Heavy Duty H2 Gas Turbine Demonstration – A Combined Experience

Renewable energy sources are developing rapidly worldwide. The inherent intermittency of those is leading the electrical industry into finding alternate energy storage solutions and Hydrogen, a Carbon free fuel, is a prime candidate. South Korea is aspiring at being a World Leader in decarbonization of its energy sector and currently developing a dedicated, Carbon free, market. Low pollutant Hydrogen combustion is notoriously difficult to achieve, low NOx in particular. Most OEMs are developing premix combustors but hurdles are numerous, adequate flashback margin being the biggest issue. PSM’s FlameSheet™ combustor was proven numerous times in various test rigs above the 80%vol H2 mark, but also in engines up to 25%vol H2. Full scale demonstration above 50%vol H2 in an engine was next. PSM, Thomassen and Hanwha joined forces to move, convert and commission a 7EA capable of burning in excess of 50%vol H2. The site is located in the West of Korea, in a petro-chemical plant. Off-gas containing up to 40%vol H2 was used together with pure H2, and Liquified Natural Gas for start-up. A mixing station was designed to combine those three streams and precisely control a level of H2 in the mixture fueling the engine. This paper will highlight the challenges faced and the solutions devised for the combustor, the fuel delivery system and the control sequences. Those were some of the key elements to success. Safety was another important aspect and key principles will be described while an overview of the project will also be discussed. After months of efforts including three months of commissioning, the GT achieved full load on April 14th, 2023. An official governmental measurement of 59.5%vol H2 and single digit NOx was demonstrated. The upcoming efforts will be briefly discussed.