Development of Ammonia Gas Turbine Co-Generation Technology

ITO Shintaro : Doctor of Engineering, Combustion & Engine Group, Technology Platform Center,
Technology & Intelligence Integration
UCHIDA Masahiro : Doctor of Engineering, Manager, Combustion & Engine Group, Technology Platform
Center, Technology & Intelligence Integration
SUDA Toshiyuki : Doctor of Engineering, Manager, Business Development Department, Resources,
Energy & Environment Business Area
FUJIMORI Toshiro : Doctor of Engineering, Technical advisor, Technology & Intelligence Integration

To develop an ammonia/natural gas co-fired gas turbine, there is a challenge in compliance with environmental
regulations of NOx concentration in flue gas. To solve the challenge, power generation tests have been conducted using
a 2 MW-class gas turbine with a low NOx combustor. Power generation of 2 MW and a reduction of CO2 emissions
with ammonia mixing ratio of 20% has been achieved. It has been confirmed that the NOx removal device can reduce
NOx concentration below 7 ppm. The performance calculation of the heat recovery steam boiler using the measured
data as an input value has also been performed. The result showed that the total efficiency of ammonia/natural gas
co-fired gas turbine co-generation system can be kept at the same level as a natural gas fired system.

Ammonia has combustion characteristics quite different to

1. Introduction natural gas, which is widely used as a fuel for gas turbines.
In Japan and overseas, hydrogen is attracting attention as an Ammonia burns at a rate approximately one-fifth that of
alternative fuel for reducing CO2 emissions resulting from natural gas, generates around half as much heat, and has an
the use of fossil fuels. Hydrogen can be produced by adiabatic flame temperature that is around 150°C lower(3).
renewable energy sources, and no CO2 is produced when Gas turbine combustors have an extremely small cross-
hydrogen burns. However, it is costly to transport and store sectional area and volume, and so the gas flows at a high
hydrogen as a gas. As a solution to this problem, increasing velocity and resides in the combustor for only a short time.
attention is being given to methods in which hydrogen is If ammonia is burned in such a combustor, there is a risk of
transported after liquification or conversion to chemical blow-off and/or unburned ammonia being discharged. In
substances suitable for transportation and storage, such as addition, gas turbines for power generation are subject to
methylcyclohexane (MCH) or ammonia(1). Among these regulations regarding the concentration of nitrogen oxide
chemical substances, ammonia has the following excellent (NOx) contained in the flue gas. When natural gas is burned,
characteristics: NOx is generated mainly by oxidation of nitrogen in the
(1) The hydrogen content per unit volume is high. atmosphere at the high temperatures produced by combustion.
(2) The saturation vapor pressure at 20°C is approximately However, when ammonia is burned, NOx is generated mainly
9 times atmospheric pressure, and so ammonia can easily by oxidization of nitrogen atoms contained in ammonia
be liquified and is suitable for transportation and storage. molecules(4). For this reason, when ammonia is used as a gas
(3) Ammonia is used widely in fertilizers, as a chemical turbine fuel, it is difficult to use a combustor developed for
raw material, and as a reducing agent for the removal of natural gas without modification. Therefore, there is a need
NOx in thermal power plants; therefore, there exist well- to establish a combustion technology that is suited to burning
developed production, transportation, and storage ammonia and limits emissions of unburned NH3, NOx, etc.
technologies and infrastructure. to low levels.
(4) Ammonia can be burned without being reconverted to Up to the present, IHI has been working to develop a low
hydrogen. emission combustor for ammonia/natural gas co-firing with
It is expected that power generation equipment such as gas the aim of establishing a combustion technology that meets
turbines, boilers, and fuel cells will use ammonia. Among environmental regulations when ammonia and natural gas
these, it is anticipated that gas turbines will be utilized as a are co-fired at an ammonia mixing ratio of 20% using 2 MW-
power source for regulating load fluctuations when renewable class gas turbines(5), (6). This paper describes the results of a
energy sources, such as photovoltaics and wind power rig test conducted during combustor development, and of a
generation, are used(2). Therefore, it is believed that the use power generation test conducted using a 2 MW-class gas
of ammonia as a fuel for gas turbines will contribute greatly turbine.
to the achievement of a sustainable society.

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 : NOx
2. Development of a low NOx emission : NH3
combustor for ammonia/natural gas 2 000
: CO
200
co-firing

NOx concentration at combustor outlet (ppm)*1

unburned NH3 at combustor outlet (ppm)*1

2.1 Structure of the combustor
In order to limit NOx emissions, which is the biggest issue 1 500 150

Concentrations of CO and
with respect to burning ammonia, IHI developed a combustor
that is suitable for ammonia co-firing. On the assumption of
ammonia being co-fired with natural gas, the combustor was 1 000 100
developed based on a low NOx combustor for burning natural
gas only. Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the ammonia/
natural gas co-firing combustor that was developed. The
500 50
burner in the upper part of the figure (enclosed in a green
box) is a lean premixed burner that burns the fuel after
premixing it with air under conditions that are leaner than
stoichiometric conditions. This burner has a coaxial tube 0 0
0 50 100
structure consisting of internal burner 1 and external burner
Ammonia supply ratio to fuel injection nozzle 3 (%)
2. These burners have corresponding fuel injection nozzles 1
and 2, from which natural gas and ammonia can be injected. (Note) *1 : Converted to oxygen concentration of 16%

Furthermore, in order to achieve low NOx combustion when Fig. 2 Effect of ammonia supply ratio to fuel injection nozzle 3 on
co-firing ammonia in this combustor, fuel injection nozzle 3 NOx, unburned NH3 and CO concentration at combustor
outlet
is positioned in the liner downstream of the burner. Part of
the combustion air is supplied to the interior of the combustor
through dilution holes in the liner, but the combustor is represents the ratio of ammonia supplied to fuel injection
designed such that these holes are located downstream of nozzle 3 with respect to the total amount of ammonia supply,
fuel injection nozzle 3. and the vertical axis represents the concentrations of NOx,
2.2 Effect of ammonia injection position on emissions CO, and unburned NH3 — calculated as dry concentrations
Performance evaluation and design improvement were that exclude water vapor concentration — converted to an
carried out using an atmospheric pressure combustion test oxygen concentration of 16%. It can be seen that as the
rig. As an example of the rig test results, Fig. 2 shows the amount of ammonia supplied to fuel injection nozzle 3
relationship between ammonia injection position and increases, the CO and unburned NH3 concentrations increase
emissions. In this test, with the flow rates of air, natural gas, but the NOx concentration decreases.
and ammonia supplied throughout the combustor kept In order to explain such flame behavior, an investigation
constant and only the distribution of ammonia supplied to based on the reaction paths of ammonia was performed using
fuel injection nozzles 2 and 3 being changed, the corresponding numerical calculations. Figure 3 shows the main ammonia
effect on emissions was evaluated. The horizontal axis reaction paths for ammonia/methane/air combustion. The

Lean premixed burner NH3

Fuel injection +OH, H

nozzle 2

Swirler NH2 +O

Fuel injection HNO

+OH, H +OH
Burner 2 nozzle 1

NH +H, M, OH
Fuel injection +O
Burner 1 nozzle 3 +NO
+OH, H
+NH NO

N
N2O
Liner +N, NH
+H, M

Dilution hole +NO N2

+OH, O
Combustion air
(from compressor) To turbine inlet
Fig. 3 Reaction path of ammonia in ammonia/methane/air
Fig. 1 Schematic of ammonia/natural gas co-fired combustor   combustion

2 Vol. 53 No. 1 2 02 0
calculation was performed with an ammonia mixing ratio of reduces NOx concentration and simultaneously reduces
20%LHV (mixing ratio of 20% based on lower heating unburned NH3 concentration. As a result of optimizing
value), which was the same as in the test, and stoichiometric design parameters, such as the location and shape of fuel
conditions were used for the fuel-air mixture. The detailed injection nozzle 3 and the ammonia injection method, we
reaction mechanism of Okafor et al.(7) was used as the have successfully reduced NOx concentration to approximately
reaction mechanism of the calculation. In order for NH3 to one-fifth of that at the early stage of development, and have
react during the process of combustion, OH and O radicals, reduced unburned NH3 concentration to 1 ppm or less.
which are produced by the reaction of oxygen, are required
as reactants. Furthermore, OH and O radicals are also
3. Power generation test facility and test
method
required for the NO formation reaction. Here, when oxygen
concentration in the region of combustion is low, the 3.1 Power generation test facility
production of OH and O radicals is limited due to lack of Figure 4 shows a system flow diagram of the power
oxygen, and so the production of NO may be limited. At the generation test facility. The main constituents of the facility
same time, unburned NH3, and NH2, NH, and N radicals are an ammonia supply unit, natural gas compressor, gas
will tend to remain. Conversely, NH and N radicals are turbine, and NOx removal unit. The facility was installed in
required as reactants in the reaction by which NO is reduced the IHI Yokohama Works, and a power generation test
to produce N2. From a comparison between this reaction performed. Figure 5 shows the ammonia supply unit, and
mechanism and the combustion test results, the following Table 1 shows its specifications.
reaction behavior is considered to occur when ammonia is This ammonia supply unit consists of two ammonia supply
injected from fuel injection nozzle 3. The ammonia injected systems: one is for supplying ammonia gas at a high pressure
from nozzle 3 burns in a region where the oxygen of 2.0 MPaG as fuel, and the other is for supplying it at a low
concentration has decreased due to combustion of natural pressure of 0.3 MPaG as a reducing agent to the NOx removal
gas, and so, compared to injection from nozzle 2, the unit. Ammonia is stored as liquid in a tank and supplied to
ammonia burns under conditions in which the surrounding each system as liquid. The fuel ammonia supply system uses
OH and O radical concentrations are lower. Therefore, the a pump to compress the liquid ammonia. By compressing
concentrations of unburned NH3, and NH2 and NH radicals ammonia in its liquid state, the compression power and
increase. It is believed that these effects limit production of installation area of the pump can be reduced to less than that
NO and also promote reduction of NO, thereby decreasing required for compression after gasification. The compressed
NO emissions. liquid ammonia is gasified with a hot-water-type evaporator
Using fuel injection nozzle 3 in this way is effective for and supplied to the gas turbine after pressure fluctuations
reducing NOx emissions during ammonia combustion, and it have been suppressed by an accumulator. In order to prevent
was therefore decided to inject all the ammonia from this ammonia from re-condensing in the high-pressure ammonia
nozzle. However, since an increase in unburned NH3 gas supply piping, the piping and accumulator are heated by
concentration may pose a problem for operation of gas electric heaters so that their temperatures are sufficiently
turbines, we worked to develop a combustor that further higher than the condensation temperature of ammonia.

Ammonia supply unit Natural gas compressor NOx removal unit

Pump
Flue gas

2 MW-class gas turbine

NOx removal
Combustor catalyst
Pump Hot-water-type Accumulator Air
evaporator

High-pressure ammonia line for fuel

Liquid ammonia tank
Low-pressure ammonia line for
NOx removal Generator Gas turbine

Blower
Hot-water-type Accumulator
evaporator

(Note) : Liquid ammonia

: Ammonia gas
: Natural gas, air, flue gas

Fig. 4 System flow diagram

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 (a) Front view (a) Overall view
Accumulator (for fuel) Liquid ammonia tank Intake duct NOx removal unit

Enclosure Turbine outlet measurement duct

Ammonia pump Hot-water-type evaporator Dike

(b) Engine
(for NOx removal)
Intake duct Combustor
(b) Rear view
Drainage tank

To gas turbine

Compressor Turbine Turbine outlet exhaust duct

Fig. 6 Apparatus of gas turbine

Ammonia dilution tank Hot-water-type evaporator (for fuel)

Fig. 5 Apparatus of ammonia supply unit

natural gas-fired gas turbines.
3.2 Methods for operating, testing, and measuring
Table 1 Spec of ammonia supply unit
the gas turbine
Item Unit For fuel For NOx removal
At the beginning of operation, i.e. from starting the gas
Liquid ammonia tank capacity t 4.5
turbine up to the power output reaching 2 MW, only natural
Maximum supply pressure MPaG 2.0 0.3
gas was used, after which fuel ammonia was supplied. The
Ammonia gas temperature °C 70 Ambient temperature
control system was designed to automatically adjust natural
Maximum supply flow rate kg/h 400 60
gas flow rate in accordance with ammonia flow rate so that
turbine speed and power output were kept constant. In the
However, the pressure needed to supply ammonia to the NOx test, the ammonia mixing ratio was changed from 0 to
removal unit is lower than the storage pressure of the liquid 20%LHV, and the performance was measured.
ammonia tank. Therefore, the ammonia for NOx removal is Flue gas measurement was performed at the turbine outlet
supplied to the NOx removal unit after decompression by a and NOx removal unit outlet in order to evaluate the
pressure control valve installed downstream of the evaporator. performance of the low NOx emission combustor. At the
Figure 6 shows the gas turbine unit. The gas turbine used turbine outlet, a gas sampling probe and thermocouple were
is an IM270, which is a 2 MW-class simple-cycle gas turbine installed to allow measurement of emissions and gas
manufactured by IHI. In this facility, the waste heat recovery temperature. Gas analysis was performed using gas analyzers
boiler downstream of the gas turbine is omitted, and the (MEXA-ONE-D1 and VA-3001, manufactured by HORIBA,
turbine outlet is connected directly to the NOx removal unit. Ltd.) in order to measure the concentrations of six
Thus, the gas turbine unit as used here consists of standard components: CO, CO2, O2, THC (total hydrocarbon, CH4
components used for natural gas combustion with the only equivalent), NOx, and NH3. A sampling probe was also
exception that standard combustor and boiler are replaced installed at the outlet of the NOx removal unit to measure the
with the low NOx emission combustor for ammonia/natural concentrations of O2, NOx, and NH3 using a gas analyzer
gas co-firing described in Chapter 2. (ENDA-C9430A, manufactured by HORIBA, Ltd.). Emissions
The NOx removal unit is of the SCR (selective catalytic were evaluated according to the method specified by the Air
reduction) type, and ammonia gas is used as a reducing Pollution Control Act, which was enacted by the Japanese
agent. The catalyst used is one that is commonly employed in Ministry of the Environment, using dry concentrations, i.e.

4 Vol. 53 No. 1 2 02 0
excluding water vapor concentration, and converted to an : NOx concentration at turbine outlet
: NOx concentration at NOx removal unit outlet
oxygen concentration of 16%.

NOx concentration at NOx removal unit outlet

NOx concentration at turbine outlet (ppm)*1
350 10
4. Results of engine test and examination of 300
9
total efficiency 8
250 7
4.1 Results of engine test 6
200

(ppm)*1
Figure 7 shows the change in power output and natural gas 5
supply flow rate against changing ammonia mixing ratio. 150 4
Even when the ammonia mixing ratio is changed, it was 100 3
confirmed that the gas turbine can operate stably, without 2
50
problems such as abnormal noise, vibration, or temperature 1
in the combustor or engine. The natural gas supply flow rate 0 0
0 5 10 15 20 25
with an ammonia mixing ratio of 20%LHV is approximately Ammonia mixing ratio (%LHV)
23% lower than that when only natural gas is burned,
(Note) *1 : Converted to oxygen concentration of 16%
confirming that the CO2 emission reduction rate is greater
than the ammonia mixing ratio. This is because the lower Fig. 8 Effect of ammonia mixing ratio on NOx concentration at
 turbine outlet and SCR unit outlet
heating value of ammonia is half that of natural gas, and the
gas flow through the turbine increases when ammonia co-
firing is performed. Due to the effect of this increase in gas general natural gas-fired gas turbines but can be reduced to
flow, gross thermal efficiency increases, and the CO2 a practical level using a NOx removal unit. The concentrations
emission reduction rate increases. This effect has also been of unburned NH3, CO, and THC at the turbine outlet are all
confirmed in cycle simulations(8). 3 ppm or less (converted to an oxygen concentration of
Figure 8 shows the change in NOx concentration at the 16%). Hence, it was confirmed that ammonia and natural
turbine outlet and NOx removal unit outlet with respect to the gas were almost completely burned, and that the combustor
ammonia mixing ratio. The NOx concentration at the turbine which was developed is effective for burning ammonia
outlet increases rapidly as the ammonia mixing ratio increases stably with low NOx emissions.
from 0%LHV to 5%LHV but changes little when the ratio 4.2 Examination of total efficiency
exceeds 5%LHV. When the ammonia mixing ratio is Since this facility omits a waste heat recovery boiler, the
20%LHV, the NOx concentration at the turbine outlet is total efficiency of the system when using a boiler was
approximately 290 ppm (converted to an oxygen concentration examined through a model calculation. Here, total efficiency
of 16%). In contrast, the NOx concentration at the NOx is the sum of the gross thermal efficiency and thermal
removal unit outlet is at most 6.1 ppm (converted to an efficiency of the waste heat recovery boiler. The results of
oxygen concentration of 16%), which satisfies the gas the power generation test were used for the gross thermal
turbine environmental regulation value of 7 ppm (converted efficiency, and the thermal efficiency of the waste heat
to an oxygen concentration of 16%) specified in Yokohama recovery boiler was evaluated by a model calculation that
City, where this facility was installed. From the above, it was took account of the flow rate, composition, and temperature
confirmed that the NOx concentration at the turbine outlet change of the flue gas. The specifications adopted for the
during ammonia/natural gas co-firing is higher than that in waste heat recovery boiler were those of a natural-circulation-
type water pipe boiler that is commonly used in the co-
: Power output
generation system of an IM270 gas turbine, and a calculation
: Natural gas supply flow rate model was constructed using heat balance calculation
2.5 700 software. In the calculation, the results obtained from the
power generation test were used as the input values for the
600
flow rate, composition, and temperature of the flue gas.
Natural gas supply flow rate (kg/h)

2.0
500 From the test results, it was confirmed that the turbine outlet
Power output (MW)

gas temperature for ammonia co-firing differs by only a few

1.5
400 degrees Celsius from that for natural gas firing when the
ammonia mixing ratio is 20%LHV or less, and so ammonia
300
1.0 co-firing has little effect on turbine outlet temperature.
200 Figure 9 shows the change in total efficiency against
0.5 changing ammonia mixing ratio. Up to an ammonia mixing
100 ratio of 20%LHV, the total efficiency is 80% or more, which
0.0 0
is almost the same as that for natural gas firing. One of the
0 5 10 15 20 25 reasons this result was obtained is that the concentration of
Ammonia mixing ratio (%LHV) unburned components during ammonia co-firing was
Fig. 7 Effect of ammonia mixing ratio on generator output and suppressed, and so the decrease in gross thermal efficiency
natural gas supply rate could be limited; hence, it was confirmed that the combustor

Vol. 53 No. 1 2 02 0 5
 100 further reduction of the NOx concentration will contribute to
Total efficiency of co-generation system (%)

reducing the initial and running costs of the plant. Going

80 forward, we intend to continue improving the combustor in
order to further reduce NOx emissions. In addition, in order
60 to further reduce CO2 emissions from the gas turbine, we
will continue our research regarding operation of the gas
40 turbine at higher ammonia mixing ratios.
— Acknowledgments —
20
This study was conducted as part of the Council for Science,
0 Technology and Innovation’s Cross-ministerial Strategic
0.0 5.0 10.2 15.1 20.3 Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) “Energy Carriers”
Ammonia mixing ratio (%LHV) (administered by the Japan Science and Technology Agency
Fig. 9 Effect of ammonia mixing ratio on total efficiency (JST)). We would like to express our gratitude to all relevant
parties.
which was developed is also useful from the viewpoint of
REFERENCES
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