Retrofit equipment for reducing the consumption of fossil fuel by a power plant using solar insolation

Retrofit equipment for reducing the consumption of fossil fuel by a power plant using solar insolation, said power plant comprising:

• a) a gas turbine unit including a compressor for compressing air to produce compressed air, a heater for heating said compressed air to produce heated compressed air, and a turbine coupled to a generator and to said compressor for expanding said heated compressed air and producing power and hot exhaust gases;
• b) a waste heat boiler having heat exchanger coils containing water and receiving said hot exhaust gases for vaporizing water in said coils and producing steam;
• c) a steam turbine for expanding steam produced by said waste heat boiler and producing power and expanded steam;
• d) a condenser for condensing said expanded steam to condensate;
• and
• e) a pump for returning said condensate to said waste heat boiler;
• f) retrofit equipment including a compressor for compressing ambient air to produce compressed air, a solar receiver for receiving solar radiation and heating said compressed air to produce heated compressed air, and a turbine coupled to a generator for expanding said heated compressed air and driving said compressor and generator thereby producing power and further hot exhaust gases;
• and
• g) flow control means for selectively supplying the further hot exhaust gases from said retrofit equipment to said boiler when solar insolation is available.

A method for retrofitting a power plant which reduces the consumption of fossil fuel using solar insolation, said method comprising the steps of:

• a) retrofitting the power plant by adding a solar receiver to the power plant which receives solar radiation and heats compressed air compressed in a compressor and produces heated, compressed gas;
• b) supplying the heated, compressed gas to a gas turbine coupled to a generator which expands the heated, compressed gas and drives the compressor and generator thereby producing power and from which hot exhaust gases are extracted;
• c) utilizing heat contained in the hot exhaust gases to heat and vaporize water contained in heat exchanger coils of a waste heat boiler and thereby, producing steam and heat-depleted exhaust gases that are vented to the atmosphere;
• d) expanding the steam in a steam turbine thereby producing power and from which expanded steam is extracted;
• e) condensing the expanded steam in a steam condenser thereby producing steam condensate;
• f) pumping the steam condensate to the waste heat boiler;
• and
• g) compressing ambient air in a further compressor, supplying the compressed air in a combustor which produces hot gases, expanding the hot gases in a further turbine which produces power and from which heated exhaust gases are produced, and combining said heated, exhaust gases with said hot exhaust gases.