Performance characteristics of modified gas turbine cycles with steam injection after combustion exit

Gas turbine cycle technologies will play a major role in future power generation, and several well-justified concepts have been developed or are the subject of major feasibility studies. In the present work, gas turbine cycles are modified with steam injection between the combustion chamber exit and the gas turbine inlet. Heat recovery steam generators, utilizing the exhaust gases, provide these cycles with the injected steam at saturated vapor. The thermodynamic characteristics of the various cycles are considered in order to establish their relative importance to future power generation markets. The irreversibility of the different composing units of the cycles and the variation of gas properties due to steam injection as well as changes in the interrelation of component performance parameters are taken into account. The isentropic temperature ratio and maximum to minimum cycle temperature ratio are varied over some ranges that slightly exceed their practically acceptable bounds in order to comprehensively investigate their effects on cycle characteristics. The performance characteristics for various modified and regeneration cycles are presented at the same values of the operating parameters. The present modified cycles with steam injected cycles achieve an additional power output and higher efficiencies, resulting in a lower specific cost. At the chosen values of the operating parameters, the enhancement achieved in the overall efficiency for the simple, reheat (with steam injection at high and low pressures) and partial oxidation (with steam injection at high and low pressures) gas turbine cycles are of about 20-30%, 120-200%, 10-12%, 120-260% and 20%, respectively. The present modified cycles technique can be considered among the possible ways to improve the performance of gas turbine cycles-based power plants at feasible costs. This concept can be used for similar core engines. Copyright (c) 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.