A Novel Damping Device for Broadband Attenuation of Low-Frequency Combustion Pulsations in Gas Turbines

Author(s):  
Mirko R. Bothien ◽  
Nicolas Noiray ◽  
Bruno Schuermans

Damping of thermoacoustically induced pressure pulsations in combustion chambers is a major focus of gas turbine operation. Conventional Helmholtz resonators are an excellent means to attenuate thermoacoustic instabilities in gas turbines. Usually, however, the damping optimum is in a narrow frequency band at one operating condition. The work presented here deals with a modification of the basic Helmholtz resonator design over-coming this drawback. It consists of a damper body housing separated volumes that are connected to each other. Adequate adjustment of the governing parameters results in a broadband damping characteristic for low frequencies. In this way, changes in operating conditions and engine-to-engine variations involving shifts in the combustion pulsation frequency can conveniently be addressed. Genetic algorithms and optimization strategies are used to derive these parameters in a multi-dimensional parameter space. The novel damper concept is described in more detail and compared with cold-flow experiments. In order to validate the performance under realistic conditions, the new broadband dampers were implemented in a full-scale test engine. Pulsation amplitudes could be reduced by more than 80%. In addition, it is shown that due to sophisticated damper placement in the engine two unstable modes can be addressed simultaneously. Application of the damper concept allowed to considerably increase the engine operating regime and finally to reduce NOx emissions by 55%. Predictions obtained with the physics-based model excellently agree with experimental results for all tested damper geometries, bias flows, excitation amplitudes, and most important with the measurements in the engine.

2000 ◽  
Vol 123 (4) ◽  
pp. 766-773 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Hubbard ◽  
A. P. Dowling

A theory is developed to describe low-frequency acoustic waves in the complicated diffuser/combustor geometry of a typical industrial gas turbine. This is applied to the RB211-DLE geometry to give predictions for the frequencies of the acoustic resonances at a range of operating conditions. The main resonant frequencies are to be found around 605 Hz (associated with the plenum) and around 461 Hz and 823 Hz (associated with the combustion chamber), as well as one at around 22 Hz (a bulk mode associated with the system as a whole). The stabilizing effects of a Helmholtz resonator, which models damping through nonlinear effects, are included, together with effects of coupled pressure waves in the fuel supply system.


Author(s):  
S. M. Camporeale ◽  
A. Forte ◽  
B. Fortunato ◽  
M. Mastrovito ◽  
A. Ferrante

In modern gas turbines in which lean premixed flames are used to obtain low NOx emissions, large pressure oscillations may arise inside the combustor due to thermoacoustic combustion instability at frequencies corresponding to the natural acoustic frequency of the system. Such pressure fluctuations, that may cause structural damages, need to be damped in order to avoid a reduction of the operational range of the gas turbine. In this work Helmholtz resonators connected to the external envelope of the combustion chamber are examined as passive systems for damping the low frequency acoustic pressure in the case of an annular combustor. The acoustical behavior of the combustor has been first investigated by means of the Finite Element method, obtaining its acoustic eigenmodes and eigenfrequencies in order to tune the Helmholtz resonators on the frequency to be damped. In order to characterize the resonator, preliminary tests have been carried out on a simplified system composed of a Helmholtz resonator applied at the end of an impedance tube. Then the eigenmodes of the system obtained by connecting one or more resonators to the annular chamber and the damping effects obtained by varying the geometry, the number and the position of the resonators are analyzed. It appears that the peak of acoustic pressure characterizing the combustion chamber splits into two peaks of lower magnitude when the Helmholtz resonators are applied and the peak frequencies are correlated to the overall volume of resonant cavities, whilst lower effects are obtained by varying the position and the number of resonator units.


Author(s):  
Valter Bellucci ◽  
Christian Oliver Paschereit ◽  
Peter Flohr ◽  
Fulvio Magni

In modern gas turbines operating with premix combustion flames, the suppression of pressure pulsations is an important task related to the quality of the combustion process and to the structural integrity of engines. High pressure pulsations may occur when the resonance frequencies of the system are excited by heat release fluctuations independent of the acoustic field (“loudspeaker” behavior of the flame). Heat release fluctuations are also generated by acoustic fluctuations in the premixed stream. The feedback mechanism inherent in such processes (“amplifier” behavior of the flame) may lead to combustion instabilities, the amplitude of pulsations being limited only by nonlinearities. In this work, the application of Helmholtz resonators for damping low-frequency pulsations in gas turbine combustion chambers is discussed. We present a nonlinear model for predicting the acoustic response of resonators including the effect of purging air. Atmospheric experiments are used to validate the model, which is employed to design a resonator arrangement for damping low-frequency pulsations in an ALSTOM GT11N2 gas turbine. The predicted damper impedances are used as the boundary condition in the three-dimensional analysis of the combustion chamber. The suggested arrangement leads to a significant extension of the low-pulsation operating regime of the engine.


2021 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 341-350
Author(s):  
Pedro Cobo ◽  
Francisco Simón ◽  
Carlos Colina

Microperforated panels (MPPs) are recognized as suitable absorbers for noise control applications demanding special clean and health requirements.While it is relatively easy to design single-layer MPPs for sound absorption in one-to-two octave bands at medium-high frequencies, the performance for low frequencies (below 600 Hz) leads to a rather narrow-band absorption, similar to that of a Helmholtz resonator. However, multiple-layer MPPs can be designed as sound absorbers that yield low-frequency absorption in a wide frequency band. Recently, multiple-cavity perforated panels have been proposed to improve the performance of MPPs in the low-frequency range. In this article, the capability of multiple-layer and multiple-cavity MPPs to provide sound absorption at low frequencies is analyzed.


2021 ◽  
Vol 69 (4) ◽  
pp. 351-363
Author(s):  
Jhalu Gorain ◽  
Chandramouli Padmanabhan

Achieving broadband noise attenuation at low frequencies is still a significant challenge. Helmholtz resonators offer good low-frequency noise attenuation but are effective only over a narrow band; the cavity volume required at these frequencies is also larger. This article proposes a new broadband acoustic metamaterial (AMM) absorber, which uses polyurethane (PU) foam embedded with small-size resonators tuned to different frequencies. The AMM design is achieved in three phases: (1) develop a transfer-matrix-based one-dimensionalmodel for a resonator with intruded neck; (2) use this model to develop a novel band broadeningmethod, to select appropriate resonators tuned to different frequencies; and (3) construct a unit cell metamaterial embedded with an array of resonators into PU foam. A small-size resonator tuned to 415 Hz is modified, by varying the intrusion lengths of the neck, to achieve natural frequencies ranging from 210 to 415 Hz. Using the band broadening methodology, 1 unit cell metamaterial is constructed; its effectiveness is demonstrated by testing in an acoustic impedance tube. The broadband attenuation characteristics of the constructed unit cell metamaterial are shown to match well with the predicted results. To demonstrate further the effectiveness of the idea, a metamaterial is formed using 4 periodic unit cells and is tested in a twin room reverberation chamber. The transmission loss is shown to improve significantly, at low frequencies, due to the inclusion of the resonators.


2004 ◽  
Vol 126 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-275 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Bellucci ◽  
P. Flohr ◽  
C. O. Paschereit ◽  
F. Magni

In this work, the application of Helmholtz resonators for damping low-frequency pulsations in gas turbine combustion chambers is discussed. We present a nonlinear model for predicting the acoustic response of resonators including the effect of purging air. Atmospheric experiments are used to validate the model, which is employed to design a resonator arrangement for damping low-frequency pulsations in an ALSTOM GT11N2 gas turbine. The predicted damper impedances are used as the boundary condition in the three-dimensional analysis of the combustion chamber. The suggested arrangement leads to a significant extension of the low-pulsation operating regime of the engine.


Author(s):  
Simon R. Stow ◽  
Ann P. Dowling

Lean premixed prevaporised (LPP) combustion can reduce NOx emissions from gas turbines, but often leads to combustion instability. Acoustic waves produce fluctuations in heat release, for instance by perturbing the fuel-air ratio or flame shape. These heat fluctuations will in turn generate more acoustic waves and in some situations self-sustained oscillations can result. A linear model for thermoacoustic oscillations in LPP combustors is described. A thin annular geometry is assumed and so circumferential modes are included but radial dependence is ignored. The formulation is in terms of a network of modules such as straight ducts and area changes. At certain operating conditions, the flow is predicted to be unstable, with linear waves growing in amplitude. Helmholtz resonators can be used to absorb acoustic energy and, when carefully designed and installed at appropriate locations, can stabilise the flow. Helmholtz resonators are included in the model. Connecting a Helmholtz resonator to an annular duct destroys the axisymmetry of the geometry. This results in coupling of the circumferential modes which must be calculated. The model is used to investigate the best arrangement of resonators around the circumference of an annular duct to achieve maximum damping of a circumferential oscillation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 263 (2) ◽  
pp. 3975-3986
Author(s):  
Tenon Charly Kone ◽  
Sebastian Ghinet ◽  
Raymond Panneton ◽  
Thomas Dupont ◽  
Anant Grewal

The noise control at multiple tonal frequencies simultaneously, in the low frequency range, is a challenge for aerospace, ground transportation and building industries. In the past few decades, various low frequency noise control solutions based on acoustic metamaterial designs have been presented in the literature. These solutions showed promising performance and are considered a better alternative to conventional sound insulation materials. In the present investigation, it was noticed that subdividing the cavity of a Helmholtz resonator allowed the control of multi-tonal noise at several resonance frequencies simultaneously and a shift of the resonance peaks towards the low frequencies. This paper proposes concepts of Helmholtz resonators with subdivided cavities to improve the sound transmission loss (STL) performance and simultaneously control the noise at several tonal frequencies. HRs with cylindrical shaped cavities were embedded in a layer of porous material. The STL of the metamaterial noise insulation configuration was predicted using serial and parallel assemblies of transfer matrices (TMM) incorporating a thermo-viscous-acoustic approach to accurately account for the viscous and thermal losses of acoustic wave propagation within the metamaterial. The STL calculated using the proposed TMM approach were observed to be in excellent agreement with the finite element method (FEM) numerical results.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 389
Author(s):  
Jinfu Liu ◽  
Zhenhua Long ◽  
Mingliang Bai ◽  
Linhai Zhu ◽  
Daren Yu

As one of the core components of gas turbines, the combustion system operates in a high-temperature and high-pressure adverse environment, which makes it extremely prone to faults and catastrophic accidents. Therefore, it is necessary to monitor the combustion system to detect in a timely way whether its performance has deteriorated, to improve the safety and economy of gas turbine operation. However, the combustor outlet temperature is so high that conventional sensors cannot work in such a harsh environment for a long time. In practical application, temperature thermocouples distributed at the turbine outlet are used to monitor the exhaust gas temperature (EGT) to indirectly monitor the performance of the combustion system, but, the EGT is not only affected by faults but also influenced by many interference factors, such as ambient conditions, operating conditions, rotation and mixing of uneven hot gas, performance degradation of compressor, etc., which will reduce the sensitivity and reliability of fault detection. For this reason, many scholars have devoted themselves to the research of combustion system fault detection and proposed many excellent methods. However, few studies have compared these methods. This paper will introduce the main methods of combustion system fault detection and select current mainstream methods for analysis. And a circumferential temperature distribution model of gas turbine is established to simulate the EGT profile when a fault is coupled with interference factors, then use the simulation data to compare the detection results of selected methods. Besides, the comparison results are verified by the actual operation data of a gas turbine. Finally, through comparative research and mechanism analysis, the study points out a more suitable method for gas turbine combustion system fault detection and proposes possible development directions.


2017 ◽  
Vol 284 (1864) ◽  
pp. 20171670 ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly C. Womack ◽  
Jakob Christensen-Dalsgaard ◽  
Luis A. Coloma ◽  
Juan C. Chaparro ◽  
Kim L. Hoke

Sensory losses or reductions are frequently attributed to relaxed selection. However, anuran species have lost tympanic middle ears many times, despite anurans' use of acoustic communication and the benefit of middle ears for hearing airborne sound. Here we determine whether pre-existing alternative sensory pathways enable anurans lacking tympanic middle ears (termed earless anurans) to hear airborne sound as well as eared species or to better sense vibrations in the environment. We used auditory brainstem recordings to compare hearing and vibrational sensitivity among 10 species (six eared, four earless) within the Neotropical true toad family (Bufonidae). We found that species lacking middle ears are less sensitive to high-frequency sounds, however, low-frequency hearing and vibrational sensitivity are equivalent between eared and earless species. Furthermore, extratympanic hearing sensitivity varies among earless species, highlighting potential species differences in extratympanic hearing mechanisms. We argue that ancestral bufonids may have sufficient extratympanic hearing and vibrational sensitivity such that earless lineages tolerated the loss of high frequency hearing sensitivity by adopting species-specific behavioural strategies to detect conspecifics, predators and prey.


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