Gas Turbine Performance Enhancements (2 PDH)

Course No. M-2017

Introduction

Power companies have long been thought of as bastions of conservatism,

preferring evolutionary changes over radical departures from tried and proven
technology and business strategies. The industry, however, has undergone, and
is still undergoing changes that have been forced upon them by outside
forces. Examples of some of these outside forces are the so-called deregulation,
which among other things has separated power generation, transmission, and
distribution, which used to be under single regional monopolies; instability of fuel
costs; uncertain climatic changes; increasing awareness of the public on
environmental consequences; corporate irresponsibilities within the industry; and
the globalization of the economy.

What all this means is this:

1. Decisions on power plant configurations are based on a different set of economic factors
than were previously used.
2. These decisions are being made largely by independent power producers and their
financers, rather than by the traditional government-regulated power companies.
3. Huge central station power plants are being displaced by smaller, more adaptable plants
with a much shorter life cycle horizon.
4. Availability and reliability are just other economic factors.

O.K., enough politics! But what these newer criteria mean is that the trend has been to smaller
power plants that are more adaptable to changing criteria, more flexible in their fuel needs, can
burn mixtures of liquid and gaseous fuels, are adaptable to pollution abatement technology, can be
economically operated over a wide range of power demands, and can be designed and
constructed in months instead of years on limited amounts of real estate.

These new criterion have translated very well into combined cycle power blocks that consist of
CTGs, HRSGs, and steam turbine-generators that can be largely factory-assembled and hooked
up to gas pipelines.

That is why we are looking at ways to make gas turbines even more adaptable and efficient.

Another course on PDHengineer.com goes more deeply into the thermodynamic theories that
underlie cogeneration plants. For simplification, and to avoid the ambiguities of cogeneration
efficiencies, this course assumes pure electric power producers, not cogeneration.

Much of the descriptive material in this course has been adapted from General Electric Company
literature and brochures.

Gas Turbine Performance Enhancements

The combined cycle power generating plant has proven its advantages over
simple cycle (either steam or combustion turbine) generators in both commercial
power generation and industrial cogeneration. Performance enhancements in
the form of add-on features, primarily to the gas turbine part of the cycle, improve
efficiency and increase power output. These enhancements can be included in
new machines, or in some cases can be retrofitted to existing ones. Some are
effective at all loads, while others are used for boosting power generation during
periods of peak demand.

A separate course on PDHengineer.com, Thermodynamics of Cogeneration,

describes the possible ambiguities that may be encountered in attempts to
quantify the efficiencies of cogeneration plants that produce both electric and
thermal energy. For that reason, the discussion in this course will assume that
100% of the useful output will be in the form of electric energy, rather than
combinations of electric and thermal energy. Such a cycle consists of a
combustion turbine-generator (CTG), a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG),
and a steam turbine-generator (STG). (I personally prefer the term “heat
recovery steam boiler” over HRSG, but I will defer to the industry standard
terminology).
The Brayton Cycle

This course will concentrate on the CTG portion of the combined cycle. This may
be represented by the Brayton cycle, illustrated by figure 2. The compressor
draws air in through an inlet filter system. The air is compressed (1-2), and
delivered to the combustor, where the fuel is injected and burned. A relatively
small pressure drop and a large temperature increase take place in the
combustor. The high temperature gas leaving the combustor has a much greater
volume than the air entering the combustor, therefore the ability to do work is
much greater. The hot gas expands through the turbine (3-4), producing more
power than is consumed by the compressor. The turbine drives the compressor,
and the excess work drives the load, an electric generator. The exhaust gas is at
a pressure slightly higher than atmospheric, and still at a high temperature.
The power production in the turbine is approximately twice that consumed by the
compressor, so the net power output is approximately half that produced by the
whole engine. The cycle performance is higher at high turbine inlet temperatures,
but there are temperature limits imposed by the metallurgy of the turbine blades.
For this reason, a portion of the compressor air is bled back for turbine cooling.

Effect of Cycle Parameters

First, an idealized Brayton cycle will be assumed, where:

1. The working substance is air throughout.

2. Air is a perfect gas.
3. Fuel mass flow is negligible, and combustion is equivalent to the heat addition at constant
temperature.
4. Compressor and turbine are isentropic (100% efficient)
5. Inlet, combustor, and exit pressure losses are zero.
6. Turbine is uncooled.

It can be shown that:

A. The thermal efficiency of such a cycle is dependent on the pressure ratio only.

B. The net work per unit air flow (specific power) depends on the pressure ratio as well as
the dimensionless maximum temperature (È), which is the ratio of turbine inlet
temperature to ambient temperature

Figure 3 shows three ideal Brayton cycles with the same È and three different
pressure ratios. In the low-pressure ratio case, both the turbine and compressor
work are low, so the difference is low, which results in low specific power. The
mean temperatures of heat addition and heat rejection are close to one another,
resulting in poor efficiency. For the very high-pressure ratio, the turbine and
compressor work are both large, but almost equal, so the network or specific
power are small. The mean temperature of heat addition is much higher than
that of heat rejection, resulting in a high efficiency. The intermediate pressure
ratio case has the maximum specific power. (Just like in the story of the Three
Bears).

Figure 3

To analyze a real gas turbine cycle, each of the idealized assumptions made for
the ideal Brayton cycle must be considered. This becomes part of the
preliminary detailed design of the engine as performed by the manufacturer, and
is not attempted here.

It can be generalized, however, that heavy-duty industrial gas turbines with high
specific powers are less sensitive to the mechanical and thermal inefficiencies of
the machinery. A typical high-pressure ratio aero-derivative gas turbine, on the
other hand, will have a lower specific power and is more sensitive to turbo-
machinery inefficiencies. Also, whereas the efficiency of the idealized cycle
depends on pressure ratio only, the efficiency of the real cycle depends on the
turbine inlet temperature as well.

Performance Enhancements

Inlet Air Cooling

Where electric power demands occur during the warm months, which is the
general case, inlet air-cooling is probably the most frequently used option to
increase CTG output. First off, note that inlet air-cooling is not turbine blade
cooling. They are separate and distinct processes. Inlet air-cooling takes
advantage of the higher mass flow of cool air relative to warm air for a constant
volume machine, such as the gas turbine. A 10 deg F decrease in inlet dry bulb
air temperature increases combined cycle output by about 2.7%. In combined
cycle applications there is also a small increase in thermal efficiency.
There are two basic methods available for inlet air-cooling.
The most widely accepted system is evaporative air-cooling. Evaporative coolers
make use of the evaporation of water, and is the most cost-effective way to add
machine capacity during warm weather, providing the relative humidity is not too
high. The process of converting water from a liquid to a vapor requires energy.
This energy is extracted from the air stream in the form of thermal energy, thus
resulting in a cooler air stream. There are two methods of evaporative cooling, a
wetted honeycomb, and a fogger, with foggers being slightly more effective.
The honeycomb cooler utilizes a honeycomb-like medium to maximize the
cooling surface, usually about 12 inches thick. This causes an increase in the
inlet duct pressure drop, which decreases the plant output and efficiency at all
ambient temperatures, because the medium is in place whether the cooling
system is on or off. Retrofit installation usually requires substantial duct
modifications. To avoid a concentration of solids in the cooling water due to
evaporation, there is usually a blowdown connection, and a continuous makeup
is required. A typical cooler of this type is illustrated in Figure 4 below.
Figure 4

Foggers create a large evaporation area by atomizing the supply of water.

Droplet size plays an important role to the amount of surface area exposed to the
air stream, and so to the speed of evaporation and cooling effectiveness. For
instance, water atomized to 10 micron droplets yields ten times more surface
area than the same volume atomized to 100 micron droplets. In order to avoid
nozzle plugging or compressor fouling, demineralized water is usually required
for fogging systems. Demineralized water makes it necessary to use stainless
steels for all wetted parts. Some fogging systems utilize gas turbine compressor
air and air atomization nozzles. Others use high pressure (1000 to 3000 psig)
water pumps and water atomization nozzles. Air atomizing systems use less
water pressure, but have lower generator output because of the air extraction
and the warming due to the use of hot compressor air.

A summary of advantages and disadvantages of the two types of systems follow:

Evaporative media

Advantages

1. Water quality requirements are less stringent

2. Simple and reliable
3. More operating experience

Disadvantages

1. Retrofits often require extensive duct modifications

2. Inlet duct pressure drop degrades output and efficiency when not in use
3. Less cooling effectiveness

Inlet fogging

Advantages

1. Lower inlet duct pressure drop

2. Potential for higher effectiveness
3. Potential for lower retrofit cost

Disadvantages

1. Requires demineralized water

2. Higher parasitic load for high pressure pump system
3. Lower power increase for air-atomized systems
4. More complex controls

The theoretical minimum air temperature that can be achieved by evaporative

inlet air-cooling is equal to the ambient wet bulb temperature. In real terms, this
level of cooling is difficult to achieve. As in all things, the theoretical can only be
approached. The actual temperature drop is a function of both the equipment
design and the atmospheric conditions. Typical effectiveness levels are 85% to
95%. The actual temperature drop can be calculated by:

delta T = .85 (T1DB – T2WB)

where: T1DB = Dry Bulb Temperature

T2WB = Wet Bulb Temperature

Evaporative Intercooling

By purposely injecting more fog into the inlet air stream than can be evaporated
at the given ambient condition, evaporative intercooling can be accomplished.
The droplets are carried into the compressor, where the higher temperature
completes the evaporation. As the water evaporates, it cools the air as it is
compressed, increasing the total mass of air and reduces the relative work of
compression, providing a power boost. This process is also called overspray or
overcooling. The limits of evaporative intercooling have not been completely
explored, but benefits claimed are substantial. Theoretically (that word again), it
is possible to inject enough fog to cause a power boost that is as high as that
obtained by chilling the air below its wet bulb temperature, and at a fraction of the
cost.
Intercooling allows the turbine to operate at the natural control point associated
with firing temperature rather than being restricted by the compressor outlet
temperature. This results in both higher turbine output and higher efficiency.
One possible drawback to intercooling is that if the water droplets are too large,
there is a potential for liquid impaction erosion of the compressor blading.

Intercooling can also be accomplished by injecting atomized water between the

compressor sections of CTGs that have high and low pressure compressors.
Inlet Chilling

As with evaporative cooling, the idea is to cool (or chill) the inlet air and thereby
increase the mass of the gas. Chilling is accomplished with circulating a chilled
medium through cooling coils installed in the inlet air stream. Unlike evaporative
coolers, however, a chilling system can cool the inlet dry bulb air temperature
below the ambient wet bulb temperature.
Two basic types of chillers are direct chillers and thermal storage chillers.
Thermal storage chillers take advantage of off-peak power periods to produce
cold water or ice by means of mechanical chillers, and store ice to be used as the
chilling medium during peak power periods. This method can be used for only a
few hours each day, depending on the ice producing and storage capacity. Also,
significant space is required for cold water or ice storage.
Direct chiller systems use mechanical or absorption type chillers such as those
used in industrial processes or in building HVAC systems. These systems can
produce instantaneous and round-the-clock chilling. A portion of the increased
CTG power output is used to drive the system.
If liquefied natural gas is used as the CTG fuel, the chilling effect of vaporizing
the LNG can be utilized. The inlet air is used to vaporize the LNG. An
intermediate medium such as glycol is used in cooling coils in the inlet air stream.

Power Augmentation

Steam or Water Injection

Steam can be injected into the combustor for the purpose of Nox abatement,
which increases mass flow, and therefore power output. When steam is injected
for power augmentation, it can be injected into the compressor discharge as
well. In combined cycle operation, injection of water or steam increases the heat
rate (Btu per KW) because of the high quality fuel energy needed to vaporize the
water. In the case of steam injection, the increase in heat rate is caused mostly
by the generation of the steam that could have otherwise been used in a steam
turbine-generator. The steam must have at least 50 deg of superheat and be at
a pressure comparable to the fuel gas pressure.

Supplementary Fired HRSG

Supplementary firing of fuel ahead of or within the HRSG can be accomplished

because only a small fraction of the oxygen in the air is consumed in the gas
turbine combustor. Supplemental firing to temperatures up to about 1800 deg F.
can be attained. Because the turbine exhaust gas is essentially preheated
combustion air, a fired HRSG requires less fuel than an ordinary power boiler to
produce the same amount of steam.
A supplementary fired HRSG is designed quite similar to an unfired HRSG, and
can be applicable to combined cycle add-ons, but are not easily retrofitted to
existing unfired HRSGs because of the required burner space and because of
the higher operating temperatures. There is a small performance penalty when
operating a combined cycle plant with an HRSG designed for firing in an unfired
mode. This is due primarily to the lower steam flows and temperatures to the
steam turbine as compared to the fired HRSG mode.

Peak Firing of the CTG

Some CTGs can be fired at temperatures above their base rating during peak
demand hours. As illustrated in Figure 5, higher firing temperatures increase the
turbine output, but have essentially no effect on efficiency. In other words, you
get more kilowatts out, but you burn more fuel to do it. This may come at the
expense of shorter inspection cycles and increased maintenance.
Figure 5

Comparing Output Enhancement Techniques

The following table compares the performance impacts of several of the

enhancements outlined above. These figures come from the General Electric
Company, and are based on G.E. designed combined cycle plant operating with
ambient temperature of 90 deg F, and 35% relative humidity.
Efficiency Enhancements

Fuel Heating
Pre heating the fuel gas can be used to raise the efficiency of the gas turbine by
decreasing the amount of energy expended in the combustor. This is assuming
that low-grade heat energy is available from elsewhere, which is usually the
HRSG. Fuel can be heated potentially as high as 700 deg F before carbon
deposits in the heat exchanger cause problems. However, 300 to 450 deg F are
more common. Such an application is illustrated below.
Performance Enhancement Considerations
A careful economic analysis of the effects of performance enhancements must be made before
finalizing a design or retrofitting an existing plant. Such an analysis is highly dependent on plant
configuration, climatic conditions, load projections, desired capacity factor, projected fuel costs,
among others. It is very often the case that a performance enhancement applied at a certain load
(say peak demand), may be detrimental at other loads or conditions.

Conclusions
This course has discussed some methods for improving the efficiency and increasing the power
output commonly used in combined cycle power plants. Additional methods are under evaluation,
such as steam cooling of the turbine blading and the use of ceramic coated blades.

The discussion was mainly on the gas turbine portion of the cycle. There are other design features
of the HRSG that are available, such as multi-pressure steam take-offs and vertical flow HRSGs.
As in most "optional extras", their use must be evaluated for each potential application in the
contexts of proven reliability and economics.