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ThermoacOustic instabilities contRol in sequential Combustion cHambers

Project description

Enhancing the performance of next-generation sequential combustors

Gas turbines featuring sequential combustion are a new type of gas turbine technology that offers unmatched operational flexibility and very high combined cycle efficiency over a wide load range, with low emissions. The sequential combustor architecture enables the combustion of hydrogen supplied from power-to-gas technologies that may be deployed in future sustainable energy networks. The EU-funded TORCH project plans to develop novel passive and active control technologies to prevent harmful thermoacoustic instabilities in these gas turbine combustors. The project's activities will include the development of metamaterials with broadband acoustic damping in harsh environments as well as the distribution of plasma to coherently enhance autoignition.

Objective

A new type of combustor architecture for large gas turbines has emerged in recent years: sequential combustion systems operated at constant pressure. This major technology change results from the need for more operationally and fuel flexible gas turbines, for future sustainable energy networks. As for regular gas turbines, the risk of combustor breakdown due to thermoacoustic instabilities is a major challenge. While the harmful consequences of these instabilities in novel sequential combustors can be as dramatic as in conventional systems, the associated physics is considerably complexified, because the two flames not only “talk” together via sound waves, but also via entropy waves. Our aim is to propose, investigate and develop novel active and passive control technologies, tailored for this new generation of combustors, in order to suppress their thermoacoustic instabilities. It brings significant scientific challenges in fluid mechanics, acoustics, combustion, nonlinear dynamics and control theory. We will address the problem of controlling these instabilities on two unexplored fronts: First, we intend to significantly move forward the state-of-the-art in passive control of combustion instabilities, by creating acoustic metamaterials with unprecedented acoustic damping properties, and capable of long term operation in harsh environments. Second, we plan to address scientific challenges, required to successfully achieve active combustion control in sequential combustors, by distributing non-equilibrium plasma discharges to locally and dynamically enhance the autoignition chemistry. To achieve these ambitious goals, a combination of experimental, numerical and theoretical methods will be applied with the aim to ultimately establish the potential and limitations of these novel technologies. This research deals with new areas in the field of thermoacoustics, and builds upon the PI’s scientific expertise in combustion and acoustics and on his technological know-how.

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Programme(s)

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Topic(s)

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Funding Scheme

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ERC-COG - Consolidator Grant

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) ERC-2018-COG

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Host institution

EIDGENOESSISCHE TECHNISCHE HOCHSCHULE ZUERICH
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 2 585 170,00
Address
Raemistrasse 101
8092 Zuerich
Switzerland

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Region
Schweiz/Suisse/Svizzera Zürich Zürich
Activity type
Higher or Secondary Education Establishments
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 2 585 170,00

Beneficiaries (1)

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