Combustion

chamber
Rankine cycle
COMBUSTION
SYSTEMS
COMBUSTION THEORY APPLIED TO GAS TURBINE COMBUSTOR

chemical aspects physical aspects

rate of reaction etc., with particle size,
injection mixing and evaporation.

To understand these aspects completely,

one has to refer to the various combustion theories

in the combustion literature.
Three recognized postulations

(i) Carbon preferential burning which states that carbon in the hydrocarbon
fuels burns before the hydrogen.
(ii) Hydrogen preferential burning which states that hydrogen in the
hydrocarbon fuels burns before the carbon.
(iii) Hydroxylation which states that there is an initial uniting of oxygen
with the hydrocarbon to form a hydroxylated compound. Through chain
reactions of molecules, atoms and radicals, hydroxylated compound burns
to CO, CO2 and H2O. The hydroxylation theory, although not complete, seems
to have met with more general acceptance than the other two theories.

The modern theory is based on the

statistics of probability as well as
kinetics.
important steps involved in combustion process

(i) formation of reactive mixture

(ii) ignition
(iii) flame propagation
(iv) cooling of combustion products with air

Under ideal situations, all steps would be completed separately before proceeding to the
next step.
However, space restrictions under the normal operating conditions do not permit the
achievement of these ideal conditions
• The intimate and uniform mixing of fuel and air is an essential
prerequisite to complete the combustion process.
• The closer this mixing approaches molecular dimensions, there is a
better possibility for complete combustion.
• To achieve this, the fuel should be atomized first, thus providing for
good distribution with large surface area for evaporation at the
same time.
Apart from providing for good
distribution and vaporization of the
fuel,
it is necessary to maintain an
optimum air-fuel ratio to ensure
ignition and sufficiently fast
combustion.

Rich mixture, i.e., insufficient air will

result in difficult to burn.

lean mixture or poor atomization

and poor mixing will lead to failure
of combustion.
Total air-fuel ratio

The air-fuel ratio calculated with

respect to the sum of primary
and secondary air is known as
the total air-fuel ratio
 Three main zones:
Primary zone
Combustion takes place mainly in the primary
zone.

Intermediate zone
a small amount of air is injected into the hot
gases coming out of the primary zone, to
lower their temperature and thereby
encourage the recombination of dissociated
species.

Dilution zone
the combustion gases are mixed with the
amount of air needed to achieve the required
turbine inlet temperature. Aerodynamics plays
a key role in all three zones.
 factors that determine the ignition characteristics of the
fuel.

(i) pressure, (ii) temperature and (iii) the thoroughness of

mixing of fuel and air

FACTORS AFFECTING COMBUSTION CHAMBER

PERFORMANCE
The main function of a gas turbine combustor is to
effect the chemical combination of oxygen of the air
supplied by the compressor with carbon and hydrogen
components of the fuel in such a manner that a steady
stream of gas at a uniform temperature is produced
Pressure Loss
turbulence is necessary for rapid combustion.
However, this will cause some pressure drop in the combustion chamber.
This loss is usually be regarded as a parasitic loss
and hence should be minimized.
The pressure losses are caused by two factors, viz.,
pressure drop due to friction and
that due to the accelerations accompanying heat addition.

Thus, the overall pressure loss in a gas turbine combustion system arises due
to
(i) cold losses, and
(ii) hot losses.
The combined pressure loss due to both heating and friction is the sum
of the pressure losses determined separately as cold losses and hot losses.
Combustion Intensity

The size of the combustion chamber is determined primarily by the rate

of heat release required. The nominal heat release rate can be found from
mf ˙ ΔHc, where ˙ m is the mass flow rate, f the fuel-air ratio and ΔHc
the net calorific value of the fuel

The larger the volume which can be provided the easier it will be to
achieve a low pressure drop, high efficiency, good outlet temperature
distribution and satisfactory stability characteristics.
Combustion Efficiency
The combustion efficiency is computed from the chemical analysis of the
gases. This is not easy, as not only it is difficult to obtain representative
samples from the high velocity stream, but also, owing to the high air-fuel
ratios used, the constituents to be measured are of a very small proportion of the
whole sample. Ordinary apparatus, such as the Orsat, is not
adequate for this purpose and special methods have been evolved. If an
overall combustion efficiency is all that is required, however, and not an
investigation state of the combustion process at any stage, it is possible to
use an efficiency defined by the energy balance equation.
REQUIREMENTS OF THE COMBUSTION CHAMBER

The main function of a gas turbine combustion chamber is

1 to provide for the complete combustion of fuel and air,

2 the air being supplied by the compressor and the products of combustion being
delivered to the turbine.

In carrying out this function, the combustion chamber must fulfill the following
requirements.
(i) Complete combustion of the fuel must be achieved.
(ii) The total pressure loss must be minimum.
(iii) Carbon deposits must not be formed under any expected condition of
operation.
(iv) Ignition must be reliable and accomplished with ease over wide range
of atmospheric conditions.
(v) Temperature and velocity distribution at turbine inlet must be controlled.
(vi) The volume and weight of the combustor must be kept within reasonable limits.
(vii) Reliability and endurance should be ascertained.
THE PROCESS OF COMBUSTION IN A GAS TURBINE
Combustion of a liquid fuel involves the following:
(i) the mixing of a fine spray of fuel droplets with air,
(ii) vapourization of the droplets,
(iii) the breaking down of heavy hydrocarbons into lighter
fractions,
(iv) the intimate mixing of molecules of these hydrocarbons
with oxygen
molecules, and finally
(v) the chemical reactions themselves.
Rankine cycle
Pure substance,
A substance that has a fixed chemical composition throughout is
called a pure substance.
Example
Water, nitrogen, helium, and carbon dioxide,
A mixture of two or more phases of a pure substance is still a pure substance as long as the chemical composition
of all phases is the same
A mixture of ice and liquid water, for example, is a pure substance because both phases have the same chemical
composition.
A mixture of liquid air and gaseous air, however, is not a pure substance since the
composition of liquid air is different from the composition of gaseous air,
PHASES OF A PURE SUBSTANCE
At room temperature
copper is a solid,
mercury is a liquid, and
nitrogen is a gas.

Even though there are three principal phases—solid, liquid, and gas—a substance may have several
phases within a principal phase, each with a different molecular structure.

for example, carbon may exist as graphite or diamond in the solid phase.

Helium has two liquid phases;

iron has three solid phases.

Ice may exist at seven different phases at high pressures.

A phase is identified as having a distinct molecular arrangement that is homogeneous throughout

and separated from the others by easily identifiable boundary surfaces. The two phases of H2O in
iced water represent a good example of this.
 5
2 3 4

1
5
2 3
4
1
0.5 atm
latent heat.
• It takes a large amount of energy to melt a solid or vaporize a liquid.
• The amount of energy absorbed or released during a phase-change
process is called the latent heat.
Latent heat of fusion
More specifically, the amount of energy absorbed
during melting is called the latent heat of fusion
Latent heat of vaporization
The amount of energy absorbed during vaporization is called the latent
heat of vaporization
At 1 atm pressure, the latent heat of fusion of water is 333.7
kJ/kg and the latent heat of vaporization is 2256.5 kJ/kg.
P
Energy Analysis of the Ideal Rankine Cycle

The thermal efficiency of the Rankine

cycle is determined from
The thermal efficiency of the Rankine
cycle is determined from
THE IDEAL REHEAT RANKINE CYCLE
THE IDEAL REGENERATIVE RANKINE CYCLE
THE IDEAL REHEAT RANKINE CYCLE
THE IDEAL REGENERATIVE RANKINE CYCLE
A steam power plant operates on the cycle shown in Fig. 10–5. If
the isentropic efficiency of the turbine is 87 percent and the
isentropic efficiency of the pump is 85 percent, determine (a) the
thermal efficiency of the cycle and (b) the net power output of the
plant for a mass flow rate of 15 kg/s.
Critical point
It is the point where vapor
and liquid are
indistinguishable

At Critical point, the saturated

liquid and saturated vapor states
are identical.

The critical-point properties of

water are
Pcr 22.06 MPa,
Tcr 373.95°C, and
vcr 0.003106 m3/kg.
The subscript f is used to denote properties of a saturated liquid,

The subscript g to denote the properties of saturated vapor.

Another subscript commonly used is fg, which denotes the difference between
the saturated vapor and saturated liquid values of the same property. For
example
Consider a steam power plant operating on the ideal Rankine cycle. Steam enters the turbine at 3 MPa
and 350°C and is condensed in the condenser at a pressure of 10 kPa. Determine
(a) the thermal efficiency of this power plant.
(b) the thermal efficiency if steam is superheated to 600°C instead of 350°C, and
(c) the thermal efficiency if the boiler pressure is raised to 15 MPa while the turbine inlet
temperature is maintained at 600°C.
Consider a steam power plant operating on the ideal Rankine
cycle. Steam enters the turbine at 3 MPa and 350°C and is
condensed in the condenser at a pressure of 10 kPa.
Determine (a) the thermal efficiency of this power plant.
(b)the thermal efficiency if steam is superheated to
600°C instead of 350°C, and
(c)the thermal efficiency if the boiler pressure is raised to 15
MPa while the turbine inlet temperature is maintained at
600°C.
Triple point
It is the point where ice, water and vapor coexist in
thermodynamic equilibrium

We are all familiar with two phases being in equilibrium,

but under some conditions all three phases of a pure
substance coexist in equilibrium as shown in figure.

For water,
the triple-point temperature = 0.01°C
triple-point pressure = 0.6117 kPa
Sublimation
Sublimation
Passing from the solid phase directly into the vapor
phase is called sublimation.

There are two ways a substance can pass from the solid
to vapor phase:
either it melts first into a liquid and subsequently
evaporates, or it evaporates directly without melting
first.
Phase diagram or P-T Diagram or water

Sublimation line
It separates the solid and vapor regions,

Vaporization line
It separates the liquid and vapor regions

Melting (or fusion) line

It separates the solid and liquid regions.

Triple point
The three lines meet at the triple point,
At this point all three phases coexist in equilibrium.
PROPERTY TABLES
For most substances, the relationships among thermodynamic properties are
too complex to be expressed by simple equations.

Therefore, properties are frequently presented in the form of tables.

Some thermodynamic properties can be measured easily, but others cannot and are calculated by
using the relations between them and measurable properties.

The results of these measurements and calculations are presented in tables in a convenient format.
In the following discussion, the steam tables are used to demonstrate the use of thermodynamic
property tables.
Enthalpy—A Combination Property
A person looking at the tables will notice two new properties:
enthalpy h and entropy s.

Entropy is a property associated with the second law of

thermodynamics

In the analysis of certain types of processes, particularly in

power generation and refrigeration (Fig. 3–28), we frequently
encounter the combination of properties u +Pv.
For the sake of simplicity and convenience, this combination is
defined as a new property, enthalpy, and given the symbol h:
specific enthalpy h

total enthalpy H

Both enthalpy are referred as enthalpy