A 25 kWe low concentration methane catalytic combustion gas turbine prototype unit

Low concentration methane, emitted from various industries e.g. coal mines and landfills into atmosphere, is not only an important greenhouse gas, but also a wasted energy resource if not utilized. In the past decade, we have been developing a novel VAMCAT (ventilation air methane catalytic combustion gas turbine) technology. This turbine technology can be used to mitigate methane emissions for greenhouse gas reduction, and also to utilize the low concentration methane as an energy source. This paper presents our latest research results on the development and demonstration of a 25 kWe lean burn catalytic combustion gas turbine prototype unit. Recent experimental results show that the unit can be operated with 0.8 vol% of methane in air, producing about 19–21 kWe of electricity output.