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Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

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Applied Thermal Engineering


journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/apthermeng

The tuning methodology of a GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 gas turbine combustor


Jeongseog Oh a, b, *, Minki Kim b, Youngbin Yoon b
a
b

Energy Efciency Center, Korea Institute of Energy Research, Daejeon 305-343, Republic of Korea
School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, Republic of Korea

a r t i c l e i n f o

a b s t r a c t

Article history:
Received 28 July 2011
Accepted 9 December 2011
Available online 16 December 2011

On the basis of a MARK-VI system, the tuning methodology for operation of a DLN-2.6 combustor was
studied for the maintenance of a GE 7FA e gas turbine at a Seo-Incheon combined cycle power plant.
The DLN-2.6 combustor has a high level of yellow plume (NO2 ue gas) and combustion vibration during
the start-up mode (Pout 20 w 30 and 40 w 45 MW) in comparison with the base mode
(Pout 100 w 160 MW). The objectives of the current study are to investigate one of the main factors for
this high level of yellow plume and combustion vibration during the start-up mode and to suggest the
operation strategy for the reliable working of a GE 7FA e gas turbine. After analyzing the tuning data in
a MARK-VI program, we conclude that the yellow plume is caused by the relatively rich mixture
(f w >0.5) in a PM1 nozzle at Mode 3 (Pout 20 w 30 MW). In addition, the characteristic frequency of
the combustion vibration was predominantly in the rage fchar 120 w 140 Hz, which was related to the
presence of a cold ow behavior in a PM3 nozzle at Mode 6B (Pout 40 w 45 MW).
2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords:
GE 7FAe gas turbine
DLN-2.6 combustor
MARK-VI program
Combustion vibration
Yellow plume

1. Introduction
Gas turbine engines composed of a compressor, combustor, and
turbine have been developed and used for power generation and
propulsion applications [1,2]. For stable operation and durability,
non-premixed ame has been adapted as a combustion method for
gas turbine combustors. This type of a ame, which was not premixed, was changed to a lean-premixed ame after passing though
oil shock and the increased stringency of environmental restrictions over time. The lean-premixed ame has the advantages of
more economic combustion, while emitting lower levels of air
pollution [3]. However, the trade-off between fuel economy and
low levels of thermal NOx has the problem of combustion vibration
and combustion instability is still one of key issues affecting engine
performance and maintenance. Combustion vibration is known to
be caused by coupling between fuel or air-ow uctuation and
heat-release rate in a gas turbine combustor, which is related to
strategies to reduce NOx emission [4].
The GE 7FA e is a high-performance gas turbine for a power
generation that has been developed by General Electric and has the
generating capacity (Pout) of 180 MW. This gas turbine engine is
composed of an Inlet Guide Vane (IGV) to control air-ow rate, a 15* Corresponding author. Energy Efciency Research Group, Korea Institute of
Energy Research, Building 3 Room 212, 102 Gajeong-ro Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305343, Republic of Korea. Tel.: 82 42 860 3479; fax: 82 42 860 3133.
E-mail address: jeongs5@snu.ac.kr (J. Oh).
1359-4311/$ e see front matter 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.applthermaleng.2011.12.018

stage compressor, a 14 can-type combustor, and a 3-stage turbine.


For a combined-cycle thermal power generation, the GE 7FA e gas
turbine engine operates in connection with a starting motor, heat
exchanger (HRSG; heat-recovery steam generator), and steam
turbine.
A Seo-Incheon power plant is located in the west side of Incheon
city, South Korea. This electric power plant is a subsidiary company
of KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Company) and operates 8 GE
7FA e gas turbines for a combine-cycle power generation. To
reduce maintenance costs, the company is attempting to reduce
NOx emission levels (involving a yellow plume; NO2 ue gas)
during the start-up mode and combustion vibration during the
loading mode for the GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 gas turbine combustor.
Due to the importance of the reduction of maintenance cost and
pollutant emission, many researchers have investigated the tuning
methodology or strategy of a gas turbine [5e11]. Najjar suggested
the efcient methods for energy usage by utilizing combined-cycle
gas turbine systems [5]. He carried out fundamental studies of
combined systems including the closed gas turbine cycle, the
organic Rankine cycle, repowering, integrated power and refrigeration, cryogenic power, and inlet air cooling. Kelsall and Troger
studied the control technology of combustion instability in industrial gas turbines [6]. They reported the reduction of thermoe
acoustic instability by using a damping device at a certain
frequencies as passive control methods. Afran et al. developed the
monitoring tool in a gas turbine combustor which is based on a heat
ux sensor [7]. According their conceptual explanation, they used

J. Oh et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

Nomenclature
An
c
DLN
dp
EINOx
FSRSEL
fchar
fH
fl
fmn
fm
IGV
L

nozzle neck area


speed of sound
dry low NOx
inner tube diameter of a pig tail resonator
emission index of NOx
fuel stroke reference selection
characteristic frequency in a combustor
characteristic frequency for bulk or Helmholtz mode
characteristic frequency for longitudinal or
circumferential mode
resonance frequency in a cylindrical cavity
characteristic frequency for radial or tangential mode
inlet guide vane
cylindrical tube length

a convectively cooled porous sensing element. The diagnostic


system was designed to the advantage of continuous fault detection
and prediction of ame instability in a combustion chamber. In
recent, Oh et al. reviewed the mechanism of combustion instability
in gas turbine engines and introduced the design parameters for
manufacturing a lab-scale gas turbine combustor [8e10]. And
Gobbato et al. simulated numerically to predict the internal ow
eld and temperature prole in a hydrogen fueled gas turbine
combustor. They reported that the calculated temperature prole in
a turbine inlet was useful to predict the performance of a gas
turbine [11].
In the current study, we investigated an operating strategy and
developed a tuning methodology for the GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 gas
turbine engine used for power generation at a Seo-Incheon power
plant, Incheon, South Korea. The objectives are to study the
fundamental mechanism of combustion instability and to suggest
the most effective methods for reducing the yellow plume during
start-up mode and combustion vibration during the loading mode
for a GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 gas turbine combustor.
2. Theoretical consideration
Combustion instability remains one of difcult problems to
solve, as there are many different components that can make
ames unstable. During chemical reactions in an engine system,
combustion instability is known to be caused by intrinsic instability, chamber instability, and system instability [12]. Intrinsic
instability is composed of chemical kinetic instability, hydrodynamic instability, and preferential instability; chamber instability
consists of acoustic instability, shock instability, and uid-dynamic
instability; and system instability includes feed-system instability
and exhaust-system instability. With respect to the component
causes of these three major types of instability, acoustic instability
has something to do with combustor geometry while uiddynamic instability is related to unstable ow (such as might be
caused by vortex generation near nozzles).
In the case of a gas turbine combustor, the acoustic waves
generated by unstable heat-release migrate to the combustor;
partially reected acoustic waves from the acoustic boundaries (set
by a chocking nozzle or combustor wall) then disturb the reaction
zone [13]. If the phases for heat-release and acoustic-pressure
oscillation are coupled combustion instability results [14].
Lord Rayleigh explained the occurrence of combustion instability as the excitation of tones in a Rijke tube. With the Rayleigh
criterion, the combustion instability can be explained mathematically with energy balance equations, as follows [15];

l
Ln
lp
MARK
m
n
PM
Pout
Qry
R
TTRF
V
Vp

lmn
f
v
vt

Z 
V

15

number for a longitudinal mode


nozzle neck length
tube length of a pig tail resonator
microprocessor-based gas turbine control system
number for a radial mode
number for a tangential mode
premixing nozzle
output power of a gas turbine (DWATT: Duty watt)
quaternary nozzle
cylindrical tube radius
total temperature reference at a combustor outlet
(TC)
volume of a cylindrical tube
plenum chamber volume
acoustic eigen value at radial or tangential mode
global equivalence ratio


Z
I
r$u02
g 1
0 0

$
p
$q
$dV

p0 $u0 dS F>0
$dV

2
r$c2
2$r$c2
p02

total energy Rayleigh integral lbcld

(1)

where t is the time, V is the control volume, p0 is the dynamic


pressure oscillation, r is the mean mixture density, c is the mean
speed of sound in a combustor, u0 is the velocity uctuation, q0 is the
heat-release oscillation, S is the ame surface area, and F is the
term for energy loss due to dissipation.
In Eq. (1), the total energy on the left side is balanced with the
combustion oscillation (Rayleigh integral), the loss at the acoustic
boundary (lbc), and the loss due to dissipation (ld) on the right side.
Combustion instability occurs when the combustion oscillation
energy exceeds the energy loss terms. At the beginning of the
combustion instability, the coupling between the acoustic-pressure
and the heat-release oscillation rst increases linearly, then
increases nonlinearly due to the interaction among other uctuation factors in the combustor. The pressure amplitude decreases
through a damping process if the coupling process is saturated. The
factors compromising the damping process acoustic energy dissipation, frequency transition, and heat loss to wall [16,17].
According to the n-s model on the basis of a time-lag theory
developed in the 1960s, there are several factors that cause
combustion instability. These factors can be expressed in simplied
form as a characteristic time for injection, atomization, vaporization, mixing, convection, and chemical reaction. During the
characteristic time, the ow can be affected by external sources of
perturbation sources, such as POGO instability in a liquid fuel
rocket engine. This uctuation leads to the nonuniform distribution
of reactants and results in heat-release oscillation [16,18,19].
3. Experimental methods
3.1. Dynamic pressure measurement
To measure combustion vibration, we developed a dynamic
pressure measurement device which was composed of a sampling
probe, pressure transducer (101A04, PCB Piezotronics Co., Depew,
NY, USA), a signal conditioner (482A22, PCB Piezotronics Co.), and
a data acquisition (DAQ) board (USB-6218, NI Co., Austin, TX, USA).
Fig. 1 shows the experimental setup for the measurement of
dynamic pressure. The measurement system could detect dynamic
pressure in a range of 10 w 10000 Hz by connecting with a gas
turbine combustor. The sampling tube was designed as an innite

16

J. Oh et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

Sensing resolution was 0.138 kPa and device sensitivity was


0.73 mV/kPa in measurement rage (5 V output). All the pressure
sensors were calibrated before data acquisition. To detect
characteristic frequencies in a combustor, dynamic pressure was
recorded in 10 s per condition. And each measurement was performed ve times to minimize experimental uncertainties.
3.2. Operating mode of a DLN-2.6 combustor

Fig. 1. The schematic diagram of dynamic pressure measurements.

cylindrical tube to minimize the dynamic pressure loss at a certain


frequency; this tube acts as a Helmholtz resonator [20]. The ratio of
length (lP) to inner diameter (dP) for a long-tube type of probe was
greater than lP/dP 200, providing the advantage of reduction of
wave reection and interruption. To make the size compact, the
probe end was rolled as a pig tail. In addition, the transducer was
mounted on the side of the innite tube and located as close as
possible near a combustor wall to maximize the signal intensity.
According to Rea et al. [21], because of the acoustic cavity effect, the
location of lP/dP 20 from a combustor wall is suitable for the
dynamic pressure measurement.
For the data acquisition of dynamic pressure, all the experiments were conducted in Pout 20 w 60 MW. Using the dynamic
pressure sensor resulted in the standard deviation being less than
5% and the reliability of linearity being over 95% in 0e6895 kPa.

The GE 7FA e gas turbine used at the Seo-Incheon power plant


has a dual-mode system depending on whether liqueed natural
gas (LNG) or light oil is used as fuel. The facility is controlled by
a MARK-VI as an operating system. The MARK-VI is the fourth
generation of a microprocessor-based gas turbine control system.
For power generation, the gas turbine mode changes during a mode
transfer operation from the starting mode (Mode 1) to the base
mode (Mode 6AQ) at the speed of up to 3600 rpm of a turbine shaft
rotation. During the mode transfer, the DLN-2.6 combustion system
is well-known as a dry low NOx combustor. However, the
combustor has a critical operating section with high NOx levels and
a high degree of combustion vibration. At the beginning of operation at Pout 20 w 45 MW (Mode 3), the NOx level increases, while
at Pout 40 w 45 MW (Mode 6B), the combustion vibration
increased with the increase of output power. Both problems are
minimized by optimizing the mode transfer.
The main idea of gas turbine tuning is to control the amount of
fuel and air entering the combustors. One of the tuning methods
during mode transfer is called fuel staging, which changes the
injection method and quantity by using 6 fuel nozzles in each
combustor [22]. Fig. 2 shows the strategy of fuel staging and the
process of mode transfer from Mode 3 to Mode 6AQ in a GE 7FA e
gas turbine. The burnt gas temperature was measured in a transient
piece between a combustor outlet and turbine inlet. The operating
mode is switched over when the burnt gas temperature approaches
a reset value as per the MARK-VI control logic.
Fig. 3 shows the projection drawing of a nozzle assembly
composed of an end cover, nozzle mount, and nozzles. The nozzle
has a plane orice-type hole in a swirl vane and on the top of the

Fig. 2. The sequence of a GE 7FA e gas turbine mode transfer from an initiation to full load operation; setup from a Seo-Incheon combined-cycle power plant [15].

J. Oh et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

nozzle. The choke orice hole on nozzle blades acts as an injector


and acoustic barrier that prevents both the ow-oscillation effect
on fuel injection and distribution in delivery lines and external
disturbances from a reaction zone. In comparison with a previous
nozzle in a DLN-2.0 combustor, the nozzle in a DLN-2.6 has vanes
on each nozzle blade that act as a ame holder. Due to this vane, the
ame stabilization of a gas turbine combustor became strengthened. In addition, the schematic of a DLN-2.6 nozzle assembly
indicates the equipped nozzle location and fuel injection passage.
The compressed air was supplied to a nozzle mount, and become
partially premixed with fuel after delivery along the swirl vanes
before combustion.
3.3. MARK-VI command
The philosophy of gas turbine tuning is to control the quantity of
injected fuel and supplied air. The needed air quantity for injection
into a gas turbine inlet to generate a 60 Hz alternating current,
given a xed turbine shaft rotational velocity of 3600 rpm, depends
on air density and IGV angle. The air density is related to
a surrounding air temperature and humidity, while the IGV angle
keeps nearly constant if Pout > 20 MW for the start-up mode.
Therefore, regular or occasional gas turbine tuning is needed to
compensate the oxygen quantity, depending on the season and to
consider a higher heating value related to humidity for costeffective operation.
Fig. 4 is the cut-off prole of a GE 7FA e gas turbine, which
shows the air-ow path line. Considering the total air quantity
(QAir,total) entering the gas turbine, the incoming air of less than 10%
(QAir,cooling and sealing) is compressed and consumed for turbine
bucket cooling and blade sealing between a rotator and case wall.
This process minimizes leakage loss at each stage. The remaining
incoming air (QAir,combustor) is directed to a gas turbine combustor
for chemical reaction with LNG after passing through a 15-stage gas
turbine compressor. In the current study, we xed the IGV angle,
even though IGV is one of the tuning parameters on the control
logic of the MARK-VI program.
At the Seo-Incheon power plant considered in this investigation,
8 gas turbines are connected and matched one-to-one with 8 steam
turbines for combined-cycle thermal power generation. The power
plant gets a supply of LNG (mainly imported from Indonesia) as

Fig. 3. The projection drawing of the nozzle assembly which is composed of an end
cover, a nozzle mount, and 6 nozzles per combustor.

17

Fig. 4. The schematic diagram to illustrate the total air-ow usage in a GE 7FA e gas
turbine.

a liquid phase fuel from a Song-do LNG station near the work site.
The LNG pipeline is linked to an evaporator at a power plant site
before it is used in the gas turbine combustor. The vaporized LNG
gas is supplied along a fuel delivery line and injected through the
nozzles PM1, PM2, PM3, and Qry.
Fig. 5 shows the distribution diagram of fuel delivery lines and
the schematic of a nozzle mount cut prole. With MARK-VI control
logic, the main parameters to control the fuel quantity supplied to
a combustor are contained in the fuel stroke reference selection
(FSRSEL). The FSRSEL is the control command in the MARK-VI
control logic, and the same as the name of a fuel-valve control
module. For optimized gas turbine tuning, we varied the FSRSEL
number at each operating mode as shown in Fig. 2, thereby
controlling the fuel quantity released into the gas turbine combustor.
4. Results and discussion
4.1. Operation mode transfer
The mode transfer of a DLN-2.6 combustor is one of efcient
methods for changing the output power of a gas turbine, and is
related to the strategy of reducing thermal NOx and combustion
instability, and stabilizing ames [23]. Fuel splitting and fuel
staging are the representative techniques used in the current study.
Fuel splitting is the method through which fuel is supplied to each
nozzle (PM1, PM2, PM3, and Qry in this case); fuel staging is the
gradational control method of the total amount of fuel injection, as
indicated by the different modes (Mode 1, 2, 3, 6, 6A, 6B, and 6AQ).
Fig. 6 shows the control constant of the FSRSEL for nozzles PM1,
PM2, PM3, and Qry, with values set on the MARK-VI program. The
FSRSEL values for nozzles PM1, PM2, PM3, and Qry were varied
according to increases in the combustor outlet temperature (TTRF).
We changed the FSRSEL constant for a combustor tuning with 5
steps. Based on the normal control constant value (B; 0), the
positive value (6; 5) means the increase of the FSRSEL control
constant, while the negative value (7; 5) indicates the decrease
of the FSRSEL control constant. In Fig. 6, the variation of the control

Fig. 5. The schematic diagram of the fuel distribution in a DLN-2.6 combustor with
delivery lines for nozzles PM1, PM2, PM3, and Qry.

18

J. Oh et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

the EINOx (Emission Index of NOx) depends on the fuel mass ow


rate and the residence time for exposure to hot ow of more than
1800 K, as exposure time is proportional to the ame volume and
length [24]. From a local point of view, the thermal NOx is
a dominant contributor in a total NOx production. The rst reaction
in the Zeldovich mechanism is as follows;

O N2 /NO N2 ; N O2 /NO O

(2)

According to Turns [25], the NOx production rate is inuenced


by the local concentration of NO (SNO). This turbulent mean NO
_ ) determines the total EINOx level. Total EINOx
production rate (u
NO
production is as follows;

EINO 2p$
Fig. 6. The trend of a gas turbine operation control constants with the increase in the
output power from Pout 20e60 MW.

constant was marked as error bars with black squares. During the
tuning of a gas turbine, the total equivalence ratio kept nearly
constant in the same output power, because the variation of the
fuel mass ow rate into nozzles was compensated each other. This
sequence was programed in the MARK-VI control logic, which
controls the rotation of a turbine shaft to generate electric power.
Fig. 7 shows the fuel and air-mass ow rate into a combustor as
increasing with the increase in gas turbine output power (Pout). The
measurement uncertainty of the mass ow rate was quantitatively
estimated as 2 w 7%, which was plotted as an error bar. In general,
the tendency of the fuel mass ow rate coincides with the control
constant variation in Fig. 6. However, the air-mass ow rate kept
nearly constant because the IGV angle and turbine shaft revolution
per minute (3600 rpm) were xed.
In the current study, we changed the control constant of the
FSRSEL of PM1 in Mode 3 and PM3 in Mode 6B. As we varied the
FSRSEL values for the PM1 and PM3 nozzles, we were able to
ascertain the effective response in the total NOx level and the
pressure uctuation in a combustor. The range of variation in the
control constant was limited to a range that would be observed
during a safety operation, such as a gas turbine shut down or the
sudden increase of dynamic pressure in a combustion chamber.

ZL ZN
0

_ $r$dr$dx
u

(3)

_
u
NO r$SNO r$

Zl
SNO Z$PZ$dZ

(4)

SNO kNO $MNO $



YO 1=2
YN2
$ r$ 2
$expENO =T
MN2
MO2

(5)

Due to the increased strictness of pollutant emission regulation,


NOx emission levels continue to be a key issue. In a simple jet ame,

where L is the ame length, r is the ame radius, r is the mean


mixture density, Z is the mixture fraction, kNO is the reaction
constant of NO, Y is the partial mass fraction, M is the total mass
fraction, ENO is the activation energy of NO, and T is the local
temperature.
Fig. 8 shows the total NOx emission level as varying with the
DWATT (Pout). The NOx level becomes relatively higher at the
beginning of a gas turbine operation in Mode 3
(Pout 20 w 30 MW), even though the TTRF (TC) is low. On the
other hand, the NOx level becomes relatively lower in Mode 6B
(Pout 40 w 45 MW), even with a high TTRF. With respect to the
control constant, the NOx level increased when the control
constant increased from the negative to a positive value. This
increases in control constant determined the fuel quantity released
into nozzles PM1, PM2, PM3, and Qry. When comparing Figs. 7 and
8, it is apparent that the NOx level is inuenced by the ratio of the
fuel to air-mass ow rate (that is, the local equivalence ratio). This
trend is thought to be related to the gas turbine operation strategy
as a result of the trade-off between the NOx level and combustion
vibration. Even thought the total output power was xed, the level
of pollutant emission could be different, depending on the fuel

Fig. 7. The fuel and air-mass ow rate into each nozzle from Pout 20e60 MW.

Fig. 8. The combustion temperature and NOx emission from Pout 20e60 MW.

4.2. Pollutant emission

J. Oh et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

mass ow rate in each nozzle, as shown in Figs. 7 and 8. In a dry low


NOx gas turbine, the main parameter to control pollutant emission
is thought to be local mixture fraction and mixing in a combustor.

The pressure uctuation during chemical reactions in


a combustor is collective called combustion vibration, or alternately
combustion instability. One of components that cause combustion
instability is the resonance frequency in a combustor or in the
plenum chamber around the nozzle. Combustion instability can be
caused when the phase of heat-release is in-phase with the
dynamic pressure in a combustor. This phenomenon becomes
serious because this vibration is harmful to not only to engine
performance but also engine maintenance and operational costs. In
a gas turbine combustor for power generation, the mixture is using
lean-premixed fuel due to the desire to save fuel and to reduce the
emission of pollutants. The selection of working conditions for the
gas turbine combustor, then, must account for the trade-off
between the NOx reduction and combustion instability.
Fig. 9 shows the frequency spectrum of combustion vibration
which is measured in a GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 gas turbine combustor
during operation (and mode transfer) from Mode 3 to Mode 6AQ.
From the dynamic pressure measurement, the characteristic
frequency was fchar 140 Hz in Mode 6B with Pout 40 w 45 MW.
To analyze the frequency component and mode, we introduced the
theoretical equation for resonance frequency calculation by
considering that a GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 was a can-type combustion
system [26]. The following equation is the theoretical formula for
calculation of resonance frequency in a cylindrical cavity.

fmn

$
2p

s


lmn l1 $p2
2
R2
L

(6)

where l is the number for a longitudinal mode, m is the number for


a radial mode, n is the number for a tangential mode, lmn is the
acoustic eigen value at each mode, c is the speed of sound, R is the
tube radius, and L is the tube length.
To simplify the above equation by acoustic mode, the theoretical
equation for calculation of resonance frequency can be divided by
longitudinal mode and radial mode. The equation for longitudinal
or circumferential mode is as follows;

fl

l$c
2$L

Fig. 9. The frequency spectrum of dynamic pressure from Pout 20e60 MW.

In addition, if the longitudinal mode is small, the equation for


radial or tangential mode is as follows;

fm

4.3. Combustion vibration

(7)

19

m$c
2$R

(8)

In the case of the longitudinal and the radial mode, the


frequency results between the measurement and theoretical
calculation were not matched.
The acoustic frequency is a function of temperature, which
means that the acoustic shockwaves is inuenced by the
surrounding gas temperature. In Fig. 9, the characteristic frequency
of dynamic pressure in a DLN-2.6 combustor is kept constant with
variations in the output power of a gas turbine. This constant
frequency is evidence that the ow is not affected by combustion.
The measured frequency in fchar 140 Hz is thought to be natural
frequency of gas turbine combustors. In addition, the fuel mass ow
rate for nozzle PM3 is signicantly changed in Mode 6B
(Pout 40 w 45 MW), as shown in Fig. 7. Therefore, the pressure
uctuation may be caused by cold ow, and occur in the plenum
chamber between the compressor outlet and the combustor inlet.
The peak frequency fchar 140 Hz is therefore thought to be revealed
as a resonance frequency for the plenum chamber of nozzle PM3.
The equation for bulk or Helmholtz mode is as follows;

fH

s
c
An
$
2p
Ln $Vp

(9)

where An is the nozzle neck area, Ln is the nozzle neck length, and Vp
is the plenum chamber volume.
Hubbard and Dowling [27] used a numerical calculation to study
the acoustic resonances effect on an industrial gas turbine
combustion system. These researchers reported that the resonance
in a plenum chamber or in the delivery lines affects the local
mixture of fuel and air around nozzles. The oscillation of the local
mixture fraction inuences the turbulent burning velocity and
becomes one cause of combustion instability [28]. The plenum
resonance frequency can be reduced by a Helmholtz resonator
attached to a plenum chamber; this is a signicant factor to keep in
mind when designing a combustion system.

4.4. MARK-VI tuning


From the experimental results in Figs. 6e9, we observed the
correlations among the control constant, the fuel and air-mass ow
rate, NOx emission, and dynamic pressure. For more detailed
analysis, we calculated the global equivalence ratio (f) for each
nozzle, even though the mixture around a nozzle is under partial
premixed conditions. The equivalence ratio is the normalized
expression of the air to fuel mass ow rate ratio. In general, the
reactant attains complete combusting at a stoichiometric conditions (f 1). However, from the point of view pollutant emissions,
the thermal NOx production is maximized due to the combustion
temperature approaching adiabatic temperature [25]. In f < 1, the
ame utilizing lean-premixed fuel has the advantage of low NOx
production, and the disadvantage of conferring a potential risk for
combustion instability. At f > 1, the rich premixed-ame is available for ame stabilization, while it is disadvantageous to NOx
reduction. Therefore, an adequate trade-off must be taken into
account when selecting an operational condition on a MARK-VI
program.
Fig. 10 shows the trend curve of equivalence ratio for the PM1,
PM2, PM3, and Qry nozzles as varying with the gas turbine output
power. In cases where the control constant is positive, the equivalence ratio is higher than it is for the negative condition of the

20

J. Oh et al. / Applied Thermal Engineering 36 (2012) 14e20

Acknowledgements
This work was supported by a Korea Western Power Company
Ltd. and the Mid-career Researcher Program through a National
Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Ministry of
Education, Science, and Technology (2010-0015100) and contracted
through the Institute of Advanced Aerospace Technology at Seoul
National University.

References

Fig. 10. The tendency of the time-averaged equivalence ratio at the nozzle exit; the
negative (5), normal (0), and positive (5) control constant.

control constant due to the addition of fuel in each nozzle. The


tendency of nozzle PM1 in Mode 3 (Pout 20 w 30 MW) showed
good agreement with the NOx concentration trend, as shown in
Fig. 8. In Mode 6B (Pout 20 w 30 MW), the increased fuel mass
ow rate leads to the equivalence ratio in a PM3 nozzle with
a resultant dynamic pressure increase as shown in Fig. 9. These
trend shows that the gas turbine operation is sensitive to local
equivalence ratio or fuel mass ow rate in each nozzle. The tradeoff between pollutant emission and combustion vibration is
closely related to the operation strategy of a gas turbine.
Combustor heath monitoring suppresses the higher dynamics
pressure and prevents the early cracking of combustion parts.
Furthermore, it guarantees engine stability and improve engine
output and efciency [29]. Therefore, the continuous monitoring
and tuning is needed not only for long life expectancy, but also for
enhancement of gas turbine performance.
5. Conclusion
The operating strategy and tuning methodology were investigated in a GE 7FA e DLN-2.6 gas turbine engine for power
generation at a Seo-Incheon power plant, Incheon, South Korea.
From the result of experimental measurements, we can conclude
the following:
1. The control constant of FSRSEL nozzle PM1 in Mode 3 and
nozzle PM3 in Mode 6B was used as a gas turbine tuning
parameter. We could optimally balance NOx concentration and
dynamic pressure in a combustor by varying FSRSEL for the
PM1 and the PM3 nozzles.
2. In Mode 3 (Pout 20 w 30 MW), the NOx level became higher
(at 65 ppm) than it was in Mode 6AQ, even though the
temperature in the combustor was low. The yellow plume was
related to the ratio of fuel to air quantity in the PM 1 nozzle.
3. In Mode 6B (Pout 40 w 45 MW), pressure uctuation was
caused by the cold ow generated in the plenum chamber
between the compressor outlet and the combustor inlet. The
peak frequency of fchar 140 Hz was investigated as a plenum
resonance frequency.
4. The trend toward the equivalence ratio in the PM1 nozzle
during Mode 3 was in good agreement with the tendency
toward NOx production. The increased equivalence ratio in the
PM3 nozzle during Mode 6A was related to the increase of
dynamic pressure due to the increased rate of fuel mass ow.

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