A High-Fidelity Real-Time Simulation Code of Gas Turbine Dynamics for Control Applications

A novel high-fidelity real-time simulation code based on a lumped, non-linear representation of gas turbine components is presented. The aim of the work is to develop a general-purpose simulation code useful for setting up and testing control equipments. The mathematical model and the numerical procedure are specially developed in order to efficiently solve the set of algebraic and ordinary differential equations that describe the dynamic behavior of the gas turbine engine. The paper presents the model and the adopted solver procedure. The code, developed in Matlab-Simulink using an object-oriented approach, is flexible and can be easily adapted to any kind of plant configuration. For high-fidelity purposes, the mathematical model takes into account the actual composition of the working gases and the variation of the specific heats with the temperature, including a stage-by-stage model of the air-cooled expansion. Simulation tests of the transients after load rejection have been carried out for a single-shaft heavy-duty gas turbine and a double-shaft industrial engine. Time plots of the main variables that describe the gas turbine dynamic behavior are shown and the results regarding the computational time per time step are discussed.