Steam Turbines: case studies in condition

monitoring
CM National Forum 2007

Ray Beebe
(Monash 16 years, following 28 years in power
generation)

www.monash.edu.au

• Steam turbines not your scene? Some

of the concepts could be applied to other
plant
• Today: several case studies of general
engineering interest
• Paper with more detail is on CD, and
others available: just ask
ray.beebe@eng.monash.edu

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Steam turbines: the major power producer

• Australia has machines up to 660MW in

service (NSW)
• Larger unit coming on 720MW (Qld)
• Most are sub-critical pressure, some
new in Qld are super-critical
• Many makes: sourced Europe, Japan

Steam turbines: the major power producer

• Design layouts differ, but all have:

• Large steel casings
• Blading, moving and stationary
• Shaft seals/glands/packing to keep steam in!
• Bearings
• Control valves, hydraulic systems
• Lots of piping
– Selection of pictures follow

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HP-IP opposed flow casing (Qld, Vic). 500MW Vic
has 1xLP, last stage blades 1060mm long

• Yallourn Vic
350MW+, 375MW+,
layout in line

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500MW (UK) Parallel layout.
HP casing IP casing 3 x LP casings

500MW Vic HP, IP, 2 x LP casings.

Crossover on top (as 660 MW NSW)

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500MW Vic HP, IP, 2xLP casings,
Crossover under centreline

Many smaller machines

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Some parts: blading

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Some parts: casings, shaft glands, rotors

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Why use CM?

• Decision makers have to start

somewhere
• Open if compelling technical and
economic reasons. (High temperature
parts get heat affected, may be difficult
to dissemble).
• OEM advice: consider

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• Turbines are critical plant, well justify

application of CM.
• Several CM techniques can be used.
• Vibration analysis and performance
analysis are the most usual for owners.
• Here: use of performance analysis
methods.

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Some turbine problems and CM

• BLADING
Erosion by solid particles (also by water droplets
on latter LP blades)
Usually occurs gradually, worst at inlet blading.
Less usual on sets with drum boilers and/or sub-critical
inlet steam conditions, or with bypass systems.
Performance analysis detects.

Parts breaking off

Usually sudden. Vibration monitoring/analysis and
Performance analysis detects.

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Deposits
Likely to occur gradually.
More common with base loaded sets as cyclic loading
tends to have a blade washing effect).
Some on-load blade washing occurs with forced steam
cooling.
Performance analysis detects.
• MAIN STEAM STRAINERS
Deposits, damage
Likely to occur gradually or suddenly.
Performance analysis detects (but needs Diff Pressure).

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Inlet strainer and

blading blockage –
turbine troubles
detectable
by performance
analysis

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Overall condition indicator:
Valves Wide Open test

– Control valves WIDE open, checked

– Steady conditions for hour
– May need to run at reduced inlet pressure
– Test readings of key temperatures,
pressures, MW (or panel instruments/DCS
if proven)
– No special test flow measurements
– MW are corrected for any variations from
rated values.

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Typical OEM correction

curves for VWOutput

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Case study A: blade damage (200MW set)

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Metal piece bent stationary blades

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 Case study B: 200MW steam turbine generator

• Usual loading: 210MW. Steam control valves about

90% open. VWO when new: 216MW

• One day, operator noticed steam control valves

100% open. So, VWO test run: 210MW (-6MW )

• Planned full Heat Rate test for more diagnostics, but piping
isolations delayed test for 3 months.
VWO was now 216MW

[Unit had 11 shutdowns in this time ! Likely problem: deposits

on blading, removed by startup/shutdown blade washing
effect]

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Case study C: 350MW set

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 Test data TEST A Correctn TEST Correctn
factor B factor
Generator Output MW 355.8 349.7
Steam Pressure - Main kPa 12155 1.02285 12255 1.02053
Steam Temperature - Main °C 529.5 0.99832 526.7 0.99773
Steam Temperature - Reheat °C 525.8 1.0101 539.5 0.99873
Reheater Pressure Drop % 6.76 0.99814 6.03 0.99633
Condenser Pressure - kPa 9.34 1.01225 12.44 1.03615
Generator Power Factor 0.923 1.00012 0.945 1.00064
Steam Temp. Cont. Spray - Main kg/s 6.5 0.99889 24.6 0.99584
Steam Temp. Control Spray - Reheater 0 1 0 1
kg/s
Final Feedwater Temperature °C 234.9 1.0005 230.5 0.98957
Combined correction factor 1.04741 1.03521
Corrected VWO Output MW 372.7 362

Some years apart. Now, to investigate why a10MW drop!

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Parameters:
Stage
pressures Corrected stage
pressures (to
…are closely standard inlet
linear with conditions)
flow/load (NOT Pressure ratios,
Last Stage). inlet/outlet
better – not
Can use ratios to dependent only
detect blockage in on turbine inlet
section pressure value.

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 Corrected stage
Effect of blade deposits, damage shows pressures (to
standard inlet
conditions)
Pressure ratios,
inlet/outlet

Pressure ratio,
inlet to outlet,
increases

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Revisit Case study A: blade damage (200MW set)

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 P1
T1
Enthalpy Enthalpy
kJ/kg
Drop
Efficiency P2
Actual h
tests drop
T2

Ideal h Expansion line

drop
Isentropic
enthalpy P3 T3
drop
Efficiency =
Actual h drop
Ideal h Drop

Entropy kJ/kg °K 29

Enthalpy, entropy found

from temperature and
pressure.

Free steam tables:

www.pepse.com

Enthalpy Drop
Efficiency is a
Enthalpy Drop Efficiency is
key parameter: usually 85–90%.
but useful in
superheated Lowers with damage or
zone only blade deposits.

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 Steam
Forced
Cool run
here

Corrected
VWO
Output

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IP Blading

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 Deposits on IP blading

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Case study D: other uses of

Stage pressures vs
Flow/output Pressure at Stage
4 becomes positive
Air leakage into at that load.
turbine was very
high – all air pumps Leaking flange
had to run to start found in piping
machine up. from gland to
feedheater line.
At 45% load, air
leakage problem
ceased.

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 Case study E: other uses of
Expansion line plot
Measured stage outlet
at A is higher than
expected. Steam is
bypassing blades to
mix with stage
extraction flow: joint
leak?

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P1 T1
Enthalpy
kJ/kg

P2 Temperature usually
saturation - if above,
T2
then steam is
Expansion line superheated, has
bypassed blading.

Isentropic
•- A
enthalpy P3 T3
drop 255 °C temperature
noticed in LP2 feedwater
heater inlet piping. 95 °C
Saturated steam zone
is usual temperature (read
Entropy kJ/kg K in Control Room).

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 Inner
bellows

Expansion bellows had failed.

914mm diameter,
two sets in each of 4 pipes.

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Case study F: 500MW

• Initial test was for Acceptance

• High accuracy tests run 2 yearly, to also get
before/after steam path inspections
• Slight decline in performance from new evident,
but not unusual
• After Test 4, operators noticed greater control
valves opening needed, so DCS tests run
weekly
• Clear degradation somewhere.

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VWO results

• Plant has DCS

• Calibration of key instruments has
revealed little drift
• Array of screen-based displays
• VWO accurate tests set up, data taken
into historian system (Uniformance PHD)
can be accessed in office
• VWO found both ways:

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VWO Output from

DCS trend close to special tests
VWO using special
test instruments

VWO from plant

instruments

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 • MSV strainer blockage

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VWO up to now

High accuracy tests

Corrected VWO Output MW

530
520
510
500
490 DCS
480 data Turbine repairs
470 tests made here
460
31-Jan-93 28-Oct-95 24-Jul-98 19-Apr-01 14-Jan-04

Date of test

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Enthalpy Drop Efficiency up to after repair (turbine inlet to
HP blading outlet)

DCS data
90
gave
89 inconsistent
point
HP enthalpy drop efficiency %

88

87

86

85

84

83

82

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31-Jan-93 15-Jun-94 28-Oct-95 11-Mar-97 24-Jul-98 06-Dec-99 19-Apr-01 01-Sep-02

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Corrected pressures up to after repair: After control valves

and First Stage

16500

16000
Corrected pressures kPa(abs)

15500

15000

14500 Corr FSP

Corr PAGVs
14000

13500

13000

12500

12000
11-Jan-93 8-Oct-95 4-Jul-98 30-Mar-01
Date
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Enthalpy Drop Efficiency: up to date

91

90
Excessive
scatter in DCS
89
results for this
88 parameter
87
from DCS to
be useful for
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CM
85

84

83

82

81
31-Jan-93 15-Jun-94 28-Oct-95 11-Mar- 24-Jul-98 6-Dec-99 19-Apr- 1-Sep-02 14-Jan-04
97 01

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Case study G: N2 leakage

• Peculiar to HP-IP combined casing

design

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 • New turbine, efficiency below guarantee
• High reheat temperature, hard to control
– Extra temperature control station added
– 20% of first stage boiler reheater tubing
removed
• N2 packing tests run later: leakage flow
estimated at 4 - 5 times design!
– Consistent with reheater overheating due to
flow of about 5 - 8% less than design
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CONCLUSIONS

Information from condition monitoring can help the maintenance

decision – to open a turbine only when there is a technically and
economically compelling reason.

Same methods can be used to investigate observed

performance shortfalls.

Special test instrumentation needed, but worth trying use of

DCS.

Other CM methods needed: vibration analysis, NDT inspection,

maybe oil checks.

www.monash.edu.au

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“The need is there, the time is now!”
(Dupont 2000)
Off campus postgrad programs in Maintenance
and reliability engineering

in collaboration for North America with

University of Tennessee

www.monash.edu.au

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