GT13E2 Low Part Load Operation: Extended Flexibility Down to 30% Load

Author(s):  
Fulvio Magni ◽  
Frank Grimm ◽  
Sebastiano Sorato ◽  
Marco Micheli

This paper describes the development work of the Low Part Load upgrade package for the GT13E2 gas turbine fleet and the related test results of the engine validation phase. The GT13E2 gas turbine was originally designed for operation at high combined cycle efficiency and low emissions in the range from about 60% to 100% load. The upgrade package improves the minimum environmental load of the GT13E2 making it possible to operate the GT with full flexibility down to 30% relative load. In fact, in today’s energy market operational flexibility is one of the key requirements for our customers. The extended low part load capability will allow the customers to operate the power plant in combined cycle mode with high efficiency and to rapidly change the load as soon as the grid demands. The upgrade package can be retrofitted to the installed service fleet with AEV burner technology. The main challenge at low part load operation is to keep the NOx and especially the CO emissions under control. Increased emissions at lower loads were acceptable since it was not intended to operate for long periods of time at these loads. The low part load upgrade improves combustion of the gas turbine by keeping the flame temperature at higher levels. The key to success for improved combustion behavior at part load is mainly the reduction of the burner air mass flow and the redistribution of the corresponding fuel mass flow. The main measures used for the low part load concept are a further closing of the inlet guide vanes and a redistribution of the fuel gas to fewer burners. Additional measures for further reduction of the burner air mass flow at part load were also evaluated and tested. Only a combination of several measures really improves the minimum environmental load of the gas turbine and of the combined cycle efficiency, compared to the original operation concept. During the development of the low part load project each single measure was extensively validated on GT13E2 engines independently. The combination of the different measures was finally validated on a customer engine and the projected emission targets down to 30% load were successfully confirmed.

Author(s):  
Alberto Traverso ◽  
Stefano Barberis ◽  
Davide Lima ◽  
Aristide F. Massardo

In this work the dynamic behaviour and the control strategy of a 12MWe size gas turbine hybridised with concentrated solar heat source has been investigated. Hybridised gas turbine cycles are attractive because of their high efficiency, potentially equal to combined cycle efficiency, and because of their dispatchable power capability. An existing gas turbine model has been modified into a hybrid layout to incorporate high temperature heat from a concentrated solar field, through a high pressure air-cooled receiver. The system does not involve any hot air valve and includes a ceramic thermal storage. The plant dynamic model was developed using the original TRANSEO simulation tool developed at the University of Genoa. Initially, plant steady-state performance is analysed, identifying potential issues. Then, the different dynamic operations (storage charging, discharging and bypass) are simulated, showing the feasibility of the control strategy proposed. Eventually, design recommendations are drawn to improve the flexibility and the time response of such kind of plants.


Author(s):  
Christian Vandervort ◽  
David Leach ◽  
David Walker ◽  
Jerry Sasser

Abstract The power generation industry is facing unprecedented challenges. High fuel costs and increased penetration of renewable power have resulted in greater demand for high efficiency and operational flexibility. Imperatives to reduce carbon footprint place an even higher premium on efficiency. Power producers are seeking highly efficient, reliable, and operationally flexible solutions that provide long-term profitability in a volatile environment. New generation must also be cost-effective to ensure affordability for both domestic and industrial consumers. Gas turbine combined cycle power plants meet these requirements by providing reliable, dispatchable generation with a low cost of electricity, reduced environmental impact, and broad operational flexibility. Start times for large, industrial gas turbine combined cycles are less than 30 minutes from turning gear to full load, with ramp rates from 60 to 88 MW/minute. GE introduced the 7/9HA industrial gas turbine product portfolio in 2014 in response to these demands. These air-cooled, H-class gas turbines (7/9HA) are engineered to achieve greater than 63% net combined cycle efficiency while delivering operational flexibility through deep, emission-compliant turndown and high ramp rates. The largest of these gas turbines, the 9HA.02, is designed to exceed 64% combined cycle efficiency (net, ISO) in a 1×1, single-shaft (SS) configuration. As of December 2018, a total of 32 7/9HA power plants have achieved COD (Commercial Operation Date) while accumulating over 220,000 hours of operation. These plants operate across a variety of demand profiles including base load and load following (intermediate) service. Fleet leaders for both the 7HA and 9HA have exceeded 12,000 hours of operation, with multiple units over 8,000 hours. This paper will address four topics relating to the HA platform: 1) gas turbine product technology, 2) gas turbine validation, 3) integrated power plant commissioning and operating experience, and 4) lessons learned and fleet reliability.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Detor ◽  
◽  
Richard DiDomizio ◽  
Don McAllister ◽  
Erica Sampson ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Christian L. Vandervort ◽  
Mohammed R. Bary ◽  
Larry E. Stoddard ◽  
Steven T. Higgins

The Externally-Fired Combined Cycle (EFCC) is an attractive emerging technology for powering high efficiency combined gas and steam turbine cycles with coal or other ash bearing fuels. The key near-term market for the EFCC is likely to be repowering of existing coal fueled power generation units. Repowering with an EFCC system offers utilities the ability to improve efficiency of existing plants by 25 to 60 percent, while doubling generating capacity. Repowering can be accomplished at a capital cost half that of a new facility of similar capacity. Furthermore, the EFCC concept does not require complex chemical processes, and is therefore very compatible with existing utility operating experience. In the EFCC, the heat input to the gas turbine is supplied indirectly through a ceramic heat exchanger. The heat exchanger, coupled with an atmospheric coal combustor and auxiliary components, replaces the conventional gas turbine combustor. Addition of a steam bottoming plant and exhaust cleanup system completes the combined cycle. A conceptual design has been developed for EFCC repowering of an existing reference plant which operates with a 48 MW steam turbine at a net plant efficiency of 25 percent. The repowered plant design uses a General Electric LM6000 gas turbine package in the EFCC power island. Topping the existing steam plant with the coal fueled EFCC improves efficiency to nearly 40 percent. The capital cost of this upgrade is 1,090/kW. When combined with the high efficiency, the low cost of coal, and low operation and maintenance costs, the resulting cost of electricity is competitive for base load generation.


2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 89
Author(s):  
Munzer S. Y. Ebaid ◽  
Qusai Z. Al-hamdan

<p class="1Body">Several modifications have been made to the simple gas turbine cycle in order to increase its thermal efficiency but within the thermal and mechanical stress constrain, the efficiency still ranges between 38 and 42%. The concept of using combined cycle power or CPP plant would be more attractive in hot countries than the combined heat and power or CHP plant. The current work deals with the performance of different configurations of the gas turbine engine operating as a part of the combined cycle power plant. The results showed that the maximum CPP cycle efficiency would be at a point for which the gas turbine cycle would have neither its maximum efficiency nor its maximum specific work output. It has been shown that supplementary heating or gas turbine reheating would decrease the CPP cycle efficiency; hence, it could only be justified at low gas turbine inlet temperatures. Also it has been shown that although gas turbine intercooling would enhance the performance of the gas turbine cycle, it would have only a slight effect on the CPP cycle performance.</p>


Author(s):  
Nana Zhou ◽  
Chen Yang ◽  
David Tucker

Thermal management in the fuel cell component of a direct fired solid oxide fuel cell gas turbine (SOFC/GT) hybrid power system, especially during an imposed load transient, can be improved by effective management and control of the cathode air mass flow. The response of gas turbine hardware system and the fuel cell stack to the cathode air mass flow transient was evaluated using a hardware-based simulation facility designed and built by the U.S. Department of Energy, National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL). The disturbances of the cathode air mass flow were accomplished by diverting air around the fuel cell system through the manipulation of a hot-air bypass valve in open loop experiments. The dynamic responses of the SOFC/GT hybrid system were studied in this paper. The evaluation included distributed temperatures, current densities, heat generation and losses along the fuel cell over the course of the transient along with localized temperature gradients. The reduction of cathode air mass flow resulted in a sharp decrease and partial recovery of the thermal effluent from the fuel cell system in the first 10 seconds. In contrast, the turbine rotational speed did not exhibit a similar trend. The collection of distributed fuel cell and turbine trends obtained will be used in the development of controls to mitigate failure and extend life during operational transients.


Author(s):  
R. Chacartegui ◽  
D. Sa´nchez ◽  
F. Jime´nez-Espadafor ◽  
A. Mun˜oz ◽  
T. Sa´nchez

The development of high efficiency solar power plants based on gas turbine technology presents two problems, both of them directly associated with the solar power plant receiver design and the power plant size: lower turbine intake temperature and higher pressure drops in heat exchangers than in a conventional gas turbine. To partially solve these problems, different configurations of combined cycles composed of a closed cycle carbon dioxide gas turbine as topping cycle have been analyzed. The main advantage of the Brayton carbon dioxide cycle is its high net shaft work to expansion work ratio, in the range of 0.7–0.85 at supercritical compressor intake pressures, which is very close to that of the Rankine cycle. This feature will reduce the negative effects of pressure drops and will be also very interesting for cycles with moderate turbine inlet temperature (800–1000 K). Intercooling and reheat options are also considered. Furthermore, different working fluids have been analyzed for the bottoming cycle, seeking the best performance of the combined cycle in the ranges of temperatures considered.


Author(s):  
Weimar Mantilla ◽  
José García ◽  
Rafael Guédez ◽  
Alessandro Sorce

Abstract Under new scenarios with high shares of variable renewable electricity, combined cycle gas turbines (CCGT) are required to improve their flexibility, in terms of ramping capabilities and part-load efficiency, to help balance the power system. Simultaneously, liberalization of electricity markets and the complexity of its hourly price dynamics are affecting the CCGT profitability, leading the need for optimizing its operation. Among the different possibilities to enhance the power plant performance, an inlet air conditioning unit (ICU) offers the benefit of power augmentation and “minimum environmental load” (MEL) reduction by controlling the gas turbine inlet temperature using cold thermal energy storage and a heat pump. Consequently, an evaluation of a CCGT integrated with this inlet conditioning unit including a day-ahead optimized operation strategy was developed in this study. To establish the hourly dispatch of the power plant and the operation mode of the inlet conditioning unit to either cool down or heat up the gas turbine inlet air, a mixed-integer linear optimization (MILP) was formulated using MATLAB, aiming to maximize the operational profit of the plant within a 24-hours horizon. To assess the impact of the proposed unit operating under this dispatch strategy, historical data of electricity and natural gas prices, as well as meteorological data and CO2 emission allowances price, have been used to perform annual simulations of a reference power plant located in Turin, Italy. Furthermore, different equipment capacities and parameters have been investigated to identify trends of the power plant performance. Lastly, a sensitivity analysis on market conditions to test the control strategy response was also considered. Results indicate that the inlet conditioning unit, together with the dispatch optimization, increases the power plant’s operational profit by achieving a wider operational range, particularly important during peak and off-peak periods. For the specific case study, it is estimated that the net present value of the CCGT integrated with the ICU is 0.5% higher than the power plant without the unit. In terms of technical performance, results show that the unit reduces the minimum environmental load by approximately 1.34% and can increase the net power output by 0.17% annually.


Energies ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 1105 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlo Carcasci ◽  
Lapo Cheli ◽  
Pietro Lubello ◽  
Lorenzo Winchler

This paper presents an off-design analysis of a gas turbine Organic Rankine Cycle (ORC) combined cycle. Combustion turbine performances are significantly affected by fluctuations in ambient conditions, leading to relevant variations in the exhaust gases’ mass flow rate and temperature. The effects of the variation of ambient air temperature have been considered in the simulation of the topper cycle and of the condenser in the bottomer one. Analyses have been performed for different working fluids (toluene, benzene and cyclopentane) and control systems have been introduced on critical parameters, such as oil temperature and air mass flow rate at the condenser fan. Results have highlighted similar power outputs for cycles based on benzene and toluene, while differences as high as 34% have been found for cyclopentane. The power output trend with ambient temperature has been found to be influenced by slope discontinuities in gas turbine exhaust mass flow rate and temperature and by the upper limit imposed on the air mass flow rate at the condenser as well, suggesting the importance of a correct sizing of the component in the design phase. Overall, benzene-based cycle power output has been found to vary between 4518 kW and 3346 kW in the ambient air temperature range considered.


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