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TECHNICAL PAPERS: Gas Turbines: Cycle Innovations

# Design Study of a Humidification Tower for the Advanced Humid Air Turbine System

[+] Author and Article Information
Hidefumi Araki, Shinichi Higuchi, Shinya Marushima, Shigeo Hatamiya

Hitachi Ltd., Power and Industrial Systems R&D Laboratory, 7-2-1 Omika-cho, Hitachi-shi, 319-1221, Japan

J. Eng. Gas Turbines Power 128(3), 543-550 (Sep 28, 2005) (8 pages) doi:10.1115/1.2132384 History: Received August 25, 2005; Revised September 28, 2005

## Abstract

The advanced humid air turbine (AHAT) system, which can be equipped with a heavy-duty, single-shaft gas turbine, aims at high efficiency equal to that of the HAT system. Instead of an intercooler, a WAC (water atomization cooling) system is used to reduce compressor work. The characteristics of a humidification tower (a saturator), which is used as a humidifier for the AHAT system, were studied. The required packing height and the exit water temperature from the humidification tower were analyzed for five virtual gas turbine systems with different capacities (1, 3.2, 10, 32, and $100MW$) and pressure ratios ($π=8$, 12, 16, 20, and 24). Thermal efficiency of the system was compared with that of a simple cycle and a recuperative cycle with and without the WAC system. When the packing height of the humidification tower was changed, the required size varied for the three heat exchangers around the humidification tower (a recuperator, an economizer, and an air cooler). The packing height with which the sum total of the size of the packing and these heat exchangers became a minimum was $1m$ for the lowest pressure ratio case, and $6m$ for the highest pressure ratio case.

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## Figures

Figure 1

Schematic of AHAT (advanced humid air turbine) system

Figure 2

Simplified model of WAC system

Figure 3

Schematic of humidification tower

Figure 4

Heat and mass transfer model inside the humidification tower packing

Figure 5

Compressor inlet airflow rate and diameter of packing for each calculation case

Figure 6

Compressor outlet temperature and turbine entry/exhaust temperature

Figure 7

Cooling airflow ratio

Figure 8

Humidification ratio by WAC system and humidification tower

Figure 9

Comparison of thermal efficiency

Figure 10

(a) Temperature and the humidity profiles and (b) temperature-enthalpy diagram inside the packing of 2m height for π=16 case

Figure 11

Temperature of water at the humidification tower exit

Figure 12

Packing height and log-mean temperature difference, and the KA value of the economizer for π=16 case

Figure 13

KA values of (a) economizer, (b) air cooler, and (c) recuperator

Figure 14

Volume of the three heat exchangers and the packing of the humidification tower required for 1MW of electric power output

Figure 15

Size and shape of the packing required for each calculation case

## Errata

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