JP2003526035A - Progressive technology, contaminant-free and highly efficient industrial power generation system - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] Low pollutant gas generators have a source of a mixture of oxygen-rich gas and fuel, this oxygen-rich gas being less nitrogen in the air and more in the air Contains oxygen. The mixture flows into the combustion chamber and is ignited. More efficient combustion is achieved by mixing oxygen and fuel before entering the combustion chamber. Water is used as a heat absorbing medium. Mainstream gas from the combustion chamber is expanded by passing through the first stage turbine and reheated prior to expansion by passing through the second stage turbine. Heat from the mainstream gas is transferred to an auxiliary fluid stream consisting of water, which is expanded as steam passes through the auxiliary turbine. With the system of the present invention, an efficiency of 65% or more is obtained. Furthermore, little or no contaminants are emitted from this system. Furthermore, it is more compact than conventional industrial power generation systems with equivalent output.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

Background of the Invention Air pollution, commonly referred to as "smog," is a serious problem, especially in large cities. Smog contains sulfur dioxide and nitric oxide which form brown clouds in the atmosphere. Most smog comes from cars, trucks, and buses, but other sources include, for example, the power generation industry. It burns coal, natural gas, and / or oil to obtain electricity.

For many years steam and gas turbines have been used for power generation.
In the old days, coal, wood, kerosene or other petroleum products were burned under moderate high pressure (
For example, 500 to 1000 PSIA (about 3445 to 6890 kPaA) was used to obtain heat for converting water into steam. The steam thus obtained was sent to a turbine stage or a series of turbine stages, and the thermal energy of the steam was converted into mechanical energy as the axial force of the turbine. The turbine shaft was connected to a generator, and the axial force of the turbine was converted into electric power as an alternating current. This power was converted into electrical energy used daily.

[0002] Older industrial power generation systems operated at low pressure and low temperature using roughly designed inefficient turbines. The burning of fuel relied on trial and error to stir the flame. The hot air produced by the flame was sent to a series of pipes through which water was converted to steam. The overall efficiency for producing electricity was very low (about 10% of the low heat of combustion of fuel) and the pollution degree of the surrounding environment was very high. In this era, pollution was caused by smoke and haze from the combustion process and carbon dust in the exhaust.

With the development of industrial power generation systems, smog, acid rain, greenhouse effect, etc. have become problems. A more efficient turbine, better flame control in the combustion chamber, and many heat exchange system improvements will improve overall efficiency for these power generation systems while minimizing dark cloud (unburned hydrocarbon) emissions. It helped push it up to about 30-35%. However, smog, acid rain and the greenhouse effect continue to plague existing industrial power generation systems that use fossil fuels and oxygen.

The recent development of power generation technology is to combine combined cycles to obtain electric power.
ystem). An example of a power generation system using a combined cycle is disclosed. For example, in the March-April 1984 issue of Gas Turbine World , pages 17-22, by Victor de Biasi, "A Look into Rea".
● Payoff for Combined Cycle Conversion).
Reference is made to this document in its entirety herein. The combined cycle system uses a gas turbine similar to that used in aircraft as the first stage power generator. A series of axial compressor stages raise the pressure of the incoming air to the combustion pressure in the gas generator, where it mixes with fuel and ignites. The hot gas from here is discharged to a series of turbine stages, where the thermal energy is converted into axial forces. This axial force is converted into electric power in the generator. The relatively warm gas exiting the last stage turbine is used to heat a separate steam source, which drives the steam turbine for additional power generation. From there it is called the "composite cycle". This system boosts the overall system efficiency for power generation to 45-50%. However, this system still produces smog, acid rain and the greenhouse effect.
A catalyst is used to remove sulfur from the fuel to reduce pollution and water is injected into the combustion chamber to reduce the production of nitrogen oxides. These technologies hold promise, but will not completely eliminate pollutants. Therefore, there is a need for a low-pollutant industrial power generation system that is even more efficient than the above conventional techniques.

In addition to the generation of pollutants, conventional industrial power generation systems are relatively large, and systems with hundreds of megawatts or gigawatts of output occupy a fairly large lot.
For example, an unintentional shut down of an industrial power generation system can impact the quality of power provided to consumers if no other power generation system for compensation for this shutdown is integrated into the power network. Could give you. Moreover, these industrial power generation systems are too large for systems owned by small consumers such as trains and ships. Therefore, private stores, schools and accommodations are forced to rely on external power sources. These external power sources have complex distribution systems that consume large amounts of power to transmit to consumers. Moreover, consumers are forced to pay exorbitantly high prices for electricity from their external sources.

Therefore, for the present industrial power generation system, (1) low pollutants or non-pollutants,
There is a need for (2) higher efficiency, (3) compactness, (4) long life, low maintenance cost, low operating cost, and (5) shortening the time for starting and stopping.

[0007] SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention, the low contaminant industrial power generation system includes a fuel source, oxygen rich containing oxygen more in less nitrogen (e.g., nitrogen no) and in the air than in air And a gas supply source. The mixing unit is configured to receive at least oxygen-rich gas and fuel and mix them to form a mixture. In some embodiments, the oxygen-rich gas is mixed with steam before it is mixed with the fuel. The combustion chamber is selectively in communication with the mixing unit via a valve. In the combustion chamber, an igniter (igniter) is arranged so as to ignite the mixture downstream of the injector surface. In one embodiment, the system is a closed loop system that does not emit contaminants.

According to the present invention, a low pollutant industrial power generation method provides a fuel source and a source of oxygen rich gas comprising less nitrogen in air and more oxygen in air. Is included. The mixing unit receives and mixes at least oxygen-rich gas and fuel to produce a mixture. The combustion chamber wall defines a combustion chamber that receives a mixture of oxygen-rich gas and fuel from the mixing unit. An igniter in the combustion chamber ignites the mixture downstream of the injector face.

In the preferred embodiment described herein, vapor (heat absorbing medium) and oxygen rich gas (eg, substantially pure oxygen) are mixed in one chamber and introduced into the second chamber. . Fuel (eg, methane) is added and mixed in the second chamber. The uniformly mixed gas mixture is injected through the injector face into the combustion chamber where an igniter (typically not necessary) initiates combustion at the center of the injector face. The pressure of the combustion chamber is about 3300 PSIA (about 22737 kP
aA) order.

When a known mixture of air and fuel is burned, mainly inert nitrogen in the air (78% by volume in the air) serves as a heat absorption medium, and absorbs a large part of heat generated by the combustion. . This nitrogen will thus lower the combustion temperature compared to combustion when no heat absorbing medium is used. The industrial power generation system of the present invention reduces or eliminates nitrogen, which acts as a heat absorbing medium. Instead, a non-nitrogen heat absorbing medium such as water is used to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions. As a feature of the present invention, water is added in the combustion process. Moisture in an oxygen / fuel mixture is a much more effective heat absorbing medium than nitrogen in an air / fuel mixture. This is because water absorbs more heat per unit volume. Since water is a product of the combustion process, it simply needs to be circulated from the end of the power generation cycle to the combustion inlet by the method detailed below. Thus, the preferred embodiment provides an effective method of reducing or eliminating nitrogen oxides and absorbing heat of combustion. In addition, mixing the fuel and oxygen before entering the combustion chamber promotes efficient combustion, which improves the combustion efficiency of the power generation system.

The industrial gas generator is equipped with a source of liquid phase heat absorbing medium (eg, a water tank as an example, but other suitable liquids may be used). The combustion chamber wall defines the combustion chamber and has a channel that connects the water storage tank and the combustion chamber, so that water flows from the water storage tank to the combustion chamber. A liquid phase heat absorbing medium (eg, water) is injected through the channels. When the liquid-phase heat absorption medium passes through the channels, it absorbs heat from the combustion chamber through the walls of the combustion chamber. Since the heat absorbing medium evaporates before being injected into the combustion chamber, the combustion chamber wall is cooled.

The industrial gas generation method includes a step of supplying a liquid phase heat absorbing medium and a step of passing the liquid phase heat absorbing medium to the combustion chamber through a wall of the combustion chamber. It cools the walls of the combustion chamber. Typically, the liquid phase heat absorbing medium reaches the combustion chamber through channels formed in the wall of the combustion chamber. As the heat absorbing medium changes from liquid to gas as it passes through the plurality of channels, it cools the walls of the combustion chamber.

This type of cooling is called seepage cooling. Water is very effective for this purpose. This is because not only the sensible heat absorption but also the latent heat absorption can be used. Latent heat refers to the heat required to evaporate liquid phase water and / or condense saturated vapor, usually in units of BTU / pound of water (about 1.058 kJ / 4.445 N of water). For water, 900-1000 BTU (about 952-1058k) per pound (about 4.445N)
J). For heat exchange equivalent to this, a sensible heat of water requires a temperature change of 1900 ° F. Therefore, the present invention even allows the combustion temperature in the power generation system to be higher than the melting point of the combustion chamber wall material. This is because the wall is cooled below its melting point by supplying a suitable water flow through the opening in this wall into the combustion chamber.

In the present invention, the low pollutant industrial power generation system includes a gas generator. The gas generator has a combustion chamber portion configured to generate mainstream gas.
The first-stage turbine is located downstream of the combustion chamber, the reheater (reheater) is located downstream of the first-stage turbine, the second-stage turbine is located downstream of the re-heater, and the heat exchanger is the second-stage turbine. It is located downstream. The heat exchanger is configured to transfer heat from the mainstream gas to the auxiliary fluid stream. The auxiliary stage turbine receives the auxiliary fluid stream and produces additional power from the auxiliary fluid.

In one embodiment of the present invention, an industrial power generation method comprises a step of burning gas in a combustion chamber to generate a mainstream gas, and a step of expanding mainstream gas from the combustion chamber through a first stage turbine, Reheating the mainstream gas from the first-stage turbine, the process of expanding the reheated mainstream gas through the second-stage turbine, and transferring the heat of the mainstream gas from the second-stage turbine to the auxiliary fluid flow The process and the step of expanding the auxiliary fluid stream in the auxiliary stage turbine. Electricity is generated in each stage, which improves the efficiency of the entire power generation system as compared to the prior art.

Turbines convert heat into mechanical energy to drive generators. The turbines in each stage reduce the gas temperature as the heat content of the gas decreases incrementally. As a result, the energy that can be extracted from each of the subsequent turbines is reduced. The energy of gas is increased by interposing a reheater between the stages. Thereby,
More total power can be obtained in the latter stage. In the preferred embodiment, reheat is accomplished by adding a small amount of fuel to the oxygen rich mainstream gas.
Since the gas addition temperature is lower than the actual gas temperature in the reheater, combustion occurs instantly without the need for an external ignition source. Since the pressure ratio as it passes through each turbine stage is essentially constant, the internal power drawn at each stage is essentially the same if the inlet pressure is the same. On the other hand, without the reheater, the energy extracted at each stage is continuously reduced, and the overall efficiency is low.

Auxiliary steam power generation converts most of the heat remaining in the mainstream gas into electricity after most of the pressure has been consumed by the first and second stage turbines. Mainstream gas is returned to its original ambient conditions through heat exchange with steam in a steam power system. Using the heat and pressure of the mainstream gas improves the overall efficiency of the power generation system.

The power to drive all pumps is negligible compared to the total output of the system. According to the present invention, the system will be configured with a wide power output range. A typical system according to the invention has, for example, a total output of 1
It produces 2.56 MW, but the power used by the pump is about 195
Since it is kW, the net power output is, for example, 12.36 MW. The cycle efficiency of the preferred embodiment is 68.7% initially calculated without taking into account the power required to separate oxygen from air. The power required to separate oxygen from air is reduced to about 65%. The efficiency of this preferred embodiment is higher than that of existing systems, even though it does not emit pollutants. By increasing the turbine inlet temperature by cooling the turbine and using high temperature ceramics for the turbine blade, the performance can be further enhanced.

The spirit of the invention is explained in more detail by the claims and the following detailed description.

According to detailed description of the invention The invention efficiently generates power by not compact system of causing smog to the atmosphere. A general description of the system of the present invention will first be given by the following detailed description with reference to the figures relating to each subsystem.

A power generation system aiming at solving the problem of smog was introduced on January 20, 1998.
It is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,709,077, issued date. Its title is "Low Pollution Hydrogen Gas Generator (hereinafter Beichel Patent)", the entire content of this application is incorporated herein by reference. In the Bachel patent, high pressure liquid oxygen and fuel are sent to the combustion chamber of a gas generator for combustion. After combustion, a mainstream of gas (mainstream gas) passes through a turbine that drives a generator with thermal energy. Oxygen and fuel were not mixed before being sent to the combustion chamber.

The present invention uses oxygen rather than air to burn fuel (eg, fossil fuels, or fuels in which a mixture containing carbon and hydrogen is mixed, where at least one of the mixtures is a carbon atom). Use oxygen in rich gas. The oxygen-rich gas has a much lower nitrogen content than air (the nitrogen has a molar percentage of 10% or less, 1% or less, or even 0%). The lower the nitrogen content, the less the generation of nitrogen oxides. The oxygen-rich gas and fuel are mixed and then sent to the combustion chamber where they are ignited and burned. In one embodiment, oxygen is mixed with the fuel above the theoretical conditions. That is, oxygen is made slightly larger than the amount required for complete combustion of the total fuel amount.

In describing the gist of the present invention, a preferred embodiment will be described as an example. This preferred embodiment is an industrial power generation system with substantially zero pollutants, high efficiency (eg 70% or more) and net (net) output of 12.36 MW. This preferred embodiment is merely an example. Many modifications and improvements of the present embodiment that can be thought by those skilled in the art can be made within the scope of the present invention.

The whole system includes an oxygen production system, a gas generation system, a main power generation system,
And an auxiliary power generation system. Each subsystem contributes to the efficiency and low pollution of the power generation system of the present invention over the prior art by virtue of its own characteristics. These subsystems and their interrelationships are described below. A. Oxygen Production System FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an industrial power generation system 1 and an overall process executed in the system 1. FIG. 2 shows an oxygen production system 20 (oxygen-rich gas source 20), which is part of the total power generation system 1 shown in FIG. The oxygen production system 20 converts air into high pressure oxygen gas. In the preferred embodiment, which produces 12.56 megawatts of power, oxygen production system 20 produces 3.4 pounds per second (lbm / s) of oxygen.

In the oxygen production system 20, for example, air from the environment is first dried and purified by passing through the filter / dryer 101. Filter / Dryer 1
01 may be a two-stage system including a dryer unit and a filter unit. The dryer section may contain silica gel which absorbs most of the moisture (H2O) in the air. The filter part removes particles in the air. As shown in FIG. 1, the filter / dryer 101 may be used to operate the oxygen / production system 20 during operation of the filter / dryer 101, or to allow for increased air intake.
May include an extra filter / dryer 101a.

The low pressure compressor 102 receives clean air and receives, for example, 25-40 PSIA (about 1
72-276 kPaA). The continuous membrane column 103 receives compressed air and filters (removes) most of the nitrogen. Argon, oxygen, moisture, carbon dioxide and about 20% nitrogen pass through the outlet 104 of the continuous membrane column 103.

Continuous membrane columns are usually available on the market and can effectively extract oxygen-rich gas from air. As shown in FIG. 2, the left quadrants 103i and 103ii and the right quadrants 103iii and 103iv of the continuous membrane column 103 are separated by capillaries, that is, hollow fiber membranes 103a. The flow generally flows down from the upper left quadrant 103i to the lower left quadrant 103ii, and generally rises from the lower right quadrant 103iii to the upper right quadrant 103iv. Air is supplied between the upper and lower left quadrants. Then it descends toward the lower left quadrant. The low pressure compressor 105 causes the gas to pass through the membrane 10.
Negative or negative pressure is created so as to facilitate permeation through 3a. Since oxygen permeates faster than nitrogen, a large amount of oxygen, which is disproportionate to that of nitrogen, permeates the membrane 103a from the lower left quadrant 103ii to the lower right quadrant 103iii.
Flows to. Gas (eg, nitrogen) that does not permeate the membrane 103a within the time defined by the downstream flow rate and the length of the lower left quadrant 103ii is from the continuous membrane column 103 to the lower exhaust valve 103b of the lower left quadrant 103i. Exhausted through. Oxygen-rich gas flows upward through outlet 104 and into low pressure recirculation pump 105.

The pressure of the oxygen-rich gas at the outlet 104 is about 15 PSIA (about 103 kP
aA). The low-pressure circulation pump 105 supplies the main flow of oxygen-rich gas to about 25-40.
Increase the pressure to PSIA (about 172 to 276 kPaA). To increase the stationary oxygen content of the oxygen-rich gas passing through the outlet 104, a portion (eg, 50%) of the recompressed gas is recirculated back to the continuous membrane column 103 and the continuous membrane column 103. It flows into the upper left quadrant. Oxygen from the oxygen-rich gas in the upper left quadrant 103i continuously permeates the membrane 103a and flows into the upper right quadrant 103iv.

The balance of the oxygen-rich gas (eg 50%) is in the heat exchanger H.264. Provided to E # 1. The heat exchanger may pass the gas, for example, in the range of about 200 to 225 ° F to about 10
Cool to 0 to 120 ° F range. The heat exchanger H. E # 1 and all other heat exchangers described below may be, for example, made of copper and composed of disks arranged in parallel and in series (commonly referred to as plate heat exchangers). The size of the heat exchanger depends on the electrical output of the system, but the plate heat exchanger can be made small. Techniques for making such heat exchangers are known and used in the space industry.

FIG. 8A is an exploded view of a plate heat exchanger used in accordance with the principles of the present invention. FIG. 8B is a diagram showing the plate heat exchanger of FIG. 8A after assembly. The plate heat exchanger 800 includes plates (water plates) 802, 804, 806 through which water flows.
Plates (gas plates) 801 and 803, in which gas flows alternately stacked with
805 is included. The upper surface of each plate 801-806 defines channels for gas and water flow. A pattern forming the above-mentioned channel may be formed on this upper surface by using known photoetching. Cooling water flows through the channels of the water plate, which receives heat from the adjacent gas plate and is converted to steam. The gas flows from left to right and transfers heat to the cooling water.

The cooled gas is fed to the high pressure compressor 106 where the gas is, for example, about 75.
At 0 °, the pressure is increased to a high pressure of about 900 PSIA (about 6201 kPaA). This high-pressure gas is used in the heat exchanger H.264. E # 2 is provided where it is cooled, for example, to a range of about 750 ° F to about 100-120 ° F. Heat exchanger H. The cooling side of E # 2 contains a water recirculation system.

The cooled high-pressure gas passes through a molecular sieve bed (Molecular Sieve Bed) 107 which can be procured on the market. The molecular sieve bed 107 extracts water and carbon dioxide from the gas and prevents the formation of ice or dry ice in the cold part of the oxygen production system. Molecular sieves containing only argon, nitrogen, carbon dioxide and oxygen 1
A large amount will be present at the exit 108 of 07. A mixture of Argon, Nitrogen, Carbon Dioxide and Oxygen was added to the Heat Exchanger H.264. It is fed to E # 3 where it is cooled, for example, in the range of about 100-120 ° F to about -60 ° F. This low temperature, high pressure mixture expands through expansion turbine 109. So the temperature of the mixture is
It is lowered to a temperature below the freezing point of oxygen and above the freezing points of argon and nitrogen (eg, minus 295 ° F). The mechanical energy of expansion turbine 109 is converted into electrical energy within generator 110, which increases the efficiency of the process.

The two-layer mixed stream from expansion turbine 109 is sent to extraction column 111, where liquid oxygen is separated from gaseous argon and nitrogen. Carbon dioxide, nitrogen and argon are either packaged or released to the environment for use by consumers. The effects of nitrogen and argon emissions on the environment are negligible. Because nitrogen and argon are constituents of the atmosphere, they do not contribute to smog, greenhouse effect, acid rain, etc. In addition, carbon dioxide, nitrogen and argon have many commercial applications. Liquid oxygen is sent to pump 112, where it is boosted to, for example, about 3600 PSIA (about 24804 kPaA). The effort required to pressurize liquid oxygen is very small compared to the effort to pressurize gas that is compressible (about 3.4 pounds / second (about 15.1 N / second) liquid oxygen). 50 horsepower (about 37.3 kW)). A part of the liquid oxygen is stored in the liquid oxygen start-up tank 113 for starting the system.

The high pressure oxygen is transferred to the heat exchanger H.264. E. It is returned to # 3, where the high pressure oxygen is about 50
It is heated to ° F and converted to concentrated gaseous oxygen. The heat that warms the oxygen is lost from the argon, nitrogen and oxygen mixture in the molecular sieve bed 107.
The warmed high-pressure oxygen was transferred to the heat exchanger H.264. E. Pass # 1, where there is about 80-100 °
Heated to F. This heat is transferred from the low-pressure compressor 105 in the opposite direction to the heat exchanger H.H. E. #
It is obtained by absorption from a mixture of low pressure oxygen, nitrogen, water, carbon dioxide and argon passing through 1. The high pressure oxygen is thus generated in the gas generator 30 (FIG. 3).
Prepared for use in.

There are many systems and methods for supplying high pressure oxygen. For example, oxygen can be procured in the market, especially without having to be extracted from the air or procured in the factory. While the oxygen production system described above has many advantages, any high pressure oxygen source may be employed to supply oxygen to the gas generator 30 (FIG. 3). Further, the oxygen generation system 20 may generate high pressure oxygen for purposes other than for use in a combustion chamber. B. Gas Generator FIG. 3 shows the gas generator 30 of FIG. The oxygen gas reaches the mixing chamber 114 (mixing unit 114) through the pipe 162. For example, in a preferred embodiment, the oxygen gas is 3400-3 to produce 12.56 megawatts of power.
At pressures in the range of 500 PSIA (approximately 23426-24115 kPaA), 60-
At temperatures in the range of 560 ° F, the flow rate is about 3.4 lbm / sec (about 15.1 Nm
/ Second). The other pipe 301 leading to the mixing chamber 114 is for supplying high-pressure steam. For example, in a preferred embodiment, this vapor is 3400
5 at pressures in the range of ~ 3500 PSIA (about 23426-24115 kPaA)
At temperatures in the range of 60 to 750 ° F, the flow rate is about 4.2 pounds m / sec.
7 Nm / sec). This vapor is mixed with oxygen in the first mixing chamber 114. The mixing chamber 114 comprises a series of baffles 302 for the mixing process. In this preferred embodiment, the gas mixture is 3400-3500 PSIA (about 23
At a pressure in the range of 426-24115 kPaA) and at a temperature in the range of 510-560 ° F at a flow rate of about 7.6 lbm / sec (about 33.8 Nm / sec),
It consists of 68.7 mole percent water and 31.3 mole percent oxygen. The description of this preferred embodiment shows one schematic example. For clarity,
Table 1 below shows the flow rate, temperature, pressure, and gas component composition ratio at the inlet and outlet at each stage in the power generation system according to the preferred embodiment confirmed by simulation (simulation test). Table 1 shows the specific flow rate corresponding to the simulated 12.36 MW system. This flow rate can be determined according to other power output scales.

[0036]

[Table 1]

The mixed gas then reaches the second mixing chamber 303 (mixing unit 303) where fuel such as methane gas is added from a fuel source 350 (FIG. 1). In a preferred embodiment, the methane gas is 3400-3500 PSIA (about 23426-241).
Pressures in the range of 15 kPaA) and temperatures of about 80 ° F.
Flow rate of about 2.22 Nm / sec). This mixing chamber 303 (station 4
) To produce a very uniform mixture in the injector inlet chamber 307,
A Raschig ring 304 is provided which produces a turbulent flow to mix the fuel, oxidant and steam. A control valve 305 is arranged between the injector inlet chamber 307 and the mixing chamber 303 in the station 5. Control valve 305 is spring loaded to control the amount of flow entering combustion chamber 118. The control valve 305 can also perform an emergency shutoff operation when a situation in which a room pressure is rapidly increased or rapidly decreased occurs in a downstream process. In the event of an emergency shutoff for some reason, either automatically due to an emergency or by a planned manual operation, the fuel supply valve 303a that supplies fuel to the mixing chamber 303 automatically closes, and the mixing chamber 303 is flushed with nitrogen. The nitrogen purge valve 303b for supplying nitrogen is opened. In this way, the mixing chamber 303, the gas generator 30, and finally the entire system 1 are purged with incombustible gas during the shutoff. The secondary purpose of the nitrogen purge is to assist in starting the unit by cooling the mainstream gas until full operation of the dilution steam system is possible.

The mixture of fuel, oxidant and steam is introduced into the combustion chamber 118 through a series of small circle injection ports 309 formed in the injector plate 116. The injector plate may be formed of, for example, a stainless steel plate. In a preferred embodiment, the mixture is 6
It consists of 2.9 mole percent water, 28.7 mole percent oxygen, and 8.4 mole percent methane, and has a flow rate of 8.1 pounds m / sec (about 36 Nm / sec). The circular jet port 309 is sized to provide a sufficient jet velocity to prevent back flashing upstream of the jet. In other words, this injection port 309 is
It is sized so that the injection speed of the mixed gas is higher than the propagation speed of the flame.
The size of the injection port 309 can be empirically determined depending on the composition ratio of the components of the mixture and the required temperature. During the shutoff, nitrogen purge gas is injected into the system to purge the system with incombustible gas. This purge nitrogen gas is used for the gas generator 30
And the main power generation system 40, and finally the extraction tower 1 of the oxygen production system 20.
Recovered at 48. This is just like the carbon dioxide generated in the combustion process is recovered as detailed below.

Combustion occurs just downstream of the injection surface 306 within the combustion chamber 118. Combustion chamber 1
The premixing of oxygen, fuel and steam before entering 18 ensures complete combustion of the gas in the combustion chamber 118. This improves combustion efficiency. The spark plug 117 (igniter 117) in the station 6 is the injector plate 11 in one embodiment.
It is located in the center of 6 and is used to start the combustion process. The walls of the combustion chamber 118 are cooled by water passing through a series of small discs 308 that make up the combustion chamber wall. This type of cooling, known as bleed-through cooling, cools the walls of the combustion chamber 118 to a temperature (eg, 700-900 ° F) well below the melting point of its constituent material (eg, stainless steel). However, even if the wall of the combustion chamber 118 is cooled, the seeping-out cooling can exert a negligible cooling effect on the mainstream gas.

The exudation cooling process will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B. FIG. 6A is an exploded isometric view of two annular flat plates 610 and 620, showing a part of the series of small discs 308. The small discs 610 and 620 are made of, for example, stainless steel. The small discs 610, 620 and the other small discs in the series of small discs 308 are stacked on top of each other. As shown in the small discs 610 and 620, grooves are formed on at least one surface thereof so that water flows to cool the small discs. The small disc stack 308 constitutes the wall of the combustion chamber 118.

FIG. 6B is an exploded isometric view detailing section 6B of FIG. 6A. In FIG. 6B, each small disc 610, 620 has a channel (groove) 62 opened by, for example, etching.
4 is shown to have a formed surface 622. Open channel 62
4 is extended from the outer circumference to the inner circumference. The small discs 610 and 620 are, for example, 0
． It has a thickness of 010 inches (about 0.254 mm) and is formed with a groove having a cross section of, for example, 0.005 inches (about 0.127 mm) width and 0.005 inches depth. Adjacent small discs 610, 620 are stacked together such that their surfaces physically contact each other to form the channels 624 of the small discs 610. The other small disks of the small disk stack 308 also have similar channels.

A small amount of water (eg, about 0.1 pound m / sec (about 0.44 Nm / sec)) from reservoir 321 (FIG. 3) flows into combustion chamber 118 through channel 624. The heat from the inside of the combustion chamber 118 is transferred to the small disk stack 308, and the small disks 3
08 heats the water in channel 624 to convert it to steam. The water in the channels 624 absorbs heat to cool the small disc stack 308 to a temperature well below the melting point of the material of which the small discs 308 are made.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the initial combustion occurs in an atmosphere rich in oxidant.
This means that more oxygen is present in the mixture than is needed to burn all the fuel introduced into the initial combustion process. The reason for this will become clear in the description of the reheater (reheater) described later. In a preferred embodiment, the combustion gases from combustion chamber 118 have a temperature of 3200 ° F and a pressure of 3300P.
SIA (about 22737 kPaA), 79.3 mole percent water and 11
． It contains 7 mole percent oxygen, 8.4 mole percent carbon dioxide, 0.6 mole percent OH and a little carbon monoxide. In a preferred embodiment, this combustion gas needs to be further cooled before entering a turbine containing iron or steel. Alternatively, it may not be cooled if a ceramic material is used in the turbine immediately downstream of the combustion chamber 118.

An extension 320 is attached to the first combustor 118, where cooling water is injected from injectors 120a, 120b and mixed at station 8 with the mainstream gas. In a preferred embodiment, the cooling water is about 3300 PSIA (about 22737 kP).
aA) pressure, 150 ° F temperature, and 0.35 lbm / sec (about 15.6 N
m / sec). The water injection provides some initial temperature reduction of the combustion gases (down to about 3000 ° F. in the preferred embodiment) and heat exchanger H.264. E. It is compatible with the material used in # 4 (eg copper in the preferred embodiment). Copper is a heat exchanger H. E. The temperature of the hot gas supplied to # 4 (for example, 300
Although having a melting point below 0 ° F.), copper maintains its structural integrity. Because the copper small disc is a heat exchanger H.264. E. This is because it is continuously cooled by the cold water supplied to the low temperature side of # 4.

Before being injected into the mainstream gas, the cooling water is injected into a cooling reservoir 321 arranged inside the wall of the extension 320, so that the wall of the extension 320 constitutes it. The material is cooled to a temperature well below the melting point of the material (eg steel). In this way, the walls of the extension 320 maintain their structural integrity even if the temperature of the mainstream gas is above the melting point of the wall's constituent material (eg, steel).

A solid concave plate 119 (eg, a splash plate 11 made of copper)
9) is located in the center of the mainstream gas and captures the water rich gas just downstream of the injectors 120a, 120b. In a preferred embodiment, the moisture-rich gas has a pressure of about 3300 PSIA (about 22737 kPaA) and a temperature of 3000 ° F.
At a flow rate of 8.45 pounds m / sec (about 37.6 Nm / sec), 80.3 mole percent water, 11.1 mole percent oxygen, 7.9 mole percent carbon dioxide and 0.6 mole. Contains percent OH and traces of carbon monoxide. The scattering plate 119 is prevented from melting by splashing cooling water on its surface. Due to its concave shape, the scattering plate 119 repels the moisture-rich gas from the periphery thereof to the outside, and helps to completely mix the moisture-rich gas with other mainstream gas. The water injection system and shatter plate 119 lowers the temperature of the mainstream gas as additional mass flow is added to the downstream turbine. Although the use of the shatter plate 119 enhances the mixing effect, other mixing structures in the pipe may be used. Also, the mixed structure may be removed, although it may sacrifice the mixing effect to some extent.

Two ways to increase turbine power output are to increase the turbine inlet gas temperature and / or increase the mass flow rate to the turbine. The inlet gas temperature is limited by the material of which the turbine is made, such as steel. Adding water increases the mass flow rate but lowers the gas temperature. This is a very acceptable cancellation (averaging) at all outputs of all turbine stages. This is particularly important in that the molecular weight of the vapor is smaller than that of the mainstream gas and that low molecular weight gases produce more horsepower per unit mass than high molecular weight gases.
The addition of water increases the temperature drop of the mainstream gas over the length of the gas generator.

Heat exchanger H. E. In # 4, the temperature of the mainstream gas is re-dropped to an intermediate temperature before entering the turbine. In the preferred embodiment, this intermediate temperature is about 2110.
° F. The cooling water is a heat exchanger H.264. E. It is supplied to the low temperature side of # 4. In the preferred embodiment, the cooling water has a temperature of about 80 ° F. and 4.2 pounds m / sec.
7 Nm / sec). Heat exchanger H. E. At # 4, this cooling water is heated (eg, about 750 ° F) to steam. This vapor is mixed chamber 114 (FIG. 3)
Mixed with oxygen within. In this way, the heat loss of the mainstream gas due to the cooling of this steam is not a loss for the entire system. Heat exchanger H. E. At # 4, the temperature of the mainstream gas is further reduced to a temperature that can be processed by the turbine of the first turbine stage 126 without sacrificing the power output of the system. In a preferred embodiment, this mainstream gas has a pressure of about 3100 PSIA.
59 kPaA) and the temperature is reduced to about 2110 ° F.

Heat exchanger H. E. The water injection station 9 having the injectors 122a and 122b (FIG. 3) is arranged in the downstream portion of # 4. This attached water injection station 9
By detecting the input temperature to the first turbine stage 126 (FIG. 4) of the station 10 and controlling the amount of water injected in the injectors 122a, 122b based on this detected temperature, Used to control the input temperature to the first turbine stage 126 to design conditions ± 10 ° F.

As an example, in the preferred embodiment, the required inlet temperature of the first turbine stage 126 is set to 2000 ° F. The amount of water spray is increased when the temperature rises to 2000 ° F and is decreased below 2000 ° F. The aforementioned scattering plate 119
A scatter plate 121 (FIG. 3) similar to that of FIG. 3 is disposed immediately downstream of the injectors 122a and 122b, and the mainstream gas from the extension 320 is mixed with water before entering the gas generator 30. It is used to

Although it has been described that methane is used as fuel in the power generation system, natural gas may be used. Natural gas contains a significant amount of hydrogen sulfide and becomes sulfur dioxide when heated in an oxygen-rich environment. Sulfur dioxide causes acid rain when released into the atmosphere. Sulfur dioxide by-product is removed by injecting calcium-rich lime water through or near the injectors 122a, 122b.
Calcium in lime water mixes with sulfur in natural gas to form calcium sulfate as a by-product. This by-product does not constitute acid rain, greenhouse effect, smog, etc. The calcium sulfate flows together with the mainstream gas and is accumulated in the stored storage tank 154. Water is a by-product of the combustion process and this calcium sulphate containing water is discharged from the storage tank 154 to avoid condenser / integrator 148 overflow water. In this way, calcium sulfate is extracted from the commercial power generation system 1. The sulfur dioxide by-product can be removed prior to its introduction into the gas generator 30 by using the known natural gas sulfur filtration method.

The output mainstream gas from the gas generator 30 reaches the main power generation system 40 (FIG. 4) where the internal energy of the gas stream is the turbine stages 126, 132,
At 134, 136 it is converted to mechanical energy and at generators 128, 137 it is converted to electrical energy. In a preferred embodiment, this output mainstream gas has a pressure of about 3100 PSIA (about 21359 kPaA), a temperature of 2000 ° F., a flow rate of 8.69 lbm / sec (about 38.6 Nm / sec), and 81.0 It contains mole percent water, 10.8 mole percent oxygen, 7.7 mole percent carbon dioxide and 0.5 mole percent OH. OH and carbon monoxide were actually burned in the gas generator 30 to produce water, oxygen,
Only carbon dioxide remains. If some OH and carbon monoxide were present at the outlet of the gas generator 30, then combustion would be incomplete. A known infrared sensor at the outlet of the gas generator 30 can detect OH and carbon monoxide molecules, and oxygen can be added to the gas generator 30 by using a known feedback mechanism. And the carbon monoxide molecules are completely combusted inside the gas generator 30. Similar feedback mechanism to each reheater 13
3,135, which ensures a sufficient supply of oxygen for complete combustion of the fuel.

The gas generator 30 (FIG. 3) can be made very small. For example, in the preferred embodiment, the gas generator 30 has an outer diameter of about 12 inches (about 30.5 cm), about 8 inches (about 20.3 cm), and a length of about 8 feet (about 244 cm). I'm just doing it. C. Main Power Generation System FIG. 4 shows a main power generation system 40 for generating electric power. The high temperature, high pressure mainstream gas exiting the gas generator 30 expands in the first stage turbine 126 (ie, the radial flow turbine 126) to generate mechanical energy. In the preferred embodiment, the radial turbine 126 receives 2503 horsepower (about 1867 kW) of energy from the mainstream gas. This mechanical energy (shaft output) of the turbine stage 126 is generated by the generator 1
At 28 it is converted to electrical energy. In the preferred embodiment, the efficiency of the generator 128 is about 98.5% and thus the electrical energy generated by 2503 horsepower is 1.84 megawatts (about 2503 hp x 746 W / hp x 0.985).
), Which is 14.6% of the total output of 12.56 MW.

The mainstream gas exits the radial turbine 126 and enters the reheater 131. In the preferred embodiment, the mainstream gas exiting the radial turbine 126 is about 1000 PSIA.
It has a pressure of 90 kPaA) and a temperature of 1585 ° F. First stage turbine 1
No. 26 has a design inlet temperature of 2000 ° F and a design inlet pressure of about 3100 PS.
It may be a single stage radial flow turbine operating at IA (about 21359 kPaA) and a pressure ratio of about 3/1.

The turbine 126, which can increase the inlet pressure, can be made extremely compact. The combination of flow and pressure ratio (3/1) is such that this turbine operates in the specific speed range of a radial turbine, which results in a relatively high efficiency. Radial flow turbines run smoothly and are relatively unaffected by small variations in inlet flow. As a result, the generator 128 operates stably and smoothly.

The reheater 131 is introduced between the radial flow turbine 126 and the high pressure second stage turbine 132 (ie, the axial flow turbine stage 132). One embodiment of reheater 131 is shown in FIG. The reheater 131 is composed of a hollow tube 600 formed of, for example, stainless steel, copper, or another material having high thermal conductivity, and has an inlet 601 and a tubular intermediate portion 603 and an outlet 602. It has a tubular shape. The reheater 131 receives the mainstream gas at its inlet 601. Mainstream gas is mixed with fuel at a fuel inlet 604 through a hollow tube 600.
In a preferred embodiment, the fuel is introduced at a pressure of about 1000 PSIA (about 6890 kPaA), a temperature of 80 ° F. and a flow rate of 0.081 lbm / sec (about 0.36 Nm / sec). Since the mainstream gas (eg, a temperature of about 1585 ° F.) is brought to a temperature well above the ignition temperature of the fuel (eg, methane) but well below the melting point of stainless steel, the fuel is a oxidant-rich mainstream gas. It ignites spontaneously in the presence and the hollow tube 600 does not melt.

As the combustion of the mixture of fuel and mainstream gas passes through the tubular middle section 603 of the hollow tube 600, the curvature of the tubular middle section 603 causes mixing of the fuel and mainstream gas and efficient combustion. . The outlet 602 is formed sufficiently far from the inlet 601 that the mainstream gas travels a distance such that complete combustion occurs before entering the next turbine stage 132.

In another embodiment, the temperature of the mainstream gas exiting turbine 126 is not high enough to spontaneously ignite the fuel. In such a case, of course, the reheater 13
It is necessary to install an igniter in 1. Combustion of the mixture of fuel and mainstream gas in the reheater 131 heats the mainstream gas in the reheater 131 to produce the axial turbine stage 1
The temperature of the mainstream gas at the inlet of 32 is raised to the design condition. In a preferred embodiment, the mixture of fuel and mainstream gas entering the reheater 131 has a pressure of about 10
00 PSIA (about 6890 kPaA), temperature 1560 ° F, flow 8.7.
At 71 pounds m / sec (about 40.0 Nm / sec), 80.0 mole percent water, 10.6 mole percent oxygen, 1.2 mole percent methane, 7.6 mole percent carbon dioxide and 0. It contains 5 mole percent OH and traces of carbon monoxide. After combustion, the mainstream gas in the reheater 131 has a pressure of about 1000.
PSIA (about 6890 kPaA) at a temperature of 2000 ° F., containing 82.8 mole percent water, 8.3 mole percent oxygen, 8.9 mole percent carbon dioxide and traces of OH and carbon monoxide. There is. The amount of fuel required to raise the temperature to design conditions (eg, 2000 ° F) is, by weight, so small that the performance of the second stage turbines 132, 134, 136 is very effectively improved. It is a thing.

The amount of fuel needed to raise the temperature of the mainstream gas to the design inlet temperature conditions of the turbine stage 132 may be very low (eg 0.081 lbs / sec for methane). ). In this way, additional reheaters 133, 135 are disposed in front of the turbine stages 134, 136, respectively. A temperature increase of 500 ° F. at the turbine outlet results in a 23% power (horsepower) increase for the next stage assuming the same pressure ratio. This means the cumulative effect that the next turbine stage 134, 136 is affected by the heat addition in the reheater 131 of the first stage, making the entire process more efficient.

The reheaters 131, 133, 135 are composed of known spiral tube-shaped mixers. The inner diameter of this spiral tube is about 5 for a 12.36 MW system.
It is inch (about 12.7 cm), but may be changed according to the output. As the mixture of mainstream gas and added fuel is passed through a coiled hollow tube, the mainstream gas encounters shear that causes vortexing and mixing in the combustion gas mixture as the mixture passes through this reaction chamber. . The spiral tube is made long enough that the mainstream gas has a dwell period sufficient for the fuel to completely burn. The dwell period, or swirl tube length, is a function of flow rate and combustion temperature and can be formally determined.

The second stage turbines 132, 134, 136 may each be three axial turbines in series, with the pressure ratio of each axial turbine being about 1.6 / in order to achieve high turbine efficiency. Should be 1 or less. Each turbine stage 132, 134, 1
Thirty-six (3) axial turbines produce a pressure ratio of about 4/1 (≈1.6 × 1.6 × 1.6) for each turbine stage 132, 134, 136. The pressure ratio of each axial turbine can be 1.6 or more, but most axial turbines are designed to have a pressure ratio of about 1.6, so if the pressure ratio increases, the overall efficiency will be hindered. Occurs. The pressure ratio is defined as the ratio of inlet pressure to exhaust pressure of the turbine or turbine stage. For example, the inlet pressure of the high pressure second stage turbine 132 is approximately 1000 PSIA (
It is about 6890 kPaA and the exhaust pressure is 245 PSIA (about 1688 kPaA).
In case of A), the pressure ratio is about 4/1. The temperature of the mainstream gas is reduced from about 2000 ° F to 1475 ° F by passing through turbine stage 132. Three axial turbines in series are used to form turbine stage 132.

The mainstream gas from the reheater 131 expands in the turbine stage 132 to produce mechanical energy, which is converted to electrical energy in the generator 137. In a preferred embodiment, 2000 ° F mainstream gas at 1000 PSIA expands to 145 ° F at 245 PSIA in turbine stage 132 to produce mechanical energy of 3209 horsepower (about 2394 kW). Assuming that the efficiency of the turbine 132 is 98.5%, it will be converted into 2.36 megawatts of electric power. 2.36 MW corresponds to 18.8% of the total output of 12.56 MW.

The mainstream gas of the turbine stage 132 is sent to a second reheater 133 of the same design as the reheater 131, where the mainstream gas is injected with more fuel and raised to the design inlet temperature of the turbine stage 134. . In a preferred embodiment, the above 245
The PSIA mainstream gas temperature is raised to about 2000 ° F. given about 0.115 lbm / sec (about 0.51 Nm / sec) of methane. In a preferred embodiment, the mixture of fuel and mainstream gas is 8.886 pounds m / sec (about 39.5 Nm / sec).
At a flow rate of 81.4 mole percent water, 8.1 mole percent oxygen and 1.
7 mole percent methane, 8.7 mole percent carbon dioxide and a little OH
And carbon monoxide. After combustion, the mainstream gas contains 84.9 mole percent water, 4.7 mole percent oxygen, 10.4 mole percent carbon dioxide and traces of OH and carbon monoxide.

The mainstream gas from the reheater 133 expands in the second turbine stage (the intermediate turbine second turbine stage 134) to produce mechanical energy, which is converted to electrical energy in the generator 137. In the preferred embodiment, the 245 PSIA (approximately 1688 kPaA
) At 2000 ° F mainstream gas, turbine stage 1 with three inline axial turbines
Expand to 1340 ° F at 60 PSIA (about 413 kPaA) in 34. This expansion produces about 3270 horsepower (about 2439 kW) of mechanical energy, which translates into 2.40 megawatts of power assuming a turbine 134 efficiency of 98.5%. This 2.36 MW corresponds to 19.1% of the total output of 12.56 MW.

The mainstream gas of the turbine stage 134 is sent to a third reheater 135 of the same design as the reheater 131, where the mainstream gas is injected with more fuel and raised to the design inlet temperature of the turbine stage 136. . In a preferred embodiment, the above 60P
SIA mainstream gas temperature is about 0.118 lbm / sec (about 0.52 Nm / sec)
Methane is given and the temperature is raised to about 2000 ° F. In the preferred embodiment,
The mixture of fuel and mainstream gas had a flow rate of 9.004 lbm / sec (about 40.0 Nm / sec), 83.4 mole percent water, 4.6 mole percent oxygen and 1.7.
Mole percent methane, 10.3 mole percent carbon dioxide and a little OH
And carbon monoxide. After combustion, the mainstream gas contains 86.9 mole percent water, 1.1 mole percent oxygen, 12.0 mole percent carbon dioxide and traces of OH and carbon monoxide.

The mainstream gas from the reheater 135 is the second turbine stage (low pressure second turbine stage) 13
Expansion within 6 produces mechanical energy, which is converted into electrical energy in generator 137. In the preferred embodiment, 2 at the 60 PSIA (about 413 kPaA).
Mainstream gas at 000 ° F expands to 1590 ° F at 20 PSIA (about 138 kPaA) in turbine stage 136, which typically comprises a series of three axial turbines.
This expansion produces about 2678 horsepower (about 1998 kW) of mechanical energy, which translates to 1.97 megawatts of power assuming a turbine 136 efficiency of 98.5%. This 1.97 MW corresponds to 15.7% of the total output of 12.56 MW.

The mainstream gas exiting turbine stage 136 enters a post-treatment step where heat is recovered from the mainstream gas and utilized in auxiliary power generation system 50 (FIGS. 1 and 5) for further power generation.

D. Auxiliary Power Generation System Auxiliary power generation system 50 (FIG. 5) includes the additional fluid circulation piping shown in FIG. The mainstream gas from the turbine stage 136 in the main power generation system 40 has a very low internal energy as it has been reduced to 20 PSIA in the preferred embodiment. However, this exhaust gas does not contribute to the turbine stages 126, 132, 134,
Even after passing 136, it contains a considerable amount of thermal energy due to the reheating by the reheaters 131, 133, 135. In the preferred embodiment, for example, the temperature of the mainstream gas exiting turbine stage 136 is about 1590 ° F. The thermal energy carrying capacity of the mainstream gas is further increased by the fact that about 86.9% of this mainstream gas is steam, which condenses into a significant heat source for the auxiliary power generation system 50.

The post-treatment of the exhaust gas from the power generation system includes heat exchanger H.264 to cool the mainstream gas from the main power generation system 40. E. Includes removing through # 5. In a preferred embodiment, there is 159 mainstream gas at a pressure of 20 PSIA (about 138 kPaA).
Cooled from 0 ° F to 230 ° F, resulting in mainstream gas of 19,710,00
A heat loss of 0 Btu / hour (about 20,861,064 kJ / hour) occurs. This cooled exhaust gas is passed through the heat exchanger H.H. E. Passing through # 6, the steam in this mainstream gas is condensed to water. In the preferred embodiment, this heat loss due to condensation and cooling is due to both heat exchangers H.264. E. # 5, H.H. E. Total heat loss of # 6 is 43,610,0
23,900 of 00 Btu / hour (about 46,156,824 kJ / hour)
Occupies 1,000 Btu / hour (about 25,295,760 kJ / hour).

During this cooling step, carbon monoxide combines with oxygen to carbon dioxide and OH and loses some oxygen atoms to water. Thus, in a preferred embodiment, the exhaust gas from the main power generation system 40 is 86.9 mole percent water, 1.1 mole percent oxygen, 12.0 mole percent carbon dioxide, and a small amount of OH and one part. It will contain carbon oxides, so that the cooled mainstream gas will contain only water, carbon dioxide and oxygen. The mole percentages of the other constituents are negligible. Heat exchanger H. E. The two-layer mixed flow in # 6 (for example, only water in the liquid phase) reaches the scrubber 148 (FIG. 1). Excess water from the scrubber 148 is sent to the storage tank 154 (FIGS. 1 and 5), where some is used as water for the auxiliary power generation system 50 and another is used to supplement the water produced in the combustion process. Exuded and the residue has a water pressure of about 3500 PSIA (about 24115 kPaA
) Is returned to the gas generator 30 by the water pump 151. The water from the high-pressure water pump 151 is supplied to the heat exchanger H.H. E. The temperature is raised to about 200 ° F through # 7.

Water from the additional fluid circulation line 502 is transferred from the first power generation system 40 to the heat exchanger H.264. E. # 5, H.H. E. The exhaust gas exiting through # 6 heats up to the turbine inlet temperature of auxiliary steam turbine stage 142 (eg, 1200 ° F.). Heat exchanger H. E. The evaporating side of # 6 is, for example, about 1000 PSI by the water pump 152.
It receives water that has been boosted to A (about 6890 kPaA), for example about 150 ° F. Heat exchanger H. E. The output from # 6 is low pressure steam, which is heat exchanger H.264. E
． # 5 is sent to superheated steam at a temperature of about 1200 ° F. and a pressure of about 1000 PSIA. In the preferred embodiment, 43,610,000 Btu / hour (about 46,156,824 from the mainstream gas exhausted from the main power generation system 40).
kJ / hour) of heat is transferred to the steam of the auxiliary power generation system 50.

The function of evaporation and condensation of the two separate heat exchangers is a very effective means of heat transfer. Heat exchanger H. E. The flat portion required for the heat transfer of the latent heat in # 6 is the heat exchanger H. E. It is much smaller than the flat part required for heat transfer of sensible heat in # 5. Heat exchanger H. E. The total heat transfer amount of the latent heat of # 6 is different from that of other heat exchangers H. E.
This is despite the fact that the amount of sensible heat in # 5 is larger than the total amount of heat transfer.

This superheated steam reaches the auxiliary turbine stage 142, where the heat exchanger H. E. # 5
, H .; E. Some of the heat transferred from # 6 to steam is converted to mechanical energy. In the preferred embodiment, this auxiliary turbine stage is a heat exchanger H.264. E. # 5, H.H.
E. 13,900,000 Btu / hour (about 14,711,760 kJ / hour) of the heat given to steam (43,610,000 Btu / hour) in # 6
However, when the efficiency of the turbine stage 142 is set to 31.87%, 5459 horsepower (about 40
72 kW). This 5459 horsepower of auxiliary turbine stage 142 is converted in generator 137 to 4.01 megawatts of power when its efficiency is 98.5%. This 4.01 MW would represent an efficiency of 31.4% of the auxiliary turbine stage 142 along with the generator 137, meaning that it corresponds to 31.92% of the total output 12.56 MW.

The auxiliary turbine stage 142 may consist of two radial turbines arranged in series. This then provides driving power to the main generator 137 and / or a separate power generation system. The exhaust gas from the auxiliary turbine stage 142 is, for example, about 23
The vapor has a temperature of 0 ° F and a pressure of about 10 PSIA (about 68.9 kPaA). This steam is used in the heat exchanger H.264. E. In # 7, the water is condensed into water, and this water is supplied to the heat exchanger H.264 by the water pump 152. E. # 5, H.H. E. Returned to # 6.

Table 2 below summarizes the sharing of each turbine stage for 12.56 MW power generation in the preferred embodiment.

[0076]

[Table 2]

The reason for the large share of the turbine stage 142 is that (1) the retained amount of heat energy of the mainstream gas in the reheat step is changed to the heat exchanger H. E. # 5, H.H. E. # 6, H.H. E. It remains fairly high until it is completely used by # 7, and (2) the latent heat inherent in the mainstream gas and the auxiliary steam causes the heat exchanger H.H. E. # 5, H.H. E
． This is because it promotes the maximum utilization of the amount of heat in both fluids passing through # 6, and (3) the capacity of the high pressure system is greater than the compression of combustion process vapors and other exhaust gases (eg carbon dioxide and nitrogen). , Because it is greatly improved by pumping water.

E. Conclusion The power generation system of the present invention is now highly efficient everywhere, has essentially zero pollutant emissions and is extremely compact. Oxygen and fuel (eg, methane and natural gas) burn and supply energy while the vapor acts as an endothermic medium. Due to the high-pressure operation, the gas generator and the high-pressure turbine can be constructed compactly for a given output power, which makes the system considerably more compact than conventional systems. According to a feature of the invention, the industrial power generation system 1 (FIG. 1) can be configured about 30% smaller (for 12.56 MW) than a conventional industrial power generation system of equivalent power.

Removal of nitrogen from the combustion process means that virtually no smog is produced by this power generation system. Mixing calcium sprayed with lime water into sulfur means that substantially no acid rain is produced by this power generation system.

In theoretical operating conditions in which there is no endothermic medium such as nitrogen, an adequate amount of oxidant is provided to consume all the fuel. Under this theoretical condition, the gas temperature in the combustion chamber 118 is the highest temperature that can be obtained (for example, 6000 ° F or higher). Generally, the walls of the combustion chamber cannot withstand such high temperatures. In the power generation system 1 (FIG. 1) of the present invention, water / steam is added to the combustion process to keep the combustion temperature low (eg, 3200 ° F.) so as not to damage the combustion chamber 118.

The premixed gas from the internal space of the injector is moved through the injection port 309 formed uniformly on the injector plate 116. Face 306 of the injector
An igniter 117 (for example, a spark plug) is arranged at the center of the. Combustion occurs at high pressure, such as about 3300 PSIA (about 22737 kPaA). Such high voltages have not been used in the past power generation industry. Of course, other suitable high pressures may be used.

The combustion chamber 118 in the power generation system 1 of the present invention is cooled using, for example, exudation cooling which injects water / steam through a wall similar to that employed in liquid rocket engines. The wall of the combustion chamber 118 is kept at an appropriate low temperature (for example, about 800 °).
Annular stainless steel wafers 610,6 with photoetched microscopic channels 624 to provide coolant through walls for maintenance at F).
20 (FIGS. 6A and 6B) are used. Additional water is injected from the injectors 120a, 120b and mixed with the mainstream gas just downstream of the combustion chamber 118. Heat exchanger H. E. # 4 removes heat from the mainstream gas and gives heat to the steam sent to the premix chamber 114 (that is, the mixer 114). Since the vapor in the premix chamber 114 has a high temperature, mixing with oxygen is promoted. The mixed vapor and oxygen are mixed in the mixing chamber 30.
3 where it is mixed with fuel and reaction time is reduced so that instantaneous combustion occurs in combustion chamber 118.

The injectors 120a and 120b and the scatter plate 121 are connected to the heat exchanger H.264. E. It is located just downstream of # 4. The amount of water injected at this station is controlled by a thermocouple (temperature sensor 180 in FIG. 1) arranged at the inlet of the first stage turbine 126. The inlet temperature of the turbine stage 126 is set to the design condition described above, and the amount of water injected to the extension portion 320 is controlled so that ± 10 ° F of this condition is maintained.

A radial turbine (ie turbine stage 126) is provided as the first stage of the main power generation system 40. Radial flow turbines were selected for their high inlet pressure (about 3000 PSIA) and relatively low speed (3600).
(RPM) requires a low specific speed turbine for reasonable operating efficiency and compact size. Radial flow turbines perform well at low specific speeds while axial flow turbines perform well at high specific speeds.

A reheater 131 (FIG. 4) is provided between the first-stage turbine 126 and the high-pressure second-stage turbine 132 to superheat the mainstream gas before entering the high-pressure second-stage turbine 132.
Is provided. Another reheater 133 is disposed immediately downstream of the second stage turbine 132 to reheat the mainstream gas prior to entering the intermediate pressure second stage turbine 134. A third reheater 135 is attached downstream of the turbine stage 134, and the amount of fuel added there is sufficient to consume the residual oxygen in the original combustion gas. Thus, the exhaust gas from the reheater 135 will contain a small amount of unburned hydrocarbons and a small amount of oxygen at the design inlet temperature of the next stage turbine. In the preferred embodiment, the reheaters 131, 13 based on the total power generated.
The combined effect of 3,135 is firstly a 10% increase after the high pressure second stage turbine 132, a 27% increase after the intermediate pressure second stage turbine 134 and a 42% after the low pressure second stage turbine 136. (This is all compared to the power generated by the first stage turbine 126 only). These results show the cumulative effect of the reheater on increasing the overall output of the main power generation system 40 with a substantial margin.

After the turbine stages 126, 132, 134, 136, most of the mainstream gas pressure has been consumed to drive the turbine. However, the mainstream gas is still relatively hot. Auxiliary steam turbine stage 142 allows system 1 (FIG.
) Is a combined cycle system. The heat from the mainstream gas exiting turbine stage 136 is transferred to heat exchanger H.264. E. # 5, H.H. E. It is transferred to the auxiliary steam flow at # 6. The subsequent steam is sent to the steam turbine 142 for additional power generation. This steam turbine 1
42 forms part of a closed loop system in which the steam used to drive the steam turbine 142 is connected to a heat exchanger H.H. E. In # 7, it is cooled by the water recirculated to the combustion chamber 118 and condensed into water. After the water is pumped up to the pressure required to drive the auxiliary turbine stage 142, the water is vaporized and superheated by the main exhaust gas stream from the main power generation system 40. Here again, the reheaters 131, 133, 135 of the main power generation system 40 increase the amount of energy that can be recovered and used in the auxiliary steam turbine 142. In the preferred embodiment, the auxiliary power generation system 50 comprises about 30% of the total power output of system 1.

In the preferred embodiment, the exhaust gas from the main power generation system 40 is mostly water in the liquid phase and carbon dioxide in the gas phase. This exhaust gas is poured into the separation tank 148 where it is drained. Most of the water is pump 151 and heat exchanger H.264. E. #
7 to the gas generator, some of which is the auxiliary steam power generation system 5
Used for 0, and the rest is useful products (commodities) that are used as needed. The gas from the separation tank 148 is predominantly carbon dioxide and some is some oxygen (if oxygen is oversupplied from the oxygen generation system 20). Carbon dioxide and oxygen are separated and sold commercially or used as useful products. As an example, the amount of oxygen supplied from the oxygen generation system 20 is kept low so that it does not remain in the exhaust gas. In such a case, gas phase carbon dioxide is present in the separation tank 148. Since all by-products from the industrial power generation system 1 are utilized as products, this system is essentially a closed loop system, where pollutants, if any, are rarely released to the environment.

The system of the present invention can be applied to retrofit existing gas generator power plants that use existing turbines, generators, and any gas separation equipment. Existing technology to produce oxygen from air will be incorporated into steam plants as well as existing steam power plants. Recovery of nitrogen and argon is possible with existing oxygen production systems as well as recovery of carbon dioxide. Mixing chambers, combustion chambers, heat exchangers, and reheaters need to be incorporated to accommodate the improved process.

In one embodiment, oxygen is mixed with fuel in stoichiometric ratio prior to combustion in combustion chamber 118. Since there is no excess amount of oxygen at the outlet of the gas generator 30, the oxygen is separated and the reheater 1
31, 133, 135. The amount of oxygen and fuel supplied to the reheaters 131, 133, 135 depends on how much unburned fuel and excess oxygen is present at the outlet of the gas generator 30.

Although a 12.36 MW industrial power generation system has been described as a preferred embodiment, a higher output (or lower output) system can be obtained by increasing the size (or size) of each component. Good.

Although features of the present invention have been described with reference to specific examples, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and improvements can be made after reviewing this disclosure. The embodiments described above are merely illustrative and do not limit the present invention. The invention is defined by the claims.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an entire industrial power generation system showing each device related to the present invention.

[Fig. 2]   It is a figure which shows schematically the oxygen production system in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically showing a gas generator in FIG. 1 to which a gas treatment system before flowing into a gas turbine is provided immediately after that.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of the axial and radial turbines used in the main power system for generating electrical power and the interstage reheat system of FIG. 1.

5 is a diagram schematically showing an auxiliary steam power generation system for recovering exhaust heat from the main power generation system in FIG. 1. FIG.

6A is an exploded isometric view of two annular plates of the series of annular plates in FIG. 3 for seeping and cooling the combustion chamber.

6B is a detailed exploded isometric view of a portion of FIG. 6A showing channels (grooves) in the toroidal plate.

[Figure 7]   FIG. 6 is an isometric view of one embodiment of a reheater used in accordance with the spirit of the invention.

FIG. 8A   FIG. 3 is an isometric view showing an annular plate heat exchanger used according to the spirit of the present invention.

FIG. 8B   FIG. 8B is an assembled isometric view of the annular plate heat exchanger of FIG. 8A.

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (81) Designated countries EP (AT, BE, CH, CY, DE, DK, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, IE, I T, LU, MC, NL, PT, SE), OA (BF, BJ , CF, CG, CI, CM, GA, GN, GW, ML, MR, NE, SN, TD, TG), AP (GH, GM, K E, LS, MW, SD, SZ, UG, ZW), EA (AM , AZ, BY, KG, KZ, MD, RU, TJ, TM) , AL, AM, AT, AU, AZ, BA, BB, BG, BR, BY, CA, CH, CN, CU, CZ, DE, D K, EE, ES, FI, GB, GD, GE, GH, GM , HR, HU, ID, IL, IS, JP, KE, KG, KP, KR, KZ, LC, LK, LR, LS, LT, L U, LV, MD, MG, MK, MN, MW, MX, NO , NZ, PL, PT, RO, RU, SD, SE, SG, SI, SK, SL, TJ, TM, TR, TT, UA, U G, UZ, VN, YU, ZW

Claims (27)

[Claims] 1. A source of a first mixture comprising an oxygen rich gas, the first mixture source comprising less nitrogen in air and more oxygen in air. A fuel source, a mixing unit configured to receive the first mixture and mix the first mixture with fuel to produce a second mixture, and a combustion chamber configured to receive the second mixture And a igniter for igniting the second mixture, the low-pollutant industrial power generation system being provided in the combustion chamber. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the oxygen rich gas comprises 50 mole percent or more oxygen. 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the oxygen-rich gas comprises 90 mole percent or more oxygen. 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the oxygen rich gas comprises 99 mole percent or more oxygen. 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the fuel comprises a compound containing carbon and hydrogen, at least one of the compounds comprising carbon. 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the fuel comprises natural gas. 7. The system of claim 6, wherein the fuel comprises methane. 8. A source of an inert heat absorbing medium and a mixing unit configured to receive and mix the heat absorbing medium and an oxygen rich gas into a first mixture. The system according to claim 6. 9. The system of claim 8 wherein said inert heat absorbing medium comprises primarily water. 10. A valve is disposed between the combustion chamber and the mixing unit, the combustion chamber being adapted to receive a second mixture from the mixing unit when the valve is opened. The system according to 1. 11. The system of claim 1, further comprising an injector for injecting a heat absorbing medium downstream of the combustion chamber. 12. A temperature sensor further disposed near the inlet of the first stage turbine, wherein the injector station activates the heat absorbing medium only when the temperature detected by the temperature sensor is higher than a preset temperature. Claim 1 configured to inject
The system according to 1. 13. The system of claim 1 which is a closed loop system with substantially zero pollutant emissions. 14. A source of a first mixture comprising an oxygen-rich gas, comprising:
Providing a first mixture source, wherein the first mixture contains less nitrogen in air and more oxygen in air, providing a fuel source, receiving the first mixture, and Providing a mixing unit configured to mix the mixture with fuel to produce a second mixture; and a combustion chamber wall defining a combustion chamber configured to receive the second mixture from the mixing unit. And providing an igniter disposed within the combustion chamber for igniting the second mixture. 15. A step of mixing a first mixture containing less nitrogen and oxygen-rich gas in air with a fuel to form a second mixture, and introducing the second mixture into a combustion chamber. Industrial power generation method comprising. 16. The method of claim 15 further comprising the step of mixing the oxygen rich gas with an inert heat absorbing medium to form the first mixture prior to mixing the first mixture with the fuel. The method described. 17. A low-pollutant industrial power generation system comprising a gas generator and a gas generator having a combustion chamber configured to generate exhaust gas, the low-pollutant industrial power generation system being disposed downstream of the combustion chamber. A first stage turbine driven by the gas generator exhaust gas from the gas generator and a reheater disposed downstream of the first stage turbine and configured to receive the gas generator exhaust gas from the first stage turbine. A second stage turbine arranged downstream of the reheater and driven by exhaust gas from the gas generator from the reheater; and a gas generator arranged downstream of the second stage turbine from the second stage turbine. A heat exchanger configured to receive exhaust gas and transfer heat from a mainstream gas to an auxiliary fluid stream; and an auxiliary stage turbine configured to be driven by the auxiliary fluid stream Low pollutant industrial power generation system. 18. The combustion chamber is configured to exhaust oxygen in the gas generator exhaust gas, and the reheater has an inlet configured to receive fuel and mix with the first mixture, 18. The instantaneous combustion in the reheater when the first mixture contains less nitrogen in the air and the gas generator exhaust gas is at a temperature above the ignition temperature. The system described. 19. A system in which the reheater is a first reheater and the second stage turbine is a first second stage turbine, the system being arranged downstream of the first second stage turbine, A second reheater configured to receive and heat the gas generator exhaust gas from the one second stage turbine; and a gas generator exhaust from the second reheater disposed downstream of the second reheater. A second second stage turbine that receives and is driven by the gas, and is disposed downstream of the second second stage turbine and receives the gas generator exhaust gas from the second second stage turbine; A third reheater configured to heat the third reheater, and a third second stage turbine disposed downstream of the third reheater for receiving and driving the gas generator exhaust gas from the third reheater When Provided by and The system of claim 17 wherein said heat exchanger is disposed downstream of the second stage turbine said third. 20. Providing a combustion chamber portion configured to generate a gas generator exhaust gas; disposed downstream of the combustion chamber and receiving gas generator exhaust gas from the gas generator; Providing a first stage turbine driven thereby, and a reheater disposed downstream of the first stage turbine and configured to receive and heat the gas generator exhaust gas from the first stage turbine. Providing a second stage turbine disposed downstream of the reheater, receiving gas generator exhaust gas from the reheater, and driven by the gas generator exhaust gas; and arranging downstream of the second stage turbine. And a heat exchanger configured to transfer heat from the gas generator exhaust gas from the second stage turbine to an auxiliary fluid stream, the heat exchanger receiving the auxiliary fluid stream, and The method comprising providing a configured auxiliary stage turbine to be driven by. 21. Combusting a gas in a combustion chamber to produce a gas generator exhaust gas; and producing a first amount of power, the gas generator exhaust gas from the combustion chamber in a first stage. The step of expanding through the turbine, the step of reheating the gas generator exhaust gas from the first stage turbine, and the second step of adding the reheated gas generator exhaust gas to generate a second amount of power. The step of expanding through the stage turbine, the step of transferring the heat of the gas generator exhaust gas from the second stage turbine to the auxiliary fluid stream, and the auxiliary fluid stream for generating the third amount of power. An industrial power generation method comprising: an in-swelling step. 22. The step of burning the gas is for generating a gas generator exhaust gas containing oxygen by burning the gas in the combustion chamber, and a step of adding fuel to the reheater is added. 22. The industrial power generation method according to claim 21. 23. A liquid-phase heat absorbing medium supply source and a combustion chamber wall defining a combustion chamber, the combustion chamber wall defining a plurality of channels, and the plurality of channels The heat absorbing medium supply source and the combustion chamber are in communication with each other, and the heat absorbing medium supply source is configured to inject the heat absorbing medium into the combustion chamber through a plurality of channels, and the heat absorbing medium has a plurality of Industrial gas generator configured to receive heat from the combustion chamber through the walls of the combustion chamber as it passes through the channels of the chamber, thereby evaporating the heat absorbing medium before being injected into the combustion chamber. . 24. The gas generator of claim 23, wherein the heat absorbing medium is configured to evaporate as it passes through the plurality of channels, thereby cooling the walls of the combustion chamber. 25. The gas generator according to claim 23, wherein the combustion chamber wall is formed by laminating a plurality of plates having channels formed therein. 26. Providing a liquid phase heat absorbing medium source and providing a combustion chamber wall defining a combustion chamber, the combustion chamber wall defining a plurality of channels. The plurality of channels make the heat absorbing medium supply source and the combustion chamber communicate with each other, and the heat absorbing medium supply source is configured to inject the heat absorbing medium through the plurality of channels. Medium is
A method for producing industrial gas, which receives heat from a combustion chamber through a wall of the combustion chamber when passing through a plurality of channels. 27. A step of injecting a liquid phase heat absorbing medium through a plurality of channels formed in a wall of a combustion chamber, the gas absorbing the liquid phase from the liquid phase when the heat absorbing medium passes through the plurality of channels. Industrial gas generation method that can be changed into phases.