The subject matter disclosed herein relates to power generation systems, and, more particularly, to a fuel gas compressor system.
Syngas fuel is widely used for generation power plants with gas turbines systems. For example, the gas turbine system may include one or more combustors, which may combust the fuel to produce hot combustion gases. The resulting hot combustion gases may then be used to drive one or more turbines. Generally, the fuel supplied to the combustor of the gas turbine system is supplied at an elevated pressure. However, it may be difficult to sufficiently pressurize the fuel during startup operation and to operate with high efficiency.
Certain embodiments commensurate in scope with the originally claimed invention are summarized below. These embodiments are not intended to limit the scope of the claimed invention, but rather these embodiments are intended only to provide a brief summary of possible forms of the invention. Indeed, the invention may encompass a variety of forms that may be similar to or different from the embodiments set forth below.
In a first embodiment, a system includes a fuel supply system having a first fuel gas compressor coupled to a compressor shaft and configured to pressurize a fuel for a gas turbine system. The fuel supply system includes a first and second clutches. The first clutch is configured to selectively engage the compressor shaft segment to a motor shaft of a motor. The second clutch is configured to selectively engage the compressor shaft to a turbine shaft of the gas turbine system.
In a second embodiment, a method includes engaging a first clutch to couple a compressor shaft of a first fuel gas compressor to a motor shaft of a motor. The first fuel gas compressor is driven using the motor in order to pressurize a fuel. The first clutch is disengaged to decouple the fuel compressor shaft from the motor shaft. A second clutch is engaged to couple the compressor shaft to a turbine shaft of a gas turbine system. The first fuel gas compressor is driven using a turbine of the gas turbine system to pressurize the fuel.
In a third embodiment, a system includes a controller configured to control compression of a fuel for a gas turbine system, wherein the controller is configured to selectively engage a first clutch or a second clutch to drive a fuel gas compressor using a respective motor shaft or turbine shaft.
These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood when the following detailed description is read with reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:
One or more specific embodiments of the present invention will be described below. In an effort to provide a concise description of these embodiments, all features of an actual implementation may not be described in the specification. It should be appreciated that in the development of any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill having the benefit of this disclosure.
When introducing elements of various embodiments of the present invention, the articles “a,” “an,” “the,” and “said” are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are intended to be inclusive and mean that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements.
The present disclosure is directed to systems and methods to pressurize a fuel for a gas turbine system. During normal operation, certain gas turbines combust a mixture of oxidant (e.g., air, oxygen, or oxygen-enriched air) and fuel gas (i.e., vapor-phase fuel) into combustion products. The combustion products force blades of a turbine to rotate, thereby driving a turbine shaft into rotation. The rotating turbine shaft drives certain components of the gas turbine system, such as one or more fuel gas compressors that pressurize the fuel gas for the gas turbine. During normal operation, the rotating speed of the turbine shaft enables to the fuel gas compressors to sufficiently pressurize the fuel gas for delivery to the gas turbine. However, during start-up of the gas turbine, the rotating speed of the turbine shaft may be too low to adequately compress the fuel gas. In certain embodiments, liquid fuels are routed to the gas turbine during initial stages of the startup process, and fuel gases are introduced once the speed of the turbine shaft is sufficient. Unfortunately, liquid fuel-based startups may be difficult and relatively expensive.
In order to use fuel gas throughout the startup process, a motor (e.g., an electric motor) may be used to drive the fuel gas compressor when the rotating speed of the turbine shaft is low. Once the speed of the turbine shaft is sufficiently high to pressurize the fuel gas, the fuel gas compressor may be driven by the turbine shaft. To this end, a clutch is disposed along the turbine shaft in order to selectively couple the fuel gas compressor to the motor or to the turbine shaft.
Turning now to the figures,
The combustor 14 ignites a mixture of the air 18 and the fuel 22 into hot combustion gases. These combustion gases flow into the turbine 16 and force turbine blades 32 to rotate, thereby driving a shaft 34 (e.g., turbine shaft) into rotation. The rotation of the shaft 34 provides energy for the compressor 12 to pressurize the air 18. More specifically, the shaft 34 rotates compressor blades 36 attached to the shaft 34 within the compressor 12, thereby pressurizing the air 18. In addition, the rotating shaft 34 may rotate or drive a load 38, such as an electrical generator or any device capable of utilizing the mechanical energy of the shaft 34. After the turbine 16 extracts useful work from the combustion products, the combustion products are routed to a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) 39. The HRSG 39 may, for example, recover waste heat from the combustion products to produce steam, which may be further used to drive a steam turbine.
During normal operation (e.g., steady-state or full-load operation) of the gas turbine system 10, the rotating shaft 34 may also be used to drive the fuel gas compressor 28. For example, the fuel gas compressor 28 receives the fuel 22 from a fuel supply 40, as illustrated. The fuel 22 may enter the fuel gas compressor 28 through a plurality of inlet guide vanes (IGVs) 42, which may be used to control a flow rate of the fuel 22. More specifically, the pitch of the IGVs 42 may be varied, thereby throttling the inlet flow of the fuel 22 into the fuel gas compressor 28. Within the fuel gas compressor 28, the rotation of compressor blades 44 coupled to a compressor shaft 46 pressurizes the fuel 22 for delivery to the combustor 14.
During normal operation (e.g., steady-state operation), the compressor shaft 46 may be coupled to and driven by the turbine shaft 34 via a clutch 48. Thus, the clutch 48 enables a transfer of power from the turbine 16 to the fuel gas compressor 28 (e.g., from the turbine shaft 34 to the compressor shaft 46). As will be appreciated, the clutch 48 may be disengaged during certain operating periods when it may be advantageous to drive the compressor shaft 46 with power from other sources. For example, during start-up or transient periods of operation, the speed of the rotating shaft 34 may be insufficient to drive the compressor shaft 46 of the fuel gas compressor 28. Sufficient power (e.g., rotational motion) may be provided by a motor shaft 50 of the motor 30. Because the operation of the motor 30 is independent of the operation of the gas turbine system 10, the motor 30 may be used to drive the fuel gas compressor 28 when the gas turbine system 10 is in a transient or start-up state. As shown, the compressor shaft 46 may be coupled to and driven by the motor shaft 50 via a clutch 52. In certain embodiments, the compressor shaft 46, the motor shaft 50, and the turbine shaft 34 may be coaxial.
A controller 54 is communicatively coupled to the turbine 16, the fuel gas compressor 28, the inlet guide vanes 42, the motor 30, and the clutches 48 and 52. As described further below, the controller 54 executes instructions in order to engage or disengage each clutch 48 and 52 based on the operating mode of the gas turbine system 10. For example, a low speed of the turbine shaft 34 may be indicative of a start-up mode. The controller 54 may execute instructions to drive the fuel gas compressor 28 using the motor 30 by, for example, disengaging the clutch 48 and engaging the clutch 52 to couple the compressor shaft 46 to the motor shaft 50.
It should be noted that the fuel supply system 24 may include multiple fuel gas compressors. For example, the fuel 22 may be compressed to an intermediate pressure by a first compressor and subsequently compressed to a higher pressure using a second fuel gas compressor. Multiple stages of compression may increase the pressure of the fuel 22 as well as the efficiency of the fuel supply system 24. Thus, certain embodiments of the fuel supply system 24 may include 1, 2, 3, 4, or more fuel gas compressors 28 with associated compressor shafts and clutches, as will be discussed further below with respect to
Turning back now to
A control valve 80 is disposed between the compressors 60 and 62. Depending on the operating mode of the combustor 14, it may be desirable to increase or decrease the flow of the fuel 22. For example, during start-up operation, the flow of fuel 22 is gradually increased as the gas turbine system 10 starts up. During turndown operation, the flow of the fuel 22 may be gradually decreased. Even during normal operation, the flow rate of the fuel 22 may be adjusted slightly in order to maintain stable operating conditions within the combustor 14. Thus, the control valve 80 may be throttled as desired in order to adjust the flow rate of the fuel 22. In certain embodiments, the control valve 80 may be adjusted by the controller 54.
As discussed above, the fuel supply system 24 includes one or more clutches 26 that enable the compressors 60 and 62 to be driven by the motor 30 or the turbine 16 (shown in
A gearbox 82 is coupled to the compressor shaft 46. The gearbox 82 includes one or more gears and/or gear trains that enable the compressor shaft 46, the turbine shaft 34, and the motor shaft 50 to rotate at different speeds. Depending on the design of the gearbox 82, a ratio of shaft speeds between the driving shaft (e.g., the turbine shaft 34 or the motor shaft 50) and the driven shaft (e.g., the compressor shaft 46) may be between approximately 10:1 to 1:10, 5:1 to 1:5, 2:1 to 1:2, and all subranges therebetween. In addition, the gear ratio may be selected based on the operating condition of the gas turbine system 10. For example, a lower gear ratio may be desirable during normal operation, in order to improve the efficiency of the fuel supply system 24. However, a higher gear ratio may be more efficient during startup, when the speeds of the shafts 34, 46, and 50 are generally lower. Certain embodiments of the fuel supply system 24 may not include the gearbox 82, whereas others may include 1, 2, 3, 4, or more gearboxes 82.
As noted earlier, the controller 54 controls the position of the clutches 48 and 52, which determines whether the compressor shaft 46 is driven by the turbine shaft 34 or the motor shaft 50. To this end, the controller 54 includes a processor 84 and memory 86 to execute instructions to control the clutches 48 and 52. These instructions may be encoded in software programs that may be executed by the processor 84. Further, the instructions may be stored in a tangible, non-transitory, computer-readable medium, such as the memory 86. The memory 86 may include, for example, random-access memory, read-only memory, hard drives, and the like.
The controller 54 is communicatively coupled to each of the compressors 60 and 62, the clutches 48 and 52, the control valve 80, and sensors 88 and 90. The sensors 88 and 90 detect one or more operating conditions associated with the respective stages of compression 56 and 58. For example, the sensors 88 and 90 may detect a flow rate of the fuel 22, a pressure of the fuel 22, a temperature of the fuel 22, a compressor speed, vibration, and the like. The controller 54 may adjust the position of the clutches 48 and 52 based on the operating conditions detected by the sensors 88 and 90.
In one embodiment, the sensors 88 and 90 detect compressor speeds of the respective compressors 60 and 62 as indications of the operating mode of the gas turbine system 10. For example, when the speed of the turbine shaft 34 is less than a threshold (e.g., approximately 60, 50, or 40 percent of the rated speed), the controller 54 may determine that the gas turbine system 10 is in a start-up or turndown mode. In such circumstances, it may be efficient to drive the HP compressor 62 using the motor 30 rather than the turbine shaft 34. Accordingly, the controller 54 disengages the clutch 48 and engages the clutch 52. As a result, the LP compressor 60 is coupled to and driven by the turbine shaft 34, whereas the HP compressor 62 is coupled to and driven by the motor shaft 50. This configuration enables the fuel 22 to be adequately pressurized for delivery to the combustor 14, even though the speed of the turbine shaft 34 is relatively low.
When the speed of the turbine shaft 34 increases above a threshold (e.g., approximately 40, 50, or 60 percent of the rated speed), it may be more efficient to drive the compressor shaft 46 using the turbine shaft 34 rather than the motor shaft 50. To this end, the controller 54 engages the clutch 48 and disengages the clutch 52. As a result, both of the compressors 60 and 62 are coupled to and driven by the turbine shaft 34. In certain embodiments, the threshold compressor speeds may be different. For example, the controller 54 may engage or disengage the clutches 48 and 52 when the speed of the turbine shaft is between approximately 10 to 90, 20 to 80, or 30 to 70 percent of the rated speed. Additionally or alternatively, the controller 54 may control the clutches 48 and 52 based on other operating conditions, such as pressures, flows, temperatures, and the like. For example, in response to an alarm setpoint, the controller 54 may disengage both clutches 48 and 52 to decrease the flow rate of the fuel 22 to the combustor 14.
As noted earlier, the gearbox 82 enables the various shafts 34, 46, and 50 to rotate with different speeds. Accordingly, when the clutches 48 and 52 are engaged, the shafts 34, 46, and 50 may continue to rotate at different speeds. However, in certain embodiments, it may be desirable for the various shafts 34, 46, and 50 to rotate with an approximately uniform speed when transitioning between the configurations of
The fuel supply system 24 includes coolers 110, separators 112, flares 114, spillback valves 116, control valves 118, and sensors 120, each having similar functionality to the respective components of
Technical effects of the disclosed embodiments include fuel supply systems 24 with one or more clutches 26 that improve the operability of the gas turbine system 10. In particular, the clutches 26 enable the fuel gas compressors 28 to be driven by either the turbine 16 or the motor 30, depending on which is desired at a given time or stage of operation. Accordingly, when the speed of the turbine shaft 34 is low, such as during start-up operation of the gas turbine system 10, the clutch 26 may be engaged or disengaged to drive the fuel gas compressor 28 using the motor 30. When the speed of the turbine shaft 34 is sufficiently high, the clutch may be engaged or disengaged to drive the fuel gas compressor 28 using the turbine 16.
This written description uses examples to disclose the invention, including the best mode, and also to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the invention is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims if they have structural elements that do not differ from the literal language of the claims, or if they include equivalent structural elements with insubstantial differences from the literal language of the claims.
This application claims priority from and the benefit of PCT Application No. PCT/CN2014/079587, filed on Jun. 10, 2014, entitled “Gas Turbine System and Method,” which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/CN2014/079587 | 6/10/2014 | WO | 00 |