GE Vernova Validates 100% Hydrogen-Fueled DLN Combustor Technology
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what’s in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience.Generate Key Takeaways
GE Vernova said it has completed a validation test series for its advanced Dry Low NOx (DLN) hydrogen combustion technology, designed for the company’s B- and E-class gas turbines. The group on Jan. 15 said the test campaign was conducted at GE Vernova’s Global Technology Center in Greenville, South Carolina. The testing phase “demonstrated successful operation on natural gas and hydrogen blends and on 100% hydrogen with dry emissions below 25ppm NOx [nitric oxide],” GE Vernova said in a news release. GE Vernova officials said the company plans to make the new DLN system available for new and existing B- and E- gas turbines as early as next year. The company has been pushing for gas turbine fuel flexibility, and said that to date it has more than 120 gas turbines worldwide that have the capacity to operate or are currently operating on fuels that contain hydrogen. Those turbines have produced more than 530 TWh of electricity across a runtime of more than 8.5 million hours.
Technological Advancement
“We are proud to celebrate this technological advancement aiming to enable the decarbonization of our B- and E-Class fleet across the world,” said Jeremee Wetherby, who leads the Carbon Solution group at GE Vernova. “Developing a DLN combustion system able to burn 100% hydrogen safely and reliably is an engineering challenge. One of the ways hydrogen fuel differs from natural gas is that it burns much faster. Its flame speed is roughly eight times higher and presents risk of flashback. “Through the test campaign, the GE Vernova team demonstrated very robust operation for the new DLN technology, without flashback across a range of loads and fuel from pure natural gas to 100% hydrogen,” said Wetherby. GE Vernova noted that combustion dynamics or noise can also present challenges during operations with hydrogen fuel. The company said its “prototype performed very well in that category with relatively low levels even when operating on pure hydrogen. Test results also indicate that the technology can deliver higher availability and longer maintenance intervals comparable to current DLN combustors operating on natural gas.” The company added that those capabilities are “of particular importance for industrial customers who depend on gas turbines to power their operations reliably.”
Micromixer Technology
A new micromixer-based fuel air pre-mixer is foundational to the prototype combustor capability, according to the company. GE Vernova’s research on micromixer technology started in 2005 as part of collaboration with the U.S. Department of Energy. Micromixer-based fuel premixers have been part of the product portfolio for more than seven years, including on GE Vernova’s H Class gas turbine fleet. Recent research conducted at the company’s Advanced Research Center in New York, and at the Global Technology Center in Greenville, focused on improving micromixer and axial fuel staging for hydrogen capability. This research culminated with the construction of a full-size 6B DLN combustor prototype and testing in full-scale conditions (pressure, flow, temperature) in the combustion test facility at Greenville. GE Vernova has an installed base of about 2,800 units of its B- and E-Class turbines, which power industrial processes and operations. The company said it has hydrogen combustor options in use today, with ratings up to 100% hydrogen, but those combusts use a diluent such as water to manage emissions. The company said the new hydrogen DLN combustor technology is expected to present several benefits versus the existing systems:
Eliminated use of water or other diluent.
Increased efficiency: 4% to 7% improvement in combined cycle heat rate.
Improved availability and longer maintenance intervals.
“Through successful tests GE Vernova validated this new 100% hydrogen capable combustion technology, aiming to provide our B- and E-class industrial gas turbines owners with the maximum flexible operability range on natural gas, hydrogen or blends of both without the use of diluent like water for emissions abatement,” said Wetherby. —Darrell Proctor is a senior editor for POWER.
#Vernova #Validates #HydrogenFueled #DLN #Combustor #Technology