Lean premixed combustion systems have been deployed on land based gas turbine engines to reduce emissions, such as NOx and CO. These systems have been successful and, in some cases, produce emission levels that are at the lower limits of measurement capabilities, approximately 1 to 3 parts per million (ppm) of NOx and CO. Although these systems are a great benefit from a standpoint of emission production, the operational envelope of the systems is substantially reduced when compared to more conventional combustion systems. As a consequence, the control of fuel conditions, distribution and injection into the combustion zones has become a critical operating parameter and requires frequent adjustment, when ambient atmospheric conditions, such as temperature, humidity and pressure, change. The re-adjustment of the combustion fuel conditions, distribution and injection is termed tuning.
Controlled operation of a combustion system generally employs a manual setting of the operational parameters of a combustor at an average operational condition. These settings are satisfactory at the time of the setup, but conditions may change and cause an unacceptable operation in a matter of hours or days. Other approaches use a formula to predict emissions based on gas turbine operating parameters and select a set point for fuel distribution and/or overall machine fuel/air ratio, without modifying other parameters, such as fuel gas temperature. These approaches do not allow for timely variation, do not take advantage of actual dynamics and emission data or do not modify fuel distribution, fuel temperature and/or other turbine operating parameters.
Another variable that impacts the lean premixed combustion system is fuel composition. Sufficient variation in fuel composition will cause a change in the heat release of the lean premixed combustion system. Such change may lead to emissions excursions, unstable combustion processes, or even blow out of the combustion system.
Mis-operation of the combustion system manifests itself in augmented pressure pulsations or an increase in combustion dynamics. Pulsations can have sufficient force to destroy the combustion system and dramatically reduce the life of combustion hardware. Additionally, improper tuning of the combustion system can lead to emission excursions and violate emission permits. Therefore, a means to maintain the stability of the lean premixed combustion systems, on a regular or periodic basis, within the proper operating envelope, is of great value and interest to the industry. Additionally, a system that operates by utilizing near real-time data, taken from the turbine sensors, would have significant value to coordinate modulation of fuel distribution, fuel gas inlet temperature and/or overall machine fuel/air ratio.