GAS TURBINE LABORATORY SEMINAR

DATE:                        Thursday, 3 November 2022

TIME:                         4:00pm 

LOCATION:              33-116

SPEAKER:                Jim Kesseli, Principal Engineer, Brayton Energy

TOPIC:                       Gas Turbines for the Future Lunar Base

ABSTRACT:

Closed cycle gas turbines are a candidate for the future lunar power plant station.  NASA’s plans call for a 40 kW-electric nuclear power plant for the early lunar base.  The closed cycle Brayton is one of four options under review.  This presentation will briefly outline the competitors, and unique requirements for the lunar environment, then focus on the design of the gas turbine.

BIO:
Jim has worked in the field of energy conversion systems for 40 years; contributing to advancements in small gas turbines, low emission combustion systems, and recuperators. Since forming Brayton Energy in 2004, Jim provides technical and managerial support for the company’s projects and roughly 50 engineers and technicians. Jim holds over 20 patents relating to recuperators, combustors, and gas turbines.  Jim served as the ASME chair for the International Gas Turbine Institute (IGTI) Microturbines and Small Gas Turbine Committee, serving on that committee from 2002 to 2010.  Jim received a BSME from WPI and an MSME from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1980.