Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) Group has been developing additive manufacturing (AM) as a method that can manufacture parts with complex shapes and considering its application to manufacturing processes. In combustor components, application of AM process to rapid prototyping and multi-cluster nozzles for hydrogen or ammonia gas fuel is being considered. In turbine parts, with the aim of improving performance by reducing the amount of cooling air, the adoption of a complex internal cooling structure, which cannot be made with conventional manufacturing methods but can only be made by AM, is being considered. This paper describes design for AM technology for gas turbine components and metal AM process technology such as building simulation based high stiffness support design and pre-set distortion, microstructure control by laser scanning conditions, quality control through in-process monitoring tools and application of AM technology to gas Turbine Components.

In recent years, MHPS achieved a NET M501J gas turbine combined cycle (GTCC) efficiency in excess of 62% operating at 1,600°C, while maintaining NOx under 25ppm. Taking advantage of our gas turbine combustion design, development and operational experience, retrofits of earlier generation gas turbines have been successfully applied and will be described in this paper. One example of the latest J-Series technologies, a conventional pilot nozzle was changed to a premix type pilot nozzle for low emission. The technology was retrofitted to the existing F-Series gas turbines, which resulted in emission rates of lower than 9ppm NOx(15%O2) while maintaining the same Turbine Inlet Temperature (TIT: Average Gas Temperature at the exit of the transition piece). After performing retrofitting design, high pressure rig tests, the field test prior to commercial operation was conducted on January 2019. This paper describes the Ultra-Low NOx combustor design features, retrofit design, high pressure rig test and verification test results of the upgraded M501F gas turbine. In addition, it describes another upgrade of turbine to improve efficiency and of combustion control system to achieve low emissions. Furthermore it describes the trouble-free upgrade of seven (7) units, which was completed by utilizing MHPS integration capabilities, including handling all the design, construction and service work of the main equipment, plant and control systems.

No abstract