Natural Gas–Hydrogen Blends to Power: Equipment Adaptation and Experimental Study
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Equipment and Experimental Procedure
2.1. Experimental Equipment
- Gas generator, composed of a compressor and a turbine that operate within a speed range of 60,000 to 120,000 revolutions per minute, along with the combustion chamber and a noise-attenuated air inlet;
- Power turbine characterized by operating speeds ranging from 10,000 to 40,000 revolutions per minute and delivering a maximum power of around 2 kW, equipped with an exhaust silencer and connected to the electric generator via a 1:11 belt transmission ratio;
- Fuel system, including a main valve, a quick shut-off valve, a pressure regulator, a control valve, and an injector;
- Ignition system, featuring a spark plug and an ignition transformer;
- Lubrication system, consisting of a tank, an oil filter, a pressure regulator that ensures operation between 2 and 4 bar, an oil cooler, and a pump;
- Electric generator, with an efficiency of 74% and a maximum electrical power of 1.5 kW, including a converter, ballast resistors, and a power indicator;
- Starting system, which includes a starter fan with a power of 1 kW, a speed of 30,000 rpm, and a maximum pressure of 10 kPa, along with the air flow regulation vanes;
- Instrumentation and control, equipped with measurement probes for temperature, flow, rotation speed, and pressure, as well as an automatic shutdown system that is activated whenever any of the following conditions are met:
- Gas generator turbine inlet temperature above 1100 °C or below 600 °C;
- Lubrication oil temperature above 100 °C;
- Oil circuit pressure below 2 bar;
- Gas generator speed exceeding 130,000 revolutions per minute.
2.2. Procedure
- Starting the turbine according to the manufacturer’s instructions;
- Stabilizing the rotation speed of the gas generator at 80,000 revolutions per minute;
- Data collection, as indicated in Figure 2, where values were recorded for the following variables: air flow, fuel flow, gas temperature, compressor inlet temperature, compressor outlet temperature, pressure drop in the combustion chamber, injection pressure, turbine inlet temperature, turbine inlet pressure, power turbine inlet temperature, power turbine inlet pressure, power turbine outlet temperature, gas generator rotation speed, power produced, NOx concentration, and O2 concentration;
- Repeating the second and third steps for speeds of 90,000, 100,000, 110,000, and 120,000 revolutions per minute. Stabilizing the gas generator speed and collecting the data on this last speed require maximum efficiency, as operating the bench for long periods with electrical outputs exceeding 1.5 kW is not recommended;
- The process is repeated for a new gas mixture, with the equipment being cooled between tests.
2.3. General Description of the Mechanism of NOx Formation
3. Results
3.1. Temperatures
3.2. Pressures
3.3. Combustion
3.4. Power and Efficiency
3.5. Operational Costs
4. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
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Substance | Natural Gas | GN + 5% H2 | GN + 10% H2 | GN + 20% H2 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Methane (CH4) | 92.4% | 87.8% | 83.2% | 73.9% |
Ethane (C2H6) | 4.8% | 4.6% | 4.3% | 3.8% |
Propane (C3H8) | 2.1% | 2.0% | 1.9% | 1.7% |
Butane (C4H10) | 0.7% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% |
Hydrogen (H2) | - | 5.0% | 10.0% | 20.0% |
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Valente, R.; Costa, J.M.; Domingues, N.S. Natural Gas–Hydrogen Blends to Power: Equipment Adaptation and Experimental Study. Energies 2025, 18, 1922. https://doi.org/10.3390/en18081922
Valente R, Costa JM, Domingues NS. Natural Gas–Hydrogen Blends to Power: Equipment Adaptation and Experimental Study. Energies. 2025; 18(8):1922. https://doi.org/10.3390/en18081922
Chicago/Turabian StyleValente, Ruben, Jorge M. Costa, and Nuno Soares Domingues. 2025. "Natural Gas–Hydrogen Blends to Power: Equipment Adaptation and Experimental Study" Energies 18, no. 8: 1922. https://doi.org/10.3390/en18081922
APA StyleValente, R., Costa, J. M., & Domingues, N. S. (2025). Natural Gas–Hydrogen Blends to Power: Equipment Adaptation and Experimental Study. Energies, 18(8), 1922. https://doi.org/10.3390/en18081922