Session: 04-05 High Hydrogen I

Paper Number: 121321

121321 - Operation of FT4000® Single Nozzle Combustor With High Hydrogen 

The current study focuses on developing a retrofittable fuel/air mixer for the FT4000 aeroderivative power generation gas turbine engine, to enable efficient operation using hydrogen as a carbon-free fuel source. The FT4000^® was developed by Pratt & Whitney, RTX Technology Research Center, and Mitsubishi Power Aero with core technology from the Pratt & Whitney PW4000™ turbofan aircraft engine. The current campaign has been designed to advance the technology readiness level of the FT4000^® combustor components for operation with hydrogen, starting with an experimental assessment of the current production hardware with increasing hydrogen content mixed with natural gas.

High-pressure single-sector rig combustion tests have been completed, demonstrating the ability for the dual fuel nozzle to operate an FT4000^® aeroderivative gas turbine engine on 100% hydrogen with low nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions. Temperature measurements and video images of the flame structure from zero to 100% hydrogen highlight opportunities to improve the fuel nozzle robustness for high hydrogen conditions.

The current FT4000® production engine operates on either natural gas or No. 2 fuel oil with water injection to achieve world-class thermal efficiency and emissions. This engine is fielded by Mitsubishi Power Aero LLC and delivers up to 72 MW of power with a combined thermal efficiency of over 42% when operating with wet compression. Results from this study have cleared the current production FT4000^® engines with dual fuel nozzles to operate at baseload power on low levels of hydrogen mixed with natural gas and water. 

 

_{Acknowledgement: This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Energy under Award Number DE-FE0032171.}

_{Disclaimer: This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.}

_{FT4000 is a registered trademark of Mitsubishi Power Aero LLC.}

Presenting Author: Justin Locke Raytheon Technologies

Presenting Author Biography: Dr. Justin Locke is Discipline Lead for Combustion and Propulsion Technology at the RTX Technology Research Center (RTRC). He is responsible for RTRC's portfolio of combustion-related programs, which includes gas turbine combustion, pressure gain combustion, advanced propulsion concepts, high-speed and multi-physics reacting flows, sprays, and experimental combustion and diagnostics. He also provides oversight for RTRC's Jet Burner Test Stand and Compressor Test Facility.

Authors:

Justin Locke RTX Technology Research Center
Wookyung Kim RTX Technology Research Center
Lance Smith RTX Technology Research Center
Timothy Snyder Pratt & Whitney
James Dayton Mitsubishi Power Aero