An analytical approach to predicting particle deposit by fouling in the axial compressor of the industrial gas turbine

Abstract

The gas turbine performance deteriorates with increased operating hours. Fouling in the axial compressor is an important factor for the performance degradation of gas turbines. Airborne particles entering the compressor with the air adhere to the blade surface and result in the change of the blade shape, which directly influences the compressor performance. It is difficult to exactly understand the mechanism of compressor fouling because of its slow growth and different length scales of compressor blades. In this study, an analytical method to predict the particle motion in the axial compressor and the characteristics of particle deposition onto blade is proposed as an approach to investigating physical phenomena of fouling in the axial compressor of industrial gas turbines. Calculated results using the proposed method and comparison with measured data demonstrate the feasibility of the model. It was also found that design parameters of the axial compressor such as chord length, solidity, and number of stages are closely related to the fouling phenomena. Likewise, the particle size and patterns of particle distributions are also important factors related to fouling phenomena in the axial compressor.