Ultra-Low Emission Hydrogen/Syngas Combustion With a 1.3 MW Injector Using a Micro-Mixing Lean-Premix System

2011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian Hollon ◽  
Erlendur Steinthorsson ◽  
Adel Mansour ◽  
Vincent McDonell ◽  
Howard Lee
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Natural Gas ◽  
Flame Temperature ◽  
Fuel Mixture ◽  
Full Scale ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Nitrogen Dilution ◽  
Fuel Mixtures

This paper discusses the development and testing of a full-scale micro-mixing lean-premix injector for hydrogen and syngas fuels that demonstrated ultra-low emissions and stable operation without flashback for high-hydrogen fuels at representative full-scale operating conditions. The injector was fabricated using Macrolamination technology, which is a process by which injectors are manufactured from bonded layers. The injector utilizes sixteen micro-mixing cups for effective and rapid mixing of fuel and air in a compact package. The full scale injector is rated at 1.3 MWth when operating on natural gas at 12.4 bar (180 psi) combustor pressure. The injector operated without flash back on fuel mixtures ranging from 100% natural gas to 100% hydrogen and emissions were shown to be insensitive to operating pressure. Ultra-low NOx emissions of 3 ppm were achieved at a flame temperature of 1750 K (2690 °F) using a fuel mixture containing 50% hydrogen and 50% natural gas by volume with 40% nitrogen dilution added to the fuel stream. NOx emissions of 1.5 ppm were demonstrated at a flame temperature over 1680 K (2564 °F) using the same fuel mixture with only 10% nitrogen dilution, and NOx emissions of 3.5 ppm were demonstrated at a flame temperature of 1730 K (2650 °F) with only 10% carbon dioxide dilution. Finally, using 100% hydrogen with 30% carbon dioxide dilution, 3.6 ppm NOx emissions were demonstrated at a flame temperature over 1600 K (2420 °F). Superior operability was achieved with the injector operating at temperatures below 1470 K (2186 °F) on a fuel mixture containing 87% hydrogen and 13% natural gas. The tests validated the micro-mixing fuel injector technology and the injectors show great promise for use in future gas turbine engines operating on hydrogen, syngas or other fuel mixtures of various compositions.

Experimental Assessment of the Emissions Benefits of a Ceramic Gas Turbine Combustor

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. O. Smith ◽  
A. Fahme
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Flow Distribution ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Gas Turbine Combustor ◽  
Experimental Assessment ◽  
Industrial Gas Turbine ◽  
Combustor Liner

Three subscale, cylindrical combustors were rig tested on natural gas at typical industrial gas turbine operating conditions. The intent of the testing was to determine the effect of combustor liner cooling on NOx and CO emissions. In order of decreasing liner cooling, a metal louvre-cooled combustor, a metal effusion-cooled combustor, and a backside-cooled ceramic (CFCC) combustor were evaluated. The three combustors were tested using the same lean-premixed fuel injector. Testing showed that reduced liner cooling produced lower CO emissions as reaction quenching near the liner wall was reduced. A reduction in CO emissions allows a reoptimization of the combustor air flow distribution to yield lower NOx emissions.

Low NOx Primary Zones Using Jet Mixing Shear Layer Combustion

1988 ◽  
Author(s):  
U. S. Abdul Hussain ◽  
G. E. Andrews ◽  
W. G. Cheung ◽  
A. R. Shahabadi
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Shear Layer ◽  
Gas Turbines ◽  
Scale Up ◽  
Combustion Efficiency ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Jet Mixing ◽  
Primary Zone

An interacting radial and axial multi jet shear layer combustion system is described that has the rapid fuel and air mixing characteristics necessary for low NOx emissions. The radial jet has the fuel mixed with a proportion of the total primary zone flow and a 30% proportion was investigated. This radial jet was fuel rich at most primary zone operating conditions and ensured a flame stability far superior to the premixed situation. The scale up of the design from a 76mm to a 140mm diameter combustor was investigated. It was demonstrated that the distance the radial jet travelled before encountering the rapid mixing with the axial jets, had a strong influence on the combustion efficiency and NOx emissions. For both the 76 and 140mm combustors it was shown that the NOx emissions with propane were 50% greater than those for natural gas. It was also demonstrated that the low NOx emissions of the 76mm system were retained in the larger combustor with the same single central fuel injector design. There was a significant increase in NOx for some 140mm combustor configurations, but the emissions corrected to 15% oxygen below 10ppm were demonstratred, with a high combustion efficiency. The design thus demonstrated, in a practical combustor size, the potential for a dry solution to the NOx emissions problem of natural gas fired industrial gas turbines.

Lean Premixed Combustion of Undiluted Syngas at Gas Turbine Relevant Conditions: NOx Emissions and Lean Operational Limits

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Daniele ◽  
P. Jansohn ◽  
K. Boulouchos
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Flame Temperature ◽  
Fuel Mixture ◽  
Flame Length ◽  
The Other ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Fuel Gas ◽  
Lean Premixed Combustion ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Difference

The experimental work presented in this paper focuses on the characterization of four syngas mixtures, primarily in terms of NOx emissions and Lean Blow Out (LBO) limits; these mixtures were selected to simulate various syngas types derived from coal, refinery residues, biomass and co-firing of syngas with natural gas. These fuel mixtures are all of interest for applications in gasturbine processes for power generation. The experiments were carried out in a High Pressure Test Rig. Preheating of the fuel/air mixture to a temperature of 673 K, inlet bulk velocities between 40 and 80 m/s and operating pressures between 5 and 15 bars have been applied. The results show the expected strong difference between the CH4 containing mixture and all the other “pure” syngas mixtures concerning the “operational window”. As the focus of this paper is on lean extinction limits and NOx emissions, flashback phenomena are not discussed in further detail. Lean Blow Out limits were found to have weak pressure dependence for the methane containing mixture whereas for the other mixtures this dependence is slightly stronger: “Lean Blow Out” limits move to less lean condition with increasing pressure. No significant dependence on the Inlet velocity was found. Lean blow out occurs at much leaner conditions, ΦLBO≈0.25, for the pure syngas mixtures than for the methane containing fuel mixture (simulating co-firing of syngas with natural gas) which shows flame extinction already at ΦLBO≈0.38. NOx emissions show also a significant difference between the CH4 containing mixture and all other “pure” syngas mixtures with higher NOx emissions for the latter fuel gas mixtures. The difference can be attributed to the different O2 concentration in the hot exhaust gas after the flame front (for a given flame temperature) and to the difference in the flame length which leads to longer residence times in the post flame zone (for the much more compact syngas flames).

Numerical studies of the ignition characteristics of a high-pressure gas jet in compression-ignition engines with glow plug ignition assist: Part 1—Operating condition study

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (10) ◽  
pp. 1035-1054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kang Pan ◽  
James S Wallace
Keyword(s):  
High Pressure ◽  
Natural Gas ◽  
Engine Performance ◽  
Fuel Mixture ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Gas Jet ◽  
Compression Ignition ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Compression Ignition Engine ◽  
Glow Plug

This article presents the results of computational studies investigating the ignition of high-pressure natural gas jets in a compression-ignition engine with glow plug ignition assist. The simulation was conducted using a KIVA-3V-based three-dimensional engine model, along with an improved fuel injector model, a detailed cut-off glow plug shield model and a modified two-step methane reaction mechanism, to simulate the natural gas injection and ignition. The simulated results demonstrate the significance of using a shield for the glow plug. Compared to an unshielded (bare) glow plug, the shield not only reduces the heat loss from the hot glow plug surface to the cold intake air charge and the cold injected gas jet but also traps the fuel mixture to increase its residence time adjacent to the hot surface. Over a representative range of heavy-duty diesel engine operating conditions, a shielded glow plug greatly improves the natural gas engine performance and provides reliable ignition, while an unshielded glow plug can only be optimized for specific conditions. The understanding of glow plug shield behavior gained from the simulations suggests avenues for improved shield designs that would yield further reduced ignition delays.

Characterization of Spray Formed by Diesel-Water Mixture Jet Injected Into an Air Crossflow

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinkwan Song ◽  
Jong Guen Lee
Keyword(s):  
Diesel Fuel ◽  
Drop Size ◽  
Pure Water ◽  
Fuel Mixture ◽  
Water Mixture ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Spray Characteristics ◽  
Two Fluids ◽  
Mixing Ratios ◽  
Fuel Mixtures

Using a mixture of water and diesel fuel is considered a way to reduce gas emissions including NOx and COx in the gas turbine. This paper presents experimental results on spray characteristics of the water-diesel fuel mixture in an air crossflow. A plain-orifice type injector of 0.508 mm in diameter is employed in the research. Pure water, pure diesel fuel, and water-diesel fuel mixtures with different mixing ratios are used to compare their spray characteristics. In order to observe spray behaviors in different breakup regimes, Weber numbers for water of 30 and 125 are chosen as the operating condition and the corresponding Weber numbers for diesel fuel at the same conditions are 92 and 382, respectively. Momentum flux ratios are 10 and 20. A tee connection and a subsequent static mixer are employed at upstream of fuel injector to mix two liquids. Phase Doppler Particle Analyzer (PDPA) measurement is performed to measure droplet distributions and mean drop size at various mixture ratios, and planar laser induced fluorescence (PLIF) technique with dyeing either diesel or water is used to look into the primary breakup process. PDPA data show that the spray characteristics of water-diesel fuel mixtures such as mean drop size and number density distribution can be predicted from the measured drop size distribution of pure fluids by weighting those quantities by mass fraction of each fluid, indicating that the water and diesel are injected alternately without significant mixing between the two fluids. A short transition of liquid flow from water-to-diesel or diesel-to-water produces small fraction of relatively bigger droplets.

scholarly journals Characterization of a Novel Porous Injector for Multi-Lean Direct Injection (M-LDI) Combustor

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jianing Li ◽  
Umesh Bhayaraju ◽  
San-Mou Jeng
Keyword(s):  
Air Temperature ◽  
Mass Fraction ◽  
Direct Injection ◽  
Flame Temperature ◽  
Gaseous Fuel ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Porous Tube ◽  
Lean Direct Injection ◽  
Air Mixing

A generic novel injector was designed for multi-Lean Direct Injection (M-LDI) combustors. One of the drawbacks of the conventional pressure swirl and prefilming type airblast atomizers is the difficulty of obtaining a uniform symmetric spray under all operating conditions. Micro-channels are needed inside the injector for uniformly distributing the fuel. The problem of non-uniformity is magnified in smaller sized injectors. The non-uniform liquid sheet causes local fuel rich/lean zones leading to higher NOx emissions. To overcome these problems, a novel fuel injector was designed to improve the fuel delivery to the injector by using a porous stainless steel material with 30 μm porosity. The porous tube also acts as a prefilming surface. Liquid and gaseous fuels can be injected through the injector. In the present study, gaseous fuel was injected to investigate injector fuel-air mixing performance. The gaseous fuel was injected through a porous tube between two radial-radial swirling air streams to facilitate fuel-air mixing. The advantage of this injector is that it increases the contact surface area between the fuel-air at the fuel injection point. The increased contact area enhances fuel-air mixing. Fuel-air mixing and combustion studies were carried out for both gaseous and liquid fuel. Flame visualization, and emissions measurements were carried out inside the exit of the combustor. The measurements were carried out at atmospheric conditions under fuel lean conditions. Natural gas was used as a fuel in these experiments. Fuel-air mixing studies were carried out at different equivalence ratios with and without confinement. The mass fraction distributions were measured at different downstream locations from the injector exit. Flame characterization was carried out by chemiluminescence at different equivalence ratios and inlet air temperatures. Symmetry of the flame, flame length and heat release distribution were analyzed from the flame images. The effects of inlet air temperature and combustion flame temperature on emissions was studied. Emissions were corrected to 15% O2 concentration. NOx emissions increase with inlet air temperature and flame temperature. Effect of flame temperature on NOx concentration is more significant than effect of inlet air temperature. Fuel-air mixing profile was used to obtain mass fraction Probability Density Function (pdf). The pdfs were used for simulations in Chemkin Pro. The measured emissions concentrations at the exit of the injector was compared with simulations. In Chemkin model, a network model with several PSRs (perfectly stirred reactor) were utilized, followed by a mixer and a PFR (plug flow reactor). The comparison between the simulations and the experimental results was investigated.

Lean-Burn Characteristics of a Heavy-Duty Diesel Engine Retrofitted to Natural Gas Spark Ignition

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinlong Liu ◽  
Cosmin E. Dumitrescu
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Combustion Chamber ◽  
Spark Ignition ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Combustion Stability ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Heavy Duty ◽  
Lean Burn ◽  
Spark Timing ◽  
Heavy Duty Diesel

Increased utilization of natural-gas (NG) in the transportation sector can decrease the use of petroleum-based fuels and reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. Heavy-duty diesel engines retrofitted to NG spark ignition (SI) can achieve higher efficiencies and low NOx, CO, and HC emissions when operated under lean-burn conditions. To investigate the SI lean-burn combustion phenomena in a bowl-in-piston combustion chamber, a conventional heavy-duty direct-injection CI engine was converted to SI operation by replacing the fuel injector with a spark plug and by fumigating NG in the intake manifold. Steady-state engine experiments and numerical simulations were performed at several operating conditions that changed spark timing, engine speed, and mixture equivalence ratio. Results suggested a two-zone NG combustion inside the diesel-like combustion chamber. More frequent and significant late burn (including double-peak heat release rate) was observed for advanced spark timing. This was due to the chamber geometry affecting the local flame speed, which resulted in a faster and thicker flame in the bowl but a slower and thinner flame in the squish volume. Good combustion stability (COVIMEP < 3 %), moderate rate of pressure rise, and lack of knocking showed promise for heavy-duty CI engines converted to NG SI operation.

A Literature Review of NOx Formation Kinetics and a Prediction Method for Lean-Burn, Two-Stroke Natural Gas Engines

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taylor F. Linker ◽  
Mark Patterson ◽  
Greg Beshouri ◽  
Abdullah U. Bajwa ◽  
Timothy J. Jacobs
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Chemical Properties ◽  
Prediction Method ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Combustion Mechanism ◽  
Nox Emissions ◽  
Lean Burn ◽  
Nox Formation ◽  
Gas Combustion ◽  
No2 Formation

Abstract The increased production of natural gas harvested from unconventional sources, such as shale, has led to fluctuations in the species composition of natural gas moving through pipelines. These variations alter the chemical properties of the bulk gas mixture and, consequently, affect the operation of pipeline compressor engines which use the gas as fuel. Among several possible ramifications of these variations is that of unacceptably high engine-out NOx emissions. Therefore, engine controller enhancements which can account for fuel variability are necessary for maintaining emissions compliance. Having the means to predict NOx emissions from a field engine can inform the development of such control schemes. There are several types of compressor engines; however, this study considers a large bore, lean-burn, two-stroke, integral compressor engine. This class of engine has unique operating conditions which make the formation of engine-out NOx different from typical automotive spark-ignited engines. For this reason, automotive-based methods for predicting NOx emissions are not sufficiently accurate. In this study, an investigation is performed on the possible NO and NO2 formation pathways which could be contributing to exhaust emissions. Additionally, a modeling method is proposed to predict engine-out NOx emissions using a 0-D/1-D model of a Cooper-Bessemer GMWH-10C compressor engine. Predictions are achieved with GRI-Mech3.0, a natural gas combustion mechanism, which allows for simulated formation of NOx species. The implemented technique is tuned using experimental data from a field engine to better predict emissions over a range of engine operating conditions. Tuning the model led to acceptable agreement across operating points varying in both load and trapped equivalence ratio.

Lean-Burn Characteristics of a Heavy-Duty Diesel Engine Retrofitted to Natural-Gas Spark Ignition

2019 ◽  
Vol 141 (7) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinlong Liu ◽  
Cosmin Emil Dumitrescu
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Combustion Chamber ◽  
Spark Ignition ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Combustion Stability ◽  
Fuel Injector ◽  
Heavy Duty ◽  
Lean Burn ◽  
Heavy Duty Diesel ◽  
Ci Engines

Increased utilization of natural gas (NG) in the transportation sector can decrease the use of petroleum-based fuels and reduced greenhouse gas emissions. Heavy-duty diesel engines retrofitted to NG spark ignition (SI) can achieve higher efficiencies and low NOX, CO, and hydrocarbon (HC) emissions when operated under lean-burn conditions. To investigate the SI lean-burn combustion phenomena in a bowl-in-piston combustion chamber, a conventional heavy-duty direct-injection CI engine was converted to SI operation by replacing the fuel injector with a spark plug and by fumigating NG in the intake manifold. Steady-state engine experiments and numerical simulations were performed at several operating conditions that changed spark timing (ST), engine speed, and mixture equivalence ratio. Results suggested a two-zone NG combustion inside the diesel-like combustion chamber. More frequent and significant late-burn (including double-peak heat release rate) was observed for advanced ST. This was due to the chamber geometry affecting the local flame speed, which resulted in a faster and thicker flame in the bowl but a slower and thinner flame in the squish volume. Good combustion stability (COVIMEP < 3%), moderate rate of pressure-rise, and lack of knocking showed promise for heavy-duty CI engines converted to NG SI operation.

Experimental Investigation of the Performance of a Micro Gas Turbine Fueled With Mixtures of Natural Gas and Biogas

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Homam Nikpey ◽  
Mohsen Assadi ◽  
Peter Breuhaus
Keyword(s):  
Natural Gas ◽  
Gas Turbine ◽  
Co2 Emissions ◽  
Fuel Mixture ◽  
Combined Heat And Power ◽  
Test Rig ◽  
Heating Value ◽  
Micro Gas Turbine ◽  
Fuel Mixtures ◽  
The Impact

Previously published studies have addressed modifications to the engines when operating with biogas, i.e. a low heating value (LHV) fuel. This study focuses on mapping out the possible biogas share in a fuel mixture of biogas and natural gas in micro combined heat and power (CHP) installations without any engine modifications. This contributes to a reduction in CO2 emissions from existing CHP installations and makes it possible to avoid a costly upgrade of biogas to the natural gas quality as well as engine modifications. Moreover, this approach allows the use of natural gas as a “fallback” solution in the case of eventual variations of the biogas composition and or shortage of biogas, providing improved availability. In this study, the performance of a commercial 100kW micro gas turbine (MGT) is experimentally evaluated when fed by varying mixtures of natural gas and biogas. The MGT is equipped with additional instrumentation, and a gas mixing station is used to supply the demanded fuel mixtures from zero biogas to maximum possible level by diluting natural gas with CO2. A typical biogas composition with 0.6 CH4 and 0.4 CO2 (in mole fraction) was used as reference, and corresponding biogas content in the supplied mixtures was computed. The performance changes due to increased biogas share were studied and compared with the purely natural gas fired engine. This paper presents the test rig setup used for the experimental activities and reports results, demonstrating the impact of burning a mixture of biogas and natural gas on the performance of the MGT. Comparing with when only natural gas was fired in the engine, the electrical efficiency was almost unchanged and no significant changes in operating parameters were observed. It was also shown that burning a mixture of natural gas and biogas contributes to a significant reduction in CO2 emissions from the plant.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document