GAS TURBO TECHNOLOGY

LOW EMISSION
TECHNOLOGY

The mathematic simulation

of low emission combustors
at development and adjustment
Ludmila Bulysova, Vasiliy Vasiliev, Mikhail Gutnik, Mikhail Gutnik,
Anatoly Tumanovsky All-Russian Thermal Engineering Institute

he mathematic simulation of
combustor operation is widely
used now. Due to the mathematic
simulation the influence of design and
operating factors on the combustor basic
characteristics can be investigated, the
improvement methods can be developed
thus decreasing the volume of the
experimental researches. The mathematic
simulation is the advanced method though
the calculations are complicated and

Figure 1. The longitudinal section of low emission combustor

Figure 2. The longitudinal section of annular mixing area (one of the variants)

Figure 3. The concentration field in the longitudinal section

of mixing area channel
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the considered assumptions are specified

during the experimental data collection.
However the absence of the basic
information concerning the operating
process the application of the received
experimental
data
during
the
manufacturing results in the increase of
the volume and periods of adjustment
works.
FlowVision software designed for
simulation of 3-D liquid and gas flows in
technical and natural objects as well for
flow visualisation using the computer
graphics is applied in the All-Russian
Thermal Engineering Institute.
The simulated flows include the
stationary and nonstationary, compressed,
lowcompressed and noncompressed
liquid and gas flows. The use of various
turbulence models and adaptive analysis
grid allows simulating the complicated
liquid flows including the spinned flows,
the combustion flows and the flows with
free surface.
FlowVision software is based on the
finite-volume method of hydrodynamics
equation solution with the application of
square adaptive grid with local mesh. The
subgrid configuration definition is used to
adjust the curved configuration with
increased accuracy. The application of the
specified technology allows importing the
configuration from CAD systems and
changing the information with the finiteelement analysis.
One of the main problems during the
development of advanced gas turbine
packages is the designing of low emission
combustors. The strict requirements
specified to the combustor designing
include the fuel combustion intensification,
reduction of toxics formation at design
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and transient modes, formation of optimal

temperature field at the combustor outlet
and cooling of the flame tube and gas
collector walls. Thus the scope of works on
the development of new-design combustors and adjustment of the operating
processes was significantly increased.
The principle of air-fuel mixture
combustion at the engine operating loads
from 50 to 100% is used in most low emission combustors. Thus the low emission
combustor head (figure 1) is divided in two
areas: the pilot area where the principle of
fuel diffusion combustion is used and the
mixing area fired from the pilot area where
the air-fuel mixture is prepared to supply
to the low emission combustor. The
homogenous mixture is combusted for the
engine operating load from 50 to 100%.
Due to the application of such fuel
combustion scheme NOx emission is low
because the mixture combustion temperature is 13001500 C maximum.
The numerical simulation was used
to solve the problem of efficient blending
of fuel and air to get the homogenous
mixture.
The low emission combustor mixing
area consisting of the annular channel,
spinning device and the fuel supply pipes is
presented in figure 2.
The air is supplied to the annular
channel; the fuel is supplied through the
holes in the fuel supply pipes. The
numerical analysis of the spinning device
and fuel supply pipes relative position
was carried out. The mixing degree was
estimated in the section at the combustor
head mixing area to the mean square
deviation value of methane concentration
to the flow and square of the investigated
section:
=

s (f fk)

Table 1

Table 2

Vn dS

Vn dS

The calculation results of three variants

are presented in table 1. The methane
concentration fields in the investigated
section and methane concentration
mean square deviation values designed
to the flow and to the square are also
given.
Variants 1 and 3 with the pipe arranged
before the spinning device were the best
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mixing degree
0.12

mixing degree
0.12

0.1

0.1

0.08

0.08

0.06

0.06

0.04

0.04

0.02

0.02

2
4
6
number of annular channel sections, n

2
4
6
number of annular channel sections, n

Figure 4. Dependence of the air-fuel

mixture mixing degree from the mixing
channel length

Figure 5. Dependence of mean square deviation value

of methane concentration in the investigated section from NOx
emission value at combustor gas collector outlet

concerning the air-fuel mixture mixing.

The values of methane concentration
mean square deviation in both variants are
similar. Though analysing the methane
concentration fields it can be seen the
basic difference in variant 1 is axial, in
variant 2 radial. The arrangement of the
fuel supply pipes relative to spinning
device of variant 1 shall be considered
for the further low emission combustor
adjustment.
The methane concentration field
in the air to the height of the preliminary
mixing area channel was determined at
the next stage. The numerical investigation
results of the hole arrangement at the
fuel supply pipes are presented in table 2.
The methane concentration fields in the
investigated section at the head mixing
area outlet and methane concentration
mean square deviation values designed to
the flow are also given.
a)

Variant 6 with the corresponding

arrangement of the holes at the fuel
supply pipes was selected as the best
variant after carrying out the numerical
investigations.
The length of the preliminary mixing
area was also defined using the
mathematical simulation. The channel
presented in figure 3 was selected for
investigation. The methane concentration
mean square deviation value was
investigated in the channel cross sections
starting from the spinning device with
the pitch of 0.5 the mixing area annular
channel section.
The dependence of methane mean
square deviation value from the mixing
area length is presented in figure 4. The
dependence was calculated as a result of
numerical experiment used to determine
the channel length values efficient for
proper mixing.

b)

c)
Figure 6. Design area section (a);
flow field in the longitudinal section (b);
temperature field in the longitudinal section (c)
received at the calculation of gas turbine nominal mode
with 5% of fuel supply to the pilot area

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is also given.
Variant 5 was tested at the All-Russian
Thermal Engineering Institute test
bench. The temperature field values at
the outlet received via the design and
experiment are given in figure 8. The
temperature field was measured in the gas
collector outlet section using 20 thermal
couples located in 5 rows each of 4 thermal
couples.
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b)

Figure 7. Low emission combustor mixer hole arrangement

Table 3
Variant

The quality of the air-fuel mixture

supplied to the combustion area influences
significantly NOx concentration.
The dependence of methane
concentration mean square deviation
value in the investigated section of the
design model from NOx emission values
received during the experimental
researches of the same variants at the low
pressure test bench of the All-Russian
Thermal Engineering Institute is
presented in figure 5.
The expected NOx emission can be
assessed to the specified dependence
knowing the design value in the given
section at low emission combustor
operation at the load close to the engine
load of 100% considering the basic fuel
(over 90% of the total) is supplied to the
mixing area.
Another example of the numerical
simulation application is the formation
of the required temperature field at the
combustor gas collector outlet using the
mixer holes at the low emission combustor
flame tube.
The design area section for the
investigation of mixer hole arrangement
and the flow and temperature fields in
the longitudinal section received at the
calculation of the gas turbine nominal
mode with 5% of fuel supply to the pilot
area are given in figure 6.
Five variants of mixer hole arrangement
were considered; two variants are presented
in figure 7.
The results of numerical investigations
of temperature fields in the section at the
combustor gas collector outlet depending
on the value, number and arrangement of
the mixer holes are presented in table 3.
The temperature difference calculated to
the formula
(Tmax out. Tin)
.
Q =
(Tmidl out. Tinl.)

Mixer hole number

and diameter

Temperature
difference
out.

n = 6; d = 16 mm

1.3

n = 4; d = 20 mm

1.29

n = 2; d = 18 mm
and n = 1; d = 21.5 mm;
n = 2; d = 22 mm
and n = 1; d = 17.5 mm

1.234

n = 2; d = 20 mm;
n = 2; d = 25 mm

1.23

n = 2; d = 18 mm;
n = 2; d = 22 mm

1.13

Temperature field designed

using FlowVision software

The field comparison shows the

reliability of data received via the design
and possibility of investigation and
adjustment of temperature fields at the
combustor outlet using the mathematical
simulation.
At the initial stage of development and
adjustment the combustors are tested at
the atmospheric pressure test bench. The
simulation of the operating process is
made to the volume air flow, combustor
inlet temperature and excess air factor
(i.e. all parameters as during the engine
operation except the combustor inlet
pressure). The influence of the operating
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Figure 8.
Temperature field values
at the combustor gas collector
outlet:
a) received via the design
experiment;
b) received via the numerical
investigations

b)

pressure on the processes is very important

to assess for the further low emission
combustor adjustment. The application of
the numerical simulation contributes to
the problem solving.
The design investigation results of
recirculation area characteristics and NOx
concentration for the low emission
combustor with the operating parameters
corresponding to 100% of the engine
load at various operating pressures for two
variants of fuel distribution between the
central pilot area and the mixing area are
given in table 4:
5% of fuel to the central area,
30% to the central area.
The results of flow field, temperature
field and non-combusted fuel field
calculation are presented in figure 9. The
calculations were made in the low emission
combustor longitudinal section at the
operation under the atmospheric and
design pressure.

The carried out numerical investigations

confirmed that the reverse flow area is
reduced at change of the low emission
combustor operation from atmospheric to
the working pressure (though the combustion product weight in the areas does not
change significantly); the length of fuel
combustion field is decreased considerably,
NOx concentration is increased. The present
data are necessary for further analysis of
the flame stability and control at the
combustion of lean homogenous mixtures,
the assessment of the flame tube wall
temperature, the development of design
solutions to reduce NOx concentration at
operating modes and CO concentration at
transient modes.
The numerical simulation examples
specified above show the reliability of
assessment concerning the processes of lean
airfuel mixture mixing and combustion as
well as the efficiency of the numerical
simulation application for the optimisation
Table 4

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Bfuel cent./Bfuel total, %

P, kPa

Lmax, mm

Hmax, mm

Mrecirc., %

NOx, ppm

30

111

175

80

3.1

26.2

111

172

84

7.78

30

849

155

70

2.87

40.8

849

150

9.46

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5% of fuel
to the central nozzle

P = 111 kP

P = 849 kP

P = 849 kP

b)

P = 111 kP

References
1. Matthias Kern Chair of Combustion
Technology, Engler-Bunte-Institute University of
Karlsruhe (TN)
Paris Fokaides, Peter Habisreuther, Nikolaos
Zarzalis Chair of Combustion Technology,
Engler-Bunte-Institute University of Karlsruhe
2-DOMAIN-1-STEP-KINETIK
TURBULENT REACTION MODEL FOR
THE SIMULATION OF A LIFTED SWIRL
FLAME. Proceedings of ASME Turbo Expo
2009: Power for Land, Sea and Air GT 2009
June 8-12, 2009, Orlando, Florida, USA.
2. Gutnik M.N., Vasiliev V.D., Bulysova
L.A. Design and experimental investigations
of low emission combustor for gas turbine
packages//Abstracts of the scientific seminar
The low emission combustors for gas turbine
packages: development experience, problems and
outlooks. Moscow, CIAM All-Russian Thermal
Engineering Institute, 2004. pp. 36-37.
3. Gutnik M.N., Tumanovsky A.G. The
possibilities of high temperature low emission
combustor development for stationary gas turbine

30% of fuel
to the central nozzle

c)
P = 849 kP

Symbols and abbreviations

Qout., % temperature difference
coefficient at the gas collector outlet;
NOx, ppm nitrogen oxide emission;
Taver. out., C average temperature at
the gas collector outlet;
Mrecirc., % maximum gas mass,
involved into the recirculation;
Hmax, mm maximum height of
reverse flow area;
Lmax, mm maximum length of reverse
flow area;
F mean square difference calculated
to the square at the mixing area outlet;
Bfuel cent. fuel supplied through the
diffusion channel relative to the total fuel
supplied to the combustor.

100%
Ne

P = 111 kP

of the design parameters, reduction of the

volumes, periods and cost for the combustor adjustment.

Figure 9. Flow field (a); temperature field (b); fuel combustion field (c)
in the low emission combustor longitudinal section

packages//Gas Turbo Technology, #6(21),

2002. pp. 38-40.
4. Khristich V.A., Tumanovsky A.G. Gas
turbine engines and the environment protection.
Kiev, Tekhnika, 1983.

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