Aspects of Vane Film Cooling With High Turbulence: Part I — Heat Transfer

A four vane subsonic cascade was used to investigate the influence of film injection on vane heat transfer distributions in the presence of high turbulence. The influence of high turbulence on vane film cooling effectiveness and boundary layer development was also examined in part II of this paper. A high level, large scale inlet turbulence was generated for this study with a mock combustor (12 %) and was used to contrast results with a low level (1 %) of inlet turbulence. The three geometries chosen to study in this investigation were one row and two staggered rows of downstream cooling on both the suction and pressure surfaces in addition to a showerhead array. Film cooling was found to have only a moderate influence on the heat transfer coefficients downstream from arrays on the suction surface where the boundary layer was turbulent. However, film cooling was found to have a substantial influence on heat transfer downstream from arrays in laminar regions of the vane such as the pressure surface, the stagnation region, and the near suction surface. Generally, heat transfer augmentation was found to scale on velocity ratio. In relative terms, the augmentation in the laminar regions for the low turbulence case was found to be higher than the augmentation for the high turbulence case. The absolute levels of heat transfer were always found to be the highest for the high turbulence case.

The Influence of Coolant Supply Geometry on Film Coolant Exit Flow and Surface Adiabatic Effectiveness

Experimental hot-wire anemometry and thermocouple measurements are taken to document the sensitivity which film cooling performance has to the hole length and the geometry of the plenum which supplies cooling flow to the holes. This sensitivity is described in terms of the effects these geometric features have on hole-exit velocity and turbulence intensity distributions and on adiabatic effectiveness values on the surface downstream. These measurements were taken under high freestream turbulence intensity (12%) conditions, representative of operating gas turbine engines. Coolant is supplied to the film cooling holes by means of (1) an unrestricted plenum, (2) a plenum which restricts the flow approaching the holes, forcing it to flow co-current with the freestream, and (3) a plenum which forces the flow to approach the holes counter-current with the freestream. Short-hole (L/D = 2.3) and long-hole (L/D = 7.0) comparisons are made. The geometry has a single row of film cooling holes with 35°-inclined streamwise injection. The film cooling flow is supplied at the same temperature as that of the freestream for hole-exit measurements and 10°C above the freestream temperature for adiabatic effectiveness measurements, yielding density ratios in the range 0.96–1.0. Two coolant-to-freestream velocity ratios, 0.5 and 1.0, are investigated. The results document the effects of (1) supply plenum geometry, (2) velocity ratio, and (3) hole L/D.

Local Heat Transfer Coefficients on Flat Continuous, Flat Interrupted and Corrugated External Cooling Fins

An experimental investigation into the performance of gas turbine engine component external cooling fins has been carried out using the transient liquid crystal technique in a low speed wind tunnel. Full fin surface local heat transfer coefficient distributions have been determined. Measurements with this level of resolution are not previously reported in the literature. In addition to the flat continuous fins, interrupted and corrugated fin geometries have been tested. These geometries enhance heat transfer coefficients by disrupting the thermal and velocity boundary layers which grow down the length of the fin. All geometries are tested at a range of flow speeds and comparisons are made with the relevant literature.

Aero-Thermal Design and Testing of Advanced Turbine Blades

Based on the experience gained with more than 80 machines operating worldwide in 50 and 60 Hz electrical systems respectively, Siemens has developed a new generation of advanced gas turbines which yield substantially improved performance at a higher output level. This “3A-Series” comprises three gas turbine models ranging from 70 MW to 240 MW for 50 Hz and 60 Hz power generation applications. The first of the new advanced gas turbines with 170 MW and 3600 rpm was tested in the Berlin factory test facility under the full range of operation conditions. It was equipped with various measurement systems to monitor pressures, gas and metal temperatures, clearances, strains, vibrations and exhaust emissions. This paper presents the aero-thermal design procedure of the highly thermal loaded film cooled first stage blading. The predictions are compared with the extensive optical pyrometer measurements taken at the Siemens test facility on the V84.3A machine under full load conditions. The pyrometer was inserted at several locations in the turbine and radially moved giving a complete surface temperature information of the first stage vanes and blades.

A Small Gas Turbine Plant for Cogeneration of Electricity, Thermal and Cooling Thermal Energy With an Absorption Unit

A cogeneration plant with a small gas turbine was installed in a pharmaceutical factory and instrumented for acquiring all the values necessary to appraise both its energetic and cost advantages. The plant was designed and built as a demonstrative project under a program for energy use improvement in industry, partially financed by the European Union. The system comprises as its main components: 1) a gas turbine cogeneration plant for production of power and thermal energy under the form of hot water, superheated water, and steam; 2) a two-stage absorption unit, fueled by the steam produced in the cogeneration plant, for production of cooling thermal energy. The plant was provided with an automatized control system for the acquisition of plant operating parameters. The large amount of data thus provided made it possible to compare the new plant, under actual operating conditions, with the previously existing cooling power station with compression units, and with a traditional power plant. This comparative analysis was based on measurements of the plant operating parameters over nine months, and made it possible to compare actual plant performance with that expected and ISO values. The analysis results reveal that gas turbine performance is greatly affected by part-load as well as ambient temperature conditions. Two-stage absorber performance, moreover, turned out to decrease sharply and more than expected in off-design operating conditions.

Effect of Discrete Surface Disturbances on Vane External Heat Transfer

A transonic linear vane cascade has been utilized to assess the effects of localized surface disturbances on airfoil external heat transfer coefficient distributions, such as those which may be created by the spallation of thermal barrier coatings. The cascade operates at an overall pressure ratio of 1.86, with an inlet total pressure of about 5 atm. Cascade Reynolds numbers based on axial chord length and exit velocity range from 2.2 to 4.8 · 106. Surface disturbances are modeled with the use of narrow trip strips glued onto the surface at selected locations, such that sharp forward facing steps are presented to the boundary layer. Surface locations investigated include the near leading edge region on either side of the stagnation point, the midchord region of the pressure side, and the high curvature region of the suction side. Heat transfer enhancement factors are obtained for disturbances with engine representative height-to-momentum thickness ratios, as a function of Reynolds number. Enhancement factors are compared for both smooth and rough airfoil surfaces with added disturbances, as well as low and high freestream turbulence intensity. Results show that leading edge heat transfer is dominated by freestream turbulence intensity effects, such that enhancements of nearly 50% at low turbulence levels are reduced to about 10% at elevated turbulence levels. Both pressure and suction side enhancement factors are dominated by surface roughness caused effects, with large enhancements for smooth surfaces being drastically reduced for roughened surfaces.

Adiabatic Wall Effectiveness Measurements of Film-Cooling Holes With Expanded Exits

This paper presents detailed measurements of the film-cooling effectiveness for three single, scaled-up film-cooling hole geometries. The hole geometries investigated include a cylindrical hole and two holes with a diffuser shaped exit portion (i.e. a fanshaped and a laidback fanshaped hole). The flow conditions considered are the crossflow Mach number at the hole entrance side (up to 0.6), the crossflow Mach number at the hole exit side (up to 1.2), and the blowing ratio (up to 2). The coolant-to-mainflow temperature ratio is kept constant at 0.54. The measurements are performed by means of an infrared camera system which provides a two-dimensional distribution of the film-cooling effectiveness in the nearfield of the cooling hole down to x/D = 10. As compared to the cylindrical hole, both expanded holes show significantly improved thermal protection of the surface downstream of the ejection location, particularly at high blowing ratios. The laidback fanshaped hole provides a better lateral spreading of the ejected coolant than the fanshaped hole which leads to higher laterally averaged film-cooling effectiveness. Coolant passage crossflow Mach number and orientation strongly affect the flowfield of the jet being ejected from the hole and, therefore, have an important impact on film-cooling performance.

Effects of Rotation on Blade Surface Heat Transfer: An Experimental Investigation

Measurements of turbine blade surface heat transfer in a transient rotor facility are compared with predictions and equivalent cascade data. The rotating measurements involved both forwards and reverse rotation (wake free) experiments. The use of thin-film gauges in the Oxford Rotor Facility provides both time-mean heat transfer levels and the unsteady time history. The time-mean level is not significantly affected by turbulence in the wake; this contrasts with the cascade response to freestream turbulence and simulated wake passing. Heat transfer predictions show the extent to which such phenomena are successfully modelled by a time-steady code. The accurate prediction of transition is seen to be crucial if useful predictions are to be obtained.

Comparison of Two-Equation Turbulence Models for Prediction of Heat Transfer on Film-Cooled Turbine Blades

A three-dimensional Navier-Stokes code has been used to compute the heat transfer coefficient on two film-cooled turbine blades, namely the VKI rotor with six rows of cooling holes including three rows on the shower head, and the C3X vane with nine rows of holes including five rows on the shower head. Predictions of heat transfer coefficient at the blade surface using three two-equation turbulence models, specifically, Coakley’s q-ω model, Chien’s k-ε model and Wilcox’s k-ω model with Menter’s modifications, have been compared with the experimental data of Camci and Arts (1990) for the VKI rotor, and of Hylton et al. (1988) for the C3X vane along with predictions using the Baldwin-Lomax (B-L) model taken from Garg and Gaugler (1995). It is found that for the cases considered here the two-equation models predict the blade heat transfer somewhat better than the B-L model except immediately downstream of the film-cooling holes on the suction surface of the VKI rotor, and over most of the suction surface of the C3X vane. However, all two-equation models require 40% more computer core than the B-L model for solution, and while the q-ω and k-ε models need 40% more computer time than the B-L model, the k-ω model requires at least 65% more time due to slower rate of convergence. It is found that the heat transfer coefficient exhibits a strong spanwise as well as streamwise variation for both blades and all turbulence models.

High Efficiency-Coal and Gas (HE-C&G): An Advanced Hybrid Power Plant Concept With Sequential Combustion Gas Turbines GT24/GT26

The High Efficiency-Coal and Gas (HE-C&G) is a hybrid power plant concept integrating Conventional Steam Power Plants (CSPP) and gas turbine / combined cycle plants. The gas turbine exhaust gas energy is recovered in the HRSG providing partial condensate and feedwater preheating and generating steam corresponding to the main boiler live steam conditions (second steam source for the ST). The concept, exhibiting very high design flexibility, integrates the high performance Sequential Combustion gas turbines GT24/GT26 technology into a wide range of existing or new CSPP. Although HE-C&G refers to coal as the most abundant fossil fuel resource, oil or natural gas fired steam plants could be also designed or converted following the same principle. The HE-C&G provides very high marginal efficiencies on natural gas, up to and above 60%, very high operating and dispatching flexibility and on-line optimization of fuel and O&M costs at low capital investment. This paper emphasizes the operating flexibility and resulting benefits, recommending the HE-C&G as one of the most profitable options for generating power especially for conversion of existing CSPP with gas turbines.