Katsuo Wada

Oxidation Behavior of Ceramics for Gas Turbines in Combustion Gas Flow at 1500°C

In order to evaluate the durability of silicon-carbides (SiC) and silicon-nitrides (Si3N4), we studied the oxidation behavior of SiC and Si3N4 in 1500°C combustion gas flow. We found that the exposure to the combustion gas flow resulted in the weight losses of those ceramics due to the partial disappearance of the oxidized surface layer.We investigated the effects of sintering aids and high speed gas flow as possible factors for the disappearance of the oxide layer. Two kinds of SiC, without sintering aids and sintered with B4C, were used as test specimens. After the exposure to combustion gas flow conditions of 1500°C, 150m/s, 0.18MPa, the weight loss rate and thickness of the oxide layer were quite the same for each specimen of SiC. The existence of sintering aids did not have any effect on the disappearance of the oxide layer. To investigate the effect of gas flow, we set each specimen in a tube made of SiC to protect it from the gas flow. The tube had two holes each acting both as inlet and exhaust vents. Consequently, the oxide layer formed thickly. But at the spots on the specimen facing the holes, the oxide layer was thin. Hollows occurred on the specimen of SiC at these spots. It seems that the existence of gas flow is a very important factor in the disappearance of the oxide layer.Alumina (Al2O3) and zirconia (ZrO2) as oxide ceramics were exposed to the combustion gas flow. The weight of these also decreased. There is a possibility that the weight loss of ceramics in combustion gas flow is caused by degradation of oxide layer on their surface from erosion and hot corrosion due to some oxide scales coming from the test equipment.Copyright

Development of Ceramic Stator Vane for 1500°C Class Gas Turbine

Employing ceramic materials for the critical components of industrial gas turbines is anticipated to improve the thermal efficiency of power plants. We have developed a first stage ceramic stator vane for a 1500°, 20MW class industrial gas turbine by improving our original one for a 1300°C class gas turbine. Our stator vane has a hybrid ceramic/metal structure composed of a ceramic shell, a metal core and a heat insulating layer. This composition increases the strength of the brittle ceramic parts and reduces the amount of cooling air. To improve the durability and reliability of the stator vane in 1500°C combustion gas, the ceramic shell uses silicon carbide instead of silicon nitride, and its configuration is improved. Furthermore, we use an internal cooling system to control the temperature of the metal core. Thermal loading cascade tests are conducted to prove the reliability and cooling performance of the stator vane.Copyright

Development of Ceramic Rotor Blade for Power Generating Gas Turbine

To cope with the increasing demand of electric power, many research and development programs have been performed in the field of electric power industry. Among them, the application of highly thermal resistive ceramics to hot parts of the gas turbines is one of the most promising ways to raise the thermal efficiency of the gas turbine, and several projects have been executed in the U.S.A., Europe and Japan.Tokyo Electric Power Co., Inc. (TEPCO) also has been conducting a research project to apply ceramic components to hot parts of a 20MW class gas turbine with a turbine inlet temperature of 1300C. In this project. TEPCO and Hitachi have been conducting the cooperative research work to develop a first stage ceramic rotor blade.After several design modifications, it was decided to select ceramic blades attached directly to a metal rotor disc, and to insert metal pads between the dovetail of the ceramic blade and metal disc to convey the centrifugal force produced by the blade smoothly to the metal disc.The strength of this ceramic blade has been verified by a series of experiments such as tensile tests, room temperature spin tests, thermal loading tests, and high temperature spin tests using a high temperature gas turbine development unit (HTDU).In addition, the reliability of the ceramic blade under design and test conditions has been analyzed by a computer program GFICES (Gas turbine - Fine Ceramics Evaluation System) which was developed on the basis of statistical strength theory using two parameter Weibull probability distribution.These experiments and analyses demonstrate the integrity of the developed ceramic rotor blade.© 1994 ASME

Development of dry two-stage low-NOx combustor for a gas turbine

A dry two-stage low NO/sub x/ combustor for a 73 MW gas turbine is developed to meet stringent NO/sub x/ limitations in Japan. This combustion system has a fuel-air control mechanism to ensure stable switching from one-stage combustion to two-stage combustion. NO/sub x/ emission is very low not only at full load but also in the entire gas turbine operating range. The NO/sub x/ characteristics have proved to be within the goal in full scale, full pressure combustion tests. This paper outlines the development plan and describes the structure and combustion characteristics of the low NO/sub x/ combustor.

Development of a Cobalt Base Superalloy for Heavy Duty Gas Turbine Nozzles

This paper describes an improvement in creep strength and thermal fatigue and hot corrosion resistance of a cobalt base superalloy developed for the applications of heavy duty gas turbine nozzles. The developed alloy has superior resistance to creep, thermal fatigue and hot corrosion over that of conventional alloys.The optimization of alloying elements which improve the creep properties and restrain the coarsening of carbides is discussed. A reduction in the volume fraction of eutectic carbides promoted the prevention of fast thermal fatigue cracking and also increased the hot corrosion resistance of the developed alloy.The mechanical properties were evaluated by general method for gas turbine materials. Thermal fatigue property was examined by introducing cyclic thermal stress into test pieces. During the test, crack propagation of the test pieces was observed. Hot corrosion resistance was evaluated by molten salt corrosion tests. After tests, mass loss of specimens was measured and penetration depth of sulfidized scale was observed. The developed alloy showed good properties which can allow a wide temperature margin for high temperature gas turbine nozzle designing.The developed alloy can be applicable to other gas turbine hot sections. Application of the developed alloy could realize an increase in gas firing temperature or extension of lifetime for current conditions.© 1996 ASME