Date of Award

8-2026

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.S.E.

Degree Program

Mechanical Engineering

Department

Mechanical Engineering

Major Professor

Dr. Ting Wang

Abstract

The inherent intermittency of wind and solar energy challenges grid stability, requiring flexible support from natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) power plants. The objective of this study is to develop a method for evaluating the turn-down performance of the NGCC system and to identify effective strategies to operate multi-island NGCC plants to respond to intermittent power demand fluctuations driven by renewable energy integration. The simulation tool was validated against benchmark U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) subcritical Rankine cycle and NGCC cases. The methodology was then applied to evaluate part load operation, inlet fogging, hydrogen blending, and multi-island dispatch for a Mediterranean NGCC plant and a Western New York gas turbine power plant. The results showed that both saturated and overspray fogging techniques can provide notable rapid power increases up to 30%. A simplified part-load performance method was also developed to provide quick estimates of NGCC power output and efficiency without requiring complex simulation software. The four island NGCC dispatch analysis indicated that uniform loading achieved higher overall plant efficiency at loads above 70%, whereas non-uniform loading achieved higher efficiency at plant loads below 70%.

Rights

The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.

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