Active temperature monitoring in gas turbine combustors

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9453767-B2
Application number	US-201314132001-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 18, 2013
Priority date	Dec 18, 2013
Publication date	Sep 27, 2016
Grant date	Sep 27, 2016

Abstract

Acoustic pyrometry-based active temperature monitoring of gas turbine combustors, including industrial gas turbine (IGT) combustors is incorporated into the combustion monitoring and control system by addition of an acoustic transmitter or acoustic transceiver that transmits a sound wave in a line-of-sight with a plurality of thermoacoustic sensors, such as dynamic pressure sensors. Sound transmission time-of-flight is measured by the controller and correlated with path temperature along the line-of-sight. Path(s) of acoustic transmission serve as absolute temperature measurement that optionally is used for calibrating dominant mode passive bulk temperature measurement. In an integrated thermoacoustic pressure-based sensor and monitoring/control system embodiment, the controller correlates performance of an combustion thermoacoustic properties in order to identify combustion anomalies by wavelet or Fourier analysis techniques, determine bulk temperature characteristics within the combustor with dominant mode frequency analysis techniques and determines absolute active path temperatures within the combustor with acoustic transmission and time-of-flight analysis techniques.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for actively monitoring temperature in a combustor of a gas turbine engine, comprising:
placing in a gas turbine combustor at least one acoustic transmitter and at least one thermoacoustic sensor that is oriented in a distinct line-of-sound path from the transmitter, the sensor capable of generating sensor output signals indicative of thermoacoustic oscillations, including combustion thermoacoustic oscillations and wherein the combustor includes at least one sensor that is in pressure communication with combustor working gasses;
coupling the at least one transmitter and the at least one sensor to a controller that is capable of causing the at least one transmitter to transmit acoustic signals within the combustor and capable of correlating sensor output signals with combustion conditions, including at least combustion temperature;
transmitting acoustic signals from the at least one transmitter;
receiving the acoustic signals from the at least one acoustic transmitter and generating dynamic sensor output signals with the at least one thermoacoustic sensor that includes contributions of the received acoustic signals;
determining, using a processor, the time-of-flight for the acoustic signals traveling along each of the line of sound paths;
processing, via a processor, the time-of-flight for the acoustic signals traveling along the line of sound paths to determine respective combustor path temperature along each respective line-of-sound path; and
determining bulk temperature within the combustor by:
identifying one or more acoustic frequencies in a respective sensor output signal;
determining, for each of the one or more acoustic frequencies, a first bulk temperature value, T, that is directly proportional to each one of the one or more acoustic frequencies and a calculated constant value corresponding to each of the one or more acoustic frequencies;
comparing the bulk first temperature value determined for each of the one or more frequencies to the path temperature and, for each of the one or more frequencies, changing the calculated constant values to recalculated constant values based on the comparison; and
determining subsequent first temperature values at the first location based on further identified acoustic frequencies.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining combustor path temperature in real time.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining bulk temperature within the combustor with the determined respective combustor path temperatures.

4. The method of claim 1 , the determining subsequent first temperature values also based on further recalculated constant values.

5. The method of claim 1 comprising an array of at least two sensors, each respectively oriented in a distinct line-of-sound path from the at least one transmitter.

6. A method for controlling combustion in an industrial gas turbine combustor using the combustion path temperature determined by the method of claim 1 .

7. The method of claim 6 , further comprising controlling fuel/air mixture in the combustor based at least in part on the determined combustion path temperature.

8. A system for monitoring temperature in a combustor of a gas turbine engine, comprising:
at least one acoustic transmitter and at least one thermoacoustic sensor oriented in a distinct line-of-sound path from the at least one transmitter, the at least one sensor capable of generating respective sensor output signals indicative of thermoacoustic oscillations, including combustion thermoacoustic oscillations and further including at least one sensor that is in pressure communication with combustor working gasses;
a controller, coupled to the at least one transmitter and the at least one sensor that is capable of causing the at least one transmitter to transmit acoustic signals within the combustor and capable of correlating sensor output signals with combustion conditions, including at least combustion temperature, by:
transmitting acoustic signals from the at least one transmitter;
receiving the acoustic signals from the at least one acoustic transmitter and generating dynamic sensor output signals with the at least one thermoacoustic sensor that include contributions of the received acoustic signals;
determining, using a processor, the time-of-flight for the acoustic signals traveling along each of the line of sound paths; and
processing, via a processor, the time-of-flight for the acoustic signals traveling along the line of sound paths to determine respective combustor path temperature along each respective line-of-sound path wherein bulk temperature within the combustor is determined by:
identifying one or more acoustic frequencies in a respective sensor output signal;
determining, for each of the one or more acoustic frequencies, a first bulk temperature value, T, that is directly proportional to each one of the one or more acoustic frequencies and a calculated constant value corresponding to each of the one or more acoustic frequencies;
comparing the bulk first temperature value determined for each of the one or more frequencies to the path temperature and, for each of the one or more frequencies, changing the calculated constant values to recalculated constant values based on the comparison; and
determining subsequent first temperature values at the first location based on further identified acoustic frequencies.

9. The system of claim 8 , the at least one acoustic transmitter and the at least one thermoacoustic sensor defining a transceiver, with a plurality of transceivers arrayed within the combustor.

10. The system of claim 8 , at least one respective thermoacoustic sensor in the sensor array located upstream and downstream of the transmitter.

11. The system of claim 8 , further comprising a plurality of thermoacoustic sensors arrayed radially in at least one common plane in the combustor.

12. The system of claim 8 , further comprising a plurality of thermoacoustic sensors arrayed axially in the combustor.

13. The system of claim 8 , the controller determining bulk temperature within the combustor by processing a plurality of the respective acoustic signal time-of-flight determinations.

14. The system of claim 8 , further comprising a plurality of thermoacoustic sensors comprising any combination of one or more of a dynamic pressure sensor, a microphone, an optical sensor or an ionic sensor.

15. The system of claim 8 , the controller controlling combustion in an industrial gas turbine combustor using the determined combustion path temperature.

16. The system of claim 15 , the controller controlling fuel/air mixture in the combustor based at least in part on the determined combustion path temperature.

17. A gas turbine apparatus, comprising:
a compressor section;
a combustor section including a plurality of combustors, each combustor having an injector system for regulating fuel/air mixture;
a turbine section; and
a system for monitoring temperature in each respective combustor, having:
at least one acoustic transmitter and an array of at least two thermoacoustic sensors each respectively oriented in a distinct line-of-sound path from the at least one transmitter, the sensors capable of generating respective sensor output signals indicative of thermoacoustic oscillations, including combustion thermoacoustic oscillations and further including at least one sensor that is in pressure communication with combustor working gasses;
a controller, coupled to the at least one transmitter and the sensors that is capable of causing the at least one

Assignees

• Siemens Energy Inc

Inventors

• Desilva Upul P

Classifications

• G01K11/26

  of resonant frequencies · CPC title

• F02C3/04 Primary

  having a turbine driving a compressor (power transmission arrangements F02C7/36; control of working fluid flow F02C9/16) · CPC title

• F05D2270/09

  to cope with emergencies · CPC title

• F05D2270/303

  Temperature · CPC title

• G01K11/24 Primary

  of the velocity of propagation of sound · CPC title