LES Analysis of CO Emissions from a High Pressure Siemens Gas Turbine Prototype Combustor at Part Load

Pascal Gruhlke, Christian Beck, Bertram Janus and Andreas M. Kempf
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Pascal Gruhlke: Chair of Fluid Dynamics, Institute for Combustion and Gas Dynamics (IVG), University of Duisburg-Essen, Carl-Benz Straße 199, 47057 Duisburg, Germany
Christian Beck: Siemens Energy, Mellinghofer Straße 55, 45473 Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany
Bertram Janus: German Aerospace Center (DLR), Linder Höhe, 51147 Köln, Germany
Andreas M. Kempf: Chair of Fluid Dynamics, Institute for Combustion and Gas Dynamics (IVG), University of Duisburg-Essen, Carl-Benz Straße 199, 47057 Duisburg, Germany

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 21, 1-17

Abstract: This work contributes to the understanding of mechanisms that lead to increased carbon monoxide (CO) concentrations in gas turbine combustion systems. Large-eddy simulations (LES) of a full scale high pressure prototype Siemens gas turbine combustor at three staged part load operating conditions are presented, demonstrating the ability to predict carbon monoxide pollutants from a complex technical system by investigating sources of incomplete CO oxidation. Analytically reduced chemistry is applied for the accurate pollutant prediction together with the dynamic thickened flame model. LES results show that carbon monoxide emissions at the probe location are predicted in good agreement with the available test data, indicating two operating points with moderate pollutant levels and one operating point with CO concentrations below 10 ppm. Large mixture inhomogeneities are identified in the combustion chamber for all operating points. The investigation of mixture formation indicates that fuel-rich mixtures mainly emerge from the pilot stage resulting in high equivalence ratio streaks that lead to large CO levels at the combustor outlet. Flame quenching due to flame-wall-interaction are found to be of no relevance for CO in the investigated combustion chamber. Post-processing with Lagrangian tracer particles shows that cold air—from effusion cooling or stages that are not being supplied with fuel—lead to significant flame quenching, as mixtures are shifted to leaner equivalence ratios and the oxidation of CO is inhibited.

Keywords: large-eddy simulations (LES); gas turbine; fuel staging; part load; carbon monoxide; finite rate chemistry (FRC) (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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