LESSON

1
LECTURE
GAS
TURBINES
SUB - OBJECTIVE
At the end of this lesson, the trainee ill !e a!le to "-
1# $es%ri!e the a&&li%ation, ad'anta(es and disad'anta(es of (as t)r!ine#
*# Understand the &rin%i&le of o&erations of (as t)r!ine#
+# E,&lain and dra 'ario)s arran(e-ents of (as t)r!ine#
.# Understand the effi%ien%/ i-&ro'e-ent thro)(h 'ario)s arran(e-ents#
1#0 GAS TURBINES
1#1 1ISTOR2
Joule studied the gas turbine cycle in England in 1818, and the gas turbine patents
were taken out in England in 1884. The first gas turbine was placed in service in
Prussia around 1!". #hittle filed for gas turbine $et propulsion patent in 1%".
1#* A33LICATION
&as turbines are being used at the present ti'e for electricity generation and they
'ay vary in si(e fro' 1)! *# to !"" *# or higher. They are also popular in
industries where energy is produced for a process plant and the waste gases fro'
the process 'ay be used to drive the gas turbine. +or e,a'ple, in iron and steel
production where they are used for blast furnace blowers -in this case the gas
turbine uses blast furnace gas as fuel..
They are also e'ployed for the propulsion of ships and railway loco'otives. &as
turbines are, of course, e,tensively used for air craft propulsion where they have
'any advantages such as use of lower grade fuels, less fire ha(ard, better balance
greater power to weight ratio, si'pler cooling proble's, etc.
/t is co''on for gas turbines to be used in large power plants and nuclear power
stations to provide al'ost instant e'ergency power for essential services in the
event of a failure of the 'ain electricity supply, so'eti'es ter'ed as 0black start0.
The gas turbine is also ideal for use as an un'anned and re'otely controlled unit
that 'ay be started by a telephone or radio link.
1#+ A$VANTAGES
1 2ittle or no water re3uire'ent.
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1 =igh power to weight ratio.
1 2ight foundations needed.
1 9apid starting and loading ability with no standby losses, which 'akes the'
ideal for peak load purposes.
1 7i'ple plant layout with very few au,iliaries, hence s'all location area
re3uired.
1 2ow installation cost, and reduced operating labor re3uire'ents.
1 4ut put is increased with lower a'bient te'perature.
1#. $ISA$VANTAGES
1 /n a gas turbine, only !>? to %>? of the input energy is transfor'ed into
'echanical work. This 'eans that the ther'al efficiency of the gas turbine
is lower than that of the stea' turbine plant.
1 8oal, which is a cheaper fuel, cannot be used in gas turbines.
1 &as turbines are 'uch noisier when in operation co'pared to stea' pri'e
'overs.
*#0 3RINCI3LES O4 O3ERATION
&as turbines are ther'odyna'ic engines which use a steady flow of a gas -na'ely
air., co'pressed and fired with gaseous or li3uid fuel, which is then e,panded
through a turbine to generate output power. *ost of the fuel energy is used to drive
the air co'pressor, and the re'aining energy -about one 1 third. is available for
thrust in an air craft engine, for 'arine propulsion, or as shaft power for stationary
applications such as pipeline co'pression and electrical power generation etc.
The gas turbine atte'pts to co'bine the si'plicity of the stea' turbine with the
advantages of internal co'bustion as achieved by the diesel engine. <ut it should
be noted that the gas turbine is still an e,ternal co'bustion engine i.e. the fuel is
not burnt in the actual turbine.
The 'a,i'u' co'pression ratio in a gas turbine plant will be about @A1 and this is
the pressure ratio which is available to the turbine. ; stea' turbine plant however
'ay have a pressure of !>"" psia at the turbine stop valve and 1)! psia at the
e,haust, which represents a pressure ratio of >"""A1.
;s the total pressure drop fro' inlet to e,haust in the gas turbine is 'uch s'aller
than the total pressure drop in a stea' turbine, the nu'ber of stages used in a gas
turbine is 'uch less than stea' turbine. ;lso, because of the lower pressures in
the gas turbine, the volu'e of gas is 3uite large and wider passages and taller
blades are used.
<rayton cycle is used as the basis of operation of a gas turbine. +or a particular
gas turbine, the co'pressor pressure ratio is fi,ed and the variables re'aining are
the co'pressor inlet air te'perature, the turbine inlet te'perature and the 'ass
gas flow.
The co'pressor inlet air te'perature, in the case of open cycle gas turbines, is
dependent only on the at'ospheric air te'perature. The efficiency and output is
inversely proportional to a'bient te'perature.
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; <rown 1 <overi 'achine rated a !" *# output and a heat rate of %BB% Ccal per
C# hr with a'bient air te'perature of !" D8 is 3uoted as delivering %" *# at %"1B
Ccal per C# hr when the air te'p. drops to 4" D8 below (ero.
=igh gas inlet te'perature are desirable to increase turbine ther'al efficiency but
the high te'perature in the gas turbine create 'aintenance proble's. The high
te'p. gases -above %" D8. cause e,cessive ther'al stresses on the internal part
of the turbine.
&as turbines e'ploy both reaction and i'pulse principles and the blading is si'ilar
to that used in a stea' turbine.
+#0 3LANT ARRANGE5ENTS
+#1 O3EN C2CLE S2STE5S
The si'ple gas turbine plant consists of a co'pressor, a co'bustion cha'ber and a
turbine. +ig. @1111, shows a diagra''atic layout.
4i(# 6-1-1, $ia(ra--ati% La/o)t#
;t'ospheric air is co'pressed and then heated to the 'a,i'u' cycle te'perature
by the burning of fuel in the co'bustion cha'ber. The resulting products of
co'bustion e,pand through a turbine and e,haust to at'osphere. The turbine
drives the co'pressor and the balance of power is available to drive the generator.
; starting 'otor is re3uired to get the syste' into operation. +ig. @111!, is a
descriptive sketch of the plant.
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4i(# 6-1-*, Si-&le O&en C/%le Gas T)r!ine 3lant#
+#* REGENERATION
The e,haust gas te'p. fro' the si'ple gas turbine will be very high -4>" D8.. The
ther'al efficiency can be appreciably i'proved if so'e of the heat of the e,haust
gases is transferred to the co'pressed air before the air enters the co'bustor.
Thus less fuel will have to be burnt. /n order to acco'plish this, a heat e,changer
called a regenerator is added to the basic cycle. +ig. @111%, shows the arrange'ent
diagra''atically.
4i(# 6-1-+, $ia(ra--ati% S7et%h#
The opti'u' si(ed regenerator recovers about @>? of the e,haust heat in the gas
which is available above the co'pressed air te'perature. The use of a regenerator
will 'ake typical reductions in the e,haust gas te'perature fro' 4>" D8 to !>" D8
while increasing the co'pressed air te'perature fro' !%" D8 to 4"" D8.
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+ig. @1114, is a descriptive sketch of the plant showing the addition of the heat
e,changer. The regenerator is often of the shell and tube type and 'ay be
arranged with the turbine e,haust gases flowing through tubes and the air flow
across the outside of the tubes. The opposite arrange'ent is also used so'eti'es.
4i(# 6-1-., Gas T)r!ine ith Re(enerator#
The use of a heat e,changer or regenerator in a gas turbine 'eans that a large
area of heat transfer surface has to be supplied. The physical bulk of a regenerator
can be acco''odated in a stationary power plant but is i'practical for aircraft or
loco'otive engines.
+#+ $UAL S1A4T 5AC1INES
The single shaft gas turbine is essentially a constant speed 'achine, variations in
speed causing considerable changes in the power output. +or e,a'ple, with the
turbine inlet te'perature kept constant at its top figure a 1"? reduction in turbine
speed will reduce the power output by about !>?, and a !>? reduction in speed
'akes about B"? reduction in the power output.
#hen the shaft is separated as shown in +ig. @111>, the unit beco'es a dual shaft
'achine.
#hen used with a gas turbine plant for electricity generation this arrange'ent gives
better efficiency at part loads by allowing the speed of the co'pressor and pri'ary
turbine to vary, while the secondary turbine and generator re'ain running at
synchronous speed. /t also reduces the power re3uired for the starting 'otor as
this does not now drive the secondary turbine and generator.
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4i(# 6-1-8, O&en C/%le Gas T)r!ine ith $)al Shaft#
4i(# 6-1-9, O&en C/%le Gas T)r!ine ith Re(enerator Inter%ooler#
1 The advantage of dual shaft arrange'ent is greater fle,ibility. The load 'ay
be operated at varying speeds while the co'pressor speed re'ains
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constant. 8onversely, the load speed 'ay be constant as in the case of a
generator while the co'pressor speed 'ay be varied.
1 ;nother advantage of the dual shaft 'achine is that a s'aller starting 'otor
'ay be used, as during start1up it is only necessary to turn the co'pressor
and the high pressure turbine.
+#. INTERCOOLING AN$ RE1EATING
+urther i'prove'ent in the gas turbine efficiency and output can be obtained if the
air can be intercooled during co'pression and the gas can be reheated at so'e
stage in its e,pansion through the turbine.
+ig. @111B, shows the arrange'ent with 9egenerator -or heat e,changer.,
intercooler and 9eheater. :ow this 'achine is in two shaft for' with two separate
co'pressors and turbines and a second co'bustion cha'ber for reheating the gas
between the two turbines.
9eferring to the PE diagra' for the <rayton 8ycle +ig. @111@, the shaded area
should be the a'ount of work available for the cycle. 8o'pression 11! and
e,pansion %14 are each adiabatic operations. /f these could have been carried out
as isother'al -constant te'p. operations, the co'pression would be 11! and the
e,pansion %14. This would have increased the available work considerably.
;n appro,i'ation can be 'ade to this condition by inercooling the air at one or
'ore stages in the co'pression and by reheating the gas at one or 'ore stages in
the e,pansion. This is indicated on +ig. @1118. The intercooling reduces the work
input to the co'pressor and the reheating increases the work output fro' the
turbine. The net effect is to increase the output of the gas turbine and also to
increase its ther'al efficiency.
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4i(# 6-1-6, 3#V# $ia(ra- for Bra/ton C/%le#
+#8 CLOSE$ C2CLE S2STE5S
;ll of the syste's so far 'entioned operate on an open cycle. That is, the air used
is drawn fro' at'osphere and the e,haust fro' the turbine is re$ected to
at'osphere. *ost of the gas turbine plants in use to1day operate on the open cycle
syste'.
4i(# 6-1-:, 3#V# $ia(ra- Shoin( Effe%t of Inter%oolin( and Reheatin(#
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4i(# 6-1-;, Closed C/%le Gas T)r!ine 3lant#
&as turbines can also be constructed using a closed cycle, in which the working
'ediu' air is circulated continuously through the syste'. +ig. @111, shows layout
of the closed cycle.
The air, after being co'pressed in the co'pressor, passes through a regenerator
where it picks up heat fro' the hot e,haust fro' the turbine. The air is then further
heated in the air heater and enters and e,pands through the turbine. ;fter
e,hausting fro' the turbine, the air travels through the regenerator giving up so'e
of its heat to the co'pressed air leaving the co'pressor. The e,haust air is then
further cooled in the cooler before returning to the co'pressor inlet thus co'pleting
the cycle.
=ydrogen, =eliu' or a 'i,ture of =eliu' and 8arbon dio,ide can be used in closed
cycle instead of air due to higher heat conductivity.
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CLOSE$ C2CLE A$VANTAGES
1 ;s the syste' is closed, the pressures can be 'uch higher than those of an
open cycle. The higher pressure 'eans that the working substance will
have a higher density and therefore a greater 'ass of the substance will be
e,panding through the turbine giving 'ore output.
1 ;s the co'bustion products do not 'i, with the working substance, there will
be no fouling of turbine blades and heat e,changer surfaces.
1 ; working substance having a great heat transfer coefficient than air 'ay be
used such as =eliu' reducing the a'ount of heating surface re3uired by
half because =eliu' has appro,i'ately twice the heat transfer coefficient of
air.
CLOSE$ C2CLE $ISA$VANTAGES

1 /nitial cost is high.
1 *ore space is re3uired.
1 8ooling water is re3uired for the air 1 cooler.
+ig. @1111" shows a sche'atic diagra' of a closed cycle gas turbine plant and +ig.
@11111 shows a se'i1closed cycle plant. The se'i1closed cycle uses direct
co'bustion gases for the work turbine and thus reduces the si(e of air heater
re3uired.
+#9 <ATER INJECTION TO GAS TURBINE

<y in$ecting water into the hot gases before they enter the turbine, a gas turbine
output can be increased significantly, but water 'ust not contain 'ore than 1 pp'
of i'purities to avoid turbine blade deposits.
+ig. @1111!, shows water in$ection points diagra''atically. The effect of this water
in$ection is that the water is evaporated into stea' which has the effect of
increasing the density of the working gas in the turbine and hence increasing the
turbine output. This is done without any input increase to the co'pressor.
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4i(# 6-1-10, Closed C/%le T)r!ine#
4i(# 6-1-11, Se-i %losed C/%le T)r!ine#
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4i(# 6-1-1*, Gas T)r!ine <ater In=e%tion 3oints#

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