Industrial gas turbine combustion performance test of DME to use as an alternative fuel for power generation

DME (dimethyl ether, CH₃OCH₃) is both a good alternative fuel for transportation and power generation and an LPG substitute owing to its cleanliness, multi-source productivity and the ease with which it is transported. This study was conducted to verify whether DME is a good fuel for gas turbines and to identify potential problems in fuelling a commercial gas turbine with DME. In this study, the GE7EA gas turbine of the Pyong-tak power plant in Korea was selected as the target of DME application. Combustion performance tests were conducted by comparing DME with methane, which is a major component of natural gas. Most results of the combustion performance tests show that DME is very clean and efficient fuel for gas turbines. However, other results have shown that it is necessary to retrofit a fuel nozzle to the combustor in consideration of the combustion properties of DME in order to enhance the availability and reliability of DME fired gas turbines.