Marcel Stalder

Field Experience of the Sequential Combustion System for the GT24/GT26 Gas Turbine Family

The first units of the Sequential Combustion System gas turbine family are in commercial operation. The first gas turbine GT24 (60Hz, 165MW-class) started the commercial operation, while the first GT26 (50Hz, 265MW-class) demonstrates its performance at the GT test facility. More engines are presently in the commissioning phase or will be in the near future. These turbines are designed to offer increased output at high GT efficiency. To acheive this, the sequential combustion system, a reheat process with two combustors, has been developed. Whereas the first combustor is based on the proven EV-combustor technology, extensive research and development efforts have been carried out in developing the lean premixed self-igniting second combustor (SEV).This paper is a follow-up of the ASME paper 96-GT-315, which described the basic research work concerning the lean premixing SEV-burners with self-ignition. The present paper reports the experience gained during commissioning of the first engines.The performance of the two combustors, as well as the measured emissions, are discussed and compared with the expected values and rig test results.Finally, the potential of the sequential combustion system to reach low NOx levels is demonstrated by unveiling the results of the extensive testing program during the commissioning phase.Copyright