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University-Industry-Government Collaborative Research in Gas Turbine at LSU
LSU Cogeneration Plant, GE Power Systems, Department of Energy and the Turbine Innovation & Energy Research (TIER) Center are involved in a unique partnership with the goal of developing the next generation gas turbines with improved efficiency and reduced losses. According to TIER Center Director Professor Sumanta Acharya, “Such a broad-based partnership blends fundamental research with the development of improved energy generation technology leading to reduced fuel utilization and energy costs”. This research is being conducted, in part, under the auspices of the Clean Power and Energy Research Consortium (CPERC) which integrates the energy programs at Louisiana State University (LSU), University of New Orleans (UNO), Nicholls State University, Southern University and Tulane University. The TIER Center represents LSU in the CPERC consortium and is spearheading research in several areas including: improving performance and reliability of gas turbines leading to reduced fuel utilization, use of synthetic gas (H2+CO) from coal or bio-mass and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) for energy generation, reducing emissions from power plants, and in the development of fuel cell technology for energy and power.
In cogeneration or combined heat and power (CHP) power is produced using a gas turbine generator, and the excess heat from the exhaust of the gas turbine is used to generate steam that can then be used to drive a steam turbine and/or for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) application. Since the excess heat is not wasted, cogeneration plants have relatively high efficiencies. In order to address campus power and HVAC needs, LSU decided in 2002 to install a cogeneration plant.
The plant which has recently been completed delivers nearly 18 MW of power to the campus, and consists of a General Electric LM2500 gas turbine unit (see picture on right), a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) to generate steam from the excess heat in the turbine exhaust, and a York steam chiller that produces chilled water for campus-HVAC. Unused steam is also utilized for campus space heating and providing hot-water supply.
To develop and improve existing gas turbine generators, flow, pressure and temperature data is needed in the actual engine. In order to obtain additional thermal data on the first stage vanes which are exposed to the highest temperatures, General Electric (GE) is providing TIER with a fully-instrumented hot cascade facility for making these measurements. This facility fabricated at a cost of over $0.5 million will be used for collecting film cooling data over the end walls and the turbine blades. This is a unique facility that includes both the combustor and the first stage vanes, and can therefore reproduce a more realistic engine environment compared to most other university laboratory facilities. Typical pressures and temperatures in the first stage vane are 5-6 atmospheres and 1000 0F. 
As part of the DOE project three-dimensional end-wall contouring concepts (see figure on right) are being examined to see if the thermal loading to the end wall and aerodynamic losses in the vane can be reduced. Preliminary results in a cold cascade indicate that end-wall contouring can lead to reductions in coolant usage and improvements in aerodynamic efficiency. Greater efficiencies translate to reduced fuel consumption and energy savings. These results are now being verified in the GE-hot cascade facility. Based on this work improved end wall designs will be developed and provided to the gas turbine industry for possible adoption in modern gas turbines.
Another aspect of the collaborative project is exploring leading edge contouring by simply adding a fillet to the blade leading edge. An example of such contouring is shown in the figure below on the left. Such contouring leads to significant reductions in the pressure loss as shown below in the pressure-loss coefficient (Cpt,loss) contours for the baseline blade and filleted blade profiles. These reductions in the pressure loss translate to improvements in efficiency and reductions in fuel usage per KW of power generated.
The design improvements developed as part of the collaborative will be transferred to the industry, and this technology transfer can contribute to the development of the next generation engines for power production. The net result of this research are: greater efficiency, reduced fuel consumptions and reductions in energy costs. This is particularly important to the state of Louisiana which is one of the largest consumers of energy in the country and reductions in energy costs can benefit the state in a measurable way.
The above project is an example of how CPERC is partnering with industry and government to help drive down energy costs.
For additional technical information contact:
Professor Sumanta Acharya
TIER Center Director
Phone:
225-578-5809
Email
For information on CPERC contact:
Mr. Charles Cusimano
LSU Board of Supervisors
LSU System Building
Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803
