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Show Gas turbine combustion systems offer the potential for high efficiency power generation with low pollutant emissions (N0X, CO, unburned hydrocarbons). The METC combustion facility was designed to provide high pressure test capabilities consistent with advanced gas turbine systems. A major thrust of the METC program is in the area of low emissions combustor development. NOx formation and removal are critical issues for selection of future power generation systems. Commercial vendors offer "ultra-low NOx" (< 9 ppmvd) burners for gas turbine combustion systems fired on clean fuel gases (natural gas), but the demand for more efficient and cost effective power systems poses the challenge of increasing operating temperatures and pressures while burning lower quality "dirty" fuel gases. Meeting these demands is particularly important for Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) and Advanced Pressurized Fluidized Bed Combustion (PFBC) Systems which use coal derived fuel gas as fuel for a turbine combustor. As such the METC combustion facility is designed to support the development of coal fueled gas fired combustors as well as the natural gas fired combustion systems of primary interest for the ATS program. METC COMBUSTION FACILITY In 1990, an existing METC building (referred to as B-6) that had been used as a coal prep facility was decommissioned. The need for a modern high pressure combustion facility was recognized and the decision was made to modernize and upgrade B-6 to meet this need. The goal was to provide a mid-scale facility for combustion and clean-up research to support DOE's ATS, IGCC, and PFBC programs. The facility is intended to fill a gap between lab scale facilities typical of university laboratories and the large scale turbine combustion test facilities typical of large turbine manufacturers. Primary considerations which factored into the overall facility design included conformance with DOE initiatives in Environment, Safety and Health, capabilities for remote operation of combustion test rigs, adequate supply of high pressure preheated combustion air, availability of high pressure natural gas and other fuels, and access to state of the art process control and data acquisition systems. The renovations required to meet these needs were extensive and included addition of blast walls to create isolated test cells, installation of a large volume ventilation system, installation of high pressure utilities, and addition of modern distributed data acquisition and control systems. These renovations were completed in January of 1993. A pressurized pulsed combustor began operation in July of this year and several other projects are expected to begin operations by the end of 1993. 2 1-5 |
