CFD Modelling of Generic Gas Turbine Combustor

Abstract

New computational methods are continuously developed in order to solve problems in different engineering fields. One of these fields is gas turbines, where the challenge is to make gas turbines more efficient and to reduce emissions that are bad for the environment. One of the main parts of a gas turbine that can be improved is the combustion chamber. In order to optimize the combustion chamber, both experimental and numerical methods are called for. Numerical optimization implies the necessity to model the most important phenomena in combustion chambers such as turbulent swirling flow, chemical reactions, heat transfer, and so on. In this project we try to design a simple yet accurate model, for a generic combustor of industrial interest, that may be tested in a relatively short time and that yields reliable results. An important topic is here to perform grid sensitivity studies to make sure that the model yields mesh independent results. Another topic of interest is the choice of turbulence model and how this choice affects the grid sensitivity. Heat transfer models are also important to evaluate. Different turbulence models and heat transfer models done with this generic geometry and results will be discussed. After this project we made a model that is numerically reliable, mesh independent and fast.