bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Test Bench for Characterization and Design Against Steam Turbine Fouling
Authors: Girezzi Gabriele , Checcacci Damaso , Cosi Lorenzo , Maggi Andrea , Sani Alessandro , Achilli Andrea 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
The fouling phenomenon addressed in this paper is related to the deposition within steam turbines of steam impurities and to the presence of solid debris, coming from upstream plant sections, that can create solid build-ups in stationary and moving parts inside the turbine. As a consequence, fouling causes unit efficiency decline but, in severe cases, it may also lead to sticking of moving components, such as valves, that may be critical in machine control and/or safety.
Despite well-studied and well-considered in design and operation of large power utility plants, where steam quality is of primary importance for boilers, super-heaters, turbines and condensers, this subject is often overlooked in small power generation or industrial applications, where efficiency may be less critical but turbine availability is of paramount importance for plant operation (e.g. LNG plants).
The steam fouling is a subject that, despite widely studied in the past, has been quite neglected in more recent years.
This paper, with the aim of underlining the importance of fouling in the operation of turbines for industrial applications, starts with examples of field evidences of severe fouling. Then the design of a test bench for the experimental characterization of fouling rates and validation of turbine components, exposed to fouling conditions, is presented along with the description of the deposition models that were developed on the basis of the physical phenomena involved in the fouling process.
This study addresses the main deposition physical principles and their implications in the thermodynamic design of the test bench, on the basis of the specific physical properties of the impurities of interest. To better match plant real cases, the contaminants tested included those which have been usually identified within the units during maintenance activities and for which specific limits are prescribed by OEMs.
In the following section, details relevant to the main deposition mechanisms due to different geometries and flow-fields are discussed.
The results obtained are qualitatively in line with literature and internal practices, yet, through the test activities, it has been possible to establish a quantitative relationship between the concentrations of each contaminant at inlet section and the different thermodynamic conditions along the test bench, so capturing the impact of solubility changes along with the steam expansion.
High-Resolution Thermal Profiling of a Combustor in a Non-Dedicated Test Using Thermal History Coatings
Authors: Peral David , Zaid Ahmed , Benninghoven Christoph , Araguas-Rodríguez Silvia , Kluß David , Karagiannopoulos Solon , Krewinkel Robert , Feist Jörg 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
The requirement for reduced emissions and the growing demand on gas turbine efficiency are in part met through increasing firing temperatures. However, development budgets leave only limited time for dedicated thermal testing. Consequently, manufacturers are seeking novel temperature measurement technologies to validate new engine designs. This paper will demonstrate how a new temperature mapping technology can be utilized for non-dedicated (multi-cycling) testing while still delivering high-resolution temperature data in a non-dedicated test on a combustor of an industrial gas turbine.
Typically, thermocouples are used to monitor the temperature during tests, but they only provide one data point. Colour changing thermal paints are used to deliver measurements over complete surfaces, but they require dedicated testing with short-duration exposure, necessitating dismantling and re-assembling the engine for further testing.
Thermal History Coatings (THC) present an alternative solution to providing high-density temperature information. This coating permanently changes consistent with the maximum temperature of exposure during test. A laser-based instrumentation technique is then used to obtain temperatures. The maximum temperature profile of the surface can be determined through a customized calibration. Given the complex cooling system of a combustor, the high temperatures and the long-time exposure, this case offers a unique possibility for the testing of the coating under real engine conditions. The coated region covered the external surface of the can. Highly significant is the number of measurement points in excess of 7,000 (2 × 2 mm resolution, which enables advanced analysis. This provides insight into the impact of local features, e.g. the region adjacent to a cooling hole.
The temperature profile is compared to a CFD-CHT model and thermocouple measurements for the calibration of cooling pre-design methods.
Evaluation of Thermoacoustic Applications Using Waste Heat to Reduce Carbon Footprint
Authors: Spoor Philip , Prabhudharwadkar Deoras , Somu Srinath , Saxena Saumitra , Lacoste Deanna , Roberts William 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Thermoacoustics (TA) engines and refrigerators typically run on the Stirling cycle with acoustic networks and resonators replacing the physical pistons. Without moving parts, these TA machines achieve a reasonable fraction of Carnot’s efficiency. They are also scalable, from fractions of a Watt up to kW of cooling. Despite their apparent promise, TA devices are not in widespread use, because outside of a few niche applications, their advantages are not quite compelling enough to dislodge established technology.
In the present study, the authors have evaluated a selected group of applications that appear suitable for utilization of industrial waste heat using TA devices and have arrived at a ranked order. The principal thought is to appraise whether thermoacoustics can be a viable path, from both an economic and energy standpoint, for carbon mitigation in those applications. The applications considered include cryogenic carbon capture for power plant exhaust gases, waste-heat powered air conditioning/water chilling for factories and office buildings, hydrogen liquefaction, and zero-boiloff liquid hydrogen (LH2) storage. Although the criteria used for evaluating the applications are somewhat subjective, the overall approach has been consistent, with the same set of criteria applied to each of them. Thermoeconomic analysis is performed to evaluate the system viability, together with overall consideration of a thermoacoustic device’s general nature, advantages, and limitations.
Our study convincingly demonstrates that the most promising application is zero-boiloff liquid hydrogen storage, which is physically well-suited to thermoacoustic refrigeration and requires cooling at a temperature and magnitude not ideal for standard refrigeration methods. Waste-heat powered air conditioning ranks next in its potential to be a viable commercial application. The rest of the applications have been found to have relatively lower potentials to enter the existing commercial space.
Combination of Turbocharger and Industrial Technologies for the Development of an Improved Mixed-Flow Turbine Design
Authors: Franz Holger , Niewöhner Jens , Mühlenbrock Stefan 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
A new mixed-flow radial turbine design for industrial applications was developed and experimentally investigated. The presented mixed-flow turbine recovers energy in industrial processes, which have unused pressurized, hot off-gas available. The design parameter values are very similar to the ones of mixed-flow turbines for turbocharger applications. Consequently, a turbocharger design was used as starting basis. The mechanical requirements of the industrial application are less challenging for the turbine design. It was possible to extend the design space of the blades far beyond the typical radial fiber constraint, which is usually used to fulfill the mechanical restrictions. This gives more freedom for the parameters used in the blade geometry generation. The final design has an increased efficiency and operating range.
In addition to a maximized design point efficiency, a wide operating range is one of the major requirements concerning the turbine performance. During the development process of the radial turbine’s wheel, an automated optimization was used. Due to the competitive design targets, multiple objectives and constrains were formulated. To satisfy the off-design efficiency requirements, each geometry was analyzed by means of six operating points. The mechanical integrity was checked by directly coupled FE simulations. The final design is further investigated and the reasons for the gained improvements are discussed. An experimental investigation of a prototype confirmed the numerically predicted improvements. A comparison of the measurements and the numerical results are shown.
The objective of the paper is to show the possible potentials in efficiency and operating range of radial turbines with low mechanical restrictions. In many energy recovery applications, the operating conditions are well known and within clearly defined boundaries. For these applications, it is possible to engineer mixed-flow turbines primarily from the aerodynamical point of view ans secondly from the mechanical one. In the following described work, it was possible, starting from a good turbocharger design, to increase the turbine’s performance. An automatic multi-point and multi-physics optimization was set up to reach the performance improvements.
Prediction of Pressure Rise in a Gas Turbine Exhaust Duct Under Flameout Scenarios While Operating on Hydrogen and Natural Gas Blends
Authors: Ugarte Orlando , Menon Suresh , Rattigan Wayne , Winstanley Paul , Saxena Priyank , Akiki Michel , Tarver Terry 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
In recent years, there is a growing interest in blending hydrogen with natural gas fuels to produce low carbon electricity. It is important to evaluate the safety of gas turbine packages under these conditions, such as late-light off and flameout scenarios. However, the assessment of the safety risks by performing experiments in full-scale exhaust ducts is a very expensive and, potentially, risky endeavor. Computational simulations using a high fidelity CFD model provide a cost-effective way of assessing the safety risk. In this study, a computational model is implemented to perform three dimensional, compressible and unsteady simulations of reacting flows in a gas turbine exhaust duct. Computational results were validated against data obtained at the simulated conditions in a representative geometry. Due to the enormous size of the geometry, special attention was given to the discretization of the computational domain and the combustion model. Results show that CFD model predicts main features of the pressure rise driven by the combustion process. The peak pressures obtained computationally and experimentally differed in 20%. This difference increased up to 45% by reducing the preheated inflow conditions. The effects of rig geometry and flow conditions on the accuracy of the CFD model are discussed.
Temperature-Dependent Fracture Mechanics-Informed Damage Model for Ceramic Matrix Composites
Authors: Skinner Travis , Chattopadhyay Aditi 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
This work presents a temperature-dependent reformulation of a multiscale fracture mechanics-informed matrix damage model previously developed by the authors. In this paper, internal state variable theory, fracture mechanics, and temperature-dependent material properties and model parameters are implemented to account for length scale-specific ceramic matrix composite (CMC) brittle matrix damage initiation and propagation behavior for temperatures ranging from room temperature (RT) to 1200°C. A unified damage internal state variable (ISV) is introduced to capture effects of matrix porosity, which occurs as a result of material diffusion around grain boundaries, as well as matrix property degradation due to matrix crack initiation and propagation. The porosity contribution to the unified damage ISV is related to the volumetric strain, and matrix cracking effects are captured using fracture mechanics and crack growth kinetics. A combination of temperature-dependent material properties and damage model parameters are included in the model to simulate effects of temperature on the deformation and damage behavior of 2D woven C/SiC CMC material systems. Model calibration is performed using experimental data from literature for plain weave C/SiC CMC at RT, 700°C, and 1200°C to determine how damage model parameters change in this temperature range. The nonlinear, temperature-dependent predictive capabilities of the reformulated model are demonstrated for 1000°C using interpolation to obtain expected damage model parameters at this temperature and the predictions are in good agreement with experimental results at 1000°C.
Part-Load Operation of Gas Turbines Induced by Co-Gasification of Coal and Biomass in an Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle Power Plant
Authors: Ravelli Silvia 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
This study takes inspiration from a previous work focused on the simulations of the Willem-Alexander Centrale (WAC) power plant located in Buggenum (the Netherlands), based on integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) technology, under both design and off-design conditions. These latter included co-gasification of coal and biomass, in proportions of 30:70, in three different fuel mixtures. Any drop in the energy content of the coal/biomass blend, with respect to 100% coal, translated into a reduction in gas turbine (GT) firing temperature and load, according to the guidelines of WAC testing. Since the model was found to be accurate in comparison with operational data, here attention is drawn to the GT behavior. Hence part load strategies, such as fuel-only turbine inlet temperature (TIT) control and inlet guide vane (IGV) control, were investigated with the aim of maximizing the net electric efficiency (ηel) of the whole plant. This was done for different GT models from leading manufactures on a comparable size, in the range between 190–200 MW. The influence of fuel quality on overall ηel was discussed for three binary blends, over a wide range of lower heating value (LHV), while ensuring a concentration of H2 in the syngas below the limit of 30 vol%. IGV control was found to deliver the highest IGCC ηel combined with the lowest CO2 emission intensity, when compared not only to TIT control but also to turbine exhaust temperature control, which matches the spec for the selected GT engine. Thermoflex® was used to compute mass and energy balances in a steady environment thus neglecting dynamic aspects.
Numerical Investigation of Potential Cause of Instabilities in a Hydrogen Micromix Injector Array
Authors: Sun Xiaoxiao , Abbott David , Vir Singh Abhay , Gauthier Pierre , Sethi Bobby 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Hydrogen micromix combustion is a promising concept to reduce the environmental impact of both aero and land-based gas turbines by delivering carbon-free and ultra-low-NOx combustion. The high-reactivity and wide flammability limits of hydrogen in a micromix combustor can produce short and small diffusion flames at lean overall equivalence ratios.
There is limited published information on the instabilities of such hydrogen micromix combustors. Diffusion flames are less prone to flashback and autoignition problems than premixed flames as well as combustion dynamics issues. However, with the high laminar flame speed of hydrogen, lean fuel air ratio (FAR) and very compact flames, the risk of combustion dynamics for micromix flames should not be neglected. In addition, the multi-segment array arrangement of the injectors could result in both potential causes and possible solutions to the instabilities within the combustor.
This paper employs numerical simulations to investigate potential sources of instabilities in micromix flames by modelling an extended array of injectors, represented by either single or multiple injectors with appropriate boundary conditions at elevated pressure and temperature. Both RANS and LES simulations were performed and used to derive the Flame Transfer Function (FTF) of the micromix flames to inform lower order thermoacoustic modelling of micromix combustion. LES simulations indicate that the gain of the FTF is lower than predicted from the RANS simulations indicating a lower risk of high frequency thermoacoustic issues than suggested by RANS.
When LES simulations are conducted for certain representative configurations it is observed that there are persistent high-frequency instabilities due to the interaction of the flames. This phenomenon is not observed when only a single injector is modelled. LES simulations for two injectors are conducted with various geometries and radial boundary conditions to identify the cause of the instabilities. It is concluded that the observed high-frequency instabilities are related to aerodynamic jet instabilities enhanced by both aerodynamic and acoustic feedback and key geometric features affecting the occurrence of the instabilities are identified. Only transient simulations such as LES are able to capture such effects and RANS simulations typically used in early stage design will not identify this issue.
A Hybrid Adjoint Network Model for Thermoacoustic Optimization
Authors: Schäfer Fellcitas , Magri Luca , Polifke Wolfgang 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
A method is proposed that allows the computation of the continuous adjoint of a thermoacoustic network model based on the discretized direct equations. This hybrid approach exploits the self-adjoint character of the duct element, which allows all jump conditions to be derived from the direct scattering matrix. In this way, the need to derive the adjoint equations for every element of the network model is eliminated. This methodology combines the advantages of the discrete and continuous adjoint, as the accuracy of the continuous adjoint is achieved whilst maintaining the flexibility of the discrete adjoint. It is demonstrated how the obtained adjoint system may be utilized to optimize a thermoacoustic configuration by determining the optimal damper setting for an annular combustor.
Fretting Fatigue – An Integral Simulation Approach to Strengthening by Shot Peening
Authors: Gerken Patrick , Richter Christoph H. 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Fretting fatigue is a limiting factor in blade attachment design for turbomachinery. Shot peening is known to be a strength increasing measure against fatigue. It is applied not only to free surfaces of components under fatigue but also to contacting surfaces subject to fretting fatigue.
The present work examines the effect of shot peening on fretting fatigue resistance in fixtures of rotor blades. The chosen integral approach allows the consideration of shot peening and subsequent fretting loading in one simulation. Thus, the residual stresses and material strengthening as well as the surface waviness due to the shot peening process are included in the fretting fatigue simulation. To achieve reasonable computation times a 2D model, calibrated to a 3D unit cell model, is employed. A comparative study on fatigue endurance limits is presented for the cases with and without shot peening. With view to the different failure mechanisms met in these two cases, an initiation evaluation is carried out with the Sines criterion for the un-peened condition; a fracture mechanics approach is shown to be necessary for the evaluation of the shot peened condition.
Data Driven Approach to Analyzing The Impact of Power Plant Cycling on Air Preheater Degradation and Remaining Useful Life
Authors: Sharma Himanshu , Adetola Veronica , Marinovici Laurentiu , Schaef Herbert T. 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
Due to the increased penetration of renewable energy generation sources, and fluctuations of the oil and gas prices, modern coal burning power plants deal with increased variability in the demand for power generation. These varying demands result in their intermittent under-capacity operation (cycling). Periodical ramping down and back up to follow the daily power demands causes damages to the plant components reducing its operational life. In this paper we analyze the impact of cycling on a rotary Ljungstrom air preheater (APH) unit installed at a coal fire power plant in the US. An inefficient air preheater can significantly impact boiler performance. Due to the repeated boiler’s hot-cold start, the APH experiences fluctuating operating conditions that result in accelerated degradation mechanisms, such as dew-point corrosion, fouling/deposition plugging, and air heater leakage. The analysis in this paper utilizes field data related to APH basket replacement, and the number of cycles experienced by the boiler to model the life expectancy of the baskets. The data-driven model enables preventive maintenance strategies for the APH by predicting how long the APH baskets will last in a probabilistic sense. The analysis showed that an increase in cycling for a fixed operation time can reduce the APH basket remaining useful life by about 30%.
Design, Optimization and Experimental Verification of a Metal Rubber Isolator for Momentum Wheels
Authors: Ma Yanhong , Tang Xiangxin , Hong Jie 
Published: September 2021

Abstract
The inertial actuator, such as momentum wheels, is the key mechanical component of spacecraft for attitude stability and accuracy maintenance. However, the inertial actuators are under excessive vibration during the rocket launch phase. In order to prevent the inertial actuators from structural damage and equipment failure, isolating vibration from the base must be considered.
Metal rubber (MR) is a kind of porous functional damping material, manufactured through the process of entangling, stretching, weaving and molding of metallic wires. With its excellent mechanical properties of high damping, designable stiffness and environmental adaptability, MR is widely used in the area of aerospace and aviation for vibration isolation.
To this end, a method to design and optimize a MR isolator for momentum wheels is developed. The MR isolator consists of a transverse groove spring and MR in parallel. A FEM model coupling the transverse groove spring and the simplified momentum wheel is established to assist in the optimization of the configuration of the spring, and the goal is to minimize the frequency bandwidth of the first six modes. The influence of the parameters on the frequency of the first six modes is also discussed. The MR is then designed to provide damping and additional stiffness. Finally, the performance of the MR isolator is analyzed by simulation and verified through experiments.