applications, the latter now receiving renewed attention because of its adaptability to both fossil (coal) and nuclear (high temperature gas-cooled reactor) heat sources. All of these prime-movers require a viable high temperature heat exchanger for high plant efficiency. In this paper, emphasis is placed on the increasingly important role of the recuperator and the complete spectrum of recuperative gas turbine applications is surveyed, from lightweight propulsion engines, through vehicular and industrial prime-movers, to the large utility size nuclear closed-cycle gas turbine. For each application, the appropriate design criteria, types of recuperator construction (plate-fin or tubular etc.), and heat exchanger material (metal or ceramic) are briefly discussed.


2015 ◽  
Vol 75 ◽  
pp. 410-420 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabiola Baina ◽  
Anders Malmquist ◽  
Lucio Alejo ◽  
Björn Palm ◽  
Torsten H. Fransson

Author(s):  
Dieter Bohn ◽  
Nathalie Po¨ppe ◽  
Joachim Lepers

The present paper reports a detailed technological assessment of two concepts of integrated micro gas turbine and high temperature (SOFC) fuel cell systems. The first concept is the coupling of micro gas turbines and fuel cells with heat exchangers, maximising availability of each component by the option for easy stand-alone operation. The second concept considers a direct coupling of both components and a pressurised operation of the fuel cell, yielding additional efficiency augmentation. Based on state-of-the-art technology of micro gas turbines and solid oxide fuel cells, the paper analyses effects of advanced cycle parameters based on future material improvements on the performance of 300–400 kW combined micro gas turbine and fuel cell power plants. Results show a major potential for future increase of net efficiencies of such power plants utilising advanced materials yet to be developed. For small sized plants under consideration, potential net efficiencies around 70% were determined. This implies possible power-to-heat-ratios around 9.1 being a basis for efficient utilisation of this technology in decentralised CHP applications.


Author(s):  
Maclain M. Holton ◽  
Michael S. Klassen ◽  
Leo D. Eskin ◽  
Richard J. Joklik ◽  
Richard J. Roby

Nearly all states now have renewable portfolio standards (RPS) requiring electricity suppliers to produce a certain fraction of their electricity using renewable sources. Many renewable energy technologies have been developed to contribute to RPS requirements, but these technologies lack the advantage of being a dispatchable source which would give a grid operator the ability to quickly augment power output on demand. Gas turbines burning biofuels can meet the need of being dispatchable while using renewable fuels. However, traditional combustion of liquid fuels would not meet the pollution levels of modern dry, low emission (DLE) gas turbines burning natural gas without extensive back-end clean-up. A Lean, Premixed, Prevaporized (LPP) combustion technology has been developed to vaporize liquid ethanol and blend it with natural gas creating a mixture which can be burned in practically any combustion device in place of ordinary natural gas. The LPP technology delivers a clean-burning gas which is able to fuel a gas turbine engine with no alterations made to the combustor hardware. Further, the fraction of ethanol blended in the LPP gas can be quickly modulated to maintain the supplier’s overall renewable quotient to balance fluctuations in power output of less reliable renewable power sources such as wind and solar. The LPP technology has successfully demonstrated over 1,000 hours of dispatchable power generation on a 30 kW Capstone C30 microturbine using vaporized liquid fuels. The full range of fuel mixtures ranging from 100% methane with no ethanol addition to 100% ethanol with no methane addition have been burned in the demonstration engine. Emissions from ethanol/natural gas mixtures have been comparable to baseline natural gas emissions of 3 ppm NOx and 30 ppm CO. Waste heat from the combustor exhaust is recovered in an indirect heat exchanger and is used to vaporize the ethanol as it is blended with natural gas. This design allows for startup on natural gas and blending of vaporized ethanol once the heat exchanger has reached its operating temperature.


Author(s):  
Agostino Gambarotta ◽  
Iacopo Vaja

A model of a Micro Gas Turbine system for cogeneration is presented. The analyzed plant is based on an aero derivative Gas Turbine with a single staged centrifugal Compressor and an axial Turbine with two stages. The net power output is 260 kWe in simple cycle mode. Exhaust gases can be sent to a counter flow surface compact heat exchanger for thermal regeneration, which turns to be thermodynamically favourable in this range of power output. If a thermal load is required the system operates in CHP configuration and part, or the whole, of turbine exhaust gases are sent to a Heat Recovery Boiler for water heating. The HRB is, in analogy to the Regenerator, a counter flow surface heat exchanger. The mass of hot gases directed to each heat exchanger can be controlled by a regulation valve that allows, for a given fuel mass flow rate, to enhance the net power output or to privilege the thermal generation at the HRB. This degree of freedom allows the system to operate at different cogeneration degrees, thus covering many power-to-heat demand ratios. The whole system is modeled in the Simulink® environment, a powerful tool for dynamic system analysis. All components are studied and a mathematical representation for each of them is described. Equations are then implemented in Simulink® allowing to create customized blocks of different components which are then properly coupled, respecting the physical causality of the real system, by connections that may represent either mechanical or fluid dynamic links. Models are classified depending on whether state variables for the considered component can be defined or not. Compressor and turbine are represented as “Black Box” components without state, while the combustion chamber is modelled as a “white box” applying energy and mass conservation equations with three state variables. Heat exchangers are considered as “White Box” without state, and the physics of the heat exchange process is studied according to the Effectiveness-NTU method. A further dynamic equation is the shaft dynamic balance equation. Model results are reported in the paper in several transient conditions: in all cases the computational time proved to be lower than real time.


Author(s):  
C. F. McDonald

The current energy crisis and substantial increases in the costs of liquid and gaseous fuels, combined with reduced pollutant emission requirements, make the higher efficiency recuperative gas turbine cycle economically attractive for industrial and vehicular application. For future low cost, high temperature, small gas turbines, with improved cycle efficiencies, it is postulated that the complete hot section of the engine (combustor, ducts, turbine nozzle and rotor) will be all ceramic and may include a ceramic heat exchanger. Few of the answers are available today in the areas of ceramic recuperator performance, cost and structural integrity and concentrated development efforts are required to demonstrate the viability of a fixed boundary ceramic gas turbine heat exchanger. This paper briefly outlines possible design and development trends in the areas of exchanger configuration, surface geometry and materials, and it includes specific sizes and economic aspects of ceramic recuperators for future advanced low SFC gas turbines.


Author(s):  
Timothy Griffin ◽  
Sven Gunnar Sundkvist ◽  
Knut A˚sen ◽  
Tor Bruun

The AZEP (Advanced Zero Emissions Power Plant) project addresses the development of a novel “zero emissions,” gas turbine-based, power generation process to reduce local and global CO2 emissions in the most cost-effective way. Preliminary process calculations indicate that the AZEP concept will result only in a loss of 2–5% efficiency, as compared to approximately 10% loss using conventional tail-end CO2 capture methods. Additionally, the concept allows the use of air-based gas turbine equipment and thus, eliminates the need for expensive development of new turbomachinery. The key to achieving these targets is the development of an integrated MCM-reactor, in which a) O2 is separated from air by use of a mixed-conductive membrane (MCM), b) combustion of natural gas occurs in an N2-free environment and c) the heat of combustion is transferred to the oxygen depleted air by a high temperature heat exchanger. This MCM reactor replaces the combustion chamber in a standard gas turbine power plant. The cost of removing CO2 from the combustion exhaust gas is significantly reduced, since this contains only CO2 and water vapor. The initial project phase is focused on the research and development of the major components of the MCM-reactor (air separation membrane, combustor and high temperature heat exchanger), the combination of these components into an integrated reactor, and subsequent scale-up for future integration in a gas turbine. Within the AZEP process combustion is carried out in a nearly stoichiometric natural gas/O2 mixture heavily diluted in CO2 and water vapor. The influence of this high exhaust gas dilution on the stability of natural gas combustion has been investigated, using lean-premix combustion technologies. Experiments have been performed both at atmospheric and high pressures (up to 15 bar), simulating the conditions found in the AZEP process. Preliminary tests have been performed on MCM modules under simulated gas turbine conditions. Additionally, preliminary reactor designs, incorporating MCM, heat exchanger and combustor have been made, based on the results of initial component testing. Techno-economic process calculations have been performed indicating the advantages of the AZEP process as compared to other proposed CO2-free gas turbine processes.


Author(s):  
David Sánchez ◽  
Miguel Rollán ◽  
Lourdes García-Rodríguez ◽  
G. S. Martínez

Abstract This paper presents the preliminary design and techno-economic assessment of an innovative solar system for the simultaneous production of water and electricity at small scale, based on the combination of a solar micro gas turbine and a bottoming desalination unit. The proposed layout is such that the former system converts solar energy into electricity and rejects heat that can be used to drive a thermal desalination plant. A design model is developed in order to select the main design parameters for two different desalination technologies, phase change and membrane desalination, in order to better exploit the available electricity and waste heat from the turbine. In addition to the usual design parameters of the mGT, the impact of the size of the collector is also assessed and, for the desalination technologies, a tailored multi-effect distillation unit is analysed through the selection of the corresponding design parameters. A reverse osmosis desalination system is also designed in parallel, based on commercial software currently used by the water industry. The results show that the electricity produced by the solar micro gas turbine can be used to drive a Reverse Osmosis system effectively whereas the exhaust gases could drive a distillation unit. This would decrease the stack temperature of the plant, increasing the overall energy efficiency of the system. Nevertheless, the better thermodynamic performance of this fully integrated system does not translate into a more economical production of water. Indeed, the cost of water turns out lower when coupling the solar microturbine and Reverse Osmosis units only (between 3 and 3.5 €/m3), whilst making further use the available waste heat in a Multi Effect Distillation system rises the cost of water by 15%.


2005 ◽  
Vol 127 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-85 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Griffin ◽  
Sven Gunnar Sundkvist ◽  
Knut A˚sen ◽  
Tor Bruun

The AZEP “advanced zero emissions power plant” project addresses the development of a novel “zero emissions,” gas turbine-based, power generation process to reduce local and global CO2 emissions in the most cost-effective way. Process calculations indicate that the AZEP concept will result only in a loss of about 4% points in efficiency including the pressurization of CO2 to 100 bar, as compared to approximately 10% loss using conventional tail-end CO2 capture methods. Additionally, the concept allows the use of air-based gas turbine equipment and, thus, eliminates the need for expensive development of new turbomachinery. The key to achieving these targets is the development of an integrated MCM-reactor in which (a) O2 is separated from air by use of a mixed-conductive membrane (MCM), (b) combustion of natural gas occurs in an N2-free environment, and (c) the heat of combustion is transferred to the oxygen-depleted air by a high temperature heat exchanger. This MCM-reactor replaces the combustion chamber in a standard gas turbine power plant. The cost of removing CO2 from the combustion exhaust gas is significantly reduced, since this contains only CO2 and water vapor. The initial project phase is focused on the research and development of the major components of the MCM-reactor (air separation membrane, combustor, and high temperature heat exchanger), the combination of these components into an integrated reactor, and subsequent scale-up for future integration in a gas turbine. Within the AZEP process combustion is carried out in a nearly stoichiometric natural gas/O2 mixture heavily diluted in CO2 and water vapor. The influence of this high exhaust gas dilution on the stability of natural gas combustion has been investigated, using lean-premix combustion technologies. Experiments have been performed both at atmospheric and high pressures (up to 15 bar), simulating the conditions found in the AZEP process. Preliminary tests have been performed on MCM modules under simulated gas turbine conditions. Additionally, preliminary reactor designs, incorporating MCM, heat exchanger, and combustor, have been made, based on the results of initial component testing. Techno-economic process calculations have been performed indicating the advantages of the AZEP process as compared to other proposed CO2-free gas turbine processes.


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