Current Status of 300 kW Class Industrial Ceramic Gas Turbine R&D in Japan
Advanced technologies in Ceramics Gas Turbine (CGT) are expected to make a great progress in energy conservation, anti-pollution, and fuel-diversification. In Japan, R&D’s in industrial usage 300 kW class CGT have been advanced under a national project entitled “New Sunshine Program”, under the subsidy of Agency of Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) through the period of FY1988–1996. In this project, three different type prototypes of the CGT are under development through New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). Over the last six years, the basic designs have been completed and the ceramic elements such as turbine rotors, scrolls, and combustors were successfully fabricated. To check up the whole progress of the project, an interim evaluation is scheduled by the end of FY1993. Toward this evaluation, each prototype has been programmed to demonstrate 1200°C of Turbine Inlet Temperature (TIT) and prove more than 30% of thermal efficiency. (The ultimate target in the project is 42% of thermal efficiency at 1350°C TIT.) They would also show enough environmental adaptability. In this paper, overall status of the development in the 300kW CGT project is reviewed and the items in the interim evaluation are explained.