Ansaldo Energia has efficiently demonstrated its fixed strain sequential combustion (CPSC) know-how—designed for a novel, hydrogen-optimized combustor based mostly on its flagship GT36 H-class fuel turbine mannequin—can flexibly function with as much as 100% hydrogen gasoline.
The breakthrough introduced on Feb. 13 marks a significant triumph for the FLEX4H2 (or Flexibility for Hydrogen) program, a four-year European venture searching for to design, develop, and validate an environment friendly and extremely versatile 100% hydrogen-capable fuel turbine combustion system for giant heavy-duty fuel generators.
The Italian energy era options agency mentioned the milestone was achieved after profitable testing of GT36 combustor prototypes at a devoted take a look at facility in Cologne, Germany. “The exams highlighted the combustor’s capability to seamlessly swap between pure fuel and hydrogen, demonstrating its exceptional gasoline and operational flexibility,” the corporate mentioned.
POWER has requested extra particulars in regards to the testing and can replace this text as they’re acquired.
Based mostly on Ansaldo’s Fixed Strain Sequential Combustion Know-how
A core FLEX4H2 effort has been to develop the novel combustor’s design based mostly on Ansaldo’s CPSC know-how, a second-generation combustion system developed for Ansaldo’s flagship GT36 H-class fuel turbine (760-MW in mixed cycle) combustors.
As POWER has reported, sequential combustion developed from burner know-how utilized to Ansaldo’s GT26 F-class and GT24 fuel generators. Within the GT26, sequential combustion is carried out with two combustion levels separated by a high-pressure turbine: the primary stage (EV) operates at pressures better than 30 bar, whereas the second stage (SEV) operates at roughly half of the EV strain. Within the GT36, no high-pressure (HP) turbine is carried out, however the sequential combustion idea is maintained.
“Because of the high-burning velocity and high-flame temperature, customary fuel turbine combustion know-how struggles at excessive hydrogen content material with excessive [nitrogen oxide (NOx)] emissions and the danger of flashback,” Ansaldo has defined. “This often ends in the need of energy derating to adjust to required requirements. Based mostly on two successive combustion levels, the GT36 recovers the derating of the primary stage by shifting the gasoline into the second stage. This enables for full operational flexibility, low NOx, and no derating.”
A Triumph for FLEX4H2
In response to Vasileios Stefanis, Ansaldo head of New Items & Service Applied sciences, FLEX4H2 selected sequential combustion as its core know-how for the event of the improved combustion system, given its capabilities to maximise cycle effectivity whereas conserving emissions at very low ranges.
“Trendy fuel generators should goal ultra-high firing temperatures, sturdy flame stabilization and the widest flexibility each in respect to engine operation and gasoline kind,” he just lately mentioned in an replace printed by ETN World, a commerce group comprising all the fuel turbine know-how worth chain. “Sequential combustion has demonstrated its benefits in the direction of such extraordinarily bold targets.”
Because it stands, the GT36 can already combust 70% hydrogen in pure fuel, Ansaldo has informed POWER. Nonetheless, the FLEX4H2 venture has set out a number of difficult objectives for its growth and validation of the novel combustor. These embody making certain the 100% succesful combustion system will likely be able to working on the most difficult hydrogen combustion situations, similar to H-class working temperatures and pressures, that are required for the very best cycle effectivity. As crucially, the novel system should additionally meet stringent European emissions targets for NOx and carbon dioxide with out using diluents.
FLEX4H2 will search to exhibit the system in a rig at “absolutely reproducing engine working situations,” together with for mass-flows, temperatures, and pressures, Stefanis mentioned. As well as, the improved combustor system “must be absolutely retrofittable to current fuel generators, thereby offering vital alternatives for refurbishing current property.” In the end, the venture seeks to realize a know-how readiness stage (TRL) of 6, which ought to pave “the trail in the direction of industrial deployment shortly after venture completion,” he mentioned.
FLEX4H2, which is co-funded by the Clear Hydrogen Partnership—a European public-private coalition that helps hydrogen analysis and innovation, the European Union (EU), and Switzerland, kicked off in January 2023 and can run till December 2026. FLEX4H2 companions embody entities from six European nations.
Together with Ansaldo, these embody Arttic Innovation (Germany), Centre Européenne de Recherche et de Formation Avancée en Calcul Scientifique – CERFACS (France), Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt – DLR (Germany), Edison (Italy), ETN World (Belgium), Sintef Energi (Norway), Ansaldo Energia Switzerland (Switzerland), Zürcher Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften – ZHAW (Switzerland).
Ansaldo, because the venture’s coordinator, will combine all actions. “The important thing to the success of this venture lies within the very well-balanced multidisciplinary composition of the consortium, bringing collectively one of many world’s main gamers within the sector of energy era crops with famend main analysis companions, a fuel turbine business stakeholder consultant affiliation in addition to a significant energy plant operator,” Stefanis famous.
Ansaldo is main two work packages, together with the event of the combustion system design. “Moreover, Ansaldo Energia will develop the design for manufacturing and coordinate the manufacturing of combustor prototype {hardware}, in addition to their exams and validation,” Stefanis mentioned.
—Sonal Patel is a POWER senior affiliate editor (@sonalcpatel, @POWERmagazine).
Editor’s Notice: This story is being up to date as extra particulars are acquired. We encourage you to revisit this text or verify our web site for the most recent updates.
