A Reactor Model for the NOx Formation in a Reacting Jet in Hot Cross Flow Under Atmospheric and High Pressure Conditions

Author(s):  
Vera Hoferichter ◽  
Denise Ahrens ◽  
Michael Kolb ◽  
Thomas Sattelmayer

Staged combustion is a promising technology for gas turbines to achieve load flexibility and low NOx emission levels at the same time. Therefore, a large scale atmospheric test rig has been set up at the Institute of Thermodynamics, Technical University of Munich to study NOx emission characteristics of a reacting jet in hot cross flow. The premixed primary combustion stage is operated at ϕ = 0.5 and provides the hot cross flow. In the second stage a premixed jet at ϕ = 0.77 is injected perpendicular to the first stage. In both stages natural gas is used as fuel and air as oxidant. This paper presents a reactor model approach for the computation of the resulting NOx concentrations. The mixing and ignition process along the jet streamline of maximum NOx formation is simulated using a perfectly stirred reactor with Cantera 1.8. The reactor model is validated for the ambient pressure case using experimental data. Afterwards, a high pressure simulation is performed in order to investigate the NOx emission characteristics under gas turbine conditions. The NOx formation is divided into flame NOx and post flame NOx. The reactor model reveals that the formation of post flame NOx in the second combustion stage can be efficiently suppressed due to fast mixing with cross flow material and the corresponding temperature reduction. Compared to single stage combustion with the same power output, no NOx reduction was observed in the experiment. However, the results from the reactor model suggest a NOx reduction potential at gas turbine conditions caused by the increased influence of post flame NOx production at high pressure.

Author(s):  
K. K. Botros ◽  
M. J. de Boer ◽  
G. Kibrya

A one dimensional model based on fundamental principles of gas turbine thermodynamics and combustion processes was constructed to quantify the principle of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) for NOx reduction. The model utilizes the commercial process simulation software ASPEN PLUS®. Employing a set of 8 reactions including the Zeldovich mechanism, the model predicted thermal NOx formation as function of amount of recirculation and the degree of recirculate cooling. Results show that addition of sufficient quantities of uncooled recirculate to the inlet air (i.e. EGR>∼4%) could significantly decrease NOx emissions but at a cost of lower thermal efficiency and specific work. Cooling the recirculate also reduced NOx at lower quantities of recirculation. This has also the benefit of decreasing losses in the thermal efficiency and in the specific work output. Comparison of a ‘rubber’ and ‘non-rubber’ gas turbine confirmed that residence time is one important factor in NOx formation.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Ditaranto ◽  
Inge Saanum ◽  
Jenny Larfeldt

Abstract Hydrogen, a carbon-free fuel, is a challenging gas to transport and store, but that can be solved by producing ammonia, a worldwide commonly distributed chemical. Ideally, ammonia should be used directly on site as a fuel, but it has many combustion shortcomings, with a very low reactivity and a high propensity to generate NOx. Alternatively, ammonia could be decomposed back to a mixture of hydrogen and nitrogen which has better combustion properties, but at the expense of an endothermal reaction. Between these two options, a trade off could be a partial decomposition where the end use fuel is a mixture of ammonia, hydrogen, and nitrogen. We present an experimental study aiming at finding optimal NH3-H2-N2 fuel blends to be used in gas turbines and provide manufacturers with guidelines for their use in retrofit and new combustion applications. The industrial burner considered in this study is a small-scale Siemens burner used in the SGT-750 gas turbine, tested in the SINTEF high pressure combustion facility. The overall behaviour of the burner in terms of stability and emissions is characterized as a function of fuel mixtures corresponding to partial and full decomposition of ammonia. It is found that when ammonia is present in the fuel, the NOx emissions although high can be limited if the primary flame zone is operated fuel rich. Increasing pressure has shown to have a strong and favourable effect on NOx formation. When ammonia is fully decomposed to 75% H2 and 25% N2, the opposite behaviour is observed. In conclusion, either low rate or full decomposition are found to be the better options.


1998 ◽  
Vol 120 (3) ◽  
pp. 509-513 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Fujii ◽  
Y. Ozawa ◽  
S. Kikumoto ◽  
M. Sato ◽  
Y. Yuasa ◽  
...  

Recently, the use of gas turbine systems, such as combined cycle and cogeneration systems, has gradually increased in the world. But even when a clean fuel such as LNG (liquefied natural gas) is used, thermal NOx is generated in the high temperature gas turbine combustion process. The NOx emission from gas turbines is controlled through selective catalytic reduction processes (SCR) in the Japanese electric industry. If catalytic combustion could be applied to the combustor of the gas turbine, it is expected to lower NOx emission more economically. Under such high temperature and high pressure conditions, as in the gas turbine, however, the durability of the catalyst is still insufficient. So it prevents the realization of a high temperature catalytic combustor. To overcome this difficulty, a catalytic combustor combined with premixed combustion for a 1300°C class gas turbine was developed. In this method, catalyst temperature is kept below 1000°C, and a lean premixed gas is injected into the catalytic combustion gas. As a result, the load on the catalyst is reduced and it is possible to prevent the catalyst deactivation. After a preliminary atmospheric test, the design of the combustort was modified and a high pressure combustion test was conducted. As a result, it was confirmed that NOx emission was below 10 ppm (at 16 percent O2) at a combustor outlet gas temperature of 1300°C and that the combustion efficiency was almost 100 percent. This paper presents the design features and test results of the combustor.


Author(s):  
Joel M. Haynes ◽  
Daniel Micka ◽  
Ben Hojnacki ◽  
Craig Russell ◽  
John Lipinski ◽  
...  

The application of the trapped vortex combustor (TVC) concept to heavy-duty gas turbine conditions has been explored. Combustor stability, lean blow out, and emission performance requirements limit design options for conventional lean premixed combustors. The TVC concept has demonstrated reduced emissions and high turndown with liquid fuels and could overcome existing lean premixed performance constraints as well. The present study examines premixed injection of natural gas into the TVC at heavy-duty gas turbine conditions. The emission performance is measured over a range of operating conditions. The combustor turndown and dynamics performance are also presented. To forecast the performance potential of the TVC combustor a chemical reactor network model was developed. The model was anchored with experimental data and implemented in the prediction of TVC combustor emissions and turndown performance. The reactor model confirms that NOx reduction greater than 60% is possible using a trapped vortex combustor (TVC).


Author(s):  
T. Fujii ◽  
Y. Ozawa ◽  
S. Kikumoto ◽  
M. Sato ◽  
Y. Yuasa ◽  
...  

Recently, use of gas turbine systems such as combined cycle and cogeneration systems has gradually increased in the world. But even when a clean fuel such as LNG (liquefied natural gas) is used, thermal NOx is generated in the high temperature gas turbine combustion process. The NOx emission from gas turbines is controlled through selective catalytic reduction processes (SCR) in the Japanese electric industry. If catalytic combustion could be applied to the combustor of the gas turbine, it is expected to lower NOx emission more economically. Under such high temperature and high pressure conditions as in the gas turbine, however, the durability of the catalyst is still insufficient. So it prevents the realization of a high temperature catalytic combustor. To overcome this difficulty, a catalytic combustor combined with premixed combustion for a 1300°C class gas turbine was developed. In this method, catalyst temperature is kept below 1000°C and a lean premixed gas is injected into the catalytic combustion gas. As a result, the load on the catalyst is reduced and it is possible to prevent the catalyst deactivation. After a preliminary atmospheric test, the design of the combustor was modified and a high pressure combustion test was conducted. As a result, it was confirmed that NOx emission was below 10ppm (at 16% O2) at a combustor outlet gas temperature of 1300°C and that the combustion efficiency was almost 100%. This paper presents the design features and test results of the combustor.


Author(s):  
Chao Zong ◽  
Yaya Lyu ◽  
Desan Guo ◽  
Chengqin Li ◽  
Tong Zhu

Micro gas turbine is one of the ideal prime movers for small-distributed energy systems. It can effectively reduce the emission of greenhouse gases and nitrogen oxides. Moreover, the use of micro gas turbines will contribute to burning fossil fuels in a much cleaner way. The staged combustion technology is the favorite way for low pollution combustion chamber such like. Therefore, the influence of the proportion of pilot fuel in the combustion chamber on pollutant emission deserves further study. The object of this research is the Double annular swirler (Das), which was applied to a 100 kW micro gas turbine combustion chamber. The combustion performance and emission characteristics under different Pilot Fuel Ratios (PFR) were obtained in prototype experimental system. Under the experimental conditions, Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method was applied to research the reacting flow field and the formation of NOx in the combustion chamber and then analyze the influences of PFRs on combustion process. Experimental results show that the NOx emission of Das decreased at first and then increased with the augment of PFR. When PFR was near to 11%, the per unit NOx emission concentration reached its minimum. The numerical simulation agreed well with the experimental data. Further analysis of the simulation results indicate that there is a strong correlation between Φlocal and NOx concentration. When it is lower than a certain value, the number of nitrogen oxides will be significantly reduced. The value has a lot to do with the inlet air temperature and the pressure of the combustion chamber under the design condition, and it needs to be confirmed by calculating the adiabatic temperature. Simultaneously, we also find that although the percentage of total air flowing into the combustor remains unchanged, the increase of PFR would reduce the airflow ratio in inner swirler. This implies that for some particular combustion chambers, special attention should be paid to the changes in air allocation caused by PFR.


1977 ◽  
Vol 99 (4) ◽  
pp. 631-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. E. Mumford ◽  
W. S. Y. Hung ◽  
P. P. Singh

An experimentally verified NOx emission model has been described previously to predict accurately the NOx emission characteristics of conventional gas turbine combustors as well as laboratory scaled premixed combustor. Experimental data and analyses indicated that a hybrid combustor, which utilizes features of both the conventional and the premixed combustors, has the potential to be a viable low NOx emission combustor. Initial calculations indicated low NOx emission levels for the hybrid combustor. This hybrid combustion concept was tested in the laboratory. The measured NOx emissions from this laboratory-scaled hybrid combustor were in excellent agreement with the analytical predictions. The emissions of carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons were also measured. It has been concluded from an analysis of the measured data that a gas turbine combustor, designed with the hybrid combustion concept, has the best potential to be a near-term viable combustor in meeting the EPA proposed gas turbine emission regulations. The experimental effort thus far has focused on the emission characteristics. Other areas of the design, such as the vaporization of liquid fuels, require additional development work prior to the incorporation of this concept into a viable system for an engine application.


Author(s):  
V. V. Tsatiashvili ◽  
V. G. Avgustinovich

This paper represents results of R&D efforts towards reducing a bypass turbofan engine NOx emission by 45 % compared with CAEP/6 to meet the ICAO NOx emission goal of 2020. To achieve ICAO NOx technology goal, a new approach is used based on the NOx emission reduction in combustors with non-premixed combustion well proved in operation. The new approach is represented by structured system of low emission combustion principles — a concept of combustor featuring compact non-premixed flame (CNPF). The essence of CNPF concept is in suppression of volume and surface NOx formation sources by flame front blocking in liner primary zone and by increasing of fuel effective burning rate. The paper represents the development of concept up to and including the 4th technology maturity level. It demonstrates CNPF concept independence and interaction with other up-to-date gas turbine low emission concepts. The paper indicates comparison of rig test results between in-service combustor and CNPF adopted combustors carried out on a single liner. A CNPF adopted combustor shows NOx emission index reduction by 35 …47 % at take-off engine conditions. Preliminary estimation shows that it is possible to reach the ICAO goal for NOx emission level of 2020.


Author(s):  
Andre´ Burdet ◽  
Thierry Lachaux ◽  
Marta de la Cruz Garci´a ◽  
Dieter Winkler

An EV burner as installed in Alstom’s dry low NOx gas turbines was experimentally investigated under different Flue Gas Recirculation (FGR) and engine conditions. FGR enables the reduction of the high exhaust volume flow while significantly increasing the exhaust CO2 concentration. This may substantially improve the post-combustion capture of CO2. However, FGR introduces consequent changes in the gas turbine combustion process mainly because of the oxygen depletion and CO2 increase within the oxidizer. N2 and CO2 were mixed with air in order to obtain at the burner inlet a synthetic oxidizer mixture reproducing O2 and CO2 levels spanning different FGR levels of interest for engine operation. In addition, various degrees of unmixedness of the reactive mixture were investigated by varying the ratio of fuel injected at different port locations in the investigated burner set. Stable operation was achieved in all tested conditions. The lean premix flame shifts downstream when O2 is depleted due to the decrease of the reactivity, although it always stays well within the combustion chamber. The potential for NOx reduction when using FGR is demonstrated. Changes of the NOx formation mechanism are described and compared to the experimental data for validation. Unmixedness appears to be less detrimental to NOx emission when under high FGR ratio. However, CO emission is shown to increase when FGR ratio is increased. Meanwhile, with the present gas turbine combustor, the CO emission follows the equilibrium limit even at high FGR ratio. Interestingly, it is observed that when the burner inlet pressure is increased (and consequently the inlet burner temperature), the increase of CO emission due to FGR is lowered while the NOx emission stays at a very low level. This present an argument for using a higher cycle pressure in gas turbines optimized for FGR operation.


Author(s):  
Weiqun Geng ◽  
Douglas Pennell ◽  
Stefano Bernero ◽  
Peter Flohr

Jets in cross flow are one of the fundamental issues for mixing studies. As a first step in this paper, a generic geometry of a jet in cross flow was simulated to validate the CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) tool. Instead of resolving the whole injection system, the effective cross-sectional area of the injection hole was modeled as an inlet surface directly. This significantly improved the agreement between the CFD and experimental results. In a second step, the calculated mixing in an ALSTOM EV burner is shown for varying injection hole patterns and momentum flux ratios of the jet. Evaluation of the mixing quality was facilitated by defining unmixedness as a global non-dimensional parameter. A comparison of ten cases was made at the burner exit and on the flame front. Measures increasing jet penetration improved the mixing. In the water tunnel the fuel mass fraction within the burner and in the combustor was measured across five axial planes using LIF (Laser Induced Fluorescence). The promising hole patterns chosen from the CFD computations also showed a better mixing in the water tunnel than the other. Distribution of fuel mass fraction and unmixedness were compared between the CFD and LIF results. A good agreement was achieved. In a final step the best configuration in terms of mixing was checked with combustion. In an atmospheric test rig measured NOx emissions confirmed the CFD prediction as well. The most promising case has about 40% less NOx emission than the base case.


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