Erosion-Resistant Nanocoatings for Improved Energy Efficiency in Gas Turbines
The objective of this Stage Gate IV project was to test and substantiate the viability of an erosion-resistant nanocoating for application on compressor airfoils for gas turbines in both industrial power generation and commercial aviation applications. To effectively complete this project, the National Energy Technology Laboratory’s Office of Research & Development teamed with MDS Coating Technologies Inc. (MCT), Delta Air Lines - Technical Operations Division (Delta Tech Ops), and Calpine Corporation. The coating targeted for this application was MCT’s Next Generation Coating, version 4 (NGC-v4 - with the new registered trademark name of BlackGold®). The coating is an erosion and corrosion resistant composite nanostructured coating. This coating is comprised of a proprietary ceramic-metallic nano-composite construction which provides enhanced erosion resistance and also retains the aerodynamic geometry of the airfoils. The objective of the commercial aviation portion of the project was to substantiate the coating properties to allow certification from the FAA to apply an erosion-resistant coating in a commercial aviation engine. The goal of the series of tests was to demonstrate that the durability of the airfoils is not affected negatively with the application of the NGC v4 coating. Tests included erosion, corrosion, vibration and fatigue. The results of the testing demonstrated that the application of the coating did not negatively impact the properties of the blades, especially fatigue performance – which is of importance in acceptance for commercial aviation applications. The objective of the industrial gas turbine element of the project was to evaluate the coating as an enabling technology for inlet fogging during the operation of industrial gas turbines. Fluid erosion laboratory scale tests were conducted to simulate inlet fogging conditions. Results of these tests indicated that the application of the erosion resistant NGC-v4 nanocoating improved the resistance to simulated inlet fogging conditions by a factor of 10 times. These results gave confidence for a field trial at Calpine’s power plant in Corpus Christi, TX, which commenced in April 2012. This test is still on-going as of November 2013, and the nanocoated blades have accumulated over 13,000 operational hours on this specific power plant in approximately 19 months of operation.
- Research Organization:
- National Energy Technology Lab. (NETL), Pittsburgh, PA, and Morgantown, WV (United States). In-house Research
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Fossil Energy (FE)
- OSTI ID:
- 1117659
- Report Number(s):
- NETL-PUB-911
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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