Advanced gas turbine cycles for power generation: a critical review

The use of gas turbines for power generation has increased in recent years and is likely to continue to increase in the medium term. This paper describes and compares several power generation cycles which have been developed to take advantage of the gas turbine's thermodynamic characteristics. Emphasis has been given to systems involving heat recovery from the gas turbine's exhaust and these include the combined, Kalina, gas/gas recuperation, steam injection, evaporation and chemical recuperation cycles. Thermodynamic and economic characteristics of the various cycles are considered in order to establish their relative importance to future power generation markets. The present dominance of the combined cycle as the preferred option for a new plant is thought likely to continue. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.