The Gore Turbine filter from W L Gore & Associates was given this honour because of the filter’s ability to improve gas turbine efficiency and eliminate power loss caused by fouling.
The membrane technology was designed to tackle performance issues caused by compressor fouling by capturing the submicron particles in the filter’s membrane layer. Once the design was complete, Gore worked with TransCanada Corporation to field test the filter in a direct comparison with a nanofiber filter in identical turbines.
After 1,450 operating hours, the cleaning fluid for the nanofiber filter was black, indicating significant fouling of the filter. However, after 10,600 hours of operation, the cleaning fluid for Gore’s filter remained clean, with no evidence of particle contamination.
Rick MacDonald, plant manager at TransCanada Corporation’s Grandview Power Plant, said: “Prior to installation of these Gore filters, we were required to offline soak-wash each of our turbines every five to six weeks, and we typically experienced up to one megawatt (MW) of power loss on each 44 MW turbine between washes. With the Gore Turbine filters, we now operate for four months between washing, and we do not see any power loss at all. In fact, the turbine power output and heat-rate have held steady for the entire 18 months of filter operation so far, and we expect to get two or more years of total service life. What a difference in performance!”
