Natural Gas

Fuel Profile GAS NG is a naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbons (e.g., methane [CH4], ethane [C2H6], or
propane [C3H8]). It is produced in geological formations beneath the Earth's surface that maintains a
gaseous state at standard atmospheric temperature and pressure under ordinary conditions.

O P E R A T I N G G U I D E

There can be natural variations in NG composition. As a result,

pipeline quality standards exist in many countries. For example, the
US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) definition of NG states that
it must either be composed of at least 70% CH4 by volume or have a
gross calorific value between 950 and 1,100 British thermal units (Btu)
per standard cubic foot.

P R E - T R E AT M E N T COMBUSTOR P O S T - T R E AT M E N T

Removal Filtration Blend Heat Startup Dilute Controls Removal

Gray icons indicate processes not required for this fuel

G E E X P E R I E N C E C H A R A C T E R I S T I C S
NG
Lab Heating Value 0
LOW HIGH
~8 0 0 -1 ,1 0 0 BTU/scf NG
~9000 hours in GE's Gas
Hours Turbine Technology Lab (~29,850-41,000 kJ/Nm3) NG
(Greenville, SC) Methane 0
LOW HIGH
More than 70 million >8 5 % NG
fired hours
NG

NG Diluent
<1 5 % NG
0
LOW HIGH

Units NG
Hydrogen 0
~4000 gas turbines LOW HIGH
<3 % NG
(HDGT; data from McCoy)
NG
C2+ 0
LOW HIGH
<1 5 % NG
L O C A T I O N S A V A I L A B L E NG
Available in all locations H2O 0
LOW HIGH
~0 % NG
NG
H2S 0
LOW HIGH
<0 .3 GRAIN/1 0 0 scf NG
( ~1 0 ppm )

M A I N T E N A N C E F A C T O R

Follow maintenance recommendations for NG per GER-3620

(GE Heavy-Duty Gas Turbine Operating and Maintenance
Considerations).
Fuel Availability

Fuel In Use

O U T P U T H E A T R A T E E M I S S I O N S

NG NG NG

LOW HIGH LOW HIGH LOW HIGH

© 2015 General Electric Company. All rights reserved. GEA31939 (08/2015)

 Fuel Profile Natural Gas
P O W E R P L A N T S C O P E I M P A C T

• Performance fuel heaters use steam or feedwater from the heat recovery steam generator (HRSG)

• Requires separate infrastructure and accessory systems for back-up fuel

• If using liquid as a back-up fuel, requires dual fuel combustor configuration and liquid fuel accessory system

K E Y P R E - T R E AT M E N T COMBUSTOR TURBINE P O S T - T R E AT M E N T

Per GEI-41040 (Specification for Fuel Gases for Combustion in Heavy-Duty Gas Turbines), the fuel gas delivery system shall be designed
to prevent the generation or the admittance of solid particulate to the gas turbine (GT) gas fuel system. This shall include but not be
limited to particulate filtration and noncorrosive (i.e. stainless steel) piping from the particulate filtration to the inlet of the GT equipment.
Fuel gas piping systems shall be properly cleaned/flushed and maintained prior to GT operation.
Filtration

Performance heating to increase GT efficiency, or to adjust overall fuel energy input if natural gas variations are causing shifts in heating
value. GER-4189B (Design Considerations for Heated Gas Fuel) provides details of a "typical" GE gas fuel heating system as well as
general system requirements.

Heat

If run in a standard or multi-nozzle quiet combustor (MNQC), a diluent is required to mitigate nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions.
Diluent can be nitrogen (N2), steam or water.

Dilute

GE's OpFlex Autotune system uses a full thermodynamic model of the GT with data from a range of sensors to make
real-time adjustments to the GT to optimize performance.

Controls

Use of selective catalytic reduction (SCR) to reduce NOx emissions may be required to meet local and/or national
environmental emission regulations. A separate catalyst can be added to reduce carbon monoxide (CO) emissions levels as
required by environmental regulations.

Removal

T U R B I N E O P T I O N S

STANDARD

E
CLASS DLN
F CLASS
DLN
HCLASS
DLN

MNQC MNQC

MNQC

© 2015 General Electric Company. All rights reserved. GEA31939 (08/2015)