SIEMENS ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY GAS TURBINES

Ben Wolfe - Product Line Marketing Rick Antos - Product Line Manager

PowerGEN 2003 Las Vegas, Nevada Dec. 9-11

SIEMENS ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY GAS TURBINES

Ben Wolfe Product Line Marketing Rick Antos Product Line Manager

Abstract Advancements in technology have allowed for increased power and efficiency combined with decreased emissions and life-cycle costs without sacrificing operability or reliability. Siemens advanced technology gas turbines are equipped with 3-D blading, advanced coatings, technologically advanced airfoil cooling and low emissions combustion systems. These features have been incorporated into well-proven technology bases that include many features that set industry standards for gas turbine design. Methodical step-wise introduction of new technology into an established, proven design base provides reduced operational risks with notable increases in both power and efficiency. Siemens Power Generation has methodically proven the evolutionary design of the W501F, W501G and V94.3A engines. Many experts agree that fuel gas prices will increase over the next several years. To combat the forecasted escalation in fuel prices, advancements in technology allow these powerful gas turbines to reliably achieve world-class efficiencies, therefore containing costs to produce electricity by generating more power out of the same amount of fuel. Retrofittable enhancements, including aerodynamics, high temperature tolerant materials, advanced coating systems, sealing improvements, state-of-the-art component cooling and Dry Low NOx combustion systems have been incorporated in the operating engines to ensure high efficiency performance. Operating plants currently utilizing this technology are meeting their combined cycle power, efficiency and emissions targets while accumulating experience in the commercial environment. With years of commercial operation on the lead units, the operational data shows that advancements in technology are achievable without sacrificing reliability, flexibility and cost of electricity. These engines have amassed over 2,000,000 operating hours while meeting this challenge. This paper will provide operational updates on the Siemens advanced gas turbines and show the progression of gas turbine technology through the Siemens evolutionary design philosophy. Introduction Siemens invests extensively in product research, development and validation programs to offer tangible value to end-users. Programs focusing on improving emissions, operating frequency ranges, maintenance intervals, cycling capability (simple and combined cycle), output and efficiency have resulted in product enhancements. These additional retrofittable gas turbine capabilities provide new and existing users with increased value. The measure of this value is demonstrated in many areas ranging from direct bottom line economic benefits to less measurable parameters such as permitting and siting process improvements.

Emissions Reduction Environmental considerations have become an increasing portion of the design effort of new gas turbines and operational enhancements have had dramatic effects. A majority of the advanced Siemens gas turbines are placed into combined cycle operation to achieve higher plant efficiencies. Recognizing this trend, Siemens has worked to improve combined cycle start-up times. Traditionally, a combined cycle start-up is encumbered by the thermal soak times of the heavier walled components (i.e. HRSG drums). By utilizing a patented Siemens HRSG design heavily integrated with other plant components, the gas turbines can ramp to higher loads without required hold times as if they were in simple cycle operation. This allows the gas turbines to quickly reach the load levels where emissions are at their lowest levels. The V94.3A engine has undergone development to sustain base load emission levels down to 40% of base load. This expansive turndown range allows load follow and part load operation, giving operators the ability to provide a large capacity range to the grid while maintaining low emission levels. A W501FD is installed in the Siemens state-ofthe-art test facility located in Berlin, Germany. This facility provides the capability for testing through a wide range of conditions up to the full load engine rating. Extensive combustion testing is being conducted and is part of a multi-phase testing program aimed at enhancing the capabilities of the advanced Siemens gas turbines. The combustion testing is specifically targeting enhanced combustion systems for lowered NOx levels and improved part load emissions reductions. NOx levels of less than 9 ppm have been achieved during full load engine tests. Combustion zones in DLN combustors are operated in the fuel lean region in order to reduce NOx formation. Reducing airflow from the combustor increases the flame temperature, which lowers CO formation. Combustor airflow is easily controlled with the variable position of the inlet guide vanes (IGV) at the entrance to the compressor. Modifications to the IGV position during the start-up cycle have resulted in start-up CO emissions reductions of over 40%. These product enhancements provide value in regions where environmental considerations for gas turbine emissions are important in the siting and permitting phases of a project. Additionally, when the patented once through HRSG design approach is employed in combined cycle plants, reduced fuel and water usage during start-up provide bottom line economic impacts on every start without sacrificing the base load efficiency of the plant.

Operating Frequency Range Extension Once gas turbines are synchronized to the electrical grid they no longer dictate their operating speed. The grid frequency is the driving force that sets the rotational speed of connected equipment. In the event that the grid frequency deviates from the standard 50 or 60 Hz, protective features will disconnect the gas turbines and related equipment from the controlling grid. It is desired for connected equipment to have a wide range of frequency tolerance to withstand off-frequency events and stay on-line. Through design, component testing and test-bed validation programs the Siemens advanced gas turbines have proven the widest frequency range capability in the industry. The test-bed is configured with the gas turbine connected to a water-brake with a capacity to absorb the full GT output. The water-brake can be controlled to set the rotational speed of the gas turbine. This uniquely allows Siemens to operate the gas W501FD Test Facility Berlin, Germany turbines at full-load conditions at various speeds. Recent testing validated the engines capability to withstand frequency deviations while staying within preestablished design parameters. Both the W501 and .3A advanced series gas turbines have proven their design capabilities by accommodating variations in frequency. For 60 Hz machines this translates into gas turbines that will stay connected to a grid operating from 56.4 to 63 Hz. Similarly, the 50 Hz V94.3A engines are capable of operation between 47 and 53 Hz. This validated operation across various frequencies allows Siemens to comply with established grid guidelines regarding frequency deviations. Demonstrating this capability assures owners that their equipment can reliably and predictably operate under these abnormal conditions. Maintenance Interval Duration The planned inspection/maintenance intervals for gas turbines are typically determined by the number of operating hours or number of instantaneous temperature swings (i.e. starts, trips, etc.). Design enhancements of certain components of advanced Siemens gas turbines can increase the interval between planned inspections enhancing unit availability. The enhancements are focused on reducing thermal stresses on parts due to rapid changes in temperature. This can result in reduced inspection frequencies. The Siemens rotor designs have several capacity and durability features that benefit plant owners and operators over the life of their plant. The bolted rotor designs provide exceptional torque carrying capabilities that have been proven through millions of hours of operation. The Siemens rotor designs use steel disks without intermediate seals or spacer disks. These low alloy rotor

designs have a distinct advantage over the less ductile materials used by other manufacturers that have been prone to cracking. The sealing is accomplished with seal arms that are integral to the turbine disks. The torque is positively transmitted through the rotor with compressor torque pins and/or machined couplings between adjoining disks. The power produced by the turbine is distributed across four stages resulting in reduced stress levels compared to competitive machines. Recently one of the fleet leaders, a W501F engine with approximately 80,000 hours of operation, was scheduled to receive capacity upgrades. Siemens, working with the plant owner inspected the rotor in advance of the required inspection and validated the physical characteristics of the rotor. The inspection results demonstrated that the rotor continues to be sound and can continue to operate. Successful efforts to provide increased intervals between planned inspections and maintenance activities can directly result in increased availability. Cycling Capability Gas turbines by design are ideally suited for relatively quick responses to generation demand as compared to conventional steam based generation systems. In the 1990s F-class gas turbines were primarily considered for base-load applications in combined cycle where high plant efficiencies could be attained. The design and manufacture of these gas turbines were biased towards continuous duty load profiles. Consequently, these machines were configured with features aimed at high efficiency. A key design parameter related to gas turbine efficiency is the amount of leakage between stages. The level of clearance between two surfaces controls the amount of leakage and is inversely proportional to the gas turbines efficiency. Therefore, the smaller the clearances the greater the machines efficiency. In the late 1990s applications for F-class machines broadened to include frequent starting and stopping sometimes including multiple daily starts. Earlier versions of the W501 engines had close tolerances between rotating and stationary surfaces. To provide additional value to our users, design modifications were validated that not only provided the efficient power generation offered by F-class machines, but also allowed the flexibility to start, stop, and restart without restriction. This optimization was accomplished with the use of specially designed coatings that are applied to stationary surfaces in the gas turbine. These coatings have the physical properties that allow them to be abraded (as needed) by the rotating components thus providing the capability for the engine to automatically set the required amount of clearance for its mode of operation. When used in combined cycle application the advanced Siemens gas turbines achieve world class efficiency. Gas turbines have traditionally compromised their fast-loading capability to accommodate the limitation of the HRSG, steam turbine and other plant components. Consequences of these traditional start-up times are numerous and negatively impact the plants economics. Properly designing and integrating the plant components to allow faster starting capability, which dramatically reduces startup fuel and lowers emissions and water consumption,

offers an economical solution. Plants capable of achieving traditional base-load combined cycle efficiency, incorporating fast starting and cycling capability now allow owners to meet a variety of challenging and sometimes changing market demands.

Figure 1: Fast Start Plant Start-up time.

This optimized start-up scheme allows the Siemens designed plants to start-up in approximately half the time of its predecessor after overnight and weekend shutdowns (Figure 1). One key component of this improvement is Siemens patented BENSON Once-Through Steam Generator (BENSON-OTSG), which can readily be applied with or without duct firing and SCR/CO-catalyst systems. Power Output Advanced Siemens gas turbines are successfully applied in both simple cycle and combined cycle configurations. The W501F, W501G and V94.3A are the most powerful gas turbines in their classes (i.e 60 Hz F-class, 60 Hz G-class, and 50 Hz F-class respectively). To increase the output capability, inlet-cooling techniques such as evaporative cooling, fogging and chilling are often used. These optional features are available without inhibiting the operation or increasing inspection frequencies and can provide economical incremental power. Another power augmentation option that exists for the W501 series gas turbines is steam power augmentation. In this configuration, steam generated from a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) or once through steam generator (OTSG) is piped to the gas turbine to mix with the compressed air before combustion. This total increased mass flow of compressed inlet air, combusted fuel and steam then expands through the turbine section resulting in substantial increases in power

because power is not expended to compress the additional mass flow. When operating in this mode, the planned maintenance interval is unchanged. Through evolutionary design improvements over the past 12 years the W501F has realized a 24% increase in its ISO power rating to 190MW. This was accomplished by following the philosophy of being able to retrofit the benefits of newer technology into the existing fleet without having to remove the rotor from the site. At 253 MW the first generation of enhancements for the W501G have increased the ISO power rating over 13% since its introduction in the 1990s. Similarly, the 50 Hz V94.3A has undergone developments resulting in a 12 % ISO power increase to its currently rated 269 MW. These increases in output are mainly attributable to compressor flow increases and turbine cooling flow optimizations. Compressors are designed using aerodynamic modeling tools resulting in 3-D airfoils for highly efficient compression. Advancements in materials, coatings and sealing technologies have also contributed to improved performance. These gas turbines achieve high power ratings at ISO conditions and when operated in colder ambient temperatures they produce even more power. As the ambient air temperature drops, the density of the air increases and consequently the mass flow through the gas turbine increases. This increased mass flow results directly in increased power output. New W501F engines can exploit this benefit at very low temperatures with a design validated to approximately 230 MW. The W501G gas turbine has produced over 280 MW during cold ambient conditions and is capable of producing 300 MW. Gas turbine designers at Siemens have provided valuable increases in the machines output capability with corresponding improvements in efficiency. Plant Efficiency Many experts agree that fuel gas prices will steadily increase over the next several years with some periods of high volatility. To combat the forecasted escalation in fuel prices, the advanced technology of the Siemens gas turbines allows the high output machines to reliably achieve world-class efficiencies, therefore containing costs to produce electricity by generating more power from the same amount of fuel. Both the W501G and the V94.3A gas turbines have simple cycle heat rates lower than 9000 Btu/MWh. When applied in combined cycle these engines are capable of exceeding 58% net plant efficiency. W501F engines can reach 57% net plant efficiency in combined cycle. High combined cycle plant efficiencies are achievable through planned integration of the gas turbine and steam cycle. An example of this integration is apparent when considering the

W501G combined cycle plant. The W501Gs transitions are closed-loop steam cooled during higher loads but use air cooling during start-up and part loads. The air cooling capability during lower loads eliminates the need for an auxiliary steam boiler resulting in complete independence from an auxiliary source of steam. At higher gas turbine loads when steam is required for transition cooling it is supplied to the engine from the integrated steam cycle. The cooling steam then enters an internal wall cooling circuit within each transition. After cooling the transition walls, the heated steam is collected in an exhaust manifold and ducted out of the engine to augment the combined cycles hot-reheat steam. Cooling the transitions using a closed-loop steam circuit is advantageous for the gas turbine and the combined cycle. The gas turbine benefits because less air is removed from the compressor, and can be used to produce power and aid in NOx reduction. The steam cycle benefits by transferring the heat into the hot-reheat steam system resulting in increased combined cycle performance. Operational Update and Summary W501F engines are utilized throughout the 60 Hz regions in both simple and combined cycle configurations. One hundred and sixty five engines are currently in operation and have operated for a combined 1,700,000 fired hours. The lead engine has over 80,000 fired hours and continues to achieve over 99% reliability and over 95% availability. The fleets average availability is 93.6%, with 60% of those units exceeding 95% availability. In simple cycle the W501F produces 190 MW at ISO conditions and can be applied to 1x1, 2x1 or 3x1 combined cycle plants providing capability in excess of 800 MW. At the publication of this paper (late 2003) sixteen W501Gs are in service. This fleet has accounted for over 65,000 fired hours. The first unit placed into service now has over 12,500 fired hours. This gas turbine achieved 95.7% availability for the most recent 12-month period and 92.9% availability and 98.7% reliability since the unit has been in service. Five units have achieved over 8,000 fired hours and as plant efficiency often dictates the dispatching order and run times of power generators, the W501G plants will continue to accumulate reliable hours of operation. Over 45 V94.3A gas turbines serve the 50 Hz market with highly efficient, single-shaft and multi-shaft combined cycle plants. Having operated for over 650,000 fired hours this proven technology maintains a 12 month rolling average availability of 94% and reliability over 99%. Siemens Power Generation has proven the evolutionary gas turbine designs through component testing, test-bed validation and field experience. Operating plants are currently meeting their

plant power, efficiency and emissions targets while accumulating experience in the commercial environment. With over 10 years of commercial operation and more than 2 million fired hours of experience with advanced technology gas turbines, the operational data shows that advancements in technology are achievable without sacrificing reliability, flexibility and cost of electricity. The Siemens modern gas turbines have incorporated enhancements aimed at increasing value to users and owners. Improvements in operation, maintenance, and thermal performance are results of dedication to continual improvements and technology applications within the gas turbine product line. Extensive research, development, and testing programs are providing substantial results that will positively impact these powerful gas turbines. References 1. Antos, R., Diakunchak, I. S., Wolfe, B., 2002, Product Enhancements and Operational Updates on Advanced W501 Gas Turbines, POWER-GEN International 2002. 2. Baumgartner R, McManus M. T., 2003, An Integrated Combined Cycle Plant Design That Provides Fast Start Capability at Base-Load Efficiency, POWER-GEN International 2003. 3. Antos, R., DeRosa, P., Wolfe, B., McManus, M. T., 2001, The W501G Product Description and Operational Experience Proven Power for the Global Market, POWER-GEN International 2001. 4. Antos, R, Diakunchak, I. S, 2000, The Advancement of the W501F Gas Turbine for the Expanding Electric Power Industry, POWER-GEN International 2000. 5. Diakunchak, I. S., Gaul, G. R., McQuiggan, G., Southall, L. R., 2002, Siemens Westinghouse Advanced Turbine Systems Program Final Summary, ASME Paper GT2002-30654.