The continued global use of gas turbines in the production of electricity and power is due to the high power-to-weight ratio, operational flexibility, and reliability of these machines. With the advent of renewable fuels, a gas turbine's inherent fuel flexibility can expedite the deployment of said fuels at an industrial scale through the existing infrastructure.

The use of hydrogen has gained interest over the past decade, specifically as green hydrogen, which is a vector for renewable energy. As a pure fuel, hydrogen is well researched within gas turbines, and there are contemporary demonstrations at the micro-gas-turbine (MGT) scale. However, technology to produce green hydrogen is at a low level of readiness, which means that the industrial supply will not meet demand for some time. Therefore, the current research, globally and at SU, is in the use of hydrogen–hydrocarbon mixtures.

This programme investigates the performance and emissions characteristics of gas turbine combustors using clean hydrogen fuels and hydrogen–hydrocarbon mixtures, addressing these key research questions.

Current activities include developing 3D and 1D numerical models of MGT combustors as well as the experimental evaluation of combustor and MGT performance during mixed and hydrogen fuel operation. The programme leverages the CSIR Centre for High Performance Computing (CHPC), an experimental dual-shaft MGT system, advanced diagnostic tools, and a dedicated laboratory for mixed-fuel combustion studies.

The project is led by Mr Chaz Fenner (PhD candidate in Mechanical Engineering), under the supervision of Prof Johan Van der Spuy and Prof Ryno Laubscher. Future work is currently being planned for 2026, involving research into ammonia-fuelled combustors for propulsion, numerical investigations of combustor design methods, and land-based combustors fuelled by hydrogen-methane mixtures.