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The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Distributed Energy Program is working with utilities, energy service companies, industrial manufacturers, and equipment suppliers to identify technologies that will improve the energy, environmental, and financial performance of power systems for manufacturing, processing, and other commercial applications. The program will contribute to the development of ultrahigh-efficiency and low-emission engine systems and provide new choices and innovative power solutions to the industrial sector. The Advanced Microturbine Systems Program Plan for Fiscal Years 2000 Through 2006 (PDF 1.3 MB) outlines proposed activities to develop advanced microturbine systems for distributed energy applications.
The Advanced Microturbine Program is a 6-year program for fiscal years 2000-2006 with a government investment of more than $60 million. End-use applications for the program are open and include stationary power applications in industrial, commercial, and institutional sectors. The program includes competitive solicitations for engine conceptual design, development, and demonstration; component, sub-system, and system development; and development of a technology base in the areas of materials, combustion, and sensors and controls. Technology evaluations and demonstrations are also part of the program.
Planned activities focus on the following performance targets for the next generation of "ultra-clean, high-efficiency" microturbine product designs:
- High efficiency — Fuel-to-electricity conversion efficiency of at least 40%
- Environment — NOx <7 ppm (natural gas)
- Durability — 11,000 hours of reliable operations between major overhauls and a service life of at least 45,000 hours
- Cost of power — System costs <$500/kW, costs of electricity that are competitive with alternatives (including grid) for market applications
- Fuel flexibility — Options for using multiple fuels including diesel, ethanol, landfill gas, and biofuels.
The five manufacturers involved in the program are:
One of the supporting elements of the program is the testing and validation of microturbines at the University of California-Irvine (UCI) Distributed Technologies Testing Facility. Southern California Edison, in partnership with UCI, is leading this project. This $2.1 million project, which was started in 1996, receives co-funding from the California Energy Commission and the Electric Power Research Institute. The project's goal is to determine the availability, operability, reliability, and performance characteristics of commercially available microturbines. It will compare manufacturer claims with actual installation, operation, and testing of units and assess microturbine performance against South Coast Air Quality Management District emissions rules and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers power quality standards.
New materials such as combustion liners and high-temperature material recuperators are designed and tested to endure and perform properly in microturbine-specific environments. A jump in microturbine efficiency can be achieved through increases in engine operating temperatures. Ceramics and metallic alloys are being developed to accomplish this. For additional information about microturbine materials, see the Microturbine Materials Technology Activities presentation (PDF 699 KB).
The materials projects listed below are led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). More detailed information about each of these projects is available in the following reports:
Recuperators
- Creep Behavior of Advanced Alloys for High-Temperature (660°C-750°C) Microturbine Recuperators (ORNL)
- Materials Selection for High-Temperature (750°C-1,000°C) Metallic Recuperators for Improved Efficiency Microturbines (ORNL)
- Composition Optimization for Corrosion Resistance to High-Temperature Exhaust Gas Environments (ORNL)
- Microturbine Recuperator Testing and Evaluation (ORNL)
Monolithic Ceramics
- Hot Section Components in Advanced Microturbines (Honeywell Ceramic Components)
- Oxidation/Corrosion Characterization of Microturbine Materials (ORNL)
- Mechanical Evaluation of Monolithic Ceramics Containing Environmental Barrier Coatings (ORNL)
- Hot Section Materials Characterization (University of Dayton, Research Institute)
- Reliability Evaluation of Microturbine Components (ORNL)
- Oxidation-Resistant Coatings on Silicon Nitride for Microturbines (ORNL)
- Advanced Surface Treatments of Silicon Nitride (ORNL)
Ceramics Life Prediction
Power Electronics
- Development of High-Efficiency Carbon Foam Heat Sinks for Microturbine Power Electronics (ORNL)
Another element of DOE's efforts is the microturbine simulator project. It is a co-development effort with DOE's energy storage activities, the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, and the Electric Power Research Institute. The project is developing a simulator/model to mimic actual performance characteristics of a microturbine and validate simulators at actual utility sites using data from commercial microturbines. In addition, the project will install simulators to test peak-shaving, power-quality, base-load, and other applications. For more information, read the report on the microturbine simulator demonstration (PDF 866 KB).
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