Engineering Practice

Gas Turbines:
Design and Operating Considerations
Follow these engineering recommendations to improve gas turbine operation and
performance while reducing operating costs

Amin Almasi
Rotating Machinery Consultant

G
as turbines are widely
used throughout the
chemical process indus-
tries (CPI) because they
allow for high power output and
high overall efficiency at relatively
reasonable costs. In recent years, a
variety of factors and ongoing tech-
nology advances have contributed
to the continuing evolution of the
gas turbine systems. These include
the following:
t
Overall efficiency and performance
improvements
t
Capacity and power density
increases
t
The introduction of various new
technologies FIGURE 1. Shown here is an example of a modern, aero-derivative gas turbine for a CPI facility. This
t
Tighter environmental, health and 35–MW gas turbine is used for mechanical drive applications and power generation. The 90-kg/s hot
gas exhaust has a temperature of roughly 550°C, which offers a lot of opportunity for heat recovery and
safety (EHS) standards, expecta- proper heat integration with the facility. Its modular design, coupled with its split compressor casing, in-
tions and regulations place blade and vane replacement, in-place hot-section maintenance access, and external fuel nozzles,
t
Higher reliability and availability allow for easy and timely repair and refurbishment
t
More compact package design
t
Greater expectation of easy ac- decisions typically revolve around started up and shut down quickly,
cess, and ease of operation and the compressor trains, large pumps, its ability to properly cope with load
maintenance special electrical power-generator changes, and its high efficiency and
The gas turbine business is a dy- and other units for CPI plants.. variable-speed capability. All of these
namic market with new designs in- Currently, the aero-derivative gas attributes make these designs supe-
troduced during each decade. As turbine is preferred for CPI applica- rior options compared to traditional
a result, over the past 40 years, the tions over other types of gas turbines industrial, heavy-frame gas turbines.
turbine temperature capability has (such as heavy-duty frame gas tur- High efficiency is one of the impor-
advanced by approximately 10°C per bines), because it provides superior tant issues that encourages the use
year, corresponding to a roughly 1.5– performance in terms of operational of aero-derivative gas turbines. As a
2% increase in the power output (for flexibility, efficiency, compact sizes, very rough indication, the efficiency
the same gas turbine size), along with light weight and advanced packag- of aero-derivative gas turbines is
a roughly 0.4–0.6% improvement in ing concepts. An aero-derivative gas around 9–15% greater than the ef-
the simple-cycle efficiency every year turbine consists of two parts — an ficiency of comparably sized, heavy-
(on average). aircraft-derivative gas generator sec- frame gas turbines.
The packaging of a gas turbine is tion, and a free-power turbine sec- Over the lifetime of most gas tur-
the practice of combining and inte- tion. The gas generator is derived bines, the initial cost accounts for
grating machineries and components from an aircraft engine that has been about 10% of the total lifecycle cost.
for specific application and plant set- modified to burn fuels that are typi- The operating and maintenance
tings. Packaging a gas turbine typi- cally available in CPI units (such as costs account for roughly 18% of
cally involves customization of the natural gas). the total lifecycle cost. Fuel is typi-
design to create the most appropri- Valued traits of the aero-derivative cally the biggest cost factor — ac-
ate site-specific solution. Packaging gas turbine include its ability to be counting for about 72% of the total

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM JULY 2015 55

 count during the design of aging designs, and vice versa. Some
the gas turbine packaging. problems arise when there is a major
For instance, a good pack- change in the number of blades be-
aging concept can facilitate tween stages. Some specifications
maximum heat recovery allow for a slight rubbing of rotating
from the exhaust gas of blades or labyrinths in shrouded ro-
turbine section, which can tating blades. However, this is not
significantly affect the heat a popular option for CPI operators,
integration and overall effi- where excessive rubbing is always
ciency. Figures 1 and Figure considered to be unacceptable.
2 show examples of modern There is a general tendency in
turbines used in CPI plants. many gas-turbine applications for
CPI units to increase the part-load
FIGURE 2. In an example of a modern gas turbine with good Industrial turbine options operation capabilities (a wider par-
aerodynamics and advanced combustion technologies, this Industrial gas turbines range tial-load range that has performance
twin-shaft gas turbine achieves a useful power output of
around 13–14 MW. Thus, this gas turbine model has been from microturbines to much and operation quality that is compa-
used for both power generation and mechanical drive. This is larger designs. Often, micro- rable to the full-load service). For a
an example of a modern twin-shaft gas turbine that combines turbines are rated below 40 gas turbine that is used in an inte-
aero-derivative and heavy-duty technologies in one advanced kW, and have an installed grated arrangement in a CPI plant
gas turbine. The turbine permits an efficiency of about 35–
36% for operation in a simple cycle. Adding a heat-recovery
cost of nearly $1,000/kW and (that is, one that uses any form of the
system will the improve overall efficiency. This machine has provide an efficiency around heat recovery), there is a preference
an excellent power-to-weight ratio in its application range. 15–20%. By comparison, to keep more or less the same firing
(Photo used with permission from Siemens) large gas turbines (rated temperature over the entire partial-
above 25 MW) typically cost load operating range. The airflow
around $300–400/kW and and hot gas flow could be variable,
lifecycle cost— and this underscores have an efficiency above 35%. but all of these parameters should
the critical role of turbine efficiency. There are different turbine designs, be carefully evaluated, and proper
While significant strides have been including single-shaft designs (air limits should be set. Modern gas tur-
made in the energy efficiency of gas compressor and power turbine on bines are very sensitive to the back-
turbines over the past 30 years, the same shaft), twin-shaft designs pressure (from the hot exhaust-gas
these improvements can mainly (for instance, air compressor and ducts, the heat-recovery unit, the
be attributed to better integration its turbine on one shaft and power stack and others).
of the gas turbine within a modern turbine on another shaft) and multi-
CPI plant (particularly the heat re- shaft designs. Theoretically, each Gas turbine packaging
covery). Integration is the key for shaft can have either two or three Very large modern CPI plants and
gas-turbine packaging. In simple bearings. Some single-shaft designs newer generations of small-scale
terms, integration refers to the engi- have long shafts, and these may be CPI units both present unique chal-
neering practices and procedures for better supported by three bearings. lenges when it comes to the gas
matching a gas turbine in the plant, In general, the two-bearing de- turbine packaging. In recent years,
particularly with surrounding and sign is preferred in single-shaft gas there has been a renewed interest
related facilities, for better overall turbines. Three-bearing solutions in small-scale CPI plants in differ-
combined operation. can cause some problems (such ent parts of the world, particularly
Thanks to today’s modern designs, as alignment issues developed by in some developing countries. The
optimal power and heat integration the center bearing at the hot zone). packaging of a gas turbine for such
account for the majority (roughly They are the only available options smaller-scale CPI facilities must be
68%) of the overall efficiency im- for very large, single-shaft ma- done in such a way as to minimize
provements of the gas turbine pack- chines However, in CPI applications, the total equipment item count (and
ages that have been realized over the these designs tend to be more process steps) and optimize the
past three decades. Improvements in rarely used (reserved for very spe- capital costs and footprint, while at
the equipment (such as better lubri- cialized situations). the same time obtaining the highest
cation systems) and the machinery Generally speaking, the preferred possible efficiency and reliability.
designs (such as the use of better gas-turbine casing is a horizontally On the other hand, some new,
axial compressors or turbines), and split design that allows for easy ac- very large CPI plants offer other
improvements in related processes cess. Vertically split casings are used types of challenges. Over the past
(for instance, combustion processes) in high-pressure machinery designs; 40 years, in some CPI sectors, the
are responsible for around 18% and they usually offer some difficulties throughput per production train has
14%, respectively, of the overall ef- in access and maintenance. Figure multiplied by a factor of about 5 to
ficiency improvement. 3 shows an example of a modern, 10, while the overall efficiency of the
These aspects underscore the im- large gas turbine with a horizontally gas turbine packages (used in those
portance of proper power-and-heat split casing. production trains) has nearly dou-
integration in modern CPI plants. The internal design of each gas bled. At the same time, the duration
Integration must be taken into ac- turbine model can affect the pack- for construction and commissioning
56 CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM JULY 2015
is reduced, thanks to improvements sure capabilities.
in modular works and prefabrica- The fuel-treatment sys-
tion for very large and complex gas tem also plays a critical role
turbine packages. All these factors for many gas turbines, since
present some challenges for modern unwanted components in
gas turbines. the fuel stream can cause
Deep integration is a new term performance or reliability is-
used for modern gas turbines in ad- sues (such as the formation
vanced plants; it means integration of deposits or corrosion) or
and matching a gas turbine in the high emissions.
plant (surrounding and related facili- Modern gas turbines that
ties) in a much better way compared use low-NOx technologies
to older designs. For instance, such tend to be particularly sensi-
integration involves much better use tive to liquid or dirt carryover FIGURE 3. The modern, horizontally split gas turbine casing
of heat recovered from the gas tur- within the fuel gas. Thus, shown here is an example of a large and modern gas turbine.
Today’s advanced turbines are sophisticated and complex sys-
bine exhaust. The deep integration they generally require a clean tems that allow for overall efficiencies above 50% (Photo used
of power, heat and other opera- and heated fuel gas. Super- with permission from Siemens)
tional aspects, coupled with the use heating is the only certain
of modular design concepts, have method for ensuring the elimination needs to be designed to overcome
been the keys for success in mod- of any liquid carryover in fuel gases. the torque needed to start the gas
ern gas turbine packaging. Figure Generally, a well-designed fuel sys- generator section.
4 shows an example of a very large tem — one that has all of the re- In a single-shaft, gas turbine de-
gas turbine installation. The air-inlet quired separators, multiple filtration sign (including many heavy indus-
filter and the exhaust-gas stack are stages, a knockout drum, heater(s), trial machines), the total train torque
also shown. accessories, auxiliaries, instruments should be considered when sizing
and monitoring devices — is a good the starting device, as the starting
Gas-turbine fuel system investment that will provide payback device should rotate the single-shaft
If it is available in a CPI plant, natural over time by helping to ensure trou- and coupled driven machines and
gas is the best fuel option for most ble-free operation of the turbine. equipment. A speed-torque curve
gas turbines. The use of natural gas of the gas turbine (and machiner-
can reduce maintenance costs, re- Filtration at the air inlet ies coupled to it during the startup)
liability issues and emissions com- A proper filtration system for the should be respected during this siz-
pared to liquid fuels. inlet air is also important; otherwise ing and proper safety margins should
However, despite the advantage unwanted particulate matter in the be considered. The starting device is
of natural gas, about 30–40% of all inlet air can cause erosion and blade often to blame for reliability issues,
gas turbines operate on liquid fuels, contamination or fouling. The mini- inefficient sizing, low availability, and
which can vary from light liquid fuels mum requirement should be a high- so on, so be sure to give this criti-
(naphtha, kerosene, and others) to efficiency, multistage, air-filtration cal component the proper attention
heavy fuels. The fuel selection de- system to remove particles down to during the specification of any gas-
pends strongly on the CPI applica- 1 μm (or less) from the inlet air. turbine package.
tion. Heavy fuels often bring reliabil- Old-fashioned filters only remove
ity problems, higher emissions and particles above 3 μm in dia. How- Gas turbine auxiliaries
fast degradation. In some cases, a ever, in any cases, small particles Standards for gas turbines and gas
10–15% reduction in the produced (below 3 μm in dia., and even as turbine auxiliaries (such as API-616,
power has been reported for some small a 1 μm) are to blame for gas API-614, ASME and others) have
gas turbines using heavy fuels within turbine fouling and other issues, tried to note the minimum require-
a few weeks after startup. How- and such particles are often able to ments for the specified applications
ever, users should note that aero- evade capture by old-fashioned fil- in the code. The major problem is
derivative gas turbines cannot use ters. Some advanced filters are now that some useful requirements are
heavy fuels. available to remove particles down listed as optional in the gas-turbine-
The fuel — whether gas or liq- to 0.3 μm from the inlet air. related codes. As a rule-of-thumb,
uid — should be injected at a pres- users should follow all requirements
sure of about 3–5 bars above the Starting device (both mandatory and optional re-
air-compressor discharge pressure. The sizing of the starting device for quirements) for the gas turbine
The fuel compression and pumping the gas turbine is an important con- packaging. Sometimes, require-
systems — particularly the fuel-gas sideration for any gas turbine. In a ments should be specified beyond
compressor systems are important free-power turbine design (includ- the codes, to achieve a high level of
and require close attention when de- ing many aero-derivatives and some performance and reliability. Consider
signing the overall gas turbine pack- heavy-industrial type machines, the following:
aging. It is important to select the such as twin-shaft and multi-shaft t
Codes are usually updated only
right, oil-free compressor for such designs), the starting device does every 5–10 years and recent tech-
applications, with correct compres- not need to rotate all turbine shafts nologies, innovative designs, lat-
sion characteristics and proper pres- and driven equipment. Rather, it only est observations or new experi-

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM JULY 2015 57

 ences typically need several years eration. TEMA C shell-and-
to come to the attention of (and tube heat exchangers (with
be accepted by) code task-force removable bundles) are well-
team(s) and then be incorporated known for auxiliaries, includ-
into the codes ing lubrication oil skids. The
t
The teamwork that is involved oil pressure should be greater
should have representatives from than the cooling-water pres-
different groups, vendors and oth- sure, to avoid the potential
ers, with various backgrounds for water leakage into the oil
and goals, to prepare for compli- in the case of an unexpected
ance of relevant codes. Note: the problem (such as exchanger FIGURE 4. A example of a very large gas turbine installation.
main focus of the codes should tube crack or leakage). Water The air inlet filter and the exhaust gas stack are also shown.
not necessarily be the best perfor- is on the tube side and oil on
mance and reliability (for the oper- the shell side. drums, various sections and many
ators); rather, the final (or agreed- Plate-type heat exchangers are other auxiliaries (or accessories).
upon) specification should be an not popular in turbomachinery as- Typically, the hot gas exhaust
optimized set of requirements (or semblies since they might clog or from a gas turbine has ample oxy-
sometimes compromised ones). experience some other operational gen. Therefore, the gas exhaust
In other words, any user should problems. An exception is for revamp can be used in another combus-
know that some items specified in projects with limited available foot- tion process to increase its tem-
codes are not necessarily the best prints; but tubular heat exchangers perature for a better heat recovery
possible technology for operators may be used for small packages. arrangement. The supplementary
and often it is necessary to specify firing at the waste-heat recovery
some requirements in addition to- Gas turbine heat recovery unit could be a feasible option to
the codes For some gas-turbine packages, achieve the maximum possible effi-
There is always a great concern heat recovery is the source of many ciency. This design is also becom-
about the lubrication oil system (gen- problems and issues. One reason ing popular in modern CPI plants,
erally called “the oil system”). A design may be that in spite of the gas tur- which require a better operationall
that involves having the primary oil bine, which is offered in standard flexibility since, theoretically, sup-
pump driven by the main machinery models, the heat-recovery unit is plementary firing can offer some
shaft is usually not acceptable for any usually a custom-designed system. operational flexibility.
high-speed turbomachinery (including The performance and reliability of However, this complex design
the gas turbine). The high speed itself the gas turbine package depend (supplementary firing and HRSG)
is one reason; it is not usually matched on the heat-recovery system. The requires special care. For example,
with lower speeds of oil pumps. The design, fabrication and operation the transfer duct (between the gas
use of a gear unit to connect the oil of such a heat-recovery system turbine exhaust and the waste-heat
pump to the turbomachinery shaft is as an integrated part of the overall recovery unit) should have a suf-
often a poor solution, because an oil gas turbine package system. In the ficient length to ensure complete
pump failure can mandate shutdown most common form, the exhaust combustion and avoid direct flame
of the turbomachinery unit. gases from the gas turbine enter contact on the heat-transfer sur-
Horizontal oil pumps are always the heat recovery steam-generating faces. On the other hand, the duct
preferred. The oil pump selection (HRSG) system, where the energy system length should be optimized,
and packaging should be in a way from the hot exhaust is used to heat in order to limit the heat loss, man-
to minimize maintenance and opera- the water to produce steam. ufacturing costs and overall system
tion efforts. For instance, oil-suction Many HRSGs are designed in footprint.
pipes should be arranged to pro- different modules and sections. In
vide positive suction head on the many cases, each HRSG has a pre- Control and monitoring
oil pumps, with a slope toward the heater, an economizer and a super- The temperature of the turbine blade
pump. Cast-iron casing is usually heater. The steam for modern steam metal must be monitored to ensure
not desirable for any equipment (or turbines is usually superheated. reliability of the first row of turbine
machinery) in the machinery pack- Both vertical and horizontal HRSGs blades and other hot sections. The
age or auxiliary systems, because it are commonly employed. use of pyrometers to sense the blade
is a brittle material and can fail very By contrast, once-through steam metal’s temperature is offered for
quickly in emergency situations, par- generators (OTSGs) are used in some gas-turbine packages for CPI
ticularly in the event of fire. some applications because they are units. Very high pressures in air-axial
Generally, an auxiliary skid arrange- cheaper, simpler and more compact compressors of gas turbines have
ment should be optimized to balance compared to other HRSG designs. caused these compressors to have
performance objectives and reliability OTSG systems do not have defined a very narrow operating range be-
goals, while maintaining easy access economizer, evaporator or super- tween the surge and the choke. The
and maintenance requirements, and heater sections. In simple terms, axial compressors of gas turbines
compact design. Heat exchangers in an OTSG system, water enters tend to be very sensitive to dirt and
are needed to cool the lubrication at one end and steam leaves at fouling, and even slight modifications
oil, which is often heated during op- the other end. There is no need for to the blade (vane) angle.
58 CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM JULY 2015
 Dynamic pressure transducers that ture applications, the oxidation rate ysis using a bichromatic microscope.
detect the surge and other flow insta- is usually doubled for every 10°C in- The particles are then examined and
bilities in the air axial-compressor are crease in the oil temperature. classified by size, shape, concentra-
an important element for some gas Lubrication oils can also fail be- tion and metallurgy. The information
turbine packages. The stability in the cause of contamination. A good carried by the wear particles is valu-
combustion process could also be solution is to use the correct sealing able for the identification of the wear
monitored by the same method. The system to eliminate the potential for mode and mechanism.
application of dynamic pressure trans- gas leakage to the oil. Analytical ferrography can be par-
ducers in the combustion sections, Any additives used in a gas-turbine ticularly effective in the detection of
especially in modern, low-NOx com- lubrication oil should extensively be soft contaminants and in the identi-
bustors, could ensure that each com- verified and tested. The oil and ad- fication of their nature. This can be
bustor section is burning evenly with- ditives must be carefully formulated a powerful technique to identify the
out any issue, problem or instability. in a tightly controlled process. The oil-related issues of the machinery,
key to an excellent lubrication oil is root-cause analysis, the morphology
Lubrication oil for gas turbine to retain the desired properties. Suc- and characteristics of the insoluble
The lubrication oils for gas turbine cessful (long-term satisfactory op- particles, and the progressive mech-
are subject to a wide range of harsh eration) references are important. In anism of varnish formation. While the
conditions, such as extreme heat, other words, it is important to check ferrography test procedure is lengthy
high contamination, inadvertent mix- if proposed lubrication oil were used and requires highly skilled analysts,
ing with different substances and in similar gas turbines in more or less the benefits can outweigh the costs.
more. These effects can degrade the the same conditions successfully. This is a recommended test if any
integrity of the oil base stock and de-
plete any additives, causing irrevers-
ible molecular changes and hence
Integration is the key for gas-turbine packaging.
changes in the lubrication oils.
Most gas turbine trains use a rela- The lubrication oil in most modern abnormal wear is observed.
tively low-viscosity oil (compared to aero-derivative gas turbines and ad- Fourier transform infrared (FTIR)
that used by gear units and recipro- vanced high-efficiency gas turbines analysis can be useful to measure
cating machines), for example, ISO could be in contact with metal sur- organic molecular components,
viscosity grade (VG) 46. faces above 200°C. These high tem- monitor additive depletion and iden-
A lubrication oil with optimum vis- peratures, and the possibility of cycli- tify organic degradation byproducts
cosity reduces the power waste for cal operation, can result in significant (oxidation). FTIR is the preferred
operation because frictional power thermal and oxidative effects on the method of IR spectroscopy. In IR
involved in bearings and other lubri- oil. For these applications, sophisti- spectroscopy, IR radiation is passed
cated parts would be reduced. The cated synthetic oils are the only avail- through a sample. Some of the IR
usual expectation by users is rela- able options. Mineral oils used in old- radiation is absorbed by the sample
tively low makeup oil for the gas tur- fashioned gas turbines are not usually and some of it is passed through
bine lubrication oil (say on average suitable for modern gas turbines. (transmitted). The resulting spectrum
below 5–10% oil added per year). Instead of degradation occurring in represents the molecular absorption
This low makeup requirement is a an orderly, predictable fashion, many and transmission, creating a molec-
factor that encourages high-qual- lubricants that are used in modern ular fingerprint of the sample. Like a
ity, long-life lubricant applications gas turbines fail rapidly. And some of fingerprint, no two unique molecular
for a gas turbine. Usually, the oil in the standard oil-analysis tests offer structures produce the same infra-
a gas turbine train (without a gear little indications as the gas turbine lu- red spectrum. Q
unit), if selected properly and main- bricant starts to degrade. Thus, it is Edited by Suzanne Shelley
tained correctly, does not need to be critical to study previous lubrication
drained and replaced with much fre- oil behaviors in similar gas turbines Author
quency and thus could last for a rela- and operating situations. Amin Almasi is a rotating-equip-
tively long time. It is hard to note an “Ferrography” is a technique that ment consultant in Australia
(Email: [email protected]).
expected life, but it could be a matter provides valuable information about He previously worked at Worley
of years. The gas turbine oils should wear evolution in machinery through Parsons Services Pty Ltd. (Bris-
be well-maintained (such as avoiding analysis of a representative lubrica- bane, Australia), Technicas Reuni-
possible contamination by water and tion oil sample. In an analytical fer- das (Madrid, Spain) and Fluor
Corp. (various offices). He holds a
other fluids, using good seals, and so rography study, the solid debris chartered professional engineer
on) to extend their service life and si- suspended in a lubricant sample license from Engineers Australia
multaneously provide the maximum is separated. The solids are then (MIEAust CPEng – Mechanical), a chartered engineer
certificate from IMechE (CEng MIMechE), RPEQ (regis-
machinery performance. passed across a bipolar magnetic tered professional engineer in Queensland) and he also
Generally, for gas turbines operat- field. After that, a solvent “wash” holds M.S. and B.S. degrees in mechanical engineering.
ing at high temperatures, oxidation cycle removes any lubricant remain- He specializes in rotating machines, including centrifu-
gal, screw and reciprocating compressors, gas and
of lubrication oil could be an impor- ing on the substrate, resulting in a steam turbines, pumps, condition monitoring and reli-
tant issue. High temperature directly “ferrogram” where the particles are ability. Almasi is an active member of Engineers Austra-
affects the oxidation. Heat also re- all arranged by size and permanently lia, IMechE, ASME, Vibration Institute, SPE, IEEE, and
duces the oil life. For high-tempera- attached to the slide for optical anal- IDGTE. He has authored more than 60 papers and arti-
cles dealing with rotating machines.

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM JULY 2015 59