NETL researchers played key roles in a national meeting at Penn State University that focused on advancing the design and operation of gas turbines in support of the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management’s (FECM) Advanced Turbines Program goals.

The NETL University Turbine Systems Research (NETL-UTSR) program manages a portfolio of university-based turbine research projects funded by FECM, which sponsors the annual UTSR meeting where projects within the Advanced Turbines Program are publicly reviewed.

The 2023 review meeting occurred between Oct. 30 and Nov. 1.

The UTSR program has been made possible by a network of universities, the collaborating gas turbine industry, and the DOE Advanced Turbines program — all of which are facilitated by the annual UTSR project review meeting where experts from academia, industry, and government to present and discuss ongoing turbine research sponsored by the FECM under existing cooperative agreements.

Attendees discussed carbon-free fuels, advanced manufacturing and materials, supercritical CO2, pressure gain combustion, and aerodynamics/heat transfer.

Doug Straub, NETL thermal sciences researcher, organized a detailed presentation on Gas Turbine Heat Transfer. Other NETL personnel who attended the event were: Peter Strakey, Eric Liese, Nathan Weiland, Clinton Bedick, Patcharin Burke, Henry Long of KeyLogic, Indrajit Bhattacharya, John Crane, Donald Ferguson, Seth Lawson, Bob Stevens, and Chantal Sudbrack.

The NETL researchers are well positioned to provide vital input to the UTSR effort. The NETL Advanced Turbines Program manages a research portfolio designed to enable a carbon-free electricity sector and promote environmental justice by developing revolutionary, near-zero-emission advanced turbines technologies.

In response to the nation’s increasing power supply challenges, NETL is researching next-generation turbine technology with the goal of producing reliable, affordable, diverse and environmentally friendly energy supplies. NETL is also committed to enabling the use of hydrogen in gas turbines to facilitate a future carbon-free electric power industry. Program and project emphasis is on understanding the underlying factors affecting combustion, aerodynamics/heat transfer, and materials for advanced turbines and turbine-based power cycles.

NETL is a DOE national laboratory that drives innovation and delivers technological solutions for an environmentally sustainable and prosperous energy future. By using its world-class talent and research facilities, NETL is ensuring affordable, abundant, and reliable energy that drives a robust economy and national security, while developing technologies to manage carbon across the full life cycle, enabling environmental sustainability for all Americans.