Gas Turbines - Flexible Fuel Solutions

The fluctuating energy landscape has driven the need for greater efficiency and flexibility. Gas turbines that operate on a wide range of alternative gas and liquid fuels can be the key to success as power plants look to implement the power generation technology of tomorrow.

Leveraging more than 50 years of fuel experience, GE has developed gas turbine technology that lowers emissions and reduces wear and tear while burning a wide range of alternative fuels. With the largest fleet of gas turbines that operate on non-traditional fuels, GE’s flexible fuel solutions outperform comparable technologies in both efficiency and reliability.

How it works

About 90% of today’s gas turbines operate on natural gas fuel or imported liquefied natural gas. Some countries have an abundance of raw crude, and produce light distillate or heavy residual fuel oil from refining operations. GE’s gas turbines give operators the ability to utilize low value fuel alternatives.

Treatment systems pre-condition alternative energy resources to meet stringent gas turbine fuel quality requirements. Heating, cleaning, blending and pressurization of the fuel removes most harmful contaminants and pre-conditions the fuel for combustion. With heavy fuel oil, additives are applied to inhibit or mitigate the corrosive effects of trace metal contaminants.

For operations with low heating value gas fuel, changes to fuel delivery and distribution systems - typically through enlarged piping and control valves - are implemented to accommodate high volumetric flow. For heavy fuel oil, high pressure air converts liquid fuel into fine spray droplets for efficient combustion.

Features & Benefits

With more than 50 years of experience in non-traditional fuel research, testing and integration, GE offers flexible fuel solutions with the following advantages.

  • The ability to burn a wide range of alternative gas and liquid fuels, such as crude oil, ethanol, hydrogen, and biodiesel
  • Improved power generation performance with less wear and tear on the turbine
  • Lower emissions and higher efficiency than comparable technologies
  • Continued enhancements ensure high availability and reliability of GE’s gas turbines
  • The flexibility to operate in a variety of application spaces, including refineries, steel mills, and other petrochemical plant facilities
  • The capability to operate in a wide range of power applications, such as Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC)

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