A steam turbine inspection checklist is used to assess the condition of steam turbines and maintain them and the safety devices associated with them. A digital checklist guides inspectors on what to look for to ensure the efficiency of the machines and the safety of workers operating them.
By Max Elias | November 10, 2023 | Reading time: 5minutes
Steam turbines are an important element in providing electricity all around the country. Thus, proper and regular maintenance plays a critical role to ensure their optimal performance. A properly maintained turbine can last up to 50 years on average.
An effective steam turbine maintenance starts with regular preventive maintenance conducted on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis. Maintenance personnel and operators can do most of these routine tasks. On the other hand, repairs, overhauls, and necessary maintenance should be done by experts and experienced service engineers.
Some of the inspections and maintenance that take place include:
Aside from these inspections, a routine inspection is also conducted by steam turbine operators. All important activities and periodic observations are documented in a log during routine checkups. Some of the tasks included on the steam turbine inspection checklist are:
To achieve optimum and efficient performance, steam turbines should have the right steam pressure at the turbine inlet. Furthermore, the steam should have no condensate entrapment. The following are the four best practices to achieve optimum turbine operation and maintenance:
If there’s condensate entrapment in the steam supply, the turbine steam rates increase while its efficiency decreases. It also causes erosion of the equipment’s components. To prevent this from happening, the steam supply lines and components should be insulated.
Furthermore, steam supply lines should be equipped with condensate removal components which include steam trap stations and steam line trap stations.
Turbine flanges are prone to absorb excessive forces from thermal expansion, pipe dead weight, spring rate, and thrust. Thus, they need to be analyzed, reviewed, and installed properly to prevent these excess forces.
The steam piping design should leave room for expansion and contraction. The steam lines should contain the correct number of right-sized hanger supports.
Guides should make sure that the force on the turbine must not go beyond the values stated by the manufacturer.
The steam piping should be able to handle the full-line steam pressure. The size of the supply line should be calculated for the load and the pressure drops. Pressure loss in the supply line significantly affects turbine performance.
Steam pipings need support for pipe dead weight. There are two types of support for this — spring and rigid designs.
Rigid support restricts pipe movement in conjunction with an expansion joint. A typical installation uses supports, anchors, and guides. Although these components have different functions, they all support steam piping. Conducting a detailed analysis will ensure that proper weights are supported.
With Lumiform’s audit app you can easily perform a multitude of safety and quality inspections on the go from your smartphone or tablet – be it online or offline. Easily create checklists for Steam Turbine Inspections of any kind and easily collect data in the field to reduce machine errors and threats to employees.
