Session: 04-28: Combustion Fundamentals

Paper Number: 81217

81217 - Gas Turbine Combustion Tutorial 

AUDIENCE

Engineers concerned with the role of combustion in the gas turbine, including the contributions and underlying physics and chemistry relating to environmental concerns.  Researchers aiming to …..

Engineering students interested in…

 

 

 

TUTORIAL DESCRIPTION

This tutorial presents the basic concepts and issues associated with gas turbine combustion.  This tutorial is intended for engineers and other professionals working in fields other than combustion but may have to consider issues related to the combustor.  The goal of the tutorial is to introduce the important concepts, parameters and design issues that are commonly considered by combustion engineers. 

 

A general introduction to role of the combustor in a gas turbine along with a primer on some important terms and concepts generally used in combustion will be provided.  The effect of different fuels on combustor performance will also be discussed.  Common operability issues, such as blow-off, flashback, combustion dynamics and autoignition will be presented, with examples and detailed descriptions.  The mechanisms for pollutant formation in combustion will also be discussed, detailing controlling parameters and methods for developing more environmentally-friendly gas turbine combustors.

 

 

 

TUTORIAL LEARNING OBJECTIVES

 

The aim of the course is to provide a basic foundation in the fundamentals of combustion and the role of the combustor in a gas turbine.

Participant in this tutorial will be able to understand basic combustion fundamentals and terminology and understand the processes considered by combustor designers.

The participants completing the tutorial will be able to:  define and describe basic combustion phenomena such as flashback and autoignition, as well as have a basic understanding of how pollutant emissions from the combustion process are formed.

 

CONTENT AND OUTLINE

Outline of Presentation

1.      Introduction, role of combustor in gas turbine, and basic issues

a.       Combustor Performance Metrics

b.      Fuel effects

c.       Turndown and transient events

2. Combustor Operability Issues

a. combustion instability

b. blowoff

c. flashback

d. autoignition

3. Emissions

a. NOx

b. CO

c. SOx

d. Particulates

Presenting Author: Michael Klassen Combustion Science & Engineering, Inc.

Presenting Author Biography: Dr. Klassen is Vice-President and Principal Research Engineer at Combustion Science &amp; Engineering, Inc. He is responsible for the design and execution of numerous experimental and analytical projects in fire hazard analysis and also conducts studies in combustion research. Dr. Klassen is also Chief Technical Officer for LPP Combustion. He is a co-inventor of technology and responsible for development of the technology, working with in-house and consulting engineers to test and design the hardware. <br/><br/>Mike began his career as a Graduate Researcher at the University of Maryland, where he studied the combustion properties of liquid-fuel pool flames. Mike has also been a Visiting Assistant Professor at Purdue University, where he developed laser and optical diagnostic techniques for use in combustion applications. Prior to forming CSE, Mike worked at Hughes Associates where he was involved in numerous projects involving combustion and fire hazard analysis.

Authors:

Michael Klassen Combustion Science & Engineering, Inc.
Tim Lieuwen Georgia Institute of Technology