Influence of different biofuels on the efficiency of gas turbine cycles for prosumer and distributed energy power plants

Abstract

The efficiency of a gas turbine can be affected by the use of different biofuels usually with a relatively Lower Heating Value (LHV). The paper evaluates the impact of calorific value of fuel on turbine performance and analyzes the possibilities of optimizing turbine construction from the point of view of maximum efficiency for a particular fuel. The several variants of design of small power microturbines dedicated to various biofuels are analyzed. The calculations were carried out for: gas from biomass gasification (LHV = 4.4 MJ/kg), biogas (LHV = 17.5 MJ/kg) and methane (LHV = 50 MJ/kg). It is demonstrated that analyzed solution enables construction of several kW power microturbines that might be used on a local scale. Careful design of such devices allows for achieving high efficiency with appropriate choice of the turbine construction for specific fuel locally available. Such individually created generation systems might be applied in distributed generation systems assuring environmental profits.