Effects of Upgraded Cooling System and New Blade Materials on a Real Gas Turbine Performance

The aim of this paper is to study the effects on the performance of a real heavy-duty gas turbine of two different solutions for enhancing turbine blades thermal resistance. An upgrade of the first stator cooling system and the adoption of improved blade materials are simulated exploiting an in-house simulation tool (ESMS). The changes are studied separately in order to point out the positive effects as well as the related risks, such as the side effect of temperature increase on downstream blade rows, to be considered in service operations.