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Gas turbines are widely used for power generation, producing megawatts of usable energy, but consume fossil fuels in order to do so. With gas prices on the rise, all eyes have turned to operating cost and fuel efficiency. To increase efficiency, manufactures raise the temperature of the gas that is combusted. This temperature is high above the melting point of the turbine components. In order for the gas turbine to work under these conditions, its parts must be protected. This study focuses on two aspects of cooling for turbine components. Over the last decades, researchers have investigated many aspects of film cooling, The present study investigates the impact of the stagnation region created by a downstream airfoil on endwall film cooling effectiveness with and without the presence of wake. Experimental measurements are presented for a single row of cylindrical holes inclined at 35° with hole length to diameter ratio, LID= 7.5, pitch to diameter ratio, Pl/D = 3 with a constant density ratio of 1.26, and with nitrogen as the coolant. Twelve different configurations were studied. The airfoil was positioned at X/D equal to 6.35, 12.7, and 25.4. A wake plate was added upstream of the film holes at -12.7 and -50.8 X/D. The effect of stagnation and wake was combined by placing both the airfoil and the wake plate in the test section, combining all positions of each. Baseline cases for the cooling holes alone, and the cooling holes with the airfoil and wake individually were compared to the combined effects. The experimental data shows that as the airfoil stagnation region inhibits film cooling close to the airfoil, and strong wake decreases film effectiveness. With both stagnation region and wake combined, an overall decrease in film cooling performance is observed. Higher blowing ratio increase lateral spreading of the jet promoting jet to jet interaction and mainstream interaction enhancing mixing. The presence of wake promotes jet mixing with the mainstream resulting in lower film cooling effectiveness. High performance turbine airfoils are typically cooled with a combination of internal cooling channels and impingement/film cooling. In such applications, the jets impinge against a target surface, and then exit along the channel formed by the jet plate, target plate, and side walls. Local convection coefficients are the result of both the jet impact, as well as the channel flow produced from the exiting jets. Numerous studies have explored the effects of jet array and channel configurations on both target and jet plate heat transfer coefficients. However, little work has been done in examining effects of height variation and heating on all channel walls, in which both target wall and side wall data is taken, as was neglected by previous literature. This study examines the local and averaged effects of channel height on heat transfer coefficients for target and side walls. High resolution local heat transfer coefficient distributions were measured using temperature sensitive paint and recorded via a scientific grade CCD camera. Streamwise pressure distributions for both the target and side walls was recorded and used to explain heat transfer trends. Results are presented for average jet based Reynolds numbers 17K to 45K. All experiments were carried out on a large scale single row, 15 hole impingement channel, with X/D of 5, YID of 4, and Z/D of 1, 3 and 5. Providing high quality results will aid in the validation of predictive tools and development of physics-based models.

The energy-water nexus represents a complex system of correlated resources, with particular relevance to thermoelectric power plants. Since thermoelectric power plants typically depend on water for cooling, these facilities are prone to water-related challenges. At the same time, large water withdrawals for power plants can adversely impact other water users in a watershed. This work aims to evaluate water impacts on Texas power plant operations and the associated effects these power plants have on water availability. An evaluation of the water impacts on power generation in Texas was completed through four analyses: 1) water availability effects of changing cooling technologies, 2) economic value of drought resiliency through use of alternative cooling technologies, 3) dynamic impacts of reservoir storage on power generation operations, and 4) potential for reclaimed water as a cooling source. Based on the results of these analyses, the following general conclusions were drawn [bulleted list]: [bullet] Use of alternative cooling technologies decreases water withdrawals at the expense of additional energy and water consumption. However, the reduced withdrawals for power plants leaves more water in the stream for other water users, including instream flows. [bullet] Alternative cooling technologies incur additional capital costs, but gain value from reduced water withdrawals. The lower withdrawal requirements make such facilities more resilient to drought, which can have economic value from additional generation during possible drought-related curtailment or suspension. [bullet] Changing surface water reservoir storage at power plants has dynamic impacts on power generation operations, as well as other users in a river basin. Generally, decreasing power plant reservoir storage benefits other users in the basin. Instances arise where both beneficial and detrimental impacts are also observed. [bullet] Reclaimed water can be a technologically and economically feasible cooling source for many existing power plants. The future suitability of using reclaimed water for power plant cooling depends on water pipeline construction costs, reclaimed water flow, and water stress [end of bulleted list]. These general conclusions, along with further details, provide insight into the relationship between water resources and thermoelectric power plants. As resources become increasingly strained, understanding and responding to tradeoffs within the energy-water nexus, through such analyses, might become imperative for sustainable resource management. / text