Proceedings of

ASME TURBO EXPO 2002

June 3-6, 2002, Amsterdam, TheProceedings
Netherlandsof:
ASME TURBO EXPO 2002 - Land, Sea & Air
GT-2002-30088
June 3-5, 2002, Amsterdam, The Netherls

GT-2002-30088

DESIGN & EVALUATION OF AN LCV COMBUSTOR FOR THE VOLVO VT4400

INDUSTRIAL GAS TURBINE

Pontus Eriksson Steve Walsh

Lund Institute of Technology Aero & Industrial Technology Ltd.
pontus.eriksson@vok.lth.se steve.walsh@ait-ltd.co.uk

Rolf Gabrielsson Lars Waldheim Fredrik Hermann

Volvo Aero Corp. LMGT TPS Termiska Processer AB Lund Institute of Technology
rolf.gabrielsson@volvo.com lars.waldheim@tps.se fredrik.hermann@vok.lth.se

The combustor had excellent combustion stability

ABSTRACT
A combustor has been developed to burn a low calorific gas
mixture reflecting a composition typically available from a bio-
mass gasification plant. This reference composition contained
(by volume) 11,7% H2, 15,4% CO, 5,9% CH4, 13,3% CO2,
46,7% N2 and 7% H2O.
The combustor was subsequently tested with gas
compositions having varying amounts of NH3, H2O and CO/H2
content.
It was also tested with three compositions rich in CO, but
lacking H2; these are typically available from blast furnace, or
other metallurgical processes.
The combustor is designed to be stoichiometric/lean and is
suitable for up to 2,1 MW thermal input. The flame tube walls
are predominantly effusion-cooled. A natural gas pilot is
provided for ignition and operation up to 20% load.
UHC emissions were only seen when operating on the
reference LCV composition below 40% load.
CO emissions were less than 20 ppmv between 40% and
100% load regardless of gas composition tested.
Combined thermal and prompt NOX, when operating
without ammonia addition, was found to be less than 9 ppmv at
full load for the reference gas.
When ammonia was introduced to the gas composition the
molar ammonia conversion to NOX was approximately 60% for
2500 ppmv NH3 fuel concentration. This was seen to increase to
regardless of gas composition and operating condition.
INTRODUCTION
Lund University, Volvo Aero Corporation Land & Marine
Gas Turbines, TPS Termiska Processer AB and Aero &
Industrial Technology Ltd. have jointly developed an LCV
combustor. The work has been partially funded by the Swedish
government through the National Energy Administration.
The combustor is intended to be suitable for the Volvo
VT4400 IGT.
VT4400 is originally the Garrett GTPF-990, which became
IE990-50 and was sold on to Dresser-Rand who marketed it
under the names DJ-50, DC-990 and DR-990. In 1997 Volvo
Aero Corporation LMGT acquired the rights to the design and
has since up-rated its power to 4,8 MW and equipped it with a
seven can, natural gas, low emissions combustor. The natural
gas combustor operates in Lean (fully) Premixed mode from
70% to 100% load. Future versions will be available with diesel
fuel injectors.
NOMENCLATURE
AFR (-) Gravimetric Air Fuel Ratio
AMF (g/s, kg/s) Air Mass Flow
Conversion Rate (%) ξTotal _ NOX ζ Ο ξThermal _ NOX ζ Air Μ Fuel _ vol _ Flow 100
ξNH 3 ζ Fuel _ vol _ Flow

90% as the ammonia concentration was reduced to 500 ppmv. COT (K) Combustor Outlet Temperature
The combustor showed acceptable temperatures while FF (g/s) Fuel Flow
operating on the reference composition. The compositions NCV (MJ/kg) Net Calorific Value
having higher net calorific value produced excessive flame tube LTP (%) Loss in Total Pressure
temperatures. TIT (K) Turbine Inlet Temperature
R (J kg-1 K-1) Gas Constant

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 °, lambda (-) AFR/Stoichiometric AFR because characteristic peak flame temperatures are
lower than conventional fuels (Table 5).
ABREVIATIONS  Several studies have shown that lean combustion
EPA Environmental Protection Agency results in large conversion rates [4], [9]. These have all
G. A. Gas Analysis been diffusion type combustors though.
HC HydroCarbon  Any attempt to premix the LCV with the air would
NG Natural Gas make the injector unfeasible large for the intended
IGT Industrial Gas Turbine application.
LP Lean Premixed Rich/Lean Diffusion promises lower conversion rates than
LCV Low Calorific Value gas Stoichiometric/Lean. Conversion rates as low as 5% have been
ppmv Parts Per Million by Volume demonstrated with this technique [4], [9]. In the case where CH4
UHC Unburned HydroCarbons concentrations have approached the levels seen in the reference
fuel specification, conversion rates down to 30% have been
DESIGN CONSTRAINTS demonstrated in a narrow AFR band [10]. Assuming 1000-2500
One objective of the project was to demonstrate the LCV ppmv fuel NH3, this combustor would still produce excessive
combustor on the VT4400 IGT. To avoid having to redesign amounts of NOX in light of current legislation limits.
and rebuild the compressor section or the high pressure turbine, The Stoichiometric/Lean design was opted for (over
due to reduced need for air; it was decided to design for a Rich/Lean) because of combustor size constraints. Other
demonstration with only one LCV combustor and six standard reasons were adaptability for diesel supplementary fuelling [6]
Volvo VT4400 LP combustors. This meant that the LCV and the fact that invasive cooling of the flame tube could be
combustor had to match the pressure drop over the LP used in the primary zone.
combustors. It was also important for the LCV combustor to
produce an equal exhaust mass flow and TIT. The combustor KINETIC MODELLING
was designed for the LCV fuel called “Ref.” in Table 5. NOX simulations, using a Chemkin model, were carried at
Operating conditions for the gas turbine were determined combustor design full load flows and geometry [16]. The model
with a general-purpose system analyser developed by Volvo. used was a constantly stirred tank reactor for the primary zone
followed by a plug flow reactor for the secondary and dilution
LCV
Engine Inlet Inlet Combus- System*
Load Pressure Tempera- tion AMF αp/P
COT LCV ** Mixed
LCV
Combustion
LCV FF
Pilot NG
FF***
zones. The influence on NOX formation was studied by varying
(K) AFR Mean Inlet (g/s)
(%) (kPa) ture (K) (kg/s) (%)
Temp (K)
AMF (kg/s) (g/s) primary zone stoichiometry and temperature. Fuel rich (°=0,9),
0 343 490 4.94 4.256 1125 - - 0.597 - 9.7 stoichiometric and fuel lean (°=1,1) conditions were
20 611 571 8.60 4.750 1192 - - 1.039 - 16.7
20 611 571 8.60 4.750 1192 5.46 584.7 1.039 190 - investigated together with adiabatic and 90% of adiabatic
40
60
795
955
619
645
10.49
12.32
4.516 1306 4.63
4.497 1358 4.33
634.0
660.6
1.267
1.488
274
344
-
-
primary zone temperature. The conversion of fuel bound
80 1113 652 14.33 4.529 1360 4.35 667.6 1.731 398 - nitrogen (added as NH3) to NOX for the investigated conditions
100 1255 666 16.00 4.536 1385 4.22 681.9 1.932 458 -
are shown in Figure 1. The predictions indicate that a fuel rich
* - Scaled value taken from isothermal measurements of LP System at VT4400 operating conditions.
** - Based on the energy content of the reference LCV fuel at 523K.
primary zone and a low combustion temperature promote less
*** - Based on a natural gas energy content of 45.15 MJ/kg. fuel derived NOX and that NH3 not converted to NOX will be
Table 1: Engine operating conditions converted to N2.
100.0
Adiab. lambda=0,9
The mixed mean inlet temperature in Table 1 is the Adiab. lambda=1,0
90.0
temperature of the compressor delivery air available for Adiab. lambda=1,1
Molar conversion rate (%)

90% of adiab. lambda=0,9

combustion where parts of it has been heated while being used 80.0
90% of adiab. lambda=1,0
for non-invasive turbine inlet duct cooling. 70.0
90% of adiab. lambda=1,1

DESIGN PRINCIPLES 60.0

In the design phase, three alternative routes were 50.0

investigated:
 Lean Premixed 40.0

 Rich primary/Lean secondary, diffusion 30.0

 Stoichiometric primary/Lean secondary, diffusion 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500
Ammonia content (ppmv)

The Lean Premixed route was considered unsuitable for the Figure 1: Predicted ammonia conversion rate at full
following reasons: load
 In this application, an LP designed combustor would
offer little improvement in thermal NOx reduction

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 COMBUSTOR DESIGN vulnerable to the ingestion of combustion products during
The fuel injector (Figure 2) together with the secondary air auxiliary fuel operation.
admission holes of the flame tube (Figure 4) were designed to Cooling/purge air must be provided during natural gas
promote good mixing and stable toroidal recirculation operation. An active purge system was opted for. This allows
combustion upstream of the secondary holes. for independent variation of purge flow. The design is amenable
The recirculation zone operates in the fuel rich regime. to passive purge features once the required flow has been
Between the secondary and intermediate holes combustion experimentally determined.
is approximately stoichiometric. It has been found that a poorly designed LCV gas feed can
The intermediate holes of the flame tube admit air at a result in an off centre flame position. The reason for this is that
sufficient distance upstream of the dilution holes to allow the large proportion of fuel flow in relation to airflow has a
complete oxidation of the CO emanating from the primary zone. larger potential to affect the flow pattern in the combustor. In
At the dilution plane, further amounts of air are introduced [3] water flow visualisation techniques were used to improve
in order to reduce the flue temperature to an acceptable level for the distribution inside the injector design such that no flow
the high-pressure turbine. asymmetry was observed. The upstream straight pipe section
The operating conditions and governing design parameters was specified to present a developed uniform gas profile to the
for the LCV combustor are shown in Table 2. injector.
While it may be possible to ignite and idle on LCV fuel the
Parameter Value associated gasification process takes long time to start.
LCV Fuel Temperature 250 °C
Overall LTP (cold) 4.536 % Sometimes extraction air from the gas turbine is needed in order
Outer Liner Loss 0.589 % to produce the specified gas. Therefore the NG pilot is still
Airflow for 1 LP Combustor 2.345 kg/s
Airflow for 1 LCV Combustor 1.932 kg/s
required.
AFR on LCV 4.219 The NG pilot is a conventional design located centrally
LCV Flow 0.458 kg/s within the LCV injector. A single air feed provides the pilot
LCV Combustor Thermal Input 2.123 MJ/s
Primary Zone Flame Area 0.0177 m2
with sufficient cooling air during LCV operation.
Reference Mach Number 0.035
Combustion Intensity 10 MWm-2bar-1
Combustion Intensity 1.79x106 CHUh-1ft-2atm-1

Table 2: Combustor parameters at full load

The injector is designed to admit two thirds of the LCV

flow through the swirler and one third through the angled holes
(Figure 3). The LCV swirler is designed to oppose the air
swirler to enhance rapid mixing. The degree of net swirl is
necessitated by the requirement to aid flame stabilisation
without creating an over-swirled primary zone. An over-swirled
primary zone is not desirable because it would increase hot gas
side heat transfer coefficients and deteriorate the effusion film
effectiveness.

Figure 3: Injector hardware

Combustion of LCV fuel is usually limited by low

theoretical flame temperature compared with conventional
fuels. This makes conventional slot-cooled flame tube designs
susceptible to excessive CO chilling close to the wall, as large
amounts of film cooling air are present [6].
Figure 2: Injector cross-section

The injector is by necessity large because of the high

volumetric LCV flow it has to handle. This makes it very

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 Airflow
Length: 411 mm Device
(kg/s)
Airflow (%) AFR
Diameter: 154 mm NG Injector Shroud 0.021 1.10 0.046
Air Swirler 0.134 6.96 0.294
Mid Flare Cooling 0.120 6.19 0.261
Secondary Holes 0.404 20.89 0.881
Upstream Barrel Cooling 0.256 13.23 0.558
Intermediate Holes 0.226 11.68 0.493
Downstream Barrel Cooling 0.142 7.36 0.311
Dilution 0.579 29.96 1.264
Post Dilution Cooling 0.051 2.63 0.111
Total Cooling 0.568 29.4 1.241
Recirculation 0.477 24.7 1.042
Primary Zone 0.679 35.1 1.483
Post Intermediate 1.037 53.7 2.266
Total 1.932 100 4.219
(Specified for the 100% Load LCV Condition)
Table 3: Combustor air distribution

The effective area of the outer liner was also governed by

the requirement not to alter the cooling air mass flow to the
turbine inlet duct. A pressure loss of 0,6% was applied to the rig
Figure 4: Flame tube cross-section liner in order to size the air admission holes.
The rig LCV liner requires a higher porosity than the
Reductions in the proportion of cooling airflow to the engine LCV liner though, because all of the combustion air
combustor can be achieved if the more efficient method of flows through it unlike in the engine, where part of the air
effusion cooling is employed [7]. Reduced CO emissions means feeding the combustor enters as spent turbine inlet duct cooling
improved combustion efficiency and would allow the air. The target effective areas for the outer liner designs was set
combustor extended range of operation and greater flexibility to at:
burning different LCV fuels.  Rig LCV outer liner: 6271 mm2
In the VT4400 LCV design, wall cooling is accomplished  Engine LCV outer liner: 3285 mm2
by angled effusion holes (Figure 4). The combustor flare is
however cooled by a slot device. This is because effusion
cooling develops its film effectiveness gradually over a number RIG SETUP AND INSTRUMENTATION
of rows of holes and is therefore not so effective close to the The test rig arrangement is illustrated in Figure 5, showing
leading edge of the device. the assembled LCV injector and combustor.
The flows indicated in Table 3 for the effusion cooling
devices are for the 100% load combustion case.
The coefficient of discharge of the effusion holes has been
determined from a test piece using a unit cell of 14 mm by 14
mm with a density of 25510 holes/m2. This consisted of an
array of 136 holes laser drilled in 2 mm thick Hastelloy X. The
holes were found to be tapered, with a nominal diameter of 0,61
mm. The side where the laser beam entered was typically 0,62
mm and the exit 0,59 mm. The angle to the surface was
nominally 17°.
The effusion hole pattern shown in Figure 4 for the
upstream barrel cooling was determined from test results
yielding a discharge coefficient of 0,76.
Two different densities of effusion cooling are used: a
higher density from the flare edge to a plane just downstream of
the intermediate holes (117 mm axial length) and a lower
density from that plane to the end of the flame tube.
The VT4400 LP combustor utilises an outer liner to control
air admission and to set up a pressure drop necessary to drive
the turbine inlet duct impingement cooling.
The LCV combustor makes use of a similar device (Figure 5),
but the airside overall effective area must be lower because of
the reduced requirement for air mass-flow (Table 2). Figure 5: Rig setup

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 The rig casing consists of an air inlet pipe connecting the Constituent Units 3% H2O Ref. 15% H2O Gas 1 Gas 2 BF 1 BF 2 BF 3
(7% H2O)
main rig casing to the plant facility. The flame tube was H2 % by vol. 12.5 11.9 10.9 10.1 17.0 - - -
restrained from axial movement by support pins extending from CO 16.2 15.5 14.2 9.3 22.9 69 62.1 55.2
the combustor cap and located centrally on piston seals at the CO2 14 13.4 12.3 15.6 12.1 18 16.2 14.4
N2 47.9 45.9 41.9 51.9 35.1 12 10.8 9.6
flame tube exhaust. CH4 6.2 6.0 5.5 5.9 5.7 - - -
Measurement of dynamic oscillations was taken in the H2O 3.0 7.0 15.0 7.0 7.0 0.0 10.0 20.0
combustor cap. NH3 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25 - - -
Flame tube metal temperatures were determined by using Argon 1.0 0.9 0.8
Gas Temp K 523 523 523 523 523 523 523 523
both thermocouple instrumentation and multi-color change NCV kJ/kg 4891 4750 4457 3742 6318 6300 5918 5501
thermal paint OG6. Stoich. AFR 1.4336 1.3924 1.3066 1.1294 1.7996 1.5323 1.4394 1.338
Stoich. Flame K 2092 2063 2000 1911 2221 2394 2334 2266
Two thermocouples were attached to the LCV injector Temperature
nose. Sixteen thermocouples were positioned on the combustor. R 320.52 324.62 333.15 314.53 344.64 268.12 279.85 292.65
Injection 3 7.147 7.057 6.876 7.283 6.647 8.544 8.186 7.828
Of these, four thermocouples were positioned on the flare, at 10 Density
kg/m

mm intervals from the splash cooling edge at two angular Design AFR 4.55 4.35 3.94 3.13 6.24 6.51 5.97 5.38
positions. Four thermocouples were located in between Injector αP bar 0.7715 0.8551 1.0740 1.6005 0.4422 0.3158 0.3919 0.5047
Injection m/s 146.9 155.7 176.7 209.6 115.4 86.0 97.9 113.6
secondary holes and four were located in between tertiary holes. Velocity
Downstream static tappings were positioned in the exhaust
NB. All properties calculated at engine design load conditions.
duct wall to allow reasonably accurate measurements of
Table 5: Tested gas compositions
combustor loss in total pressure.
Test evaluation of the LCV combustor was performed at
COLD FLOW TEST
scaled engine operating conditions according to Table 4.
A cold loss in total pressure of 4,52% was measured at the
Table 4 also gives a comparison of overall AFR throughout
correct design operating condition. This is in line with the
the load range for the Reference gas, Gas 1, Gas 2 and BF 2
LP combustors on the Volvo VT4400 and means that the
(Table 5).
demonstrator would operate with the correct AMF distribution.
Engine Inlet Inlet System* The overall rig combustor effective area was determined to
Load Pressure Tempera-
Combustor
αp/P
COT Ref. Gas 1 Gas 2 BF 2 be 2250 mm2.
AMF (g/s) (K) AFR AFR AFR AFR
(%) (kPa) ture (K) (%)
0 343 503 597 4.256 1125 5.72 4.27 7.96 7.55 IGNITION
20 400 585 680 4.750 1192 5.62 4.16 7.88 7.50
40 400 634 637 4.516 1306 4.77 3.47 6.77 6.46
Ignition tests were all performed at ambient conditions with
60 400 661 623 4.497 1358 4.46 3.23 6.37 6.10 an AMF corresponding to the amount required igniting the
80 400 668 622 4.529 1360 4.49 3.24 6.41 6.13 VT4400 on natural gas. For the LCV combustor this
100 400 682 616 4.536 1385 4.35 3.13 6.24 5.97 corresponded to approximately 0,1 kg/s.
* - Scaled value taken from isothermal measurements of LP System at VT4400 The ignition tests were conducted without water or
operating conditions. ammonia flow.
Table 4: Scaled rig operating conditions
18 Ref. @ 423 K
Gas 1 @ 423 K
FUEL PROPERTIES 16 Gas 2 @ 300 K
BF @ 400 K
The capability of the combustion system to burn each 14
individual LCV gas is reflected by the specific constituents and
their inherent properties. 12
AFR

An important factor in achieving good LCV combustion 10

performance is the quantity of hydrogen contained within the
8
bulk gas mixture [1]. Hydrogen has an extremely high NCV,
which promotes high burning temperatures in the combustion 6
zone. Also, importantly hydrogen has wide flammability limits, 4
which allows the combustion process to occur in fuel lean and 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2 0.25
rich conditions [11]. This property is extremely beneficial to AMF (kg/s)
combustion stability. Figure 6: Ignition within 15 s
A compilation of all test gas compositions and their
properties are shown in Table 5. Table 5 also provides All compositions performed satisfactorily and are expected
comparisons of injector pressure loss for each gas composition to ignite in an engine environment. Gas 2, having a higher H2
at the full load condition. This parameter is important when content, revealed significantly better ignition performance
assessing fuel placement and hence the location of bulk heat compared with Gas 1. This is to be expected [11]. In contrast
release. the BF gases containing no H2 had poor ignition and lean blow-

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 out characteristics. The ignition performance is summarised in Measured Emissions
UHC CO2 Comb.

Sample
Figure 6. Compo- AFR NOX* CO
sition G. A. (ppmv) (ppmv) (ppmv) (%v) Eff. (%)
14 Ref. 5.08 313 288 5.1 6.48 99.59
LEAN BLOW-OUT 42 Gas 1 4.56 296 300 0.0 6.04 99.52
Weak extinction occurred at AFR=7,6/1 for Ref gas, 49 Gas 2 8.49 251 40 0.0 5.16 99.91
AFR=6,1/1 for Gas 1, AFR=14/1 for Gas 2 and AFR=7,5/1 for 66 BF 1 7.95 35 67 - 9.19 99.90
the dry Blast Furnace composition (all taken at AMF=0,2 kg/s). 65 BF 2 7.63 51 81 - 9.20 99.88
64 BF 3 6.94 13 86 - 9.20 99.88
The excellent lean blow-out limit for Gas 2 is noteworthy but
expected from its higher H2 content [11]. *Dry, 15% O2 and EPA day humidity
Satisfactory ignition performance was demonstrated with Table 7: Idle emissions
the NG pilot.
Maximum allowable metal temperatures are normally 1123
IDLE CONDITION K if suitable design life requirements are to be met. Local
Full speed no load test conditions are given in Table 6. regions on the combustor that exceed 1123K would suffer
The reference composition is slightly over-fired and Gas 1 accelerated oxidation damage and metal thinning over a typical
through BF 3 are slightly under-fired. 40,000 hr design life. As can be seen in Table 8 the flame tube
and injector peak temperatures are all acceptable with the
Inlet Inlet Metered LCV Steam Heat
exception of BF 3 operation where slightly elevated
Sample

Compo- COT
Pressure Temp. Air Flow Flow Flow Rel.
sition
(kPa) (K) (g/s) (g/s) (g/s) (kJ/s)
(K) temperatures were found at the flame tube flare.
Target 343 503 597 - - - 1125
14 Ref. 343 505 586 111 5.9 232 1171 Sample 14 42 49 66 65 64
42 Gas 1 344 502 601 121 7.2 231 1083 Composition Ref. Gas 1 Gas 2 BF 1 BF 2 BF 3
49 Gas 2 343 504 596 62.5 7.1 139 1088 Flame tube temperature (K) 833 662 1061 1031 1031 1130
66 BF 1 348 503 588 70.2 0 168 1110 Injector temperature (K) 606 602 615 858 865 806
65 BF 2 348 503 578 69.5 9.5 162 1111
64 BF 3 349 506 585 69.5 20.1 157 1094 Table 8: Idle peak combustor temperatures
Table 6: Idle test conditions Combustion oscillation values were all below 0,5 kPa
RMS. This is considered very low and ought not to compromise
Table 7 compares idle emissions for all compositions. the mechanical integrity of the combustor.
Samples 14, 42 and 49 had 2500 ppmv of ammonia flow.
UHC emissions were very low for Ref. and nil for Gas 1
20% - 100% LOAD
and Gas 2. UHC emissions were only present when operating on
CO emissions were found to be low. This is especially true reference gas below 40% load.
for the blast furnace gases, which show very good tolerance to CO emissions were seen to rise rapidly for the Ref. gas and
low COT. This will be discussed in more detail in the next Gas 1 below 40% load. This equates to 1306 K COT (Figure 7).
section.
Combustion efficiency was 99,93% or better in the 40 Ο
Since the combustor outlet temperatures are low, the NOX
100% load range regardless of composition.
production is expected to be low during operation without
The inferior CO performance of the Ref. Gas compared to
ammonia addition. At 20% load on the reference gas, NOX
Gas 1 is surprising considering their respective calorific values
emissions were 5 ppmv. The corresponding COT at this load
(Table 5). The proportion of CO contained in the Ref. Gas. may
condition was 1182 K. This gives an indication of the idle NOX
be limiting the combustion process though, despite its improved
performance from the combustor on the reference LCV
NCV.
composition.
Gas 2 showed excellent tolerance to low COT even though
The blast furnace gases had higher NOX production in
it had large amounts of CO (Table 5). The improved
comparison to the other gases without ammonia addition. This
stoichiometry and higher H2 content, resulting in early
result is also discussed further ahead.
combustion and a longer residence time compared with Ref. and
Natural gas operation of the pilot was demonstrated at the
Gas 1 compositions is believed to be the cause.
engine idle condition.
The BF gases benefit from high NCV and inherently higher
The level of LCV purge was established, using
flame temperatures than the other gases (Table 5). Consequently
thermocouples in the injector, to be approximately 2,75% of
the resulting low BF gas injection velocities would promote
combustor air mass flow. This is necessary to prevent ingestion
combustion taking place near the injector (Table 8). The
of hot combustion products and to supplement cooling.
elevated primary zone temperatures and long residence time
No active purging was used for the pilot during LCV
would allow improved CO performance.
operation.
As expected when looking at the availability of carbon in
each fuel type, high levels of CO2 (compared with conventional

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 fuels) were found (Table 7, Table 10). This is especially true for Measured Emissions
Comb.
the blast furnace gases.

Sample
Compo- NOX* CO CO2
Eff.
sition (ppmv) (ppmv) (v%)
(%)
300 100 17 Ref. 9.0 4.6 7.39 99.99
Ref. CO 18 Ref. 259 4.4 7.48 99.95
Gas 1 CO 90 27 3% H2O 258 7.5 7.23 99.95
250 Gas 2 CO 80 26 15% H2O 303 29.3 7.33 99.92
BF1 CO
36 Gas 1 5.6 0.9 8.20 99.99
BF2 CO 70
200 35 Gas 1 276 2.6 8.18 99.94
BF 3 CO

NOx (vppm)
60
CO (vppm)

44 Gas 2 18.3 0.0 6.54 99.99

Ref. NOx 43 Gas 2 250 1.2 6.50 99.97
150 Gas 1 NOx 50
53 BF 1 48.6 8.1 11.3 99.99
BF 1 NOx 40 52 BF 2 29.4 6.9 11.4 99.99
100 BF2 NOx 51 BF 3 12.1 7.8 11.1 99.99
BF 3 NOx 30
20 *Dry, 15% O2 and EPA day humidity
50
10 Table 10: 100% load emissions
0 0
1100 1150 1200 1250 1300 1350 1400 1450
The conversion rate, at 2500 ppmv, is virtually independent
COT (K)
of composition. It was found to be approximately 60%. The rate
Figure 7: CO and NOX performance increased gradually to 90% when ammonia concentrations were
reduced to 500 ppmv. The high conversion rates found burning
NOX is traditionally expected to rise with increased COT. LCV gases doped with ammonia were considered typical of a
This is not true for the BF gases. They were seen to peak at the combustor designed for Stoichiometric/Lean operation [5], [6].
40% load condition, corresponding to 1275 K COT. It was The observations agreed well with the kinetic modelling.
confirmed by temperature measurements on the injector nose (Figure 1: Adiab. °=1,1), [16]. Previous workers found that
that the BF gas flame was stabilised on the injector due to much lower conversion rates could be achieved by optimising
inadequate gas injection velocities at part load (Table 8). The the air fuel ratio in a Rich/Lean combustor design [4], [9]. [4]
resulting burning regime would generate excessive NOX and [9] presents data at lower CH4-concentrations and [9] at
emissions if local flame temperatures were sufficiently high. higher NH3-concentrations though.
Reduction of NOX due to the increased level of inerts in the
LCV gas is apparent from the BF gas test results. In this case, 100 300
the BF gases contained increased levels of water vapour (Table
90
5). The level of NOX reduction was achieved without any rise in 250
Molar conversion rate (%)

CO levels, at least not in the limited COT range (1275-1350 K) 80

where comparisons were possible. 70

NOX (ppmv)
200
60
100% LOAD CONDITION
150
The test conditions for the full load test is given in Table 9. 50
Ref. conv.
40
Gas 1 conv. 100
Inlet Inlet Metered LCV Steam Ammonia
Sample

Compo- AFR COT 30 Gas 2 conv.

Pressure Temp. Air Flow Flow Flow Flow
sition G. A. (K) Ref NOX
(kPa) (K) (g/s) (g/s) (g/s) (ppmv)
Target 400.0 682 616 - - - - 1385 20 50
17 Ref. 399.2 683 607 134 6.6 0 4.39 1375 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 3000 3500
18 Ref. 402.6 683 608 135 7.0 2560 4.30 1379 Ammonia content (ppmv)
27 3% H2O 401.5 684 616 131 3.9 2470 4.62 1361
26 15% H2O 400.1 679 613 139 16.8 2580 4.00 1337 Figure 8: Ammonia conversion rate at full load
36 Gas 1 401.6 682 618 181 7.3 0 3.12 1366
35 Gas 1 400.8 680 612 181 7.3 2567 3.12 1368
44 Gas 2 403.2 680 616 85.5 7.0 0 6.50 1356
The exhaust NOX, with 2560 ppmv ammonia addition, was
43 Gas 2 406.6 683 601 85.0 6.8 2511 6.54 1358 found to be 259 ppmv at the 100% load reference LCV
53 BF 1 405.2 682 609 89.6 0.0 - 6.47 1357 condition.
52 BF 2 406.9 684 596 93.9 9.7 - 6.03 1357
51 BF 3 405.3 685 620 93.4 19.6 - 5.66 1334 When comparing emissions for the three levels of water
injection tested it is expected that NOX emissions would
Table 9: 100% load test conditions decrease as the water content increases (Table 10). In this test
however, a constant COT was strived for. This resulted in a
Exhaust emissions for the different LCV compositions at lower AFR requirement at higher water flows. As a
100% load are detailed in Table 10. consequence higher NOX emission concentrations stemming
Figure 8 shows the ammonia conversion rate for all from the larger proportion of fuel carried ammonia were seen.
relevant compositions.

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 NOX emissions measured over engine load conditions were was observed from the thermocouple data. The combustor is not
observed to be constant for all gases tested with 2500 ppmv suited for long term operation on this fuel composition.
ammonia addition. This insensitivity of exhaust NOX to COT is
evident from Table 7 and Table 10, where the contribution of
thermal and prompt NOX accounts for less than 10% of the total
NOX.
During operation without ammonia, the proportion of
prompt and thermal NOX generated was found to be 9 ppmv. It
is clear that the dominating source for NOX formation is fuel
bound nitrogen. These observations agreed well with results
obtained from a Stoichiometric/Lean combustor, designed to
burn a Topping cycle LCV gas [8].
The fact that more exhaust CO is seen when large amounts
of water are added is simply a result of a lower temperature in
the intermediate zone. The COT reflects this.
Table 11 shows the colour codes for the performed thermal
paint tests.

Temperature
Color code Color Band
Range (K)
B Red 732-797
C Bright Yellow 797-838
D Orange 838-987
E Pale Green 987-1108
F Reddish Brown 1108-1153
G Fawnish Grey 1153-1273
H Fawn 1273-1423

All paint data refer to an exposure time of 30 mins.

Table 11: Thermal paint color codes

Figure 9 shows thermal paint results for the full load test of
the reference composition. Only small patches of band F were
observed, indicating that global metal temperatures were less
than 1108 K.
As water was added to the reference LCV composition,
thermocouple readings on the injector nose, combustor flare
and barrel all indicated a steady decline at the 100% load rig
condition. The observed trends in metal temperature represent a
gradual decline in flame temperatures in the combustor due to
the additional inerts present in the fuel from the water.
No limiting metal temperatures were measured over the 4%
to 18% H2O LCV conditions tested.
Gas 1 thermal paint pattern showed small patches of band
G in the wakes of the secondary holes. These regions are
considered unacceptable for any guaranteed life requirement,
but satisfactory for the engine demonstrator.
Gas 2 thermal paint pattern showed band G over large
portions of the flame tube flare. This can be explained by a
combination of factors. High characteristic flame temperatures
due to increased hydrogen content, favorable primary zone
stoichiometry and low injection velocities all contribute to
concentrate the bulk heat release in the dome section of the
combustor.
Extremely high temperatures were also found in the wakes
of the secondary holes. A peak metal temperature of 1205 K
Figure 9: Ref. Gas, 100% load thermal paint
No thermal paint tests were conducted on the Blast Furnace
compositions, but thermocouple data revealed temperatures as
high as 1227 K at 60% load. These were found at the flame tube
flare again.
The properties of Gas 2 and the BF gases represent a
significant deviation from the Ref. LCV gas (Table 5), for
which the combustor has been designed. It is for this reason
why excessive metal temperatures were observed when burning
Gas 2 and BF LCV gas.
No deterioration or damage was observed from the injector
nose or flame tube flare as a result of elevated temperatures
from testing on the various compositions.
Oscillation measurements made during the testing of all the
LCV fuels over the simulated load conditions were extremely
low in magnitude (less than 1 kPa RMS) and are not considered
performance limiting.
Observations of the flame through the viewport and
measurement of dynamic oscillations indicate no increased
flame instability or axial shift of the flame front due to the high
level of inerts.

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 CONCLUSIONS REFERENCES
A combustion system was developed to burn a low value [1] Bahr, Sabla, Vinson: ’Small industrial gas turbine combustor
gas in the VT4400 IGT engine demonstrator. The combustor performance with low BTU gas fuels’
was designed in an engine configuration consisting of a single ASME IGT 85-IGT-125
LCV combustor operating in combination with six LP
combustors. [2] Miller, Bowman: ’Mechanism and modeling of nitrogen
Rig evaluation demonstrated the following: chemistry in combustion’ Prog. Energy Combust. Sci. 1989,
 The LCV combustor was modified to suit the pressure loss Vol. 15
requirements of the engine configuration.
[3] Kelsall, Smith, Todd, Burrows: ’Combustion of LCV coal
 Stable combustion observed burning the Ref. gas over the
derived fuel gas for high temperature, low emissions gas
engine load range.
turbines in the British coal topping cycle’
 Regardless of composition, excellent CO characteristics ASME IGT 91-GT-384
were obtained for the combustor. Measured CO emissions
were less than 300 ppmv at the engine idle condition. At 40 [4] Nakata, Sato, Ninomiya, Yoshine, Yamada: ’Design and test
% load, less than 20 ppmv CO emissions were found. of a low-NOX advanced rich-lean combustor for LBG fueled
 Combined thermal and prompt NOX was only 9 ppmv at 1300°C-class gas turbine’, ASME IGT 92-GT-234
full load on the Ref. composition.
 Dry NOX emissions (corrected to 15% O2) were 250 ppmv [5] Kelsall, Smith, Cannon: ’Low emissions combustor
measured at the full load condition when burning the Ref. development for an industrial gas turbine to utilize LCV fuel
LCV gas with 2500 ppmv ammonia addition. Between 60% gas’, ASME IGT 93-GT-413
and 90% of the fuel bound nitrogen was converted to [6] Al-Shaikhly, Mina, Neergaard: ’Development of a dual fuel
exhaust NOX. Thus, additional methods must be applied to LBTU gas/diesel burning combustion system for a 4,2 MW gas
reduce NOX emissions to acceptable levels when ammonia turbine’, ASME IGT 94-GT-438
concentrations typically present in biomass gasification
gases are present. [7] Andrews, Khalifa, Asere, Bazdidi-Tehrani: ‘Full coverage
 Kinetic modelling of conversion rate resulted in good effusion film cooling with inclined holes’,
predictions for a stoichiometric/lean combustor. ASME IGT 95-GT-274
 Observed peak metal temperatures did not exceed 1123 K
at the design full load condition when burning the Ref. gas. [8] Kelsall, Cannon: ‘Combustion of low heating value gas in a
 High metal temperatures measured burning the Gas 2 and gas turbine’, Power production from biomass II, Espoo Finland,
BF gases limits the use of the current combustor design to 27-28 March 1995
engine demonstration purposes only. Optimisation of the [9] Feitelberg, Lacey: ‘The GE Rich-Quench-Lean gas turbine
combustor cooling was outside the scope of this work. combustor’, Transactions of the ASME Vol. 120, July 1998
 Reasonable combustion performance was obtained from
burning widely different LCV compositions using a [10] Hasegava, Sato Nakata: ‘A study of characteristics of
combustor designed for a single LCV gas. gasified coal fuel’, ASME IGT 99-GT-398

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS [11] Lefebvre: ‘Gas turbine combustion’, ISBN 0-89116-896-6

The LCV combustor was developed within FABEL project
P9741-1. The Swedish government, through the National
Energy Administration and Volvo Aero Corporation jointly
founded this project. Volvo Aero Corporation managed the
project.
Additional combustion tests were done within FABEL
project P8701-1. This project was co-founded by the Swedish
government through the National Energy Administration, Volvo
Aero Corporation, Gullspångs Kraft AB, Stockholm Energi AB,
Graninge AB, TPS Termiska Processer AB and Sigtuna Energi
AB. TPS Termiska Processer AB managed this project.
Throughout both projects, Aero & Industrial Technology
Ltd. worked as a subcontractor, providing expertise in
combustion development, test engineers and rig facilities.
[12] Gabrielsson, 2000, P-10471: ‘FABEL low value gas (LVG)
VT4400 demonstrator’, Volvo Aero Corp.
[13] Gabrielsson, 2000, P-10472: ‘FABEL extended
programme low value gas (LVG) combustor rig tests’, Volvo
Aero Corp.
[14] Bideau/Walsh, 2000, B50 065: ‘Design of a low value gas
combustion system for the VT4400 demonstrator engine
FABEL work package 101’, Aero & Industrial Technology Ltd.
[15] Walsh, 2001, B50 084: ‘Volvo FABEL rig test programme
WP111 to WP114’, Aero & Industrial Technology Ltd.
[16] Larfeldt, 2000, 00/18: ‘Kinetic modeling of low calorific
value gas combustion in the primary zone of a gas turbine’, TPS
Termiska Processer AB

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