CFD analysis of an annular micro gas turbine combustion chamber fuelled with liquid biofuels. Preliminary results with bioethanol

摘要

Liquid biofuels, such as bioethanoi, biodiesel and vegetal oils, can effectively be used in internal combustion engines blended with liquid fuels of fossil origin or in their substitution, allowing a reduction of CO_2 and pollutant emissions in the atmosphere. This work is supported by a CFD analysis to study the feasibility of using these fuels derived from biomass in a 80 kWel micro gas turbine, originally designed for operation with natural gas. In this paper preliminary results about the behavior of bioethanoi in the MGT combustion chamber are presented. The complete investigation however includes biodiesel and also glycerin, a byproduct of biodiesel production. To carry out the computational simulations, combustion models included in a commercial software and oxidation mechanism of ethanol taken from the literature were used. The geometry of the NG injector was modified to optimize the liquid inlet into the combustor. Simulation results in terms of temperatures, pressures, and emissions were compared with data available for natural gas combustion in the original combustion chamber.