Gas Turbine Combustor Research Articles

Local Surrogate Modeling for Spatial Emulation of Gas-Turbine Combustion Via Similarity-Based Sample Processing

Local Surrogate Modeling for Spatial Emulation of Gas-Turbine Combustion Via Similarity-Based Sample Processing

Experimental Study of Natural Gas and Hydrogen Co-Firing Characteristics Using Different Types of Single Nozzles of F-Class Practical Gas Turbine Combustors

Abstract Recent research on co-firing natural gas and hydrogen, a carbon-free clean fuel, aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from aging gas turbine power generation, a key energy issue. This approach can enhance old gas turbines and increase the proportion of combined cycle power plant utilization as coal-fired power plants in Korea gradually shut down. This study seeks optimal operating conditions for mixed fuels without modifying the F-class gas turbine combustor. Experiments were conducted using four different types of fuel nozzles (F-Class DLN combustors) under varying loads and co-firing rates. The test used actual machine operating conditions from 30% to 100% thermal load, with hydrogen co-fired with natural gas up to 70% at each load. OH high-speed imaging and an OH-PLIF technique analyzed flame structure and characteristics. Dynamic pressure was measured to check combustion instability, and exhaust gas emissions were evaluated for combustion characteristics. Key findings include critical co-firing rates for each nozzle based on NOx emission levels and combustion dynamics. As the hydrogen co-firing rate increased, flame length decreased, and NOx levels rose rapidly beyond 30%vol. Dynamic pressure oscillations showed no significant variations compared to natural gas combustion. This study successfully derived a characteristic operation map for a single nozzle based on the hydrogen co-firing rate.

Global Stability and Forced Response Analysis of Swirling Flows In Aviation Combustors

Abstract Swirling jets are canonical flow fields used to stabilize flames in many gas turbine combustion systems. These flows amplify background acoustic disturbances and perturb the flame, producing combustion noise and potentially combustion instabilities. Hydrodynamic flow response to acoustic excitations in reacting flows is an important modeling task for understanding combustion noise and combustion instabilities. This study utilizes a global hydrodynamic stability analysis in a Bi-Global and Tri-Global framework to model the vortical hydrodynamic modes of a reacting, swirling LES mean flow based on a commercial nozzle. After conducting an unforced, natural Bi-Global stability analysis to study the unstable eigenmodes of the flow, linearized equations of motion are used to study flow response of the flow to forcing. An empirical velocity transfer function is constructed by determining the flow response to a harmonically varying 150-1500 Hz u' velocity disturbance at the inflow boundary. These disturbances are strongly amplified, with amplification factors ranging from about 20 to 50 and peaking at about 1050 Hz, or st = 0.375. A comparison study with a cartesian, three-dimensional reacting base flow is also performed where the base-flow varies spatially in three-dimensions. The study utilizes a stable, high accuracy, but computationally effective centered finite difference scheme based on a three-dimensional structured mesh. Illustrative results present the qualitative modes and quantitative transfer functions for Bi-Global and Tri-Global stability analyses.

Experimental Study of Fuel-Air Mixing and Dilution Jets on Outlet Temperature Distribution in a Small Gas Turbine Combustor

Experimental Study of Fuel-Air Mixing and Dilution Jets on Outlet Temperature Distribution in a Small Gas Turbine Combustor

Early detection of combustion instabilities in liquid rocket engines: Assessment of statistical, recurrence, and fractal analyses for sub- and supercritical pressure conditions

Safe shutdown of a liquid rocket engine in ground testing prior to the onset of damaging combustion instabilities through reliable detection of instability precursors would translate to time and cost savings in engine development programmes. Methods derived from statistical, recurrence, and fractal analysis have been successfully applied in the literature to detect precursors in unsteady pressure signals from canonical combustion experiments, gas-turbine combustion experiments, and sub-scale rocket combustion experiments operated at low pressures. In the present work, several such methods were applied to data from two cryogenic oxygen-natural gas rocket experiments operated at higher pressures than previously reported; both sub- and supercritical with respect to oxygen. The goal was to identify methods that can discern limit-cycle instabilities from intermittently unstable operation and are sufficiently responsive to be applied as emergency shut-down criteria in engine tests. Among the methods applied were the standard deviation, variance of the auto-correlation, the second spectral moment, the ratio between determinism and recurrence rate, the Hurst-exponent, and the multifractal range. The second spectral moment, the Hurst-exponent, and a measure derived from the multifractal spectrum all have short detection delays for instability onset and short-lived could be discerned from self-sustaining instabilities with an appropriate choice of threshold value. They also have moderate computation cost which makes them of interest for potential real-time implementation. The Hurst-exponent has the additional advantage of a common threshold value for all test cases addressed, demonstrating its potential for broader application independent of combustion device or operating conditions.

Performance Evaluation of Different Rotating Detonation Combustor Designs Using Simulations and Experiments

Abstract Rotating Detonation Engines (RDEs) present a potential avenue for enhancing the efficiency of gas turbine combustors through the utilization of a detonation-driven process. However, integrating an RDE with a downstream turbine poses a significant challenge due to the shock-laden and highly unsteady nature of the RDE exit flow, coupled with a high degree of flow periodicity. In contrast, gas turbines are designed to operate with relatively small velocity and temperature fluctuations at the turbine inlet. The objective of the present study is to develop an understanding of how geometric profiling can improve RDE performance and mitigate exhaust flow field unsteadiness. Three RDE designs are analyzed: an annular combustor with a constant cross-sectional area, an annular combustor with a converging nozzle near the exit, and an annular combustor with a rapid to gradual (RTG) area convergence. Three-dimensional unsteady reacting simulations are conducted for each configuration using the same fuel-oxidizer composition and mass flow rate condition. All simulations are validated against experimental measurements, and RDE performance is assessed based on total pressure gain/loss, unsteadiness at the exit of the RDE, and detonation effectiveness. Results show significant performance improvement for both the convergent nozzle and the RTG profile compared to the constant cross-sectional area configuration, and the RTG design performed better than the convergent nozzle design. Therefore, strategically constricting the flow in an RDE can be used to optimize the performance of an RDE and should be considered in future designs.

Stability and combustion characteristics of dual annular counter-rotating swirl oxy-methane flames: Effects of equivalence and velocity ratios

An experimental study was carried out to investigate flow/flame interactions, stability, combustion, and emissions properties of CH4/O2/CO2 stratified flames stabilized on a dual annular counter-rotating swirl (DACRS) burner for gas turbine combustion applications. The effects of two targeted parameters, namely equivalence ratios (for primary - ϕp, secondary - ϕs, and global - ϕg streams) and velocity ratio (Vr = Vp/Vs: primary to secondary stream inlet velocity ratio), are studied at fixed volumetric oxygen fraction (OF) in the oxidizer mixture (O2 + CO2) of both primary and secondary streams of 34 % at fixed Vp of 5 m/s. The experimental results indicated that no flame flashback was recorded in the domain of any operational ϕp up to stoichiometric operation of the secondary stream (ϕs = 1.0). At near stoichiometric operation of the primary stream, the main secondary flame can persist in extremely lean conditions (ϕs = 0.45 @ Vr = 3), thereby extending the thresholds of flame blowout. Moreover, raising ϕp from 0.4 to 1.0 results in significant reduction of ϕs at blowout from 0.595 to 0.456, corresponding to reducing the combustor ϕg at blowout from 0.577 to 0.499. At lower ϕp, the oxy-methane flame tends to lift and extinguish earlier.

Numerical Simulation of H2 Addition Effect to CH4 Premixed Turbulent Flames for Gas Turbine Burner

Numerical Simulation of H2 Addition Effect to CH4 Premixed Turbulent Flames for Gas Turbine Burner

CHARACTERISTICS OF AMMONIA COMBUSTION AND MODERN GORENJE STABILIZATION STUDIES

In the light of current problems such as difficulties with ammonia ignition, low combustion stability and high NOx emissions, the features of basic ammonia combustion are considered and the available stabilization technologies are summarized. Gorenje gorenje. Among these technologies, the mixed combustion of ammonia, hydrogen and methane stands out, as well as methods of enhancing heat transfer, such as high oxygen pressure, and external assistive technologies, including plasma. Gorenje The aspects of ammonia combustion stability in various types of engines such as internal combustion engines, gas turbines and boilers are discussed. Gorenje The need for future research in the field of ammonia fuels, including the development of gorenje gorenje stabilization technologies, mixed combustion of ammonia with hydrogen, ammonia with solid fuels, and others, is emphasized. The importance of adapting various gorenje stabilization technologies gorenje depending on specific application areas to optimize the ammonia combustion process is noted. The prospects of ammonia-hydrogen mixed combustion systems are discussed, and the need for further research and development in this area is emphasized. Gorenje It is also noted that there is limited experimental data on the mixed combustion of ammonia with solid fuels, which provides potential for research in this direction. Gorenje Achieving a carbon peak and carbon neutrality is an essential strategic course in the context of countering global warming and is becoming an internal necessity to stimulate high-quality economic development. This prospect will necessarily entail significant transformations in the energy structure of Russia.

Effect of colored noise on precursors of thermoacoustic instability in model gas turbine combustors

In this work, we numerically investigate the dynamics of a prototypical thermoacoustic system, the generalized Van der Pol oscillator, in the presence of additive noise of varying color (correlation time) and intensity while the system undergoes supercritical and subcritical Hopf bifurcation. We specifically investigate the influence of noise color on trends in the coherence factor and the Hurst exponent in the subthreshold region to assess their reliability as instability precursors. The Hurst exponent is found reliable only for correlation times much larger than the time scale of the instability while the coherence factor is found to be reliable for the entire range of noise color investigated. These inferences are found to hold for both supercritical and subcritical bifurcation cases.

Hybrid CFD/techno-economic assessments of carbon capturing combustion system integrated with PEM electrolyzer for efficient hydrogen production

The issue of global warming is a significant challenge in the field of environmental science, resulting primarily from the burning of fossil fuels and the subsequent increase in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, thus emphasizing the importance of utilizing renewable energy vectors, carbon capture technology, oxy-fuel combustion, and carbon-free fuels like hydrogen to mitigate these negative effects. In this study, the possibility of utilizing low-calorific value biogas in a gas turbine (GT) combustor under various combustion conditions is numerically simulated, and techno-economic analysis of energy systems coupled with the GT combustor is conducted. Herein, two distinct energy systems utilizing different combustion modes for H2 production via PEM electrolyzer have been designed and examined. This investigation focuses on the impact of various influencing factors in oxy-fuel combustion mode, such as the equivalence ratio and the O2 content in the two types of oxidizers, on the rate of hydrogen production, power generation, energy/exergy efficiencies, and the economic index of the proposed energy system. Additionally, a suitable system for large-scale operation is identified among the presented systems. The findings of the study demonstrate that the energy system based on the O2/CO2 combustion mode exhibits a higher rate of hydrogen production compared to the O2/H2O combustion mode and particularly, within the equivalence ratio range of 0.55≤ϕ ≤ 0.85, the hydrogen production rate in the O2/CO2 combustion mode decreases from 5.16 kg/h to 3.72 kg/h.

Numerical study on effects of hydrogen doping of natural gas on the combustion characteristics in micro gas turbine combustor

The effect of hydrogen doping ratio on the flow and temperature fields in the combustor and the emission of the main pollutants (CO and NOx) for a constant excess air coefficient, a constant gas turbine power and different hydrogen doping ratios has been analyzed through numerical simulations for the application of natural gas blended hydrogen combustion technology in a 100 kW micro gas turbine. The combustion reaction principle used in the study is a simplified version of the GRI-Mech 3.0 mechanism, which includes 17 species and a total of 24 radical reactions. The simulation results show that the maximum temperature in the primary combustion zone of the combustor decreases as the hydrogen doping ratio gradually increases, the temperature distribution of the gas exiting the combustor becomes more uniform, and the gas gradually improves. The concentration and total emission of major pollutants gradually decrease.

Nox Emissions Assessment of a Multi Jet Burner Operated with Premixed High Hydrogen Natural Gas Blends

Abstract Decarbonization of gas turbine combustion creates a pressing demand for new technical solutions for the combustion process. While switching to hydrogen fuels may solve the problem of carbon emissions and associated pollutants it can also lead to stability issues for swirl-stabilized combustors due to its increased reactivity. However, with jet flame burner systems, the required flashback safety can be achieved with high axial flow velocities even for premixed combustion of 100% hydrogen fuel. The development of such an engineering solution, however, requires significant effort to reach the maturity of today's swirl burners. This study examines the capacity of a premixed multi-tube jet burner to manage the chemical reactivity change over a range of volumetric blends from pure natural gas to pure hydrogen fuel. NOx emissions are measured and analyzed for atmospheric tests. The changes in emissions originate not only from altered combustion chemistry but also from changes in flame shape and turbulence intensity. To get a deeper understanding of the NOx formation process, a low-order model is designed and compared to the experimental data of technically and perfectly premixed combustion tests. Parameter variations of the low-order model are conducted to assess the influences on the NOx emission production of the multi jet burner. The information on the combustion process required for the model is obtained computationally and experimentally. Therefore, flame images are recorded and analyzed.

Numerical simulation of VAM assisted combustion gas turbine

In order to save energy and protect environment, how to utilize ventilation air methane (VAM) is a subject that needed urgently to be studied. The methane concentration in VAM varies greatly, making it difficult for traditional burners to burn directly. Therefore, the feasibility of using VAM as a combustion gas for gas turbines is considered. When natural gas is used as the fuel for a micro gas turbine, the changes in air inlet parameters will directly affect its performance. This article uses experimental and numerical simulation methods to analyze the feasibility of using VAM as combustion air for micro gas turbines. The results show that factors such as intake pressure, temperature, and composition of gas turbines have an impact on combustion and pollutant emissions; the comparison between VAM and air as combustion gases shows that the rate of temperature increase in the combustion chamber increases, and the concentration of NO at the outlet of the combustion chamber increases by 0.97 % and the concentration of CO increases by 3.76 %. Based on the comprehensive analysis of gas turbine performance, it is concluded that the application of mine exhaust air to micro gas turbines has certain feasibility.

Combustion instability characteristics via fuel nozzle modification in a hydrogen and natural gas Co-firing gas turbine combustor

In this study, three premixed swirl gas turbine nozzles with different fuel injection hole sizes were designed to optimize combustion characteristics influenced by changes in the hydrogen mixing ratio. Experiments involved increasing the hydrogen volume fraction of the fuel from 0 to 60%. The amount of fuel supplied through the pilot flow was increased to suppress combustion instability. The OH* chemiluminescence technique was introduced to analyze flame structure. To understand combustion instability, time delay and time-delay distribution were derived from flame structure analysis and applied to the 1D thermoacoustic model. The results indicated that the amount of fuel required for pilot injection with increasing hydrogen ratio varied with fuel hole size. It was also observed that changes in fuel hole size significantly affected flame characteristic length. Findings from the 1D thermoacoustic analysis confirmed that fuel hole size variation altered combustion instability characteristics by influencing time delay and time-delay distribution variation.

Air quality assessment of a mass deployment of microgrids

Microgrids are emerging to mitigate the degradation in grid resiliency and reliability resulting from an increasing frequency of grid outages. Because microgrids incorporate a local source of power generation, the production of electricity is shifting from a centralized to distributed topology, thereby installing power generation resources and the concomitant emissions into heavily populated urban air sheds and residential communities. In this paper, the air quality and public health impacts of a mass deployment of microgrids in an urban air shed are assessed. Candidates to become microgrids are identified for both the near- and long-term deployment, and two microgrid scenarios are considered, differing by the 24/7 prime source of power: (1) combustion gas turbine (CGT)-based microgrids and (2) zero-emission fuel cell (FC)-based microgrids complemented by solar PV and battery energy storage. Spatially and temporally resolved emissions from the microgrids are input to an air quality model and assessed for health impacts. The results show that (1) a mass deployment of CGT-based or FC-based microgrids in both the near- and long-term has a relatively small impact on air quality, (2) the health impacts are nonetheless significant for CGT-based microgrids due to the large and dense population of the area, and (3) disadvantaged communities are disproportionately impacted with the deployment of CTG-based microgrids. For example, near-term deployment of CGT-based microgrids results in an increase in the incidence of premature mortality(1 to 5 incidences per month) and an increase of $33 to $56 million per month in health costs. Deploying zero-emission FC-based microgrids mitigates the adverse health impact, prevents several incidences of premature mortality, and results in saving of ~$36M per month rather than a cost per month of ~$50M.

Air-Film Coupling in Prefilming Airblast Atomisers and the Implications for Subsequent Atomisation

AbstractPrefilming airblast atomisers are commonly used in gas turbine combustion system fuel injectors. As the film propagates across the prefilmer it interacts with the high velocity gas stream above it. In this paper a numerical investigation into this interaction is presented. A Coupled Level Set & Volume of Fluid method is used to simulate the development of the film along the KIT-ITS planar prefilmer (Gepperth et al., in: 23rd European conference on liquid atomization and spray systems (ILASS-Europe 2010), Brno, Czech Republic, September, 2010). Initial results showed the importance of correctly specifying the contact angle as too high a value leads to the formation of rivulets instead of a continuous film. An analysis of the film and air showed two-way coupling. The presence of the film increases the growth rate of the gas phase boundary layer, and the strength and size of the turbulent structures within it. Surface waves form in the film, initially driven by the turbulent fluctuations, but developing into transverse waves. These waves are shown to be independent, stochastic events instead of a periodic wave system. At the trailing edge of the prefilmer the increased turbulence level in the air, the variations in the film thickness and the associated change in fuel mass flow and momentum will have large implications for the atomisation process and subsequent fuel spray. These will also impact simulation of the atomisation, as the boundary condition complexity is much greater than commonly used, and the variations will require larger domains and longer simulation times to obtain fully converged atomisation statistics.

Projection-based reduced order modeling of multi-species mixing and combustion

High-fidelity simulations of mixing and combustion processes are computationally demanding and time-consuming, hindering their wide application in industrial design and optimization. This study proposes projection-based reduced order models (ROMs) to predict spatial distributions of physical fields for multi-species mixing and combustion problems in a fast and accurate manner. The developed ROMs explore the suitability of various regression methods, including kriging, multivariate polynomial regression (MPR), k-nearest neighbors (KNN), deep neural network (DNN), and support vector regression (SVR), for the functional mapping between input parameters and reduced model coefficients of mixing and combustion problems. The ROMs are systematically examined using two distinct configurations: steam-diluted hydrogen-enriched oxy-combustion from a triple-coaxial nozzle and fuel-flexible combustion in a practical gas-turbine combustor. The projected low-dimensional manifolds are capable of capturing important combustion physics, and the response surfaces of reduced model coefficients present pronounced nonlinear characteristics of the flowfields with varying input parameters. The ROMs with kriging present a superior performance of establishing the input–output mapping to predict almost all physical fields, such as temperature, velocity magnitude, and combustion products for both test problems. The accuracy of DNN is less encouraging owing to the stringent requirement on the size of training database. KNN performs well in the region near the design points but its effectiveness diminishes when the test points are distant from the sampling points, whereas SVR and MPR exhibit large prediction errors. For the spatial prediction at unseen design points, the ROMs achieve a prediction time of up to eight orders of magnitude faster than conventional numerical simulations, rendering an efficient tool for the fast prediction of mixing and combustion fields and potentially an alternative of a full-order numerical solver.

Fuel-air ratio effect on hydrogen-methane flames in a high pressure burner for gas turbines

This numerical simulation studied the effect of H2-CH4 flame equivalence ratio on turbulent premixed combustion at 50%-50% concentration (by volume). The equivalence ratio was varied from 0.45 to 1.0 in 0.5 increments for 126 kW operating power, matching a 3.3 bar inlet reactant pressure. Tests utilized a gas turbine combustor. The thermal field, flow field, and pollutant emissions (NOx and CO) underwent rigorous analysis. The modelling framework applied steady Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) equations coupled to a probability density function (PDF) approach for turbulence-chemistry interactions and a NOx formation model. Results showed increasing equivalence ratio from 0.45 to 1.0 elevated temperature approximately 900 K, significantly promoting NOx up to 1600 ppm and CO beyond 1900 ppm. However, equivalence ratio changes minimally impacted the overall flow field, maintaining stabilized flames. These findings provide new insight on thermochemical effects and flame stability in gas turbine (G.T) combustors across a range of equivalence ratios relevant for clean, high-pressure H2-CH4 combustion. The combined RANS-PDF methodology enables predictive simulation of turbulence, kinetics, emissions, and flame stability to guide optimal fuel-air ratio selection and low-emission combustor design.

Analysis of Pressure Effect on NOx Emission Predicted by EDC Models Adopted in a Model Gas Turbine Combustor

Analysis of Pressure Effect on NOx Emission Predicted by EDC Models Adopted in a Model Gas Turbine Combustor