Advanced Gas Turbine

Technology:
4

D. Eckardt ABB/BCC Historical Firsts

P. Rufli
ALSTOM Power Ltd.,
Brown Boveri Strasse 7,
CH-5401 Baden, Switzerland
During more than 100 years engineers of the Swiss development center of A.-G. BBC
Brown, Boveri & Cie., from 1988 onwards ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd., in 1999 ABB
ALSTOM POWER Ltd., and now ALSTOM Power Ltd. in Baden, Switzerland, have sig-
nificantly contributed to the achievement of today’s advanced gas turbine concept. Nu-
merous ‘‘firsts’’ are highlighted in this paper—ranging from the first realization of the
industrial, heavy-duty gas turbine in the 1930s to today’s high-technology gas turbine
(GT) products, combining excellent performance, extraordinary low environmental impact
with commercial attractiveness for global power generation. Interesting connections
could be unveiled for the early parallel development of industrial and areo gas turbines.
关DOI: 10.1115/1.1470484兴

Introduction fered major disappointments in the 1920s and 1930s; economic

In times of globalization, ‘‘new economy,’’ and virtual stock
market bonanzas it is worthwhile to reflect on the values of engi-
neering ingenuity, enduring leadership, and technical substance.
The historic contributions of ABB/BBC to the successful devel-
opment of the present industrial gas turbines appear to be a grand
example in this context.
Gas Turbine—Back to the Roots
BBC and ABB are part of the history of technology that gave
rise to the greatest inventions of the past century. Gas turbines,
more generally ‘‘turbomachinery,’’ emerged in the wake of early
electrification. Interestingly, the names of those pioneering com-
panies are still today amongst the leading players:
In 1867 the German Werner von Siemens presented the first
‘‘dynamo’’ after having discovered the principle of electrodynam-
ics. In 1879 Thomas A. Edison invented the light bulb, thus laying
ground to create the powerful General Electric 共1895兲. In 1891
Charles E. L. Brown succeeded in transmitting 220 kW of power
the 175 km from Lauffen/Neckar to Frankfurt/Main, Germany.
From this moment on, driving power no longer had to be gener-
ated and consumed at the same site. An electrical cable could
now link the source of energy with the place at which it was
utilized; centuries of limiting mechanical transmission equipment
were over.
difficulties have been as much a part of BBC’s history as grand
triumphs. From 1903 to 1914 AEG 共Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-
Gesellschaft兲 held a large part of the BBC shares. After WWI the
BBC Group had no choice but to join forces for a short time with
the powerful British Vickers Ltd. Paying out a dividend was out of
the question from 1921 to 1924 and from 1931 to 1938 but in
parallel, the technical innovative progress in the newly founded
company appears having continued nearly not affected.
The internationalization of BBC was essentially shaped by one
outstanding product: In 1900 the company made the courageous
and momentous decision to include steam turbines in its range of
products 共Fig. 2兲. Watt’s steam piston engines had triggered the
first industrial revolution in the early 19th century; a hundred
years later steam turbines, coupled with generators, were to play a
role of similar importance. Rotating turboengines subject to con-
stant impingement by jets of steam replaced the venerable piston
steam engine. Consequently, the production of turbine generators
soon became a major line of business at BBC. The fast-rotating
alternating current generator, a stroke of genius on the part of
Charles Brown, led to the breakthrough of turbine generators at
the turn of the century and to an influx of orders for BBC from
around the world. By 1902, BBC had delivered 17 steam turbines,
one of them with an output of 3 MW. By 1905 the product was
accounting already for half of total company sales, 共Fig. 3兲.

BBC GT Development—The First 50 Years:

Finding the Path
On Oct. 2, 1891 the following entry was made in the commer-
cial register of the Swiss Canton of Aargau: ‘‘Charles E. L. Brown
of Brighton, England and Walter Boveri of Bamberg, Germany,
both resident in Baden, have established a limited partnership un-
der the company name Brown, Boveri & Cie., Baden. The nature
of the business: fabrication of electrical machines.’’ The two
founders complemented each other perfectly: Brown was the tech-
nical wizard and Boveri, the dynamic businessman 共Fig. 1兲.
In retrospect the early years must not be viewed solely as a time
of technical innovation and success; they were also rife with in-
tense labor and social disputes. Shareholders, for their part, suf-

Contributed by the International Gas Turbine Institute 共IGTI兲 of THE AMERICAN

SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS for publication in the ASME JOURNAL OF
ENGINEERING FOR GAS TURBINES AND POWER. Paper presented at the Interna-
tional Gas Turbine and Aeroengine Congress and Exhibition, New Orleans, LA, June
4 –7, 2001; Paper 01-GT-395. Manuscript received by IGTI, December, 2000, final Fig. 1 Charles E. L. Brown „1863–1924…, J. Walter D. Boveri
revision, March, 2001. Associate Editor: R. Natole. „1865–1924… as of 1891, the year of BBC’s foundation

542 Õ Vol. 124, JULY 2002 Copyright © 2002 by ASME Transactions of the ASME

Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
 Fig. 2 Steam turbine assembly, Baden ca. 1902
In the context of the evolutionary move from piston to rotating
engines, first exercised in the area of steam engines, the design
target for the coming gas turbine became clearer: 共partial兲 replace-
ment of the 共Otto or Diesel兲 combustion piston engines and con-
sequently, no linearly accelerating/decelerating masses/pistons,
cranks, and connecting rods, on the other hand, in view of the
steam plant’s complexity: no boiler, no condenser with circulating
water, no water supply, no feed water pump, no water treatment,
no air extractor, no condensate pump, no cooling tower, no other
auxiliary equipment. However, already the first gas turbine 共GT兲
patent of J. Barber in Great Britain and thereafter the development
work of F. Stolze in Berlin at the end of the 19th century indicated
a decisive difficulty on this path: A gas turbine with an useful, net
power output is only possible if the total expansion work of the
turbine共s兲 exceeds the compression work.
The first stand-alone, net power generating GT power plant was
built by the French R. Armengoud and C. Lemâle at Paris, 1905–
1906. While Stolze was in search of the all-axial-engine from the
beginning, the French looked rather for a proven radial compres-
sor design—from Brown Boveri 共Fig. 4兲. This first experimental
gas turbine consisting of a 25-stage radial compressor 共System
Rateau兲 with two intercoolers from BBC and a single-stage tur-
bine 共following as well Rateau’s design兲 achieved self-sustained
operation by adding some steam, generated in combustor cooling,
and feeding it back to the turbine in a kind of early ‘‘steam injec-
tion’’ 共STIG兲. The actual GT efficiency should have been between
2–3% only, or 6 –10 kW of equivalent power produced.
The reason why the first turbine did not prove to become a
success can be seen in Fig. 5 which shows GT thermal efficiency
as a function of GT specific work—both for an early design stan-
Fig. 3 BBC first ‘‘continental’’ steam turbine, Baden 1902
Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
Fig. 4 BBC multistage centrifugal compressor for the
Armengaud-Lemâle gas turbine, 1906
dard of 1920–1930 and for present state of the art. With a turbine
inlet temperature 共TIT兲 of about 830 K at the nozzles, obtained by
injecting water into the combustion chamber, the turbine was
just able to supply the mere power for compressing the air. The
cause of this disappointing result must be sought in the great
volume of compressed air required to reduce the combustion tem-
perature of 2.200–2.270 K to the value admissable for the gas
turbine blading.
The difficulty in designing and building an aerodynamic satis-
fying, i.e., ‘‘axial’’ compressor for large volume flows was
insurmountable during the first decades of the 20th century. Con-
sequently, an intermittently operating, discontinuous working pro-
cess was selected, where the required pressure rise was achieved
in a, for a short time, hermetically sealed combustion chamber by
self-ignition of an explosive atmosphere. First operational gas tur-
bines according to this ‘‘constant-volume’’ Holzwarth principle
were introduced in the mid 1920s with steadily increasing output
power up to 5 MW. In this turbine, the fuel 共oil, blast furnace gas,
or pulverized coal兲 was fed to this closed combustion chamber
filled with compressed air, and the exploding mixture caused the
pressure to rise approximately 4.5 times its original value. The
combustion chamber, nozzles, impeller, and blades were water
cooled. The power consumption of the compressor was only a
fraction of that required for the combustion turbine and, conse-
quently, a poor efficiency of the compressor no longer had such a
disastrous effect; only a small amount of excess air was necessary
for combustion 共since water was used for cooling兲 and the air
Fig. 5 Gas turbine thermodynamics „approximate perfor-
mance model…
JULY 2002, Vol. 124 Õ 543
 Fig. 6 BBC axial turbomachines for the Velox boiler, PRÄ2.4, 1931
needed only to be compressed to approximately one-quarter of the
final explosion pressure. These straightforward advantages were,
however, accompanied by considerable complication and increase
in cost of the plant. BBC got involved in building several of those
Holzwarth turbines, no. 2 as early as 1909–1913 and still, in a
second approach in 1928. Brown Boveri proposed for it an im-
proved two-chamber two-stroke cycle. This unit was installed in a
Thyssen steel plant at Hamborn, Germany, where it has been sev-
eral years in operation with blast furnace gas.
The explosion turbine might look as a dead-end development,
but we are really only 1 21 development steps away from the
‘‘constant-pressure’’ gas turbine—the concept of today! The high
heat transfer rates in the gas ducts of the Holzwarth turbine led to
the concept of the BBC Velox boiler—with combustion under
pressure, supercharged by gas turbine-driven air and gas compres-
sors. This application of the gas turbine rendered essential the
creation of a compressor set having a high efficiency. The problem
was solved as early as 1932 by the development of a four or
five-stage reaction turbine and a 10 to 12-stage axial compressor
共Fig. 6兲, the design taking into account the results of the then
latest research in the field of aerodynamics.
Wanted—The Efficient Axial Compressor
First ideas for an advanced compressor design were obviously
introduced to BBC via its French daughter Cie. Electro-
Mécanique 共CEM兲, Paris. Between 1925–1931 CEM built under
the supervision of G. Darrieus a series of windmills from 8 –10 m
wheel diameter, designed throughout according to modern aero-
dynamic principles. The practical transfer of single airfoil theory
towards the design of a multistage axial compressor was carried
Fig. 7 Compressor cascade deductionÕtransformation and test of Göttingen
compressor profiles, 1931
544 Õ Vol. 124, JULY 2002
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
out at BBC by C. Seippel. The Göttingen airfoil no. 265 was
selected as most appropriate, based on lift/drag polar plots pub-
lished by L. Prandtl, transformed ‘‘conformal mapping’’ into a
cascade flow and finally experimentally verified. The tests then
allowed the reconstruction of the polar plot of the actual cascaded
airfoil 共Fig. 7兲 as a reliable design base 共关1兴兲.
In the light of the extensive von Ohain/Whittle discussion of
recent years on the first turbine-powered flight in 1939, it appears
to be beneficial still to investigate the role and contributions of
potential 3rd players in this context/contest, e.g., it might be in-
teresting to trace
• the dissemination of those key ideas, outlined above, apply-
ing airfoil theory for advanced compressor design, and
• the whereabouts of some advanced, in parts flightworthy
compressor/turbomachinery hardware, delivered by BBC
from Switzerland towards England, still during 1939–1940
共Fig. 8兲.
The whole excursion refers to the core assumption that ad-
vanced axial compressor designs finally became the key to the
successful realization of the aero gas turbine—in and after 1940.
All this happened in great secrecy before and during WWII, re-
flecting the fact that jet-powered flight was considered as, and
actually played, a salient role in the war machinery of both sides.
As a further footnote it is worthwhile to point out that both Eng-
land and Germany went through early jet engine configurations
with radial compressor designs; however, Germany managed to
correct this detour, i.e., the necessary transition to an all-axial
engine design much faster.
In strange contrast to this later development stands the fact that
Transactions of the ASME

Fig. 8 First UK gas turbine „1.6 MW… at RAE, delivered by BBC
in 1939
BBC openly sold advanced axial compressor hardware unre-
stricted to everyone, as early as 1931. Given the later importance,
this ten-year-long dissemination period of axial compressor tech-
nology is rather astounding, not to mention today’s short-term
technology cycles.
The history of this specific development/flow of ideas and
know-how has still to be written; within this context only a few
notes shall be sketched. There appears to have occurred a steadily
rising number of contacts on this subject within the triangular
setup—Switzerland, Germany, and England—from 1925 onwards
with some links to other European countries. Moreover, a fasci-
nating row of 共later兲 highly renowned names of scientists and
industrial leaders were involved:
Switzerland 共and Swiss abroad, in italics兲
1921 J. Ackeret, later on famous scientist of high-speed aerody-
namics at ETH Zurich, hosted at L. Prandtl’s AVA Aerodyna-
mische Versuchs-Anstalt Göttingen; a planned one-year stay ac-
tually lasted seven years.
1925 CEM (G. Darrieus)—a Paris-based subsidiary company of
BBC—successfully produces a series of windmills, based on air-
foil theory design.
1926 BBC, 4 st. axial test compressor, first with untwisted
blades, later swirl adapted with r⫽0.5 and 1.0 reaction.
1932 BBC, sold a number of 11 st. axial compressors, PR⫽3.4,
for the Mondeville project and high-speed windtunnels 共acc. to J.
Ackeret’s design兲 at ETH-Zurich and Rome, r⫽0.55.
1934 C. Keller, assistant to J. Ackeret at ETH Zurich, designed
one of the windtunnel blowers 共2nd blower for the high-speed
tunnel came from BBC兲, resulting in Keller’s widely spread Ph.D.
thesis ‘‘Axial Blowers in View of Airfoil Theory,’’ detailing some
axial compressor design know-how 共关2兴兲.
1939 A. Meyer, BBC Technical Director, presenting a compre-
hensive paper on GT design achievements (but also, e.g., on the
Fig. 9 BBC cross section of first gas turbine for public power generation,
1939
Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
GT usage for compact and lightweight ship/destroyer propulsion)
at the Institute of Mechanical Engineering, London.
1939 First commercial IGT from BBC operational at Neuchâtel
共preserved still as an ASME Technical Landmark兲.
1939 BBC delivers 1st Industrial GT to RAE, 1.6 MW, 20 st.
axial compressor and during 1940 axial aircraft superchargers 190
hp, PR⫽2.5—in fulfilling a RR purchase order
1941 High ranking Swiss delegation (J. Ackeret, C. Seippel, and
C. Keller) retributing several foregoing visits from Germany by a
tour to AVA Göttingen
Germany 共and Germans abroad兲
1922 W. Bauersfeld suggests the use of airfoil theory for fluid
machinery, VDI-Z
1928 A. Franz (later, Jumo 004 designer) at ETH-Zurich
1935共?兲 AVA Göttingen, 4 st. axial turbocharger, 7 st. compressor
development, Encke et al. design, PR⫽3.8, ␩ ad ⫽83% 共in produc-
tion PR⫽3.1, ␩ ad ⫽78%兲, reaction r⫽1.0
1935 H. P. von Ohain, secret turboengine patent no. 317/38
1937 H. P. von Ohain, test engine HeS3B running
1939 1st jet-powered flight He 178 aircraft with HeS3B, SUN
Aug. 27, 1939, Rostock-Marienehe, test pilot E. Warsitz.
1939 R. Friedrich, Junkers Magdeburg, 14 st. axial compressor
for RTO engine 共Rückstoss-Turbine ohne Leistungsabgabe an
Propeller兲, r⫽0.5, for HeS30 engine, based on Göttingen airfoil
design.
1940 Jumo 004 with Gö derived compressor, 1st test run.
1941 BBC Mhm. design support for BMW 003C by providing a
superior 7st. compressor, PR⫽4, ␩ ad ⫽84%, r⫽0.5.
1942 Me 262 fighter aircraft with 2⫻Jumo 004, 1st flight
18.07.42, test pilot F. Wendel.
England 共and English abroad兲
1926 A. A. Griffith ‘‘An Aerodynamic Theory of Turbine De-
sign,’’ GT as aircraft powerplant.
1929 Axial compressor test wheel, 10 cm diam., PR⫽1.16,
␩⫽88.3%, according to A. A. Griffith.
1929 H. Glauert stay with Th. von Karman, TH Aachen, in ad-
dition: AVA Göttingen publication.
1930 F. Whittle, 1st patent for turbo aero engine.
1930 Tizard, Gibson & Glauert committee denies GT superiority
relative to piston engine, in 1931 RAE finishes GT development
for six years consequently.
1937 F. Whittle, radial compressor engine, test run 12.04.37.
1938 RAE delegation at BBC—result ‘‘Exclusivity on BBC
(axial) compressor know-how could not be granted.’’
1941 Gloster E28/39 with Whittle engine, 1st flight.
1941 Testing of BBC delivered GT hardware at RAE, guaran-
tees confirmed, but obviously no further consequences.
Soon, in the early 1930s, the efficiency of the turbocomponents
applied at BBC for the Velox boilers made not only the turbine to
drive the compressor, but in addition to generate excess power
through the inverse operation of the electric starter motor. A fur-
ther step in the direction of generating utility power 共1 MW兲 was
achieved as early as 1936 by an all-axial process gas turbine/
blower group with PR⫽4 for a U.S. refinery, Houdry cracking
process 共关3兴兲. Based on these practical experiences, BBC finally
JULY 2002, Vol. 124 Õ 545
 Fig. 10 BBC first utility GT powerplant, 4 MW, Neuchâtel, Swit-
zerland, 1939
succeeded in July 1939 in putting the world’s first utility gas tur-
bine into operation at the Swiss town of Neuchâtel. The overall
configuration was as simple as possible: One 23-stage axial com-
pressor, one single-can combustor, one 7-stage axial turbine, and a
synchronously operated generator on the same shaft 共Figs. 9 and
10 of 关3兴兲.
This ‘‘constant-pressure’’ engine was able to generate 4 MW as
peak load with a thermal total efficiency of 17%. Compressor
pressure ratio was PR⫽4.4, adiabatic compressor efficiency ap-
proximately 85%, turbine inlet temperature TIT⫽820 K, turbine
efficiency 88%, mass flow 62.2 kg/s. In the same year, 1939, the
local competitor Escher Wyss from Zurich, later owned by ABB,
put a 2 MW closed-cycle gas turbine into operation. The engine
cycle was highly pressurized, striving for ‘‘carnotization,’’ i.e.,
axial compressor with two intercoolers and one recuperator for
indirect intake air heating, thus achieving at that time a record-
high total plant efficiency of 31%.
During WWII advanced aero engine concepts belonged also to
BBC’s design background. C. Seippel already received in 1940 a
Swiss patent on a turboprop engine configuration. A more detailed
construction of such a geared turboprop gas turbine is illustrated
in Fig. 11; BBC project studies of that period had outlined clearly
the inherent advantages of mixed propeller/jet propulsion 共关4兴兲.
BBCÕABB GT Development—The 2nd 50 Years:
Towards the Optimum
The GT evolution now progressed at a fast rate, already in 1945
a two-shaft gas turbine set with 10 MW output was taken into
service. Another milestone in the development of the BBC gas
turbine was the famous Beznau powerplant of the Nordost-
Schweizerische Kraftwerke 共Fig. 12兲. This plant was erected be-
tween 1945–1947. It contains gas turbines with three compres-
sors, two turbines, and recuperators. Beznau station was the
largest GT plant in the world at the time of its commissioning and
Fig. 11 BBC turboprop aeroengine design, 1944
546 Õ Vol. 124, JULY 2002
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
Fig. 12 BBC dual shaft gas turbine, 13¿27, Beznau, Switzer-
land, 1948 „layout of the 27 MW turboset…
had a thermal output of 40 MW, two sets rated at 13 and 27 MW,
both running on heavy oil and a total efficiency of more than 30%
共关5兴兲.
The following three decades were characterized by a fierce,
performance-driven competition between steam and gas turbine.
The simple cycle gas turbine appeared to be restricted to peak
load and/or special, low fuel price operations only. The 1960s
brought an essential simplification of the industrial gas turbine
共IGT兲 towards high power density, accompanied by a single shaft/
two bearings configuration, with the generator at the cold end.
Multishaft units with intercooling and recuperation were no longer
competitive. In the 1970s turbine inlet temperature was increased,
first by introducing superalloys and then followed by especially
designed alloys for the corrosive IGT fuels, e.g., IN 738, later by
the introduction of air cooling in the first turbine stages, GT11B,
1970. Even with these increased temperatures the simple cycle gas
turbine did not reach the efficiency of the steam turbines, while at
the same time the oil crisis of 1975 re-emphasized the importance
of low fuel consumption. A resolution of this dilemma was the
introduction of the combined-cycle power plant 共CCPP兲. When
two thermal cycles are combined in a single powerplant the effi-
ciency that can be achieved is higher than of one cycle alone. A
combination of cycles with different working media allows to
complement inherent advantages. The combination most widely
accepted for commercial power generation is that of a gas ‘‘top-
ping cycle’’ with a water/ steam ‘‘bottoming cycle’’ 共关6兴兲.
The initial breakthrough of these cycles onto the commercial
power generation market was possible due to the gas turbine—the
key component of the combined-cycle plant—generating approxi-
mately 2/3 of the total output. Only since the late 1970s have
Transactions of the ASME

Fig. 13 Air storage GT powerplant, 300 MW, Huntorf, Germany,
1977
turbine inlet temperatures, and hence exhaust-gas temperatures,
been sufficiently high for high-efficiency combined cycles. The
result was a powerplant with high performance, low installation
cost, and fast delivery time.
The development path to the present advanced gas turbine fam-
ily GT24/GT26 of ALSTOM Power was already prepared rela-
tively early. BBC had pioneered the reheat cycle already back in
1948 in two-shaft arrangements and had subsequently adapted this
concept to the Huntorf plant in Germany. This unique air-storage
GT powerplant, using 300.000 m3 of underground caverns, basi-
cally comprised a 300-MW compressed air plant with two silo
combustors and two turbine expanders arranged on one shaft 共Fig.
13兲.
IGT technology received a decisive boost in the early 1990s,
not the least by a transfer of then available know-how and engi-
neering capacity from the military aero engine side. All leading
IGT manufacturers entertained at that time cross collaboration
links to advanced aero technology, resulting, e.g., in a consider-
able increase in component performance and higher turbine inlet
temperatures. Single crystal and directionally solidified materials
were introduced for the first time for IGT turbine blading, chal-
lenging a highly specialized supply industry with respect to manu-
Fig. 14 Advanced GT 24ÕGT 26, 183Õ265 MW, unique design features
Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
Fig. 15 GT 24ÕGT 26 rotor turbocomponents
facturing problems 共dimensions, weight and complexity兲. In close
cooperation between OEMs and relatively few selected high-
technology suppliers considerable progress has been achieved
mainly in the areas of precision cast parts and high temperature
coatings. Computational fluid dynamics and improved under-
standing in high-temperature turbine cooling technology in com-
bination with extreme lifing demands, unheard of in the aero re-
gime, opened new technological frontiers. These were
successfully addressed in concurrent engineering/ supply chain
management 共SCM兲 efforts.
With the introduction of the advanced GT24 共60 Hz兲 and GT26
共50 Hz兲 gas turbines between 1995–1997, ABB has provided a
technology level to the power market which meets the require-
ments for extraordinary low emissions, high total efficiency, and
unique operational flexibility in this very competitive market 共Fig.
14兲. The GT cycle parameters 共Fig. 5兲 illustrate the superior de-
sign principles of this GT family: PR⫽30, TIT⬎1.600 K, SC
efficiency⬎37.5%.
Advanced turbocomponent development for the GT24/GT26
family was started at ABB in the early 1990s in close cooperation
with MTU Motoren- und Turbinen Union, Munich and some re-
sources from various research organizations 共关7兴兲. The subsonic
compressor consists of 22 stages with controlled diffusion air-
foils 共CDA兲. The GT24/GT26 compressors, basically identical on
a 1.2 scale basis, are operating at moderate relative inlet Mach no.
⬍1.1 for rotor 1 tip. The CDA blading results in an improved
behavior of the compressor also at part load, while providing an
excellent surge margin 共Fig. 15兲. Part load efficiency is further
improved by three rows of variable guide vanes.
JULY 2002, Vol. 124 Õ 547
 Fig. 16 BBCÕABB high-performance compressor development process
Beginning with the early design exercises of the 1930s the sci-
entificly based, aerodynamic approach for improving the compres-
sor performance has a long tradition at BBC/ Escher Wyss, both
inherited by ABB. Figure 16 illustrates the progress achieved in
the average stage pressure ratio during the past 40 years of axial
compressor development. It becomes obvious that product inno-
vation had been prepared in time by a number of very advanced
test rigs. Especially the transonic compressor development of
1980 with relative tip Mach No. ⬎1.3 represents a salient land-
mark, resulting in the unique products of GT10 and GT 8 com-
pressors 共关8,9兴兲. This tradition of advanced transonic design is still
preserved with the new 12 stage GT 8C2 compressor with PR
⫽17.6. At the same time the PR⫽30 compressor for GT24/GT26
represents another unique and unprecedented ‘‘first’’ for a single-
shaft configuration, though its stage pressure ratio was kept in a
rather conservative regime. The high total pressure ratio was se-
lected as optimum for sequential combustion.
The GT24 and GT26 utilize the unique sequential combustion
system, which is based on the concept of two annular combustors
in the gas turbine. The expansion process in a sequential combus-
tion GT allows for an exhaust temperature of up to 640°C, which
can be maintained over a wide part load range, thus representing
optimum conditions for the subsequent steam section of the com-
bined cycle. With the arrival of the annular combustor already in
the GT13E2, ABB had introduced an important component for the
sequential combustion technology employed in the GT24 and
GT26 gas turbines. Sequential combustion with a still unsurpassed
high-pressure ratio PR⫽30 results in a gas turbine with a higher
Fig. 17 Dual fuel low NOx EV burner
548 Õ Vol. 124, JULY 2002
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
power density than conventional designs with the same overall
power output. This design has the following benefits:
• high specific power/ a low air mass flow rate,
• low blade tip speed with lower thermomechanical stresses,
• smaller size for the steam/ water cycle plant, and
• lower turbine inlet temperature.
The GT24/ GT26 series of industrial gas turbines use a novel
combustion technology based on two premixed combustion stages
as part of a GT cycle with reheat at intermediate pressure level.
The whole system is a continuously improved, stand-alone devel-
opment originating from the early 1980s. The first high-pressure
combustor uses dry-low NOx Environmental 共EV兲 swirl burners
共Fig. 17兲, while a fuel-air mixing technique on the basis of ‘‘delta
wing’’ vortex generators has been successfully implemented in the
second 共SEV兲 lean-premix reheat combustor. The EV burner pro-
vides the benefit of low-NOx combustion without water/steam in-
jection on natural gas, but alternatively can also be operated on
liquid fuel. Extraordinary low NOx emissions have been achieved
in practical operation, both with natural gas and with oil.
As part of the very successful market introduction of the GT24/
GT26 family, ABB decided to build a GT26 Gas Turbine Test
Center at Birr, Switzerland. It is equipped with a full-scale 300
MVA generator and is capable of firing both natural gas and diesel
oil. This location is within 16 km from the ALSTOM Power en-
gineering offices at Baden, so that direct feedback is possible
during test runs as well as evaluation of actual engine operation at
Transactions of the ASME

Fig. 18 GT 26 rotor assembly at the ALSTOM Power GT Test
Center, Birr, Switzerland
various conditions. Figure 18 illustrates the test turbine assembly
process, highlighting the most paramount features of this unique
GT concept:
• simple single shaft arrangement,
• rugged and reliable welded rotor design,
• an advanced compressor configuration, combining perfor-
mance with operational flexibility, and
• sequential combustion, reflected by high and low-pressure
turbines—a decisive asset in view of increasingly important
environmental aspects.
Summary: ABBÕBBC Gas Turbine ‘‘Firsts’’
1905 BBC multistage centrifugal compressor 共PR⫽4.5兲 for the
Armangaud/Lemâle first experimental gas turbine
1910 First operative BBC gas turbine according to the
Holzwarth principle
1923 First two-stage centrifugal compressor turbocharging a
four-stroke diesel engine, PR⫽2.3
1931 All-axial compressor 共ten stages, PR⫽2.4兲 and turbine set
for commercial velox boiler with net power output 共GT principle兲
1933 Patent for BBC’s unique, welded gas turbine/steam tur-
bine, and geno rotors
1935 Patent for closed-cycle gas turbine, granted to Ackeret &
Keller
1936 5 MW air/electricity gas turbine installed in a chemical
plant 共Houdry Oil Refinery Process兲, Philadelphia, USA
1939 4 MW first electricity generating, utility gas turbine, Neu-
châtel, Switzerland
1940 First gas turbine powered locomotive 共2.200 hp兲
1945 10 MW electricity generating, two-shaft gas turbine with
intercoolers and intermediate combustors, Bukarest, Roumania
1948 40 MW 共13⫹27 MW兲—world’s biggest all gas turbine
Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines and Power
Downloaded 23 Apr 2012 to 143.107.98.181. Redistribution subject to ASME license or copyright; see http://www.asme.org/terms/Terms_Use.cfm
power station at Beznau, Switzerland
1955 6 MW mobile gas turbine powerplant
1957 4⫻27 MW world’s biggest all gas turbine power station,
Port Mann, BC, Canada
1959 Introduction of first compact gas turbines in single and
split shaft versions
1965 Gas turbine powered sea water distillation plant
1977 300 MW air-storage gas turbine powerplant with sequen-
tial combustion, Huntorf, Germany
1980 12 st. transonic compressor, Mawia⫽1.3, PR⫽16
1982 1200 MW 共20⫻GT11兲 world’s largest crude oil GT pow-
erplant, Ryadh, Saudi Arabia
1984 First commercial gas turbine operation with premix com-
bustion first commercial application of a transonic compressor for
GT 8, Shell, The Netherlands
1985 GT13E world’s biggest industrial GT⬎140 MW, ⬎35%
total efficiency, Hemweg, The Netherlands
1990 Nuclear powerplant repowered by combined cycle GT
sets; 12⫻GT11N uprated, Midland, USA
1991 First vortex-breakdown dry low-NOx EV environmental
dual-fuel burner in annular combustor
1994 165 MW, 60 Hz, high-efficient 共37.5⫹%兲 simple-cycle GT
24 gas turbine with single shaft, PR⫽30 compressor, low NOx
sequential combustion, two bearing welded rotor
1997 365 MW, 50 Hz, combined cycle powerplant GT 26 with
58⫹% total efficiency and low NOx emissions
1999 World’s biggest 140 MW turbo gearbox from Renk AG,
60→50 Hz speed converter for GT11N2
Acknowledgments
The authors want to thank a number of colleagues for the gen-
erous help, digging deeply into their files/archives and memories
to reconstruct the past; special thanks in this context to H.-U.
Frutschi and F. Farkas. To D. Carpenter, J. Dunham, and H. Schu-
bert, we owe very valuable information on the early phase of axial
compressor development history.
References
关1兴 Seippel, C., 1940, ‘‘The Development of the Brown Boveri Axial Compres-
sor,’’ Brown Boveri Rev., 26„6…, pp. 86 –91.
关2兴 Keller, C., 1934, ‘‘Axialgebläse vom Standpunkt der Tragflügeltheorie,’’ dis-
sertation ETH Zürich.
关3兴 Meyer, A., 1939, ‘‘The Combustion Gas Turbine: Its History, Development,
and Prospects,’’ Brown Boveri Rev., 26„6…, pp. 67– 80.
关4兴 Pfenninger, H., 1970, ‘‘Die Gasturbinenabteilung bei BBC—Rückblick und
heutiger Stand,’’ special print: Schweizerische Bauzeitung, Hefte 24 and 30.
关5兴 Pfenninger, H., 1966, ‘‘Vergangenheit, Gegenwart und Zukunft der BROWN
BOVERI Gasturbinen,’’ MTZ, 27„11…, pp. 449– 461.
关6兴 Kehlhofer, R., Bachmann, R., Nielsen, H., and Warner, J., 1999, Combined
Cycle Gas and Steam Turbine Power Plants, PennWell Publishing Company,
Tulsa, OK.
关7兴 Meindl, T., Farkas, F., and Klussmann, W., 1995, ‘‘The Development of a
Multi-Stage Compressor for Heavy Duty Industrial Gas Turbines,’’ ASME
Paper 95-GT-371.
关8兴 Farkas, F., 1986, ‘‘The Development of a Multi-Stage Heavy-Duty Transonic
Compressor for Industrial Gas Turbines,’’ ASME Paper 86-GT-91.
关9兴 Thoren, K. T. E., 1998, ‘‘Gas Turbine Development in Sweden after 1945-A
Historical Review,’’ ASME Paper 98-GT-26.
JULY 2002, Vol. 124 Õ 549