In the "Retrofit H2" project funded by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry for the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector, the project partners Power Service Consulting GmbH (PSC) and the DLR Institute of Combustion Technology have joined forces to develop a concept for retrofitting existing gas turbines.
As gas turbines are generally in operation for many years, existing plants also need to be examined to see whether they can be converted or upgraded and the focus here should also be on flexible fuel utilisation. In addition to adjustments to technical components, such as the combustion chamber system and the distribution systems, this also requires adjustments to the infrastructure in compliance with special regulatory requirements.
In order to show the retrofit process on a demonstration plant, the institute is developing a fuel-flexible combustor system for a commercially available micro gas turbine (MGT), integrating it into the gas turbine and testing it in an extended trial run at the DLR site in Lampoldshausen from January 2024. The project partner PSC will carry out a process development for the hydrogen-capable infrastructure of the plant in accordance with the applicable European and international norms, guidelines and standards and develop the design for the construction of a fuel-flexible control, mixing and distribution system, integrate it into the gas turbine and test it.
Since it will take some time before green hydrogen is available in sufficient quantities, power plants will be operated with many different mixtures of natural gas and hydrogen up to pure hydrogen during this transition phase. Gas turbines must therefore run equally efficiently with all these mixtures or even pure hydrogen.
Credit:
Umweltministerium Baden-Württemberg
"The biggest challenge in developing the combustion chamber are the very different properties of natural gas and hydrogen, especially with regard to stable and low-emission combustion," says project manager Hohloch, "but we are drawing on our many years of experience in the field of combustion chamber development for a wide variety of fuels."
Retrofit H2
Retrofit concepts for existing power plants as an entry into hydrogen use
Duration
1. January 2022 to 30. June 2024
Registration number
BWZPH222118
Participants
DLR Institute of Combustion Technology
Power Service Consulting GmbH (PSC)
Funding scheme
BW Plus II by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector
