A Fully Enhanced Gas Turbine for Surface Ships

Abstract

Clearly, the advanced gas turbine has center stage in the world for converting fuel to work. The power and efficiency delivered by the advanced gas turbine have made it the predominant prime mover in the air, and increasingly so on land and sea. This paper explores the full potential offered for marine applications by the advanced gas turbine, a potential that is fully enhanced by use of available engineering options that are external to the gas generator. The enhancement options are: 1) intercooling 2) thermal recuperation 3) steam injection 4) reheat 5) closed loop cooling 6) catalytic partial oxidation 7) water recovary. Of the options studied reheat involves a unique approach. Reheat is postulated to be accomplished with a new simplified technique. An autoignitable hydrogen-rich fuel is injected into the air path through the cooling passages and from the trailing edge of blades and vanes of the law pressure turbine, reheating the air prior to entry into the free power turbine.