UNIVERSITI KUALA

LUMPUR

MALAYSIA FRANCE INSTITUTE

ABSORPTION SYSTEM
FCB 40902
COMBUSTION GAS TURBINE

MARKS
Prepared By:

Name Students ID Remarks

MOHD SHAZZANY BIN KERNI 50206113838

AMIRUL AZMY BIN KHAMIS 60206113857

MUHAMMAD SAFUAN BIN 50206214040

AMINON

Date: 25 November 2015 Prepared For: Mr.

Zakaria Bin Jusoh

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COMBUSTION GAS TURBINE

The use of gas turbines for generating electricity dates back to 1939. Today, gas
turbines are one of the most widely-used power generating technologies. Gas turbines are a
type of internal combustion (IC) engine in which burning of an air-fuel mixture produces hot
gases that spin a turbine to produce power. It is the production of hot gas during fuel
combustion, not the fuel itself that the gives gas turbines the name. Gas turbines can utilize a
variety of fuels, including natural gas, fuel oils, and synthetic fuels. Combustion occurs
continuously in gas turbines, as opposed to reciprocating IC engines, in which combustion
occurs intermittently.

The gas turbine is the engine at the heart of the power plant that produces electric
current. A gas turbine is a combustion engine that can convert natural gas or other liquid fuels
to mechanical energy. This energy then drives a generator that produces electrical energy. It is
electrical energy that moves along power lines to homes and businesses.

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How Do Gas Turbines Work?

Gas turbines are comprised of three primary sections mounted on the same shaft: the
compressor, the combustion chamber (or combustor) and the turbine. The compressor can be
either axial flow or centrifugal flow. Axial flow compressors are more common in power
generation because they have higher flow rates and efficiencies. Axial flow compressors are
comprised of multiple stages of rotating and stationary blades (or stators) through which air is
drawn in parallel to the axis of rotation and incrementally compressed as it passes through
each stage. The acceleration of the air through the rotating blades and diffusion by the stators
increases the pressure and reduces the volume of the air. Although no heat is added, the
compression of the air also causes the temperature to increase.

The compressed air is mixed with fuel injected through nozzles. The fuel and
compressed air can be pre-mixed or the compressed air can be introduced directly into the
combustor. The fuel-air mixture ignites under constant pressure conditions and the hot
combustion products (gases) are directed through the turbine where it expands rapidly and
imparts rotation to the shaft. The turbine is also comprised of stages, each with a row of
stationary blades (or nozzles) to direct the expanding gases followed by a row of moving
blades. The rotation of the shaft drives the compressor to draw in and compress more air to

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sustain continuous combustion. The remaining shaft power is used to drive a generator which
produces electricity. Approximately 55 to 65 percent of the power produced by the turbine is

used to drive the compressor. To optimize the transfer of kinetic energy from the combustion
gases to shaft rotation, gas turbines can have multiple compressor and turbine stages.

Because the compressor must reach a certain speed before the combustion process is
continuous or self-sustaining initial momentum is imparted to the turbine rotor from an
external motor, static frequency converter, or the generator itself. The compressor must be
smoothly accelerated and reach firing speed before fuel can be introduced and ignition can
occur. Turbine speeds vary widely by manufacturer and design, ranging from 2,000
revolutions per minute (rpm) to 10,000 rpm. Initial ignition occurs from one or more spark
plugs (depending on combustor design). Once the turbine reaches self-sustaining speed
above 50% of full speed the power output is enough to drive the compressor, combustion is
continuous, and the starter system can be disengaged.

One major difference however is that the gas turbine has a second turbine acting as an
air compressor mounted on the same shaft. The air turbine (compressor) draws in air,
compresses it and feeds it at high pressure into the combustion chamber increasing the
intensity of the burning flame.

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 It is a positive feedback mechanism. As the gas turbine speeds up, it also causes the
compressor to speed up forcing more air through the combustion chamber which in turn
increases the burn rate of the fuel sending more high pressure hot gases into the gas turbine
increasing its speed even more. Uncontrolled runaway is prevented by controls on the fuel
supply line which limit the amount of fuel fed to the turbine thus limiting its speed.

The thermodynamic process used by the gas turbine is known as the Brayton cycle.
Analogous to the Carnot cycle in which the efficiency is maximised by increasing the
temperature difference of the working fluid between the input and output of the machine, the
Brayton cycle efficiency is maximised by increasing the pressure difference across the
machine.

The gas turbine is comprised of three main components: a compressor, a combustor,

and a turbine. The working fluid, air, is compressed in the compressor (adiabatic compression
- no heat gain or loss), then mixed with fuel and burned by the combustor under constant
pressure conditions in the combustion chamber (constant pressure heat addition). The
resulting hot gas expands through the turbine to perform work (adiabatic expansion). Much of
the power produced in the turbine is used to run the compressor and the rest is available to
run auxiliary equipment and do useful work. The system is an open system because the air is
not reused so that the fourth step in the cycle, cooling the working fluid, is omitted.

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 Gas turbines have a very high power to weight ratio and are lighter and smaller than
internal combustion engines of the same power. Though they are mechanically simpler than
reciprocating engines, their characteristics of high speed and high temperature operation
require high precision components and exotic materials making them more expensive to
manufacture.

Gas Turbine cycle Brayton Cycle

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 Idealized Brayton cycle

Process Cycles:

1-2 Isentropic Compression by Compressor

2-3 Constant Pressure Heat Addition in Combustion Chamber

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3-4 Isentropic Expansion by Turbine
4-1 Heat Sink (Imaginary line)

Ideal Brayton cycle:

1. Isentropic process ambient air is drawn into the compressor, where it is pressurized.
2. Isobaric process the compressed air then runs through a combustion chamber, where
fuel is burned, heating that aira constant-pressure process, since the chamber is
open to flow in and out.
3. Isentropic process the heated, pressurized air then gives up its energy, expanding
through a turbine (or series of turbines). Some of the work extracted by the turbine is
used to drive the compressor.
4. Isobaric process heat rejection (in the atmosphere).

Actual Brayton cycle:

1. Adiabatic process compression

2. Asobaric process heat addition
3. Adiabatic process expansion
4. Isobaric process heat rejection

Since neither the compression nor the expansion can be truly isentropic, losses
through the compressor and the expander represent sources of inescapable working
inefficiencies. In general, increasing the compression ratio is the most direct way to increase
the overall power output of a Brayton system.

The efficiency of the ideal Brayton cycle is , where is the heat capacity ratio.

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Cycle efficiency changes with an increase in pressure ratio

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 Brayton cycle specific power output
The highest temperature in the cycle occurs at the end of the combustion process, and
it is limited by the maximum temperature that the turbine blades can withstand. This also
limits the pressure ratios that can be used in the cycle. For a fixed turbine inlet temperature,
the net work output per cycle increases with the pressure ratio (thus the thermal efficiency)
and the net work output. With less work output per cycle, a larger mass flow rate (thus a
larger system) is needed to maintain the same power output, which may not be economical. In
most common designs, the pressure ratio of a gas turbine ranges from about 11 to 16.

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Electrical Power Generation

In electricity generating applications the turbine is used to drive a synchronous

generator which provides the electrical power output but because the turbine normally
operates at very high rotational speeds of 12,000 r.p.m or more it must be connected to the
generator through a high ratio reduction gear since the generators run at speeds of 1,000 or
1,200 r.p.m. depending on the AC frequency of the electricity grid.

Applications

Gas turbines can be used for large scale power generation. Examples are applications
delivering 600 MW or more from a 400 MW gas turbine coupled to a 200 MW steam turbine
in a co-generating installation. Such installations are not normally used for base load
electricity generation, but for bringing power to remote sites such as oil and gas fields. They
do however find use in the major electricity grids in peak shaving applications to provide
emergency peak power.
Low power gas turbine generating sets with capacities up to 5 MW can be accommodated in
transportation containers to provide mobile emergency electricity supplies which can
delivered by truck to the point of need.

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Turbine Configurations

Gas turbine power generators are used in two basic configurations

Simple Systems consisting of the gas turbine driving an electrical power generator.

SYSTEM EFFICIENCY

Simple Cycle Turbines

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 A gas turbine consumes considerable amounts of power just to drive its compressor.
As with all cyclic heat engines, a higher maximum working temperature in the machine
means greater efficiency (Carnot's Law), but in a turbine it also means that more energy is
lost as waste heat through the hot exhaust gases whose temperatures are typically well over
1,000C . Consequently simple cycle turbine efficiencies are quite low. For heavy plant,
design efficiencies range between 30% and 40%. (The efficiencies of aero engines are in the
range 38% and 42% while low power microturbines (<100kW) achieve only 18% to 22%).
Although increasing the firing temperature increases the output power at a given pressure
ratio, there is also a sacrifice of efficiency due to the increase in losses due to the cooling air
required to maintain the turbine components at reasonable working temperatures.

Combined Cycle Systems which are designed for maximum efficiency in which the
hot exhaust gases from the gas turbine are used to raise steam to power a steam turbine
with both turbines being connected to electricity generators.

SYSTEM EFFICIENCY

Combined Cycle Turbines

It is however possible to recover energy from the waste heat of simple cycle systems by using
the exhaust gases in a hybridsystem to raise steam to drive a steam turbine electricity

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generating set . In such cases the exhaust temperature may be reduced to as low as 140C
enabling efficiencies of up to 60% to be achieved in combined cycle systems.

In combined-cycle applications, pressure ratio increases have a less pronounced effect on the
efficiency since most of the improvement comes from increases in the Carnot thermal
efficiency resulting from increases in the firing temperature.

Thus simple cycle efficiency is achieved with high pressure ratios. Combined cycle efficiency
is obtained with more modest pressure ratios and greater firing temperatures.

Fuels

One further advantage of gas turbines is their fuel flexibility. They can be adapted to use
almost any flammable gas or light distillate petroleum products such as gasoline (petrol),
diesel and kerosene (paraffin) which happen to be available locally, though natural gas is the
most commonly used fuel. Crude and other heavy oils and can also be used to fuel gas
turbines if they are first heated to reduce their viscosity to a level suitable for burning in the
turbine combustion chambers.

Gas Turbine Performance

The thermodynamic process used in gas turbines is the Brayton cycle. Two significant
performance parameters are the pressure ratio and the firing temperature. The fuel-to-power
efficiency of the engine is optimized by increasing the difference (or ratio) between the
compressor discharge pressure and inlet air pressure. This compression ratio is dependent on
the design. Gas turbines for power generation can be either industrial (heavy frame) or aero
derivative designs. Industrial gas turbines are designed for stationary applications and have
lower pressure ratios typically up to 18:1.

Aero derivative gas turbines are lighter weight compact engines adapted from aircraft jet
engine design which operate at higher compression ratios up to 30:1. They offer higher fuel
efficiency and lower emissions, but are smaller and have higher initial (capital) costs. Aero
derivative gas turbines are more sensitive to the compressor inlet temperature.

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The temperature at which the turbine operates (firing temperature) also impacts efficiency,
with higher temperatures leading to higher efficiency. However, turbine inlet temperature is
limited by the thermal conditions that can be tolerated by the turbine blade metal alloy. Gas
temperatures at the turbine inlet can be 1200C to 1400C, but some manufacturers
have boosted inlet temperatures as high as 1600C by engineering blade coatings and cooling
systems to protect metallurgical components from thermal damage.

Because of the power required to drive the compressor, energy conversion efficiency for a
simple cycle gas turbine power plant is typically about 30 percent, with even the most
efficient designs limited to 40 percent. A large amount of heat remains in the exhaust gas,
which is around 600C as it leaves the turbine. By recovering that waste heat to produce more
useful work in a combined cycle configuration, gas turbine power plant efficiency can reach
55 to 60 percent. However, there are operational limitations associated with operating gas
turbines in combined cycle mode, including longer startup time, purge requirements to
prevent fires or explosions, and ramp rate to full load.

Advantages and disadvantages

Advantages Disadvantages
Low operating pressures
Cost is very high
High operation speeds
Less efficient than reciprocating engines
at idle speed
Low lubricating oil cost and
consumption Longer startup than reciprocating
engines
Moves in one direction only, with far
less vibration than a reciprocating Less responsive to changes in power
engine demand compared with reciprocating
engines

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 Waste heat is dissipated almost entirely
in the exhaust. This results in a high Characteristic whine can be hard to
suppress

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