Power plants – Combustion products used as motive fluid – Combustion products generator
Reexamination Certificate
2002-01-25
2003-09-09
Freay, Charles G. (Department: 3746)
Power plants
Combustion products used as motive fluid
Combustion products generator
C060S784000, C060S039530
Reexamination Certificate
active
06615585
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to intake-air cooling type gas turbine power equipment. More particularly, the invention is concerned with intake-air cooling type gas turbine power equipment in which air taken in from the atmosphere is previously cooled and then the cooled air is compressed to produce compressed air, which is then subjected to combustion with a fuel introduced from an external system provided separately from the power equipment, wherein a gas turbine is rotationally driven under the action of the combustion gas of a high temperature resulting from the combustion of the compressed air with the fuel supplied from the external system, and wherein an electric generator operatively coupled to a rotor shaft of the gas turbine is driven through rotation of the rotor shaft for generating electric energy.
Furthermore, the present invention is also concerned with a combined power plant comprised of a combination of the gas turbine power equipment described above and steam turbine power generation equipment which includes a heat-recovery type steam generation boiler in which heat carried by an exhaust gas discharged from the gas turbine is recovered to be utilized for producing a high-temperature/high-pressure steam, a steam turbine driven under the action of the high-temperature/high-pressure steam produced by the heat-recovery type steam generation boiler, and an electric generator operatively coupled to a rotor shaft of the steam turbine, wherein the electric generator is driven through rotation of the rotor shaft for generating electric energy.
2. Description of Related Art
In the conventional gas turbine equipment, air is taken in from the atmosphere for combustion with a fuel within a combustor or for cooling high-temperature components of the gas turbine equipment which are heated to high-temperatures in the course of operation of the gas turbine equipment such as, for example, the main body of the combustor, a tail cylinder, moving blades and stationary blades of the first stage as well as a blade shroud of the gas turbine. The air taken in, i.e., the intake air, is compressed by an air compressor for producing compressed air which is then supplied to the combustor or fed to the aforementioned high-temperature components of the gas turbine equipment for the cooling thereof.
In recent years, with a view to increasing the output of the gas turbine equipment by combusting a greater amount of fuel while increasing the amount of intake air so that a greater amount of air can be used for cooling the high-temperature components of the equipment to thereby reduce heat load thereof for allowing the manufacturing costs of the high-temperature components to be decreased while lengthening the service life thereof, and additionally for the purpose of increasing the inlet temperature of the gas turbine, there has been developed the gas turbine equipment which adopts such an intake air cooling scheme that the air taken in from the atmosphere, i.e., the intake air of the gas turbine, is cooled prior to being supplied to the air compressor, whereon the cooled air is introduced into the gas turbine equipment to thereby increase the effective air quantity, i.e., mass flow of air. Such gas turbine equipment is now attracting public attention.
As one of the means for cooling the intake gas of the gas turbine, there is known a refrigeration system.
FIG. 15
is a block diagram showing schematically an arrangement of a conventional refrigeration system. Referring to the figure, reference numeral
101
denotes an electric drive motor,
102
denotes generally a refrigerant compressor driven by the electric motor
101
for compressing a refrigerant vapor to thereby produce a compressed refrigerant vapor,
103
denotes a condenser for cooling the compressed refrigerant vapor with cooling water to condense the compressed refrigerant vapor for thereby producing a liquid-phase refrigerant or refrigerant liquid,
104
denotes a cooling tower for cooling the water which is heated upon cooling of the compressed refrigerant vapor and for feeding back the cooled water to the condenser
103
, and
104
′ denotes an additional cooling apparatus which is installed separately from the cooling tower
104
and which is destined for cooling the water heated in the condenser
103
and feeding back the cooled water to the latter. Further, reference numeral
105
denotes an evaporator for expanding the refrigerant liquid to transform it to the gas phase, i.e., refrigerant vapor. In that case, water circulating through or between a destined cooling water utilization system (not shown) and the evaporator
105
is deprived of a quantity of heat which corresponds to the latent heat of vaporization of the refrigerant liquid upon expansion thereof. In this way, the circulating water is cooled before being supplied to the destined cooling water utilization system.
In operation, the refrigerant compressor
102
is driven by the electric motor
101
to compress the refrigerant vapor, e.g. vapor of substitute freon, ammonia or the like. The compressed refrigerant vapor is then charged to the condenser
103
where the compressed refrigerant vapor is cooled by the cooling water fed from the cooling tower
104
and/or the additional cooling apparatus
104
′ to be condensed to the refrigerant liquid (i.e., liquid-phase refrigerant) which is then fed to the evaporator
105
. As mentioned above, water is circulating through the evaporator
105
and the cooling water utilization system (not shown). Consequently, in the evaporator
105
, the circulating water is deprived of heat equivalent or corresponding to the latent heat of vaporization of the refrigerant liquid, which is thus vaporized or gasified into the refrigerant vapor. On the other hand, the circulating water deprived of heat equivalent to the latent heat of vaporization of the refrigerant liquid is cooled and fed to the cooling water utilization system or equipment. The refrigerant vapor is supplied to the refrigerant compressor
102
and compressed again to be discharged therefrom as the compressed refrigerant vapor. In this way, a refrigeration cycle is established through the processes of heat transfers to/from the refrigerant and the phase changes or transformations thereof.
In the refrigeration cycle described above, the amount of heat injected into the refrigeration system is a sum of the heat Q
1
which is generated upon compression of the refrigerant vapor in the refrigerant compressor
102
which is driven by the electric motor (i.e., heat corresponding to the driving energy for the electric motor) and the heat Q
2
which is equivalent to the latent heat of vaporization deprived of the water circulating through the evaporator
105
and the destined cooling water utilization system. On the other hand, heat emanating from the refrigeration system to the ambient is represented by the heat Q
3
which is dissipated from the cooling tower
104
and the additional cooling apparatus
104
′ when water whose temperature has been raised upon cooling of the compressed refrigerant vapor in the condenser
103
for condensation thereof to the liquid phase is cooled to cold water in the cooling tower
104
and/or the additional cooling apparatus
104
′. The heat injected into the refrigeration system and the heat dissipated therefrom must be in equilibrium with each other. In other words, there applies valid the relation given by Q
3
=Q
1
+Q
2
.
FIG. 16
is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a conventional intake-air cooling type gas turbine power equipment in which a refrigeration system is employed. Referring to
FIG. 16
, reference numeral
106
denotes generally a refrigeration system which includes as major components an electric motor
101
, a refrigerant compressor
102
, a condenser
103
, a cooling tower
104
and an evaporator
105
. Reference numeral
107
designates air in the atmosphere. Further, reference numeral
108
denotes a suction chamber into which
Freay Charles G.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd.
Rodriguez William H.
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