MHPS Successfully Tests Large-Scale High-Efficiency Gas Turbine Fueled by 30% Hydrogen Mix

— Will Contribute to Reducing CO2 Emissions
during Power Generation —

• New technology delivers 10% reduction in CO2
  emissions compared to natural-gas-fired power plants
• Stable combustion, lower NOx emissions enabled by proprietary
  burner developed through NEDO project

YOKOHAMA, Japan–(BUSINESS WIRE)–A large-scale gas turbine for use in power generation under development
by Mitsubishi
Hitachi Power Systems, Ltd. (MHPS) has successfully passed a firing
test using a 30% hydrogen fuel mix*1. The test results
confirmed that by using MHPS’s proprietary burner, which was newly
developed to burn hydrogen, stable combustion can be attained even when
hydrogen is mixed with natural gas. Using a 30% hydrogen mixture, a
reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of 10% was
achieved, compared to natural-gas-fired power generation.

The hydrogen-mixed firing test was carried out at MHPS’s Takasago Works,
using actual-pressure combustion testing facilities, as part of a
project of Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development
Organization (NEDO) aimed at developing technologies for realizing a
“hydrogen society.” In a hydrogen society, broad use is made of
hydrogen—a clean, carbon-free energy that releases no greenhouse gases.

The firing test conditions called for a turbine inlet temperature of
1,600℃, equivalent to 700 megawatts (MW) of output, using the premix
combustor of the natural-gas-fired J-Series gas turbines, which provides
power generation efficiency above 63%. With a hydrogen mix of 30%,
stable combustion was demonstrated while satisfying operable threshold
values pertaining to nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions, combustion
oscillation, etc.*2

The stable hydrogen-mixed firing technology applied in the large-scale
gas turbine uses MHPS’s proprietary dry low-NOx (DLN) combustor
developed for this project as an improved version of the Company’s
natural-gas-fired combustors. The combustion method is premixing, a
field in which MHPS has abundant experience through its use of DLN
combustors. The combustor’s fuel nozzle creates a rotational airflow
that enables the formation of a more uniform premixed gas, leading to
low NOx. Other than the combustor, the equipment currently in place can
be used without modification, thereby curbing the potential costs of
converting a natural-gas-fired power plant to a hydrogen plant.

In Japan, under the leadership of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and
Industry and the Cabinet Office, efforts are underway to develop
hydrogen as one of the nation’s core energies. Research and development
of gas turbines fueled by hydrogen currently focuses on small and
medium-size gas turbines for small-scale thermal power plants suited to
distributed power generation or area cogeneration. Now, with successful
testing toward use of hydrogen fuel in a large-scale gas turbine for
large-scale thermal power plants, expectations are focusing on the new
technology making a major contribution to easing the burden on the
global environment during power generation. It marks the first step
toward realizing a CO2-free hydrogen society, a key strategy
set last December at the second meeting of Japan’s Ministerial Council
on Renewable Energy, Hydrogen and Related Issues.

Following this successful test, MHPS will accelerate the development of
hydrogen-fueled gas turbines and encourage hydrogen use by thermal power
plant operators. Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group is also a leader in CO2
capture and storage (CCS) technology, which is indispensable for
supplying carbon-free hydrogen. By linking these technologies, the Group
is poised to lead the development of an international supply chain
spanning hydrogen supply, transport and storage, thereby contributing to
realization of a hydrogen society.

About Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems, Ltd.

Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems, Ltd. (MHPS), headquartered in
Yokohama, Japan, is a joint venture formed in February 2014 by
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. and Hitachi, Ltd. integrating their
operations in thermal power generation systems and other related
businesses. MHPS today ranks among the world’s leading suppliers of
equipment and services to the power generation market, backed by 100
billion yen in capital and approximately 20,000 employees worldwide. The
Company’s products include GTCC (gas turbine combined-cycle) and IGCC
(integrated coal gasification combined-cycle) power plants, conventional
gas/coal/oil-fired (thermal) power plants, boilers, generators, gas and
steam turbines, geothermal power plants, AQCS (air quality control
systems), power plant peripheral equipment and solid-oxide fuel cells
(SOFC). For more information, please visit the Company's website at https://www.mhps.com/en/index.html

Contacts

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.
Joseph Hood, +81-(0)3-6716-2168
PR
Manager
[email protected]
Fax:
+81-(0)3-6716-5860