The Advancement of Control Technology for Power Augmentation Systems

In a day and age when technology is advancing more rapidly than ever before, the success of manufacturers and power plant owners has become increasingly reliant on facilities’ ability to execute changes quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively.

This is particularly true in the process control realm, where a significant increase in both the number of solutions available on the marketplace, along with the capabilities they offer, has provided plant operators with the opportunity to continuously optimize their operations at a relatively low cost.

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The Benefits of Combining Thermal Energy Storage with Turbine Inlet Air Chilling

In recent years, turbine inlet air chilling (TIAC) has become a highly reliable method of enhancing power plant performance by increasing the output and efficiency of combustion turbines during periods of high ambient temperature. This is typically achieved either through mechanical or absorption chilling and involves supplying chilled water (or an alternative fluid) to the heat exchanger in the filter house of the combustion turbine, thereby cooling the inlet air which raises its density and increases mass flow rate through the compressor.

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Not Just More Megawatts, Better Megawatts: The Case for Combined Cycle Output Augmentation in a Low Power Price Environment

Currently, the fragmented U.S. wholesale power markets do not face a scarcity of megawatts, as evidenced by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation’s (NERC) recent Summer Reliability Assessment and reported by Public Power Daily here.

However, this does not suggest turbine inlet air chilling (TIAC) is not a valuable resource for U.S. power generators.  TIAC quickly elevates a combined cycle unit’s productive capacity during challenging ambient conditions. The benefits of the additional megawatts produced from low-heat rate/low-cost generation resources may be evaluated on a relative (better) or absolute (more) basis.

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Supplementary “Duct” Firing for Combined Cycle Power Plants & How it Compares to TIAC

While both Supplementary or Duct Firing and Turbine Inlet Air Chilling (TIAC) are solutions to offset the megawatt output degradation of gas turbines when ambient temperatures rise, the two technologies take very different approaches.  With TIAC, the combustion gas turbine inlet air is chilled. In the case of duct firing, injection of fuel is utilized to increase the temperature and mass flow rate of the exhaust gases.

Rather than competing, the two technologies – duct firing and turbine inlet cooling – can actually complement each other when used correctly.

For maximum power output, power plant owners can utilizing the reliable power augmentation provided by TIAC, and balance the requirements with duct firing.  This scenario allows them to produce the required power at the lowest possible heat rate.

However, the combination of TIAC with Duct Firing is rare – most owners choose one solution over the other. Let’s look at how Duct Firing works.

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The Use of Turbine Inlet Air Chilling for the LNG Industry

The market for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is booming.  International LNG trade is expected to exceed $120 billion this year, making it second only to oil as the most valuable world commodity, according to Goldman Sachs Group.[1]

Demand for the product positions the United States – with its abundant natural gas — nicely to build an LNG export market. This is a big switch from a decade ago when the U.S. was experiencing tight energy supplies and thought by now it would rely on foreign LNG imports.

As a result of the industry shift, we are seeing keen market interest in development of liquefaction plants in the U.S. (and other parts of the world). The nation now has plants under construction to produce 44.1 million tons per annum (MTPA) of LNG and has proposed an additional 268 MTPA of capacity.[2]

LNG plants can cost in excess of $8 billion to site, develop and build. So efforts are underway to make these new plants as cost-effective as possible – which is one of the reasons why the LNG industry is examining Turbine Inlet Air Chilling (TIAC).

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Modes & Benefits of Coil-Based Inlet Air Conditioning for Gas Turbines

This paper was delivered at Power-Gen International, December 2015.

Power demand is often greatest at the extreme temperatures due to an inherent desire (or required need) to maintain a steady, comfortable condition. The additional energy required to offset extreme ambient conditions, whether running an air conditioner or a heater, creates additional power demand. Unfortunately, a combustion turbine performance is highly sensitive to ambient air conditions and thus extreme hot and cold temperatures negatively impacts a generating unit’s performance and operation. Coil-based inlet air-conditioning systems are designed and operated to counteract these challenging conditions and maintain a combustion turbine performance and reliability throughout the ambient temperature range.

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