The Analysis of Brayton Cycle

Objective
To determine the characteristics of a
simple gas turbine engine.
The thermodynamic properties at
each point of the Brayton cycle are
calculated to permit complete
analysis of the cycle
Brief History
 The basic gas turbine cycle, the Brayton cycle, was first proposed by the Boston
engineer, George Brayton, around 1870
 First successfully ran in 1939
 The early gas turbines built in the 1940s and even 1950s had simple-cycle
efficiencies of about 17 percent due to low compressor and turbine efficiencies
and low turbine inlet temperature due to metallurgical limitations at the time
 The first gas turbine for an electric utility was installed in 1949 in Oklahoma as
part of a combined-cycle power plant, built by General Electric and
produced 3.5 MW of power
 In the early 1990s, General Electric offered a gas turbine that featured a
pressure ratio of 13.5 and generated 135.7 MW of net power at a thermal
efficiency of 33 percent in simple-cycle operation
 A more recent gas turbine manufactured by General Electric uses a turbine
inlet temperature of 1425°C (2600°F) and produces up to 282 MW while
achieving a thermal efficiency of 39.5 percent in the simple-cycle mode.
Background Theory
 A gas turbine, also called a combustion turbine, is a rotary
engine that extracts energy from a flow of combustion gas.
 It consists of an upstream compressor coupled to a
downstream turbine, and a combustion chamber in-
between.
 Combustion increases the temperature, velocity and
volume of the gas flow. This is directed through a nozzle
over the turbine's blades, spinning the turbine and
powering the compressor.
 Energy is extracted in the form of shaft power, compressed
air and thrust, in any combination, and used to power
aircraft, trains, ships, generators, and even tanks.
Applications
 Electric Power Generation

Used as stationary power plants to generate electricity as

stand-alone units or in conjunction with steam power
plants on the high-temperature side. In these plants, the
exhaust gases serve as a heat source for the steam

 Aircraft Propulsion
Main Components
Gas turbines usually
operate on an open cycle,
as shown here
• Fresh air at ambient
conditions is drawn into
the compressor
• The high- pressure air
proceeds into the
combustion chamber,
where the fuel is burned at
constant pressure.
• The high- temperature
gases then enter the
turbine, where they
expand to the atmospheric Figure 1- An Open Cycle Gas Turbine Engine
pressure
Ideal Brayton Cycle
The open gas-turbine cycle can
be modeled as a closed cycle as
shown here by utilizing the air-
standard assumptions.
• The compression and expansion
processes remain the same
• A constant- pressure heat-
addition process to the ambient
air replaces the combustion
process
• A constant-pressure heat
rejection process is used to
return the air to the initial state
Figure 2- A Closed Cycle Gas Turbine Engine
Brayton Cycle Processes:
(1-2) Isentropic compression (in
compressor)

(2-3) Constant pressure heat addition

(3-4) Isentropic expansion (in turbine)

(4-1) Constant pressure heat rejection

P-v diagrams of an ideal Brayton cycle
Cycle Analysis
 Processes of the Brayton cycle are executed in steady flow
devices so they should be analyzed as steady-flow
processes
 Changes in kinetic and potential energies are neglected
 The energy balance for a steady-flow process can be
expressed, on a unit-mass basis, as:
(qin−qout)+(win−wout)= hexit−hinlet
 Therefore, heat transfers to and from the working fluid are
qin=h3−h2=Cp(T3−T2)
qout=h4−h1=Cp(T4−T1)
Thermal efficiency

Processes 1-2 and 3-4 are isentropic, and P2 =P3 and P4=P1. Thus:

Substituting these equations into the thermal efficiency relation

and simplifying give:

Where: is the pressure ratio

Thermal Efficiency vs. Pressure Ratio
Actual Cycle vs Ideal Cycle:
In practice, friction, and turbulence cause:
 Non-isentropic compression: for a given overall pressure
ratio, the compressor delivery temperature is higher
than ideal.
 Non-isentropic expansion: although the turbine
temperature drop necessary to drive the compressor is
unaffected, the associated pressure ratio is greater,
which decreases the expansion available to provide
useful work.
 Pressure losses in the air intake, combustor and exhaust:
reduces the expansion available to provide useful work.
Isentropic Efficiencies of Turbines and compressors
For an adiabatic turbine which undergoes a steady-flow process, its inlet
and exit pressures are fixed. Hence, the idealized process for turbine is an
isentropic process between the inlet and exit pressures.
The isentropic efficiency of a turbine is the ratio of the actual work output of
the turbine to the work output of the turbine if the turbine undergoes an
isentropic process between the same inlet and exit pressures:

𝜼𝑻 = Actual turbine work/Isentropic turbine work = wa/ws

The kinetic and potential energies associated with a process through a

turbine is negligible compared with the enthalpy change of the process. In
this case, the energy balance of the turbine is reduced to

The isentropic efficiency of turbine can then be written as:

𝜼𝑻 = (h2a - h1)/(h2s - h1)

Where:
h1 = enthalpy at the inlet
h2a = enthalpy of actual process at the exit
h2s = enthalpy of isentropic process at the exit
Compressor Efficiency
Compressors , when undergo a steady-flow process, consume power.
The isentropic efficiency of a compressor is defined as the ratio of the work
input to an isentropic process, to the work input to the actual process
between the same inlet and exit pressures.

𝜼𝑪 = Isentropic compressor work/Actual compressor work= ws/wa

wa and ws can be obtained from the energy balance of the compressor.

When the kinetic and potential energies associated with a gas flowing
through a compressor are negligible compared with the enthalpy change of
the gas, the energy balance of the compressor is reduced to

The isentropic efficiency of a compressor becomes

𝜼𝑪 = (h2s - h1)/(h2a - h1)

MiniLab Gas Turbine

The engine consists of a single stage radial compressor, a counter-flow annular

combustor and a single stage axial turbine which directs the combustion products
into a converging nozzle for further expansion. The engine produces a maximum
trust of 40 lbf (178 N) and has a pressure ratio of 2.5:1
More information on the Minilab gas turbine:
http://www.turbinetechnologies.com/EducationalLabPr
oducts/TurbojetEngineLab.aspx