Gas turbine system

Abstract

A constant pressure, Brayton cycle gas turbine method and apparatus including a combustion chamber and a turbine and using a hot-cool operating cycle comprising a hot phase alternating with cool phase. Gas is continuously fed to the combustion chamber and from the combustion chamber to the turbine. During the hot phase all of the gas fed to the turbine is hot. The gas temperature during the hot phase is higher than the turbine could withstand in a continuous burn mode. However, the time period of the hot phase is less than the time it would take for the turbine blades to "soak" to the high temperature of the hot gas. This provides a high combustion temperature and high efficiency at all times, eliminating the part-load efficiency loss of the prior art, and also eliminating the need for high temperature materials as well as the prior art compressor requirements for large amounts of air. The gas turbine can be of the closed cycle or open cycle type. Applications include, for example, automobiles, air craft, railroad engines, central station power and golf carts.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.