Designing a Gas Turbine Combustor Test Rig and Testing a Sample Combustor at Atmospheric Conditions

In this paper, the design and construction of a gas turbine combustor test rig and the experimental results of a sample combustor sector at atmospheric conditions are described. This test rig can be used to evaluate the effects of geometric variations on the performance of the combustion chamber. Flammability, stability and ignition maps, exhaust gas composition and temperature profile, and liner wall temperature can be studied. This rig has the potentiality of performing combustion tests with maximum air flow rate of 800m3/h and preheated air up to 1000K, as well as different types of liquid or gas fuels. A single swirler sector of an annular combustor is tested at different air and fuel mass flow rates. The results show that the exhaust gas temperature has a non-linear corelation with the fuel to air ratio. Using a one-dimensional model, the exhaust temperature of the combustion chamber is predicted and compared with the experimental results. The model results show good agreement with the experimental results.