Thermofluids 3

Gas power cycles

Brayton cycle

Prepared by:

Gianfranco Scribano
Ng Khai Ching
Thermofluids 3

Outline
• Part 1
– Example of gas power cycles in practice
– Air standard assumption
• cold air standard assumption
– Brayton cycle
– Isotropic vs actual cycle
• Part 2
– Efficiency enhancement of Brayton cycle

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Why you learn this?

• At the preliminary design stage, it would be more
practical to have a simple method to analyse the
design efficiency of your engine→ save time.

• Once a rough idea is formulated, we will proceed

to the component design stage → CFD / FEA for
each component (Optimizing each flow
components)

• This lecture covers the first part, i.e. simple

thermodynamic cycle.
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What is a Thermodynamic Cycle?

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Thermodynamic Cycle

• A system which
– goes through a series of different states, and
– return to its original state.
• In the process,
– heat may be released to the surrounding, or
– the system may perform work on it’s surrounding
– Examples: Refrigerator, Internal Combustion Engine, Power P
• The cycle is categorized based on working fluid
– Air/Gas→ Gas Power Cycle
– Water → Steam Power Cycle (involves phase change)

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Air standard cycle

• In gas power cycles, the working fluid remains gaseous
throughout the entire cycle.
• Energy is provided by burning fuel within system boundaries:
internal combustion engines
• In actual, the working fluid does not undergo entire
thermodynamic cycle since at some point the working fluid is
released. How to simplify this problem for the sake of
analysis??
• We use air-standard assumption to analyze air standard
cycle.

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Air standard assumptions

• air is the working fluid and continuously circulates in
a closed loop
• working fluid behaves as ideal gas at all times
• all processes are internally reversible (frictionless)
• combustion = heat addition from external source
• exhaust = heat rejection that restores working fluid to
initial state

**Cold-air standard assumption

• Another typical assumption is that cp and cv are
constant with value taken at 25 C (cold air)
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Brayton cycle

• The close-loop cycle is the Brayton cycle

– first proposed for reciprocating oil-burning engines
– nowadays in gas turbines in roto-machineries

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• 4 internally reversible processes:

• Isentropic (frictionless; sin = sout) compression
• Isobaric (constant pressure) heat addition
• Isentropic (frictionless ; sin = sout) expansion
• Isobaric (constant pressure) heat rejection

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Energy analysis of Brayton cycle

qin = h3 − h2 = c p (T3 − T2 ) **Cold-air
standard
qout = h4 − h1 = c p (T4 − T1 ) assumption

wnet qin − qout T4 − T1 Assumption of

Brayton = = = 1−
qin qin T3 − T2 constant cp

p1 = p4 p2 = p3 1 − 2, 3 − 4 isentropic
 −1  −1
T2  p2    p3   T3
 =  =  =
T1  p1   p4  T4

1 p2
Brayton = 1 −  −1 : rp =
rp  p1
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rp = pressure ratio
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Energy analysis of Brayton cycle

Back work ratio

𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝
𝐵𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 =
𝑊𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑏

𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝
For Gas Turbine ≥ 50%
𝑊𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑏

𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝
For Steam Turbine ≅ 7%
𝑊𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑏

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Energy analysis of Brayton cycle

**Air standard
assumption
(NOT cold air)
qin = h3 − h2 = c p (T3 − T2 )
Enthalpy can be retrieved by table
qout = h4 − h1 = c p (T4 − T1 )

𝑃2 𝑃𝑟2 Relative pressure from table.

= *Variable specific heat
𝑃1 𝑠=𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡
𝑃𝑟1 treatment (more accurate)
variable cp
𝑣2 𝑣𝑟2 Relative specific volume from
= Table
𝑣1 𝑠=𝑐𝑜𝑛𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑛𝑡
𝑣𝑟1 *Variable specific heat
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treatment (more accurate)
w net q in − q out
 th = =
q in q in
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Example 1

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𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝
𝐵𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 =
𝑊𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑏

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w net
 th =
q in

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What if we analyze the thermal efficiency using constant specific heat??
**Cold-air standard assumption

1 p2
Brayton = 1 −  −1 : rp =
rp  p1

compare
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Actual Brayton cycle

Pressure losses
• Loss in inlet duct/air filter (~ 1 kPa)
• Pressure loss in combustion chamber
( ~5%)
• Pressure loss in exhaust duct (heat
recovery boiler...) (~1-3 kPa)

Mechanical Friction
• Gearbox ~1.5%
• Auxiliaries (oil pumps, fuel pumps,
cooling system ~0.5%)

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Actual Brayton cycle

Adiabatic efficiencies:

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Example 2

Example 1.

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𝑊𝑐𝑜𝑚𝑝
𝐵𝑎𝑐𝑘 𝑊𝑜𝑟𝑘 𝑅𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜 =
𝑊𝑡𝑢𝑟𝑏

From previous example (isentropic):

From previous example (isentropic):

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w net
 th =
q in

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THANK YOU.

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Recap
• Air standard assumption
– cold air standard assumption
• Brayton cycle
• Isotropic vs actual cycle

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Objective
• Ways to enhance the efficiency of Brayton
cycle
– Regenerator (reduce the heat input in combustor)
– Multistage compression with intercooler (reduce
the work required to drive the compressor)
– Multistage expansion (via multistage turbine) with
reheater (Increase the work output from turbine)

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Modifications to Brayton cycle

T4 > T2 It is possible to have heat transfer from hot gas

to cold gas
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Modifications to Brayton cycle

Brayton cycle with regeneration

ℎ5 − ℎ 2
𝜖= effectiveness
ℎ4 − ℎ 2

𝑇1 𝑘−1 /𝑘
𝜂𝑡ℎ,𝑟𝑒𝑔𝑒𝑛 =1− 𝑟𝑝
𝑇3
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Modifications to Brayton cycle

Brayton cycle with regeneration

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Modifications to Brayton cycle

Brayton cycle with intercooling, reheat and regeneration
Note:
Multistage intercoolers and reheaters are
normally accompanied by regeneration for
enhanced thermal efficiency.

Normally, adding more stages (>2) cannot be

justified economically.

𝑜𝑢𝑡
𝑤=න 𝑣𝑑𝑃
𝑖𝑛

**For minimum compressor

work input & maximum
turbine work output:
P2/P1 = P4/P3 (compressor)
P6/P7 = P8/P9 (turbine) 32
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Example: What are the pressure ratios P2/P1 and P6/P7 of the
ideal gas turbine cycle below? Given the overall pressure ratio
P4/P1 = 8. Also, determine compressor power input, turbine
power output and total heat input, qin.

Note: For minimum compressor

work input & maximum turbine
work output:
P2/P1 = P4/P3 (compressor)
P6/P7 = P8/P9 (turbine)

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Example: What are the pressure ratios P2/P1 and P6/P7 of the
ideal gas turbine cycle below? Given the overall pressure ratio
P4/P1 = 8. Also, determine compressor power input, turbine
power output and total heat input, qin.

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Effect of Turbine Inlet Temperature

• High turbine inlet temperatures increase efficiency and specific output.

• Turbine blade materials limit temperature.
• Only first row of blades in turbine experience high temperature.

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Effect of high inlet temperature on Turbine blades

Typical microstructures of blade materials in various states: (a) an

undamaged structure of γ’ quasi-cuboids; (b) rafted γ’ resulting from
exposure to stress at high temperature; (c) and re-precipitated γ’ from
extreme temperature exposure and subsequent operation.
Common failures in gas turbine blades, Tim J Carter, Engineering Failure Analysis 12 (2005) 237–247
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Effect of high inlet temperature on Turbine blades

Possible solutions in order to work with higher turbine inlet temperature

• Advanced materials
– High-nickel alloys
– directional solidification
– single crystal blades...

• Thermal barrier coatings

– advanced ceramics
– act as insulation.

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Effect of high inlet temperature on Turbine blades

• Blade cooling
– cooling air bled from compressor to cool hollow blades
– increase turbulence for better cooling
– film cooling
– steam cooling.

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Other Effects on Turbine and Compressor blades

(a) Creep damage observed during routine inspection; (b) grain

boundary separation found on metallographic examination of the
same blade; (c) appearance of creep cracking in a directionally
solidified blade material.
Common failures in gas turbine blades, Tim J Carter, Engineering Failure Analysis 12 (2005) 237–247
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Other Effects on Turbine and Compressor blades

Fatigue cracking, initiating at

metallurgical defect, found in
trailing edge of blade to the right
of the pencil mark, and SEM
image of crack surface showing
striations, confirming the
fatigue mechanism.

Common failures in gas turbine blades, Tim J Carter, Engineering Failure Analysis 12 (2005) 237–247
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Other Effects on Turbine and Compressor blades

Sulphidation attack of a turbine blade. Such damage can sometimes be

repaired by removing the damaged coating and reapplying a new
coating.

Common failures in gas turbine blades, Tim J Carter, Engineering Failure Analysis 12 (2005) 237–247
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Other Effects on Turbine and Compressor blades

Mechanical damage caused by ingested foreign material on the leading

edge of a compressor blade.

Common failures in gas turbine blades, Tim J Carter, Engineering Failure Analysis 12 (2005) 237–247
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Example 3: Determine the thermal efficiency of the gas-turbine

described in Example 2 if a regenerator having an effectiveness
of 80 % is installed.

Add
Regenerator

Example 2 ℎ5 − ℎ2
𝜖= = 80 %
ℎ4 − ℎ2 43
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Example 2:
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(a) Q regenerative

Isentropic relation with variable specific heat:

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(b) Thermal efficiency

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Homework

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