1

Chapter 3 Gas Turbine

3.1 Brayton Cycle

Used for gas turbines which usually operate on an open cycle.

Fuel Combustion chamber

3
2
Compressor Turbine wnet

1 Fresh air Exhaust gases 4

OPEN-CYLCE GT ENGINE (Real GT engine)

The cycle above can be modeled as a closed cycle, by utilizing the air-standard assumptions.
The combustion process is replaced by a constant-pressure heat addition process from an
external source. The exhaust process is replaced by a constant-pressure heat rejection process
to ambient air. This ideal closed-loop cycle is known as the Brayton cycle; made up of 4
internally reversible processes:
1 – 2 Isentropic compression (in a compressor)
2 – 3 Constant-pressure heat addition
3 – 4 Isentropic expansion (in a turbine)
4 – 1 Constant-pressure heat rejection
qin
Heat exchanger
3
2
Compressor Turbine wnet

1 Heat exchanger 4

qout
Closed-cycle gas-turbine engine operating on Brayton Cycle

T 3 P 2 3

qin P=c

s=C s=C
2 4

q out 1 4
1 P=c

s v

All four processes of an ideal Brayton cycle are steady-flow processes. Neglecting changes in
kinetic and potential energies, we can write the following steady flow energy equations:
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q in  h3  h2  c p  T3  T2 
q out  h4  h1  c p  T4  T1 

Under cold-air-standard assumptions (ie constant cp at 25o), the thermal efficiency becomes

T1  T4  1
wnet q in c p  T4  T1   T1 
th, Brayton  = 1 1 = 1
c p  T3  T2 
T2  3  1
qin q out T
 T2 
Processes 1-2 and 3-4 are isentropic (P2 = P3 and P4 = P1). Thus
k 1 k 1
T2  P2  k P  k T3
   3 
T1  P1   P4  T4

When substituted into the equation for thermal efficiency gives,

1
 th , Brayton  1  ( k 1) / k
rp
where rp is the pressure ratio, P2 / P1 and k is the specific heat ratio (i.e cp/cv).
The thermal efficiency increases with both rp and k, which also occurs with real gas turbines.

For fixed values of Tmin = T1 and Tmax = T3, the net work output of Brayton cycle first increases
k

with pressure ratio, then reaches a maximum at rp =  Tmax 

2  k 1
and finally decreases. A low
 Tmin 
work output per cycle means a larger mass flow rate is needed to maintain the same power
output (ie bigger plant) which is not economical. In common gas turbines, pressure ratio
ranges from 11 to 16, where a compromise is made between high rp and reasonable net work
output.

Two major application of gas-turbine engines are : aircraft propulsion and electric power
generation. The ratio of compressor work input to turbine work output is known as back work
ratio, which is high for gas-turbine power plants (usually more than 50%), whereas for steam
power plant, the ratio (pump work input divided by turbine work output) is only a few
percent. Therefore, for similar net power output, turbines in gas-turbine plants are larger than
those used in steam power plants.

The gas-turbine cycle thermal efficiency improvement covers three areas:

(1) Increasing the turbine inlet (firing) temperatures.
Today the inlet temperature can reach 1425oC made possible by new materials and
innovative cooling techniques such as ceramic coating of turbine blades and blade cooling by
discharged air from the compressor.
(2) Increasing the efficiencies of turbomachinery components.
Made possible by computer-aided design which results in minimal energy losses in
compressors and turbines.
(3) Adding modifications to the basic cycle.
By incorporating intercooling, regeneration (or recuperation), and reheating. These come
with added initial and operation costs which can be justified when decrease in fuel costs
offsets the increase in other costs.
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Example 1
A gas-turbine power plant operating on an ideal Brayton cycle has a pressure ratio of 8. The
gas temperature is 300 K at the compressor inlet and 1300 K at the turbine inlet. Utilizing air-
standard assumptions, determine (a) the gas temperature at the exits of the compressor and
turbine, (b) the back work ratio, and (c) the thermal efficiency.

. 1300 K
T 3

qin P=c

r p = P2/P1 = P3/P4 = 8

2 4

q out
300K P=c
1
s
(a)
 Process 1–2 is isentropic compression of ideal gas,

T1 = 300 K Table A-17 h1 = 300.19 kJ/kg, Pr1 = 1.386

P2 Pr 2 P 
 =8 Pr 2  Pr1  2  = 1.386 (8) = 11.09 Table A-17 T2 = 540 K, h2 =
P1 Pr1  P1 
544.35

 Process 3– 4 is isentropic expansion of ideal gas,

T3 = 1300 K Table A-17 h3 = 1395.97 kJ/kg, Pr3 = 330.9

P4 P P 
 r4 Pr 4  Pr 3  4  = 330.9 / 8 = 41.36 Table A-17 T4 = 770 K, h4 =
P3 Pr 3  P3 
789.37

(b) wcomp,in = h2 – h1 = 544.35 – 300.19 = 244.26 kJ/kg

wturb,out = h3 – h4 = 1395.97 – 789.37 = 606.6 kJ/kg
wcomp ,in 244.16
rbw   = 0.403 (ie 40.3 % of turbine work is used to drive
wturb ,out 606.6
compressor)
(c) qin = h3 – h2 = 1395.97 – 544.35 = 851.62
wnet = wout – win = 606.6 – 244.16 = 362.4
w
 th  net = 362.4 0.426 @ 42.6%
qin 851.62

Note: Under cold-air-standard assumptions, the thermal efficiency is,

1 1
 th , Brayton  1  ( k 1) / k = 1 1.4 1 = 0.448 @ 44.8%.
rp
8 1.4
which is comparable to the more accurate value of 42.6%.
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Deviation of Actual Gas-Turbine Cycles from Ideal Cycles

The actual cycles differ from the ideal ones on accounts of:
 Actual heat-addition and heat-rejection processes involve some pressure drops,
whereas in ideal cycles there are none
 Actual compressor work is more, and actual turbine work is less compared to ideal
Brayton cycle due to irreversibilities. It is convenient to define isentropic efficiencies
for compressor and turbine as follows:

T 3
w h h
C  s  2s 1
wa h2 a  h1
. 2a
w h  h4 a
T  a  3 2s 4s 4a
ws h3  h4 s
.
. 2a, 4a are actual states
. 2s, 4s are states for isentropic process 1
.
s
Example 2
Assuming a compressor efficiency of 80% and a turbine efficiency of 85%, determine (a) the
back work ratio, (b) the thermal efficiency, and (c) the turbine exit temperature of the cycle in
Example 1.
. 1300 K
T 3

qin P=c

r p = P2/P1 = P3/P4 = 8
2a
2s 4s 4a

q out
300K P=c
1
s
ws ws 244.16
For compressor,  C  wa  wcomp ,in   = 305.20
wa C 0.80
w
For turbine, T  a wa  wturb ,out  T ws = 0.85(606.6) = 515.61
ws
wcomp ,in 305.20
Therefore, rbw   = 0.592 @ 59.2%
wturb ,out 515.61

The compressor consumes 59.2% of the turbine work output (c.f 40.3% in Ex.1). The increase
is caused by irreversibilities within the compressor and turbine.

(b) wcomp,in = h2a – h1 h2a = h1 + wcomp,in = 300.19 + 305.20 = 605.39 kJ/kg

From Table A-17, T2a = 598 K.
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qin = h3 – h2a = 1395.97 – 605.39 = 790.58
wnet = wout – win = 515.61 – 305.20 = 210.41

wnet 210.41
 th  = = 0.266 @ 26.6%
qin 790.58

Compare this with 42.6% in Ex. 1. The drop in thermal efficiency is caused by irreversibilites
within the turbine and compressor.

(c) Energy balance for actual turbine gives

wturb,out = h3 – h4a h4a = h3 – wturb,out = 1395.97 – 515.61 = 880.36 kJ/kg

Table A-17 gives, T4a = 853 K

NOTE: Turbine exit temperature is much higher than that at compressor exit (T2a = 598K),
which suggests using regeneration to reduce fuel consumption (and cost).

3.2 BRAYTON CYCLE WITH REGENERATION

When the exhaust gas temperature leaving the turbine is much higher than the temperature of
air leaving the compressor, the exhaust gas can be used to heat the air leaving the compressor.
The process takes place in a counter-flow heat exchanger known as a regenerator or a
recuperator. This exercise reduces the heat input (and fuel) for the same net work output, for
which the thermal efficiency increases.
3
T
qin

5’ 4
qregen
5
qsaved = qregen
6

2
qout
1

regenerator

heat
combustion 4
1 chamber
2 5 3

C T wnet
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Assuming the regenerator to be adiabatic, and neglecting changes in kinetic and potential
energies, the actual and maximum heat transfer from the exhaust gases to the air are

qregen,act = h5 – h2
qregen,max = h5’ – h2 = h4 – h2

q regen , act h5  h2
The regenerator effectiveness is defined as,  
q regen ,max h4  h2
T5  T2
Using the cold-air-standard assumptions, it reduces to:  
T4  T2
A higher effectiveness saves a greater amount of fuel (due to higher pre-combustion
temperature), but it requires a larger regenerator which is costly. In practice, the effectiveness
is below 0.85.

Under cold-air-standard assumptions, the thermal efficiency of ideal Brayton cycle with
regeneration is
 T  k 1
 th ,regen  1   1  r p k
 T3 

Regeneration is most effective at lower pressure ratios and low T1/T3 ratios (see Fig. 9-40
Cengel).

Example 3
The gas-turbine in Example 2 has a regenerator with an effectiveness of 80 percent.
Determine its thermal efficiency.

h5  h2 a
 h5  h2 a    h4 a  h2 a  = 605.39 + 0.80(880.36 – 605.39 = 825.37
h4 a  h2 a
Thus, qin = h3 – h5 = 1395.97 = 825.37 = 570.60
w
 th  net = 210.41 = 0.360 @ 36.9 %
qin 570.60

Note that net work output is not affected. The regenerator only reduces qin. Therefore
thermal efficiency increases.
3
T
qin
4a
4s
qregen
5
qsaved = qregen
2a 6

2s
qout
1
s

3.3 BRAYTON CYCLE WITH INTERCOOLING, REHEATING &

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REGENERATION

Steady-flow compression or expansion work is proportional to the specific volume of the

fluid. Recall that steady-flow work is given by

w  vdP

To lower compressor power (input), the specific volume of the working fluid should be as low
as possible. To increase turbine work (output), the specific volume of the working fluid should
be as high as possible. These are accomplished as follows:
 By intercooling between compressor stages, the compressor work is reduced.
 By reheating between turbine stages, turbine work is increased

Example 4
An ideal gas-turbine cycle with two stages of compression and two stages of expansion has an
overall pressure ratio of 8. Air enters each stage of the compressor at 300 K and each stage of
the turbine at 1300 K. Determine the back work ratio and the thermal efficiency, assuming (a)
no regenerators and (b) and ideal regenerator with 100 percent effectiveness. Compare the
results with those in Example 3.

Regenerator
10

exhaust gases
air Combustion Reheater
5 chamber
1 4 6 7 8 9

intercooler wnet
2 3

Compressor I Compressor II Turbine I Turbine II

T 6 8

qin

9
5 7
qregen
qregen = qsaved
4 2
10

qout
3 1

s
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For best performance, it can be shown that (see Chap.7 Cengel) equal pressure ratios are
maintained across each compressor and turbine stage, to minimise total compressor work
required and maximise total turbine work output. Thus

P2 P4 P6 P8
  8 = 2.83 and   8 = 2.83
P1 P3 P7 P9
Assuming each compressor stage has the same isentropic efficiency (100% in this case), the
temperature and enthalpy of the air at each compressor exit will be the same. A similar
argument is used for the turbines.

At inlets: T1 = T3, h1 = h3 and T6 = T8, h6 = h8

At exits: T2 = T4, h2 = h4 and T7 = T9, h7 = h9

Thus, wcomp-I = wcomp-II and wturbine-I = wturbine-II

(a)
T1 = 300 K Table A17 h1 = 300.19 kJ/kg, Pr1 = 1.386

Process 1–2 is isentropic, so we can write

P2 Pr 2 P2
 Pr 2  Pr1  (1.386) 8 = 3.92 TableA17 T2 = 403.3 K, h2 = 404.31
P1 Pr1 P1
kJ/kg

T6 = 1300 K TableA17 h6 = 1395.97 kJ/kg, Pr6 = 330.9

Process 6–7 is isentropic, so we can write

P7 Pr 7 P7 1
 Pr 7  Pr 6  (330.9) = 117.0 T A17 T7 = 1006.4 K, h7 = 1053.33
P6 Pr 6 P6 8
kJ/kg

wcomp,in = 2 wcomp,in,I = 2 (h2 – h1) = 2 (404.31 – 300.19) = 208.24 kJ/kg

wturb,out = 2 wturb,out,I = 2 (h6 – h7 ) = 2 (1395.97 – 1053.33) = 685.28 kJ/kg

wnet = wturb,out – wcomp,in = 685.28 – 208.24 = 477.04 kJ/kg

qin = qprimary + qreheat = (h6 – h4) + (h8 – h7)

= (1395.97 – 404.31) + (1395.97 – 1053.33) = 1334.30 kJ/kg

wcomp ,in 208.24

Thus, rbw   = 0.304 @ 30.4 %
wturb ,out 685.28
wnet 477.04
 th   = 0.358 @ 35.8 %
q in 1334.30

Discussion: Compared with Ex. 3 (single-stage compression and expansion), shows that
multistage compression with intercooling and multistage expansion with reheating improves
the backwork ratio (drops from 40.3 to 30.4%) but hurt thermal efficiency (drops from 42.6 to
35.8%). Conclusion: Intercooling and reheating must be accompanied by regeneration (to
improve thermal efficiency, as part (b) will show).
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(b) The addition of an ideal regenerator (no pressure drops, and 100% effectiveness) does not
affect compressor work and turbine work. Therefore, the back work ratio and net work output
of an ideal gas-turbine cycle are identical whether there’s a regenerator or not. A regenerator
only reduces the heat input by preheating the air leaving the compressor, using hot exhaust
gases.

In an ideal regenerator, the compressed air is heated to the turbine exit temperature T9, before
it enters the combustion chamber. Under air-standard assumptions, h5 = h7 = h9.

qin = qprimary + qreheat = (h6 – h5) + (h8 – h7)

= (1395.97 – 1053.33) + (1395.7 – 1053.33) = 685.28
w 477.04
 th  net  = 0.696 @ 69.6 %
q in 685.28

Discussion: The thermal efficiency almost doubles by adding a regenerator. As the number of
compression and expansion stages is increased, the cycle approaches the Ericsson cyle which
has the thermal efficiency of

TL 300
 th , Ericsson   th ,Carnot  1  1 = 0.769 @ 76.9%
TH 1300

In practice, it is not economical to increase the number of stages beyond two, because thermal
efficiency improvement will be greatly offset by increased costs of additional stages.
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Tutorial #3 – Gas Turbine Cycles

1. Air is used as the working fluid in a simple ideal Brayton cycle with a pressure ratio of 12,
compressor inlet temperature of 300 K, and turbine inlet temperature of 1000 K. Determine the mass
flow rate of air for a power output of 70 MW, if both compressor and turbine have isentropic
efficiency of (a) 100 % and (b) 85 %. Assume constant specific heats at room temperature.
(a) 352 kg/s, (b) 1037 kg/s

2. A gas-turbine power plant operates on the simple Brayton cycle between the pressure limits of 100
and 1200 kPa. Air enters the compressor at 30 oC at a rate of 150 m 3/min and leaves the turbine at
500oC. Using variable specific heats for air and assuming a compressor isentropic efficiency of 82
percent and a turbine isentropic efficiency of 88 percent, determine (a) the net power output, (b) the
back work ratio, and (c) the thermal efficiency.
(659 kW, 0.625, 0.319)

3. A Brayton cycle with regeneration using air as the working fluid has a pressure ratio of 7. The
minimum and maximum temperatures in the cycle are 310 and 1150 K. Assuming an isentropic
efficiency of 75 percent for the compressor and 82 percent for the turbine and an effectiveness of 65
percent for the regenerator, determine (a) the air temperature at the turbine exit, (b) the net work
output, and (c) the thermal efficiency. Assume variable specific heats for air.
(783 K, 108.1 kJ/kg, 22.5 %)

4. Air enters the compressor of a regenerative gas-turbine engine at 300 K and 100 kPa, where it is
compressed to 800 kPa and 580 K. The regenerator has an effectiveness of 72 percent, and air enters
the turbine at 1200 K. For a turbine efficiency of 86 percent, determine (a) the amount of heat transfer
in the regenerator and (b) the thermal efficiency. Assume variable specific heats for air.
(152.5 kJ/kg, 36.0 %)

5. For a specified pressure ratio, why does multistage compression with intercooling decrease the
compressor work, and multistage expansion with reheating increase the turbine work ?

6. Consider a regenerative gas-turbine power plant with two stages of compression and two stages of
expansion. The overall pressure ratio of the cycle is 9. The air enters each stage of the compressor at
300 K and each stage of the turbine at 1200 K. Accounting for the variation of specific heats with
temperature, determine the minimum mass flow rate of air needed to develop a net power output of
110 MW. (250 kg/s)

7. Consider an ideal gas-turbine cycle with two stages of compression and two stages of expansion.
The pressure ratio across each stage of the compressor and turbine is 3. The air enters each stage of the
compressor at 300 K and each stage of the turbine at 1200 K. Determine the back work ratio and the
thermal efficiency of the cycle, assuming (a) no regenerator is used and (b) a regenerator with 75
percent effectiveness is used. Use variable specific heats.
(a) 33.5 %. 36.8 % (b) 33.5 %, 55.3 %