Recent Experimental Results on Gasification and Combustion of Low BTU Gas for Gas Turbines

A proposed system is presented for low pollution power generation by means of a combined cycle gas turbine system using low Btu fuel gas produced from high sulfur residual oil and solid fuel. Experimental results and conclusions are presented from a cooperative research program involving Texaco Inc. and Turbo Power and Marine Systems, Inc. whereby high sulfur crude oil residue was partially oxidized with air to produce a 100 to 150 Btu/scf sulfur-free fuel gas for use in a turbine combustor. An FT4 gas turbine combustion chamber test demonstrated that low Btu gas can be efficiently burned with a large reduction in NOx emissions. Gas turbine modifications required to burn low Btu gas are described and projected NOx emission compared to No. 2 fuel oil and natural gas are shown for an FT4 gas turbine. Integration of the gas turbine combined cycle system to a low Btu gasification process is described. The system provides an efficient method of generating electrical power from high sulfur liquid fuels while minimizing emission of air and water pollutants.