Comparative Investigation of Lean Effect of Stator Vane in Hydrogen-Fueled Combustion Turbine

Abstract

In these years, a lot of environmental problems like air pollution and exhaustion of fossil fuels have been discussed intensively. In our laboratory, a hydrogen-fueled propulsion system has been researched as an alternative to conventional jet engine systems. A hydrogen-fueled propulsion system is expected to have higher power, lighter weight and lower emissions. However, for the practical use, there exist many problems that must be overcome. For example, there is little knowledge how the three-dimensional vane design affects on the flow characteristics and the aerodynamic performance of the hydrogen-fueled combustion turbine vane. The purpose of the present study is to clarify the influence of lean vanes, which is one of typical 3-dimensional design techniques, on the characteristics of the 3-dimensional flow field with hydrogen-fueled combustion within a turbine vane passage. The Reynolds-averaged compressible Navier-Stokes equations are solved with incorporating a k-e turbulence and a reduced chemical mechanism models. Using the computational results for normal, compound lean and reverse compound lean vanes, the 3-dimensional turbulent flow fields with chemical reactions are visualized and investigated numerically. Through this study, it is confirmed that compound lean can suppress the excessively high temperature region on the endwall and reduce the total pressure loss.