This dissertation deals with design of self adjustable discharge valve used in Emerson reciprocating compressors. This work contains research of current state of knowledge, technical analysis of the valve and calculations of basis parameters. Constructional proposal is then presented. Part of the dissertation is manufacturing of prototype and its test. Finally, conclusions for further development are made.

Catalytic combustion is a promising combustion technique in gas turbines, which results in ultra low levels of NOx, CO and unburned hydrocarbons. Due to the low combustion temperature achieved in catalytic combustion almost no thermal NOx is formed. The focus in this thesis will be on the first stage in a catalytic combustion chamber, i.e. the ignition catalyst. The catalyst used for this application is often a supported palladium-based catalyst due to its excellent activity for methane combustion. However, this type of catalyst has a serious drawback; the methane conversion decreases with time during operation. The unstable activity will result in increasing difficulties to ignite the fuel. The objective of the work presented in this thesis has been to improve the catalytic performance of supported palladium catalysts, with focus on stabilizing the methane conversion. The first part gives a general background to gas turbines and catalytic combustion. The second part concerns the monometallic palladium catalysts; their behaviour during methane combustion is addressed. The third part describes different bimetallic catalysts, which all have palladium as one of the active components. Results from the activity tests of methane combustion showed that it is possible to stabilize the activity by adding certain co-metals into the palladium catalyst. The morphology of the various bimetallic catalysts has been studied to gain a better understanding of the various combustion behaviours. Finally, the influence of pressure on the catalytic performance is evaluated. The catalysts were tested under more realistic conditions for gas turbines, with elevated pressure, in a high-pressure test facility with a 100 kW fuel power.

Using circuit breakers as devices for protecting the circuit, equipment, property, and not least the people is an important part of the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity. This puts high demands on the design of complex devices such as circuit breakers. To ensure proper function is one of many parts and that is the trip unit. Trip unit is used to evaluate the current flowing through the breaker and respond to undesirable overcurrent. For these reasons, this work deals with electromagnetic analysis - specifically thermal magnetic trip unit. The focus will be on improving the actual situation and finding more suitable design solutions.