# US 11,441,780 B2 · Gas turbine combustion system with controller

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- Number: US 11,441,780 B2
- Document ID: US11441780B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/405,339
- Filed: 2021-08-18
- Published: 2021-12-09
- Granted: 2022-09-13
- Earliest claimed: 2019-10-28
- Assignees: King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
- Applicants: King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals
- Inventors: Medhat A. Nemitallah; Ahmed Abdelhafez; Mohamed A. Habib
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11441780B2

## CPC

- F23R 3/045: {using pipes}
- F02C 3/34: with recycling of part of the working fluid, i.e. semi-closed cycles with combustion products in the closed part of the cycle
- F02C 7/08: Heating air supply before combustion, e.g. by exhaust gases
- F23R 3/007: {constructed mainly of ceramic components}
- F23R 3/283: {Attaching or cooling of fuel injecting means including supports for fuel injectors, stems, or lances}
- F23R 3/286: {having fuel-air premixing devices (F23R3/30 takes precedence)}
- F02C 9/16: Control of working fluid flow (F02C9/48 takes precedence; control of air-intake flow F02C7/057)
- F05D 2220/62: with energy recovery turbines
- F23D 14/12: Radiant burners
- F23R 3/26: Controlling the air flow
- F23R 2900/03043: Convection cooled combustion chamber walls with means for guiding the cooling air flow
- F23R: GENERATING COMBUSTION PRODUCTS OF HIGH PRESSURE OR HIGH VELOCITY, e.g. GAS-TURBINE COMBUSTION CHAMBERS (fluidised bed combustion apparatus specially adapted for operation at superatmospheric pressures F23C10/16)
- F02C: GAS-TURBINE PLANTS; AIR INTAKES FOR JET-PROPULSION PLANTS; CONTROLLING FUEL SUPPLY IN AIR-BREATHING JET-PROPULSION PLANTS (construction of turbines F01D; jet-propulsion plants F02K; construction of compressors or fans F04; generating combustion products of high pressure or high velocity F23R; using gas turbines in compression refrigeration plants F25B11/00)
- F05D: INDEXING SCHEME FOR ASPECTS RELATING TO NON-POSITIVE-DISPLACEMENT MACHINES OR ENGINES, GAS-TURBINES OR JET-PROPULSION PLANTS
- F23D: BURNERS

## Abstract

An integrated ITM micromixer burner shell and tube design for clean combustion in gas turbines includes an oxy-fuel micromixer burner for separating oxygen from air within the burner to perform oxy-combustion, resulting in an exhaust stream that consists of CO2 and H2O. The shell and tube combustion chamber is designed so that preheated air enters a headend having an array of ion transfer membrane (ITM) tubes that separate oxygen from the preheated air and anchor flamelets on the shell side. The combustion products of the oxy-fuel flamelets expand through a turbine for power generation, before H2O is separated from CO2 by condensation. A portion of the effluent CO2 is compressed back into the burner system, while the remainder is captured for sequestration/utilization.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A burner system for clean combustion in gas turbines, comprising:
an air manifold having an air inlet for receiving pressurized air;
a combustor including a first shell surrounding a plurality of air tubes, wherein each air tube is connected to the air manifold, wherein the combustor is configured to burn a mixture of fuel, carbon dioxide (CO2) and oxygen (O2), wherein burning the mixture heats the pressurized air in the air tubes, the combustor further including a combustion outlet port, at least one igniter and at least one thermocouple;
a headend connected to the combustor, the headend including a second shell surrounding a plurality of ceramic ion transfer membrane (ITM) tubes equally spaced longitudinally within the headend, wherein each air tube is further connected to an air space in the headend between the plurality of ITM tubes, the headend further including a first oxygen depleted air outlet;
a preheating unit connected to the headend, the preheating unit having a third shell surrounding a heat exchange tube, a fuel port, a recirculated CO2 inlet port, an oxygen depleted air inlet and a second oxygen depleted air outlet;
a thermally insulated pipe connected between the first oxygen depleted air outlet and the oxygen depleted air inlet;
wherein the preheating unit receives fuel and recirculated CO2 from the fuel port and recirculated CO2 port respectively, wherein the fuel and recycled CO2 are preheated in the preheating unit, enter the ITM tubes, mix homogeneously with oxygen, burn as flamelets, and generate combustion products in the combustor, wherein the combustion products exit the combustor at the combustion outlet port,
wherein the burner system further comprises:
a computer system operatively connected to the air inlet, the first oxygen depleted air outlet, the at least one igniter, the at least one thermocouple, the second depleted air outlet, the fuel port and the recirculated CO2 port;
wherein the air inlet, the first oxygen depleted air outlet, the second depleted air outlet, the fuel port and the recirculated CO2 port are computer controlled valves,
wherein the at least one thermocouple senses the temperature of the preheated fuel, oxygen and recirculated CO2 and generates a signal to the computer system when the temperature is above a threshold; and
wherein the computer system actuates each computer controlled valve to open the air inlet, the first oxygen depleted air outlet, the second depleted air outlet, the fuel port and the recirculated CO2 port upon receiving the signal.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The burner system of claim 1, wherein the air manifold, combustor, headend and preheating unit are an integrated unit.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The burner system of claim 1,
wherein the plurality of air tubes of the combustor are an array of non-magnetic iron nickel-chromium alloy tubes; and
wherein the first shell includes an inner shell of non-magnetic iron nickel-chromium alloy.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The burner system of claim 1, wherein the first, second and third shells are stainless steel.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The burner system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of ion transfer tubes (ITM) is an array of micro-membranes configured to separate oxygen from air and mix the oxygen, CO2 and fuel homogeneously.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The burner system of claim 1, wherein each ITM tube has a large length to diameter ratio configured to prevent flashback of the flamelets.