Performance efficiency

of gas turbine
WEEK 13
 Brayton Cycle
• The Brayton cycle is a
thermodynamic cycle that
describes the operation of certain
heat engines that have air or some
other gas as their working fluid.
• The idealized Brayton cycle where:
P = pressure,
v = volume,
T = temperature
s = entropy
q = the heat added to or rejected by the system.
 Ideal Brayton cycle
• isentropic process – ambient air is drawn into the compressor, where it is
pressurized.
• isobaric process – the compressed air then passes through a combustion chamber,
where fuel is burned, heating that air—a constant-pressure process, since the
chamber is open to flow in and out.
• isentropic process – the heated, pressurized air then gives up its energy, expanding
through a turbine (or series of turbines). Some of the work extracted by the turbine
is used to drive the compressor.
• isobaric process – heat rejection (in the atmosphere)
 Actual Brayton cycle
• adiabatic process – compression
• isobaric process – heat addition
• adiabatic process – expansion
• isobaric process – heat rejection
• Thermal efficiency, η, is defined in simple words as useful output divided
by costly input. The input is the rate at which energy is supplied to the gas
turbine engine, calculated from a measured fuel flow rate and the fuel's
heating value. The output power for a shaft power gas turbine can be
measured under test by a dynamometer or even a calibrated electrical
generator
• This very first shaft power gas turbine power plant had a thermal
efficiency of 17.38%, based on the heating value of the fuel oil rate and
the heat equivalent of the electrical output of the generator. Since the
component efficiency of electrical generators is very high, the generally
quoted thermal efficiency, for this very first shaft power gas turbine is η =
18%.
• The heat balance of gas turbine (GT) combustors is used for determining
the average Combustor Exit Temperature (CET). It is important for
designing the hot parts in this area. Sensor measurements of the CET are
nearly impossible due to its high level up to above 1700°C.
• Increased ambient temperature lowers the density of
the inlet air, thus reducing the mass flow through the
turbine, and therefore reduces the power output (which
is proportional to the mass flow) even further.
• A compressor stall is a local disruption of the airflow in the compressor of
a gas turbine or turbocharger. A stall that results in the complete disruption
of the airflow through the compressor is referred to as a compressor surge.
The severity of the phenomenon ranges from a momentary power drop
barely registered by the engine instruments to a complete loss of
compression in case of a surge, requiring adjustments in the fuel flow to
recover normal operation.
• Surge occurs when there is no forward flow of gas through the compressor
and a reversal of flow occurs. The gas that is being compressed gets
pushed backward through the centrifugal compressor. When this surge
(flow reversal) occurs, which can happen in milliseconds, the rotor is
affected.