Westinghouse Electric Corporation

William L McCarty

Kermit R Wescott

Gerald A Myers

Alan Martens

Stephen E Mumford

Paul J Tyler

Louis R Wood

Leo P St Onge

Achim A Von Seelen

Cap rack

A gas turbine power plant has coolant injected into the combustors in order to reduce the level of nitrogen oxide produced by the combustion of natural gas fuel and/or oil. A control system controls injection of coolant into the combustors in order to reduce NOx emissions, while improving turbine cycle efficiency and avoiding the possibility of over-injection of coolant to the point of flame-out in the combustor. PID controllers are used to provide percentage error bias in the control system, whereby adjustment of coolant injection follows turbine load in a manner that increases turbine efficiency.

Automatic NOx control for a gas turbine

Method and apparatus for controlling fuel flow in a combustion turbine, wherein a load signal representative of the load on the combustion turbine is given, are shown to include fuel flow device for regulating the flow of fuel in the combustion turbine in response to a control signal, a controller for generating a control signal representative of the difference between the load signal and a limit signal and for providing the control signal to the fuel flow device and a limit signal generator for generating the limit signal so that the limit signal is representative of the sum of the load signal and a maximum instantaneous load value, wherein the limiting means varies the limit signal over time from a first value to the sum.

Gas turbine control system having maximum instantaneous load-pickup

Method and apparatus for diagnosing ignition failure conditions in a combustion turbine are shown to generally include referencing members for generating a plurality of reference signals, wherein each of the reference signals are representative of a desired ignition operating condition, sensors for sensing actual ignition operating conditions each of which correspond to a desired ignition operating condition. The sensors generate a plurality of operating signals representative of actual ignition operating conditions. Comparators are utilized for comparing each of the operating signals to a corresponding reference signal and to indicate when the operating signal exceeds the reference signal in the presence of an ignition enabling signal.

Apparatus for ignition diagnosis in a combustion turbine

Method and apparatus for generating an ignition enabling signal for use with a given combustion turbine having an ignition system which ignites the turbine in response to an enabling signal, wherein a turbine speed signal is given, is shown to include a sensor for generating an ambient air temperature signal, a reference member for generating a reference signal representative of the turbine speed at which optimum air flow exists for ignition, a comparator for comparing the reference signal to an adjusted speed signal and for generating the ignition enabling signal when the adjusted speed signal exceeds the reference signal and for providing the enabling signal to the ignition system. The adjusted speed signal is generated by modifying the turbine speed signal in response to the ambient air temperature signal. Such modification is achieved by summing the turbine speed signal with a bias speed factor. The bias speed factor is representative of the difference between optimum turbine ignition speed and that turbine speed necessary for optimum ignition air flow to exist in said combustion turbine at such ambient temperature.

Gas turbine control system having optimized ignition air flow control

Method and apparatus for cooling shaft seals of a turbine-generator system which includes a hydrogen inner-cooled generator having a stator with a cylindrical core and a rotor mounted for rotation on a shaft within the cylindrical core, a turbine coupled to the shaft at one end of the generator, an exciter coupled to the shaft at the other end of the generator, and a pair of seals each of which surround the shaft at both ends of the generator for substantially minimizing a leakage of hydrogen therefrom. Each of the seals includes a seal ring with a hydrogen side and an air side, and a closed loop oil supply is provided for each such side. One closed loop oil supply supplies oil to the hydrogen side of each of the seals, and another closed loop oil supply supplies oil to the air side of each of the seals, and both oil supplies are coupled within a heat exchanger for exchanging heat between the two closed loop oil supplies.

Method and apparatus for cooling shaft seals

In a combined cycle plant boiler an inlet temperature is adjusted or controlled while concurrently modulating the IGV's and the load of the gas turbine and the attemperator of the boiler, and concurrent modulation of the IGV's, the gas turbine load, the attemperator is effected as upon three independent control variables to adjust and/or maintain the boiler outlet temperature independently of steam turbine operation and to maximize gas turbine load control range. Control of the output temperature of one boiler is also managed in relation with the mixed temperature of steam from other boilers fluidly connected to the steam turbines.

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West Chester, FL, United States of America

William L McCarty