Thread by @JesseJenkins

I've been looking for good information on what hydrogen blend level combustion turbines of various sizes/designs can handle today and likely in the near future. I found this good overview article from the excellent @sonalcpatel @POWERmagazine: powermag.com/high-volume-hy…

"Since 1970, MHPS has fired 29 gas turbine units with hydrogen content ranging between 30% & 90%, tests that have spanned over 3.5 million operating hours. A key challenge ... was to reduce high NOx emissions associated with hydrogen combustion without compromising efficiency."

"Because hydrogen has a higher flame speed compared to natural gas, MHPS also sought to reduce the risk of combustion oscillation and “flashback” (backfire) in higher hydrogen mixes."

"One solution was to develop a “diffusion combustor” based on the company’s dry low-NOx (DLN) technology that injects fuel to air. The combustor reduces NOx using steam or water injection, but it retains a relatively wide range of stable combustion..."

"Fired at 30% hydrogen, the technology can handle an output equivalent of 700 MW (in combined cycle mode with a turbine inlet temperature of 1,600C) as well as reduce carbon emissions by about 10% compared to a conventional CCGT, [MHPS] said."

"MHPS is currently piloting a project to convert one of three units at Vattenfall’s 1.3-GW Magnum combined cycle plant in the Netherlands to renewable hydrogen by 2023. The project in Groningen, which entails modifying a 440-MW M701F gas turbine..."

"...will refine the combustion technology “to stay within the same NOx envelope as a natural gas power plant but do it burning 100% hydrogen,” without steam or water injection, Browning said. He said 100% will likely be achieved “in the next decade.”"

"GE, meanwhile, already offers combustion systems for both aero-derivative and heavy-duty gas turbines that are capable of operating with increased levels of hydrogen."

"Aero-derivative gas turbines can be configured with a single annular combustor (SAC), which can operate on a variety of fuels, including process fuels and fuel blends with hydrogen, and GE says there are more than 2,500 gas turbines configured with this combustion system."

"It has also developed two combustor configurations for heavy-duty turbines for higher hydrogen content: the single-nozzle, which is available on B- & E-class turbines, and the multi-nozzle quiet combustor for E- & F-class turbines. These have been installed on 1,700 turbines"

"Notably, with funding from US DOE, GE has also developed a low-NOx hydrogen combustion system based on the “operating principle of small-scale jet-in-crossflow mixing of the fuel and air streams,” it said. The advanced premixing capability is... available on the 9HA gas turbine"

"GE also boasts several projects that use high hydrogen. One is at Daesan refinery in S. Korea, which operated on a 70% H2 fuel for 20 yrs using a 6B.03 gas turbine. ENEL’s 2010-inaugurated Fusina plant in Italy used an 11.4-MW GE-10 turbine to operate on fuel that was >97.5% H2"

"Now, GE is focusing its efforts on the use of additive manufacturing in developing next-gen combustion systems. “These efforts have resulted in approximately 50% [hydrogen] capability for the DLN 2.6e combustion system, which is excellent news for our customers,” Goldmeer said."

GE also claims "Our turbines have nearly 30 yrs of experience operating ... as hydrogen-fueled turbines using concentrations ranging from 5% to 95% (by volume)." They show a graphic there of % blend for H2 by turbine class:
ge.com/power/gas/fuel…

So, short story: It looks like smaller aeroderivative and frame (B/E class) combustion turbines can run as high as 90-100% H2 by volume. But the larger F and HA class frame turbines, the ones most commonly used in combined cycle plants, are limited to 50-60% w/current technology.

Also important: hydrogen has a much lower heat content per volume, about 20% that of natural gas according to this NREL fact sheet nrel.gov/docs/gen/fy08/….

If I'm doing my math right then, a 60% blend of H2 by volume only reduces CO2 emissions from combustion by ~25%, not 60%.

Update! GE fact sheet here ge.com/content/dam/ge… explains the more complicated version. See screenshots.

60% hydrogen by volume reduces CO2 about 35% (not 25%) due to increased flow through combustor as H2 blend increases. Still well below 60%.

Also, this whole fact sheet from GE on hydrogen combustion turbines is very handy ge.com/content/dam/ge…