Pre-Mixer Design for High Hydrogen Fuels
DE-FC26-03NT41893

In October of 2003, the National Energy Technology Laboratory entered into a cooperative agreement with General Electric Power to design a pre-mixer for high hydrogen fuels in an effort to achieve low NOx with the elimination or reduction of the diluents that are currently required for NOx abatement of Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) fuels.

The combustion of IGCC fuels uses diffusion flame combustion with high diluents to manage NO_X to the 15 to 25 parts per million level. This project, for reducing NO_X from combustion of high hydrogen IGCC fuels, is based on the Dry Low NO_X (DLN) approach for the combustion of natural gas with DLN.  Low flame temperatures, which lead to low NO_X, are achieved by prescribing the equivalence ratio for the combustion process.  In this project, the lean premixed technique shall be adapted to the challenging and unique demands of high hydrogen fuels in an effort to achieve low NO_X with elimination/reduction of the diluents that are currently required for NO_X abatement of IGCC fuels.  General Electric Power will deliver an analytical design that is revolutionary in both its ability to accommodate a wide range of fuel compositions and at the same time deliver dramatically reduced emissions with minimum diluent injection.  The recipient will extend validated computational design methodologies and practices to design an IGCC premixed combustor nozzle in preparation for follow-on efforts in which the design can be developed and tested.