Integration of Gas Turbines Adapted for Syngas Fuel With Cryogenic and Membrane-Based Air Separation Units: Issues to Consider for System Studies

The purpose of this paper is to aid systems analysts in the design, modeling, and assessment of advanced, gasification-based power generation systems featuring air separation units (ASUs) integrated with gas turbines adapted for syngas fuel. First, the fundamental issues associated with operating a gas turbine on syngas will be reviewed, along with the motivations for extracting air from the turbine-compressor and/or injecting nitrogen into the turbine expander. Configurations for nitrogen-only and air-nitrogen ASU integration will be described, including the benefits and drawbacks of each. Cryogenic ASU technology will be summarized for both low-pressure and elevated-pressure applications and key design and integration issues will be identified and discussed. Finally, membrane-based ASU technology will be described and contrasted with cryogenic technology in regard to system design and integration.