Chapter 2

GAS TURBINES
(BRAYTON CYCLES)

Siti Mariam Basharie @JKT, FKMP, UTHM 2015

 Major Applications

Aircraft propulsion system

Electric power
generation
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Other Applications

ENJIN Superbike ENJIN KENDERAAN-Rover

KERETA KEBAL
 Basic Components and Working Principle of Open Cycle
There are 3 main component in gas turbine which are compressor,
combustion chamber and turbine.
How a Gas Turbine Works?
Fresh air at ambient conditions is drawn
into the compressor, where its
temperature and pressure are raised.
The high-pressure air proceeds into the
combustion chamber, where the fuel is
burned at constant pressure.
The resulting high-temperature gases
then enter the turbine, where they
expand to the atmospheric pressure
while producing power. Note: The working fluid of a turbine gas are
The exhaust gases leaving the turbine combustion gases, make the analysis of the
are thrown out (not re-circulated), cycle very complex.
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causing the cycle to be classified as an
open cycle.
Closed Cycle Model
The open gas-turbine cycle can be
modelled as a closed cycle, using the air-
standard assumptions (to simplify the
analysis).
The compression and expansion
processes remain the same, but the
combustion process is replaced by a
constant-pressure heat addition
process from an external source.
The exhaust process is replaced by a
constant-pressure heat rejection
process to the ambient air.

Note: This closed cycle is the ideal cycle for 5

gas turbines and it is called as Brayton
Cycle.
Open Vs Closed Cycle Model

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 Air-standard Assumptions
The air-standard assumptions is used to simplify analysis of complex gas
cycles. The assumptions are :

i. The working fluid is air which continuously circulates in a closed loop

and always behave as an ideal gas (i.e., the presence of fuel and
combustion products are neglected).
ii. All the processes within the cycle are internally reversible.
iii. The combustion process is replaced by a heat-addition process from
an external source.
iv. The exhaust process is replaced by a heat-rejection process that
restores the working fluid to its initial state.

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The Brayton Cycle
The ideal cycle that the working fluid
undergoes in the closed loop is the Brayton
cycle. It is made up of four internally
reversible processes:

1-2 Isentropic compression (in

compressor);
2-3 Constant-pressure heat addition;
3-4 Isentropic expansion (in turbine);
4-1 Constant-pressure heat rejection.

Note: All four processes of the Brayton cycle

are executed in steady-flow devices
thus, they should be analyzed as
steady-flow processes. 8
Energy Analysis of Brayton Cycle
The energy balance for a steady-flow process can be expressed
as.

The heat transfers to and from the working fluid are:

The work input and work output are : ???????

Energy Interactions
The heat exchanger do not involve any work but both involve with heat interactions.
The pump and the turbine are assumed to be isentropic and both involve work
interactions. 9
 Performance of Brayton Cycle

Thermal Efficiency
The thermal efficiency of the cycle is given by,

The thermal efficiency of the ideal Brayton cycle for cold-air standard assumption,

But for isentropic process,

Therefore,

Where is a pressure ratio and

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k= Cp/Cv is the specific heat ratio (for air, k=1.4).
Performance of Brayton Cycle

Back Work Ratio (rBW)

The back work ratio of the Brayton cycle is given by,

Note : The back work ratio in gas turbine normally is very high. 11
Cold air-standard Assumptions
Used to simplify analysis gas cycles. Includes all of the air-standard
assumptions in addition to assumption that the working fluid (air) has
constant specific heats evaluated at room temperature (25oC).

Air-standard assumptions :
Assume variable specific heats for air
Accounting for the variation of specific heat with temperature

Cold air-standard assumptions :

Assume (or use) constant specific heats at room temp
Assume constant properties for air at

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Air-standard vs Cold-air standard assumptions

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 Parameters Affecting Thermal Efficiency
The thermal efficiency of an ideal
Brayton cycle depends on the pressure
ratio, rp of the gas turbine and the
specific heat ratio, k of the working fluid.
The thermal efficiency increases with
both of these parameters, which is also
the case for actual gas turbines.
A plot of thermal efficiency versus the
pressure ratio is shown in Figure, for the
case of k =1.4.

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Example 9-5
The Simple Ideal Brayton Cycle

A gas turbine power plant operating on an ideal Brayton cycle has a

pressure ratio of 8. The gas temperature is 300 K at the compressor inlet
and 1300 K at the turbine inlet. Utilizing the air-standard assumption,
determine:
(a) the gas temperature at the exits of the compressor and the
turbine ,
(b) the back work ratio, and
(c) the thermal efficiency.

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In class practice
The Simple Ideal Brayton Cycle Homework Exercise

A simple Brayton cycle using air as the working fluid has a pressure
ratio of 8. The minimum and maximum temperatures in the cycle are 310
K and 1160 K, respectively. Determine:
(a) the air temperature at the turbine exit,
(b) the net work output, and
(c) the thermal efficiency.

Assume variable specific heats conditions.

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In class practice
In Class Practice
The Simple Ideal Brayton Cycle

9-77 Cengel 5th Edition

A stationary gas-turbine power plant operates on a simple ideal Brayton
cycle with air as the working fluid. The air enters the compressor at 95
kPa and 290 K and the turbine at 760 kPa and 1100 K. Heat is
transferred to air at a rate of 35,000 kJ/s.
Determine the power delivered by this plant:
(a) assuming constant specific heats at room temperature, and
(b) accounting for the variation of specific heats with temperature.

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The Actual Gas Turbines Cycle
Some pressure drop occurs during the heat-
addition and heat rejection processes.
The actual work input to the compressor is more,
and the actual work output from the turbine is
less, because of irreversibilities.

Deviation of actual compressor and turbine

behavior from the idealized isentropic behavior
can be accounted
for by utilizing isentropic efficiencies of the
turbine and compressor.

Compressor :

Turbine: 18
Example 9-6
An Actual Gas Turbine Cycle

(Reconsidered the Brayton cycle discussed in Example 9-5)

A gas turbine power plant operating on an actual Brayton cycle has a
pressure ratio of 8. The gas temperature is 300 K at the compressor inlet
and 1300 K at the turbine inlet. Assuming a compressor efficiency of 80%
and turbine efficiency of 85%, determine
(a) the back work ratio,
(b) the thermal efficiency, and
(c) the turbine exit temperature of the gas-turbine cycle discussed in
Example 9-5.

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In class practice
The Actual Gas Turbine Cycle

A simple Brayton cycle using air as the working fluid has a pressure
ratio of 8. The minimum and maximum temperatures in the cycle are 310
K and 1160 K, respectively. Assuming an isentropic efficiency of 75
percent for the compressor and 82 percent for the turbine, determine:
(a) the air temperature at the turbine exit,
(b) the net work output, and
(c) the thermal efficiency.

Assume variable specific heats for air.

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In class practice
In Class Practice
The Actual Gas Turbine Cycle

9-78 Cengel 5th Edition

Air enters the compressor of a gas-turbine engine at 300 K and 100
kPa, where it is compressed to 700 kPa and 580 K. Heat is transferred to
air in the amount of 950 kJ/kg before it enters the turbine. For a turbine
efficiency of 86 percent, determine:
(a) the fraction of turbine work output used to drive the compressor,
(b) the thermal efficiency.

Assume variable specific heats for air.

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In class practice
In Class Practice
The Actual Gas Turbine Cycle

Test 1 Sem 1 - 2014/2015

A gas turbine power plant operates on a simple Brayton cycle between
the pressure limits of 100 and 800 kPa. Air enters the compressor at
30C and leaves at 330C at a mass flow rate of 200 kg/s. The maximum
cycle temperature 1400 K. During operation the cycle, the net power
output is measured experimentally to be 60 MW. Assume constant
properties of air,
i) sketch the T-s diagram for the cycle;
ii) determine the isentropic efficiency of the turbine for these operating
condition; and
iii) determine the thermal efficiency of the cycle.

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In class practice
In Class Practice
The Actual Gas Turbine Cycle

Test 1 Sem 2 - 2013/2014

A gas-turbine compressor, compressed the incoming air at 300 K and 100
kPa to 580 K and 700 kPa. The air receives heat in the amount of 950
kJ/kg, before it enters the turbine. Given that the turbines efficiency is 86%,
calculate:
i. the fraction of the turbine work output used to run the compressor; and
ii. the thermal efficiency of the whole gas-turbine system.

Assume variable specific heats for air.

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In class practice
The Actual Gas Turbine Cycle Homework Exercise

A simple Brayton cycle using air as the working fluid has a pressure
ratio of 8. The minimum and maximum temperatures in the cycle are 310
K and 1160 K, respectively. Assuming an isentropic efficiency of 75
percent for the compressor and 82 percent for the turbine, determine:
(a) the air temperature at the turbine exit,
(b) the net work output, and
(c) the thermal efficiency.

Cp=1.005kJ/kg.K , k=1.4

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 Homework Exercise
The Actual Gas Turbine Cycle

A gas-turbine for an aircraft is operating with a pressure ratio of 15 with a

heat addition of 500 kW. Air is passed through the engine at a rate of 1
kg/s and the temperature and pressure prior to compression is 273K and
70 kPa respectively. Calculate the engines output power and its related
thermal efficiency. Use constant specific heats at room temperature.

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 Improvements of Gas Turbines Performance
The early gas turbines (1940s to 1959s) found only limited use despite their versatility
and their ability to burn a variety of fuels, because its thermal efficiency was only
about 17%. Efforts to improve the cycle efficiency are concentrated in three areas:

1. Increasing the turbine inlet (or firing) temperatures.

The turbine inlet temperatures have increased steadily from
about 540C (1000F) in the 1940s to 1425C (2600F) and
even higher today.
2. Increasing the efficiencies of turbo-machinery
components (turbines, compressors).
The advent of computers and advanced techniques for
computer-aided design made it possible to design these
components aerodynamically with minimal losses.
3. Adding modifications to the basic cycle (intercooling,
regeneration or recuperation, and reheating).
The simple-cycle efficiencies of early gas turbines were
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practically doubled by incorporating intercooling,
regeneration and reheating.
Brayton Cycle with Regeneration
Temperature of the exhaust gas leaving the turbine is
higher than the temperature of the air leaving the
compressor. The air leaving the compressor can be
heated by the hot exhaust gases in a counter-flow heat
exchanger (a regenerator or recuperator) a process
called regeneration.
The thermal efficiency of the Brayton cycle increases
due to regeneration since less fuel is used for the same
work output.

Note:
The use of a regenerator
is recommended only
when the turbine exhaust
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temperature is higher
than the compressor exit
temperature.
Effectiveness of Regenerator
Assuming the regenerator is well insulated and changes in kinetic and potential
energies are negligible, the actual and maximum heat transfers from the exhaust
gases to the air can be expressed as

Effectiveness of the regenerator,

Effectiveness under cold-air standard assumptions,

Thermal efficiency under cold-air 28

standard assumptions,
Factors Affecting Thermal Efficiency
From

Thermal efficiency of Brayton cycle with

regeneration depends on:
a) ratio of the minimum to maximum
temperatures, and
b) the pressure ratio.

Regeneration is most effective at lower

pressure ratios and small minimum-to-maximum
temperature ratios.
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In class practice
The Brayton Cycle with Regeneration

The 7FA gas turbine manufactured by General Electric is reported to have

an efficiency of 35.9 percent in the simple-cycle mode and to produce 159
MW of net power. The pressure ratio is 14.7 and the turbine inlet temperature
is 1288C. The mass flow rate through the turbine is 1,536,000 kg/h. Taking
the ambient conditions to be 20C and 100 kPa, determine:
(a) the isentropic efficiency of the turbine and the compressor,
(b)the thermal efficiency of this gas turbine if a regenerator with

an effectiveness of 80 percent is added.

Assume variable specific heats of air.

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In class practice
The Brayton Cycle with Regeneration

992
A Brayton cycle with regeneration using air as the working fluid has a
pressure ratio of 7. The minimum and maximum temperatures in the cycle
are 310 and 1150 K respectively.
Assuming an isentropic efficiency of 75 percent for the compressor and 82
percent for the turbine and an effectiveness of 65 percent for the
regenerator, determine:
(a) the air temperature at the turbine exit,
(b) the net work output, and
(c) the thermal efficiency.

Answers: (a) 783 K, (b) 108.1 kJ/kg, (c) 22.5 percent

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In class practice
The Brayton Cycle with Regeneration

998
Air enters the compressor of a regenerative gas-turbine engine at 300 K
and 100 kPa, where it is compressed to 800 kPa and 580 K. The
regenerator has an effectiveness of 72 percent, and the air enters the
turbine at 1200 K.
For a turbine efficiency of 86 percent, determine:
(a) the amount of heat transfer in the regenerator, and
(b) the thermal efficiency.
Assume variable specific heats for air.

Answers: (a) 152.5 kJ/kg, (b) 36.0 percent

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Brayton Cycle with Intercooling, Reheating & Regeneration
The net work output of a gas-turbine cycle
can be increased by either:
a) decreasing the compressor work, or
b) increasing the turbine work, or
c) both.
.The compressor work input can be
decreased by carrying out the compression
process in stages and cooling the gas in
between (Fig.9-42), using
multistage compression with intercooling

The work output of a turbine can be

increased by expanding the gas in stages
and reheating it in between, utilizing a
multistage expansion with reheating. 34
Brayton Cycle with Intercooling, Reheating & Regeneration
Physical arrangement of an ideal two-stage gas-turbine cycle with intercooling,
reheating, and regeneration is shown in Fig. 9-43.

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Conditions for Best Performance
The work input to a two-stage compressor is minimized when equal pressure
ratios are maintained across each stage. This procedure also maximizes the
turbine work output.
Thus, for best performance we have,

Intercooling and reheating always

decreases thermal efficiency unless are
accompanied by regeneration.
Therefore, in gas turbine power plants,
intercooling and reheating are always used
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in conjunction with regeneration.
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In class practice
The Brayton Cycle with Intercooling, Reheating & Regeneration

9108 (7th Edition)

Consider an ideal gas-turbine cycle with two stages of compression and
two stages of expansion. The pressure ratio across each stage of the
compressor and turbine is 3. The air enters each stage of the compressor
at 300 K and each stage of the turbine at 1200 K. Determine:
(a) the back work ratio, and
(b) the thermal efficiency of the cycle
assuming:
i. no regenerator is used, and
ii. a regenerator with 75 percent effectiveness is used.
Use a variable specific heats assumption.

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In class practice
The Brayton Cycle with Intercooling, Reheating & Regeneration

9110 (7th Edition)

Consider a regenerative gas-turbine power plant with two stages of

compression and two stages of expansion. The overall pressure ratio of
the cycle is 9. The air enters each stage of the compressor at 300 K and
each stage of the turbine at 1200 K.
Accounting for the variation of specific heats with temperature,
determine the minimum mass flow rate of air needed to develop net
power output of 110 MW.

Answer: 250 kg/s.

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In class practice
The Brayton Cycle with Intercooling, Reheating & Regeneration

9124 (7th Edition), 9117 (8th Edition)

Air enters a gas-turbine with two stages of compression and two stages
of expansion at 100kPa and 17C. This system uses a regenerator as
well as reheating and intercooling. The pressure ratio across each
compressor is 4; 300 kJ/kg of heat are added to the air in each
combustion chamber ; and the regenerator operates perfectly while
increasing the temperature of the cold air by 20C. Determine this
systems thermal efficiency. Assume isentropic operations for all
compressor and the turbine stages and use constant specific heats at
room temperature.

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Test 1 SEM 1 20152016

A gas-turbine plant operates on a regenerative Brayton cycle

and produces 150 kW. The air enters the compressor at 100
kPa and 20oC. The compressor pressure ratio is 8. The
maximum cycle temperature is 800C. The cold air stream
leaves the regenerator 10C cooler than the hot air stream at
the inlet of the regenerator. The compressor and the turbine
isentropic efficiency is 87% and 93% respectively. Using
constant specific heats at room temperature,

a) show the process in a T-s diagram;

b) determine the rate of heat addition and the rate of heat
rejection.
(15 marks)43