JP5584836B1 - Gas turbine system and method of operation - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to the use of a steam exhaust in a gas turbine system to improve the performance of a gas turbine.
A gas turbine system includes: a turbine; and a combustor for adding fuel to the working fluid, igniting the fuel, and generating combustion gas that expands to drive the turbine; steam and And a steam discharger 11 for introducing compression into the working fluid.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates generally to gas turbines.

  A gas turbine is a device that generates a rotational operation through manipulation of a gas phase working fluid by a thermodynamic cycle. The basic stages of a thermodynamic cycle common to all gas turbines are an initial compression stage to increase the working fluid pressure, a combustion stage in which the temperature of the compressed gas is increased, and a hot compressed gas. It is an expansion stage introduced into the turbine. The expansion of the gas across the turbine creates a rotational operation.

  The turbine may be mechanically coupled to the rotary compressor by a connecting shaft such that a portion of the action produced by the turbine is used to compress the working fluid. Most commercially available gas turbines use an axial compressor, but the use of centrifugal and other compressors is also known in the art.

  Over the decades, many modifications and improvements have been made to gas compressors, greatly improving their functionality and efficiency. The present invention provides such an improvement.

  References to any prior publication (or information derived from it) or any known matter in this specification are subject to prior publication (or information derived from it) or known matter in the art. It should not be construed and should not be construed as an acknowledgment or admission that this specification forms part of the common general knowledge to which it pertains.

  The present invention aims to provide increased efficiency for gas turbines.

  In accordance with the present invention, a turbine, a combustor for adding fuel to the working fluid, igniting the fuel, generating combustion gas that expands to drive the turbine, and introducing steam and compression to the working fluid A gas turbine system is provided.

  Preferably, the system further includes a mechanical compressor for compressing the working fluid.

  Preferably, the steam discharger is connected to the inlet of the mechanical compressor.

  Alternatively, the steam discharger is connected to a combustor downstream of the mechanical compressor.

  Preferably, the system further includes a plurality of mechanical compressor stages, and the steam discharger is coupled to an inlet of the first mechanical compressor of the plurality of mechanical compressor stages.

  Alternatively, the system further comprises a plurality of compressor stages, and the steam discharger is connected between the outlet of the first mechanical compressor and the inlet of the second mechanical compressor.

  In another alternative, the system includes a plurality of mechanical compressors coupled at one or more locations before the mechanical compressor stage, during the mechanical compressor stage, or after the mechanical compressor stage. Further comprising a stage and one or more steam evacuators.

  Preferably, the system further includes a plurality of combustion stages for driving the turbine.

  Preferably, one or more steam evacuators are provided upstream of each combustion stage.

  Preferably, the exhaust of the first one of the plurality of combustion stages is connected upstream of the second one of the plurality of combustion stages, so that the exhaust from the first combustion stage is for the second combustion stage. Form a working fluid.

  Preferably, the exhaust of the first combustion stage is coupled into the inlet of the steam exhaust associated with the second combustion stage.

  Preferably, a mechanical compressor is provided upstream of the steam exhaust associated with the first combustion stage.

  Preferably, the system further includes a boiler that extracts thermal energy from the exhaust gas of the turbine and produces steam for use in the steam exhaust.

  Preferably, the plurality of steam evacuators use steam from the boiler.

  Preferably, one or more steam generators are connected to the inlet of each steam exhaust for auxiliary steam, if required.

  Preferably, the steam evacuator and combustor increase the pressure of the suction mixture, the furnace port where the mixture is ignited, and the burned mixture pressure, where the fuel, working fluid and steam mixture is entrained and accelerated. Embedded in an exhaust combustor unit having a branch diffuser nozzle in communication with the turbine.

  Preferably, the system includes a plurality of combustion stages for driving the turbine along with a plurality of associated exhaust combustor units.

  Preferably, the exhaust of the first combustion stage is coupled upstream of the second combustion stage, so that the working fluid of the second combustion stage exhaust combustor unit is removed from the first combustion stage. The steam for each exhaust combustor unit is generated from the exhaust heat from the second combustor stage.

  In another aspect, a method of operating a gas turbine using an upstream compression of a working fluid and a downstream combustion stage to ignite a compressed working fluid and fuel mixture to drive the turbine, the compression A method is provided wherein at least a portion of the load is performed by a steam evacuator.

  Preferably, exhaust heat from the turbine is used to provide steam for the steam exhaust.

  Preferably substantially all of the air compression load is performed by one or more steam evacuators.

  Preferably, a portion of the compression load is implemented by one or more steam evacuators and the remaining portion is implemented by one or more mechanical compressors.

  Preferably, the resulting steam satisfies at least a portion of the steam load of the steam exhaust.

  Preferably, steam for the steam discharger is withdrawn from one or more additional steam generators for supplemental steam, if needed.

  Preferably, combustion, steam injection, and ignition are performed in the exhaust combustor unit, and steam, working fluid, and fuel are entrained and compressed and ignited in the exhaust port of the exhaust combustor unit to be higher It expands to pressure and then enters the turbine and drives it.

  Preferably, the combustion occurs over multiple combustion stages, each used to drive a turbine, and an exhaust combustor unit is used with each combustion stage.

  Preferably, the exhaust from the first of the plurality of combustion stages provides a working fluid for the second of the plurality of combustion stages.

  Preferably, one or more mechanical compressors are used to compress the working fluid upstream of each ejector compressor unit.

The invention will now be described by way of non-limiting example only with reference to the accompanying drawings.
1 illustrates a prior art gas turbine. Illustrates a gas turbine system in which a steam exhaust is used to precompress air prior to a rotary compressor. 1 illustrates a gas turbine system having two mechanical compression stages and an intermediate steam exhaust. Illustrates a gas turbine system in which a steam exhaust is used to further compress air after a rotary compressor. FIG. 5 illustrates a gas turbine system similar to that shown in FIG. 4 where the steam exhaust and combustion stage are integrated into a single exhaust combustor unit. 2 illustrates a gas turbine system in which the entire compressive load is implemented by an exhaust combustor unit. 2 illustrates a gas turbine system having multiple combustion stages. 8 illustrates a gas turbine system similar to that shown in FIG. 7 having a mechanical compressor.

  In the drawings and the accompanying description, like reference numerals are used to identify like parts.

  Also, throughout the description, the working fluid will be described primarily as air. However, it should be understood that the working fluid can be any suitable fluid and that a reference to air is to be interpreted as a reference to any other suitable working fluid. is there.

  Referring initially to FIG. 1, a prior art gas turbine 1 is schematically illustrated as including a rotating mechanical compressor 2 mounted on a shaft 3 of a turbine 4. The compressor 2 has an inlet 5 and working fluid in the form of air is drawn into the inlet 5 for compression. The hot compressed air is moved from the outlet 6 of the compressor 2 to the downstream combustor 7 and fuel from the fuel inlet 8 is added to form a fuel / air mixture. The mixture is ignited in the combustor 7 to cause the expansion of hot pressurized gas across the turbine 4 to drive the rotation of the turbine 4. Hot exhaust gas leaves the turbine 4 via the exhaust 8.

  The rotary action created by the expansion of the gas across the turbine 4 can be used for various purposes, for example to drive the movement of the vehicle or to power the generator to generate electricity.

  The gas turbine 1 of FIG. 1 represents a simple, single-stage gas turbine, and the compressor 2 feeds a portion of the rotary operation generated by the turbine 4 to the rotary compressor 2, which is a gas turbine. It is mechanically coupled to the turbine 4 to provide one overall compressive load requirement.

  Referring now to FIG. 2, a gas turbine system 10 is shown that includes similar components of a mechanical compressor 2, a combustor 7, and a turbine 4. However, the system 10 also includes a steam exhaust 11 that contributes to at least a portion of the compression load requirements of the system 10.

  The vapor discharger 11 is a device that at least partially compresses the working fluid by using high pressure steam to entrain the working fluid into the suction chamber 12. Steam and working fluid pass through the furnace port 13 of the ejector 11 and then expand across the diffuser nozzle 14. As the steam expands, a fine mist of water droplets can be formed.

  The outlet 15 of the steam discharger 11 is connected to the inlet 5 of the compressor 2. As such, the vapor droplets are introduced into the compressor 2. The water droplets evaporate when the air is subsequently compressed by the mechanical compressor 2. This provides evaporative cooling to the air as it is compressed, which reduces the power required to compress the air.

  As a result, the system operates more efficiently compared to the gas turbine of FIG. 1 because less rotational actuation from the turbine is required to drive the compressor.

  The steam used in the steam exhaust 11 is provided by a boiler 16 that utilizes waste heat energy from the hot exhaust gas produced by the turbine 4. In particular, the boiler 16 is shown connected between the exhaust 17 of the turbine 4 and a vent 18 through which cooled exhaust gas exits the system 10.

  The use of heated exhaust gas to produce steam for the steam exhaust 11 adds additional to the system 10 because energy from the waste heat is used to support the compression load requirements of the system 10. Bring efficiency.

  However, the steam may be provided by a different boiler (not shown) that is not connected to the exhaust 17 or burned by a lower cost fuel compared to that incinerated by the gas turbine system 10. It should be understood that this may be provided in combination with one or more additional steam generators (also not shown). Such fuel can be a solid fuel that produces ash when incinerated, and therefore cannot be used to supply fuel to and drive the gas turbine 4. In particular, the maximum steam temperature using additional steam generators can be as high as 600 ° C.

  FIG. 3 shows a gas turbine system 20 similar to that of FIG. 2, except for a plurality of mechanical compression stages 21,22. In this case, the steam discharger 11 acts as an intermediate compressor 23 and is connected between the first mechanical compressor 2 and the second mechanical compressor 24. As such, the working fluid in the form of air is first introduced into the inlet 5 of the first compressor 2 and then the compressed working fluid is output to the inlet 25 of the steam discharger 11. This further compresses the working fluid and dissipates the water droplets through the air. The vapor and air mixture is then moved to the inlet 26 of the second compressor 24 for subsequent compression, which increases the heat of the mixture and evaporates the drops, thus cooling the air. . In fact, the intermediate discharger 11 itself provides both cooling capacity and compression stage. This has the advantage of allowing further compression by the second compressor 24 to produce higher pressure air. The alternate use of the rotary compressors 2, 24 and the steam discharger 11 can be further repeated, allowing a greater degree of air compression.

  The system 20 of FIG. 3 is suitable for applications where high pressure air is required. The steam discharger 11 allows a mist of cooled fine water droplets to be introduced into the second mechanical compression stage 22 to provide the benefits of evaporative cooling during compression of the second compressor 24. .

  Similar to the system 10 of FIG. 2, the steam exhaust 11 is connected to a boiler 16 that provides steam from the heat from the exhaust 17 of the turbine 4.

  Referring now to FIG. 4, the system 10 described with reference to FIG. 2, except that the steam exhaust 11 is connected downstream of the compressor 2 between the compressor 2 and the combustor 7. Another gas turbine system 30 is shown that is substantially similar.

  As such, the air is first compressed by the rotary compressor 2 before further compression by the steam discharger 11. Excess heat can also be introduced by the steam passing through the steam discharger 11. Similar to systems 10, 20 described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, steam can be provided by boiler 16 or employ one or more additional steam generators if required. Thus, the required steam load of the system 30 may be assisted.

  The location of the steam discharger 11 between the compressor 2 and the combustor 7 means that the turbine 4 can operate at a higher air pressure than that obtained by the mechanical compressor 2 alone.

  As can be understood from the systems 10, 20, and 30 described above, the steam discharger 11 is upstream of the mechanical compressor 2, downstream of the mechanical compressor 2, or intermediate mechanical compressor stage 21, 22 may be located. At each location, the steam evacuator 11 can provide the benefits of increased compression and operational efficiency. It is envisioned that one or more steam evacuators 11 can be used in only one or more of the above locations. Furthermore, each steam discharger 11 may have a plurality of steam jets, a plurality of suction chambers, and / or a plurality of steam dischargers, which may be mounted in series or in parallel as required.

  Referring now to FIG. 5, a gas turbine system 40 is disclosed that is substantially similar to the system 30 of FIG. However, in this case, the functionality of the steam exhauster 11 and the combustor 7 is integrated into a single exhaust combustor unit 41.

  The exhaust combustor unit 41 includes a suction chamber 42 in which a mixture of fuel, working fluid, and steam is entrained and accelerated, a furnace port 43 in which the mixture is ignited and accelerated, and a pressure increase in the process of pressure gain combustion. Branching diffuser 44. The burned mixture exits the branch diffuser 44 to drive the turbine 4.

  The exhaust combustor unit 41 operates on the same principle as a ramjet as long as the heat and expansion resulting from the combustion of the air / fuel mixture further accelerates the gas that rises to higher pressures for expansion across the turbine.

  As such, unit 41 allows more material throughput and higher operating pressure to be achieved with a combination of steam exhaust and pressure gain combustion compared to the use of mechanical compressor 2 alone. Enable.

  Referring now to FIG. 6, the overall compression load of the gas turbine 4 is implemented by the exhaust combustor 41 without the aid of a rotary compressor, of the system 40 described with reference to FIG. An adaptive gas turbine system 50 is shown. As such, the system 50 avoids the high capital cost of mechanical compressors. However, a large amount of steam may be required for this arrangement, and the steam from the boiler 16 connected to the exhaust 17 of the turbine 4 may need to be assisted by an additional steam generator.

  Referring now to FIG. 7, a gas turbine system 60 is shown having a plurality of combustion stages 61, 62 for driving the turbine 4 that are divided into a high pressure turbine 63 and a low pressure turbine 64. The system 60 includes a plurality of associated exhaust combustor units 41, 65, each of the units 41, 65 coming from a common boiler 16 that provides the required steam from the hot exhaust gas from the turbine 4. High pressure steam is delivered. The exhaust 66 of the first combustion stage 61 is connected upstream of the second combustion stage 62 so that the working fluid of the exhaust combustor unit 65 of the second combustion stage 62 is passed through the first combustion stage 61. The steam for each exhaust combustor unit 41, 65 is generated from the exhaust heat from the second combustor stage 62.

  The system allows for a second stage of combustion prior to partial expansion across the high pressure turbine 63 followed by further expansion across the final low pressure turbine 64. Thereby, the system 60 sequentially provides the working fluid to two separate thermodynamic cycles. The second combustion stage 62 of the system 60 generates more power because it is possible to obtain a simultaneous temperature and pressure increase by positioning the ignition at the furnace port of the unit 65.

  FIG. 8 shows an alternative system to that of FIG. 7 in which the rotary mechanical compressor 2 is used before the first exhaust combustor 41 in the first combustion stage 61 of the two-cycle turbine arrangement. 70 is shown.

  An advantage of the present invention is that the energy consumption of the mechanical compressor can be reduced and the mass flow of gas through the turbine is increased by the mixture of steam with air. This is due to the reduced fuel consumption by the gas turbine to produce the same amount of useful operation. In addition, the evacuator may be used as a substitute for a mechanical compressor in some situations, so that the vapor evacuator performs a simpler, lower cost operation for more expensive equipment. In order to provide a device, the cost of capital should also be reduced.

  More broadly, it can be seen that the invention claimed in this patent application is the installation of a steam exhaust to perform or assist air compression in a gas turbine. Steam can be provided in a boiler that is heated by the hot exhaust gas of the gas turbine, and this steam can be assisted by an external boiler. The ejector can be used in such a way that it is normally used in the industry as a compressor. It can be used to pre-compress air prior to the mechanical compressor and can be located during the compressor stage or after the compressor and before the combustor, or it can be The air compression load can be implemented by itself. The steam exhaust is accelerated by the heat released by the ignited fuel at high velocity air and steam mixture at the unit's furnace port, so the final pressure rises to a higher value when the speed is reduced in the diffuser May be used at the combustor location in the form of an exhaust combustor unit. The steam exhauster (s) reduces the power used by the mechanical compressor and increases the mass flow of gas through the turbine. The overall effect is to increase power output and reduce fuel consumption.

Many modifications and arrangements of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention.
The present invention can be realized as the following forms.
[Form 1]
A turbine, a combustor for adding fuel to the working fluid, igniting the fuel, generating combustion gas that expands to drive the turbine, and steam for introducing steam and compression into the working fluid A gas turbine system having an exhaust.
[Form 2]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 1, further comprising a mechanical compressor for compressing the working fluid.
[Form 3]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 2, wherein the steam exhaust is coupled to an inlet of the mechanical compressor.
[Form 4]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 2, wherein the steam exhaust is coupled to the combustor downstream of the mechanical compressor.
[Form 5]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 1, further comprising a plurality of mechanical compressor stages, wherein the steam exhaust is coupled to an inlet of a first mechanical compressor of the plurality of mechanical compressor stages.
[Form 6]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 1, further comprising a plurality of compressor stages, wherein the steam discharger is coupled between an outlet of the first mechanical compressor and an inlet of the second mechanical compressor. .
[Form 7]
A plurality of mechanical compressor stages and one or more connected at one or more locations before, during or after the mechanical compressor stage. The gas turbine system according to aspect 1, further comprising a steam exhaust.
[Form 8]
The gas turbine system of aspect 1, further comprising a plurality of combustion stages for driving the turbine.
[Form 9]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 8, wherein one or more steam evacuators are provided upstream of each combustion stage.
[Mode 10]
The exhaust of the first one of the plurality of combustion stages is connected upstream of the second one of the plurality of combustion stages, so that the exhaust from the first combustion stage is in the second combustion stage. The gas turbine system according to aspect 8 or 9, wherein the working fluid is formed for the purpose.
[Form 11]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 10, wherein the exhaust of the first combustion stage is coupled into an inlet of the steam exhaust associated with the second combustion stage.
[Form 12]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 11, wherein a mechanical compressor is provided upstream of the steam exhaust associated with the first combustion stage.
[Form 13]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 1, further comprising a boiler that extracts thermal energy from the exhaust gas of the turbine and generates steam used in the steam exhauster.
[Form 14]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 13, further comprising a plurality of steam exhausters that use steam from the boiler.
[Form 15]
15. A gas turbine system according to aspect 13 or 14, further comprising one or more steam generators coupled to the inlet of each steam exhaust for auxiliary steam if needed.
[Form 16]
The steam exhaust and combustor are configured to combust the fuel, the working fluid, and a mixture of steam in the process of pressure gain combustion, a suction chamber in which the mixture is entrained and accelerated, a furnace port in which the mixture is ignited. A gas turbine system according to aspect 1, incorporated into an exhaust combustor unit, having a branch diffuser nozzle in communication with the turbine, wherein the pressure of the mixture increases.
[Form 17]
The gas turbine system according to aspect 16, further comprising a plurality of combustion stages for driving the turbine, together with a plurality of associated exhaust combustor units.
[Form 18]
The exhaust of the first combustion stage is connected upstream of the second combustion stage, whereby the working fluid of the exhaust combustor unit of the second combustion stage is 18. A gas turbine system according to aspect 17, comprising the exhaust gas from a combustion stage, wherein the steam for each exhaust combustor unit is generated from exhaust heat from the second combustor stage.
[Form 19]
A method of operating a gas turbine using an upstream compression of a working fluid and a downstream combustion stage to ignite a compressed working fluid and fuel mixture to drive the turbine, wherein at least a portion of the compression load is Carried out by means of a steam discharger.
[Form 20]
The method of aspect 19, wherein the exhaust heat from the turbine is used to provide steam for the steam exhaust.
[Form 21]
21. A method according to aspect 19 or 20, wherein substantially all of the air compression load is performed by one or more steam evacuators.
[Form 22]
The method of embodiment 19 or 20, wherein the portion of the compression load is performed by one or more steam evacuators and the remaining portion is performed by one or more mechanical compressors.
[Form 23]
The method of aspect 20, wherein the resulting steam fills at least a portion of a steam load of the steam exhaust.
[Form 24]
The method of aspect 23, wherein the steam for the steam discharger is withdrawn from one or more additional steam generators for supplemental steam if needed.
[Form 25]
Combustion, steam injection, and ignition are performed in the exhaust combustor unit, and the steam, working fluid, and fuel are entrained and compressed and ignited in the furnace port of the exhaust combustor unit for pressure gain combustion. 20. The method of aspect 19, wherein the process expands to a higher pressure in the process and then enters the turbine and drives it.
[Form 26]
26. The method of embodiment 25, wherein the combustion occurs over a plurality of combustion stages, each used to drive the turbine, and an exhaust combustor unit is used with each combustion stage.
[Form 27]
The method of embodiment 26, wherein the exhaust from the first of the plurality of combustion stages provides the working fluid for the second of the plurality of combustion stages.
[Form 28]
The method of aspect 27, wherein one or more mechanical compressors are used to compress the working fluid upstream of each ejector compressor unit.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Gas turbine 2 ... Compressor 3 ... Shaft 4 ... Turbine 5 ... Inlet 6 ... Outlet 7 ... Combustor 8 ... Exhaust 10 ... Gas turbine system 11 ... Discharger 12 ... Suction chamber 13 ... Furnace port 14 ... Diffuser nozzle 15 ... exit 16 ... boiler 17 ... exhaust 18 ... vent hole 20 ... gas turbine system 21 ... compression stage 22 ... compression stage 23 ... intermediate compressor 24 ... second compressor 25 ... inlet 26 ... inlet 30 ... gas turbine system 40 ... Gas turbine system 41 ... injector 42 ... suction chamber 43 ... furnace port 44 ... diffuser nozzle 50 ... system 60 ... system 61 ... combustion phase 62 ... combustion phase 63 ... high pressure turbine 64 ... low pressure turbine 65 ... exhaust combustor Unit 66 ... exhaust 70 ... gas turbine system

Claims (7)

A turbine, a combustor for adding fuel to the working fluid, igniting the fuel, generating combustion gas that expands to drive the turbine, and steam for introducing steam and compression into the working fluid With a discharger,
The steam exhaust and combustor are configured to combust the fuel, the working fluid, and a mixture of steam in the process of pressure gain combustion, a suction chamber in which the mixture is entrained and accelerated, a furnace port in which the mixture is ignited pressure of the mixture increases, the turbine and communicating with the branch diffuser having a nozzle, and is incorporated into the ejector combustor unit, gas star bin system. A plurality of ejector combustor unit associated, further comprising a plurality of combustion stages for driving the turbine, the gas turbine system according to claim 1. The exhaust of the first combustion stage is connected upstream of the second combustion stage, whereby the working fluid of the exhaust combustor unit of the second combustion stage is It includes exhaust gas from the combustion stage, the steam, the generated from exhaust heat from the second burner stage, the gas turbine system of claim 2 for each ejector combustor unit. A method of operating a gas turbine using combustion to compress a working fluid and ignite a compressed working fluid and fuel mixture to drive the turbine, comprising:
Combustion, steam injection, and ignition are performed in the exhaust combustor unit, and the steam, working fluid, and fuel are entrained and compressed and ignited in the furnace port of the exhaust combustor unit for pressure gain combustion. inflated to a higher pressure in the process, then it enters the turbine, driving it, methods. The method of claim 4 , wherein the combustion occurs over a plurality of combustion stages, each used to drive the turbine, and an exhaust combustor unit is used with each combustion stage. The exhaust from the first one of the plurality of combustion stages, providing the working fluid for said plurality of combustion stages of the second ones, The method of claim 5. The method of claim 6 , wherein one or more mechanical compressors are used to compress the working fluid upstream of each ejector compressor unit.

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