Topic Area 2 - Aero/Heat Transfer; Sub-Topic 2.1: Hot Gas Path Design

The summary for the Topic Area 2 - Aero/Heat Transfer; Sub-Topic 2.1: Hot Gas Path Design grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the National Energy Technology Laboratory, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Topic Area 2 - Aero/Heat Transfer; Sub-Topic 2.1: Hot Gas Path Design: NOTE: This descriptive area provides an overview of Technical Topic Area 2: Sub-Topic 2.1: Hot Gas Path Design only. YOU MUST READ THE ENTIRE FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT DOCUMENT FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, EVALUATION CRITERIA AND INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO PREPARE AN APPLICATION UNDER Technical Sub-Topic Areas. Please scroll to the bottom of this page to access the Funding Opportunity Announcement. Topic Area 2 - Aero/Heat Transfer Low heating values typical of syngas and injection of diluents (to control combustion temperatures and therefore thermal NOx) have resulted in higher (up to 14%) mass flows through the turbine hot section of IGCC turbines than for the same model turbines operated with natural gas. This produces 20-25% higher turbine output power compared to natural gas but also tends to increase the heat transfer to the hot section vanes and blades. Where steam is used as a diluent to control NOx, the higher heat transfer properties for steam compared to air tends to additionally increase the heat load to hot section components. Accordingly, current IGCC turbines have been operated at reduced firing temperatures to maintain hot gas parts at temperatures similar to those of the same model turbines operated with natural gas. The progression from current syngas to HHC fuels produced from coal syngas along with the usual increase in turbine inlet temperature through time to increase performance (power and efficiency) will tend to produce additional heat loads and aero/cooling requirements for hot section components. Also, limited turbine operation experience and past rig tests with alternate fuels containing ash impurities have shown that corrosion and deposition can be drastically higher for increased inlet temperatures because of higher levels of molten phases in the flow stream. Although increased gas cleanup in future plants will probably significantly reduce impurities entering the turbine, current experience has shown that even highly filtered ambient air can produce significant deposition (fouling) in compressors when molten phases exist at flow path conditions. Consequently, additional research is needed to define the aero/heat transfer environments and accommodate higher heat loads under potential deposition/corrosion conditions in the hot section flow paths of turbines operating with HHC fuels derived from syngas. Sub-Topic 2.1: Hot Gas Path Design (DE-PS26-08NT00165-2A) Research is needed to identify and verify turbine flow passage features that enable cooling or aerodynamic designs that either: have performance less sensitive to surface degradation due to deposition, erosion, and corrosion, or alleviate flow path deposition, erosion, and corrosion. Approaches such as fillet size and shape, end wall contouring, and tip clearance design that are explored for less sensitivity to surface degradations should also consider effects on passage aerodynamic efficiency and/or heat load to surfaces. Approaches that are designed to lessen intensities of secondary flows in turbine airfoil passages would be beneficial in reducing the potential for end wall deposition, erosion, and corrosion due to secondary flow driven migration of gas stream particles to hub and tip regions. Although reduced secondary flows can also improve aerodynamic and cooling performance, emphasis in proposed research should evaluate and verify potential alleviation of concentration of impurities delivered to end wall regions which aggravates local degradation.