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T H E G L O B A L J O U R N A L O F E N E R G Y E Q U I P M E N T

JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2017 • VOL. 58 NO. 1 • $7.50 turbomachinerymag.com

A NEW WAVE OF
DIGITIZATION

Vibration Reduction
PowerGen 2016 Highlights
Seals, Controls
Combined Heat & Power
Plant Relocation
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January/February 2017, Volume 58, Number 1 www.turbomachinerymag.com

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

COLUMNS DEPARTMENTS
Turbo Speak Industry News
6 Digitization and poisoned 8 • More mechanical drives boost
dog food gas turbine demand
Digitization is the buzz word of the • Mobile turbines
moment. While there are many obvious • Parker acquires Clarcor
benefits, the vision can sometimes be • Ansaldo CEO
taken too far. • EthosEnergy digest
Drew Robb • Power-to-gas
• LA Turbine digest

6 Turbo Tips • Capstone digest

15 Gas gathering and field gas • MAN in Iran
compression • Blossoming GT services
Gas engine-driven compression may • Doosan Skoda steam
seem like a good solution for gas gath- • Toshiba gensets
ering and gas compression. But there are • Fleet maintenance
certain issues which discourage its use. • Turbine Efficiency Group
Amin Almasi • Marine turbine report
• Korean steam
Q&A • Competitive recips
30 Digitization and the future • Siemens digest
of turbomachinery • Dresser-Rand
Enrique Herrera, Industry Champion • Fan design
of OSIsoft, discusses the evolving • MHPS digest
8 trend of digitization and what the tur- • GE digest
bomachinery sector needs to do to • Steam turbine market
prepare for it. • Flare gas recovery
• Kobe Steel marine order
Myth Busters
36 Gas turbine controls retrofits — New Products & Services
to buy or not to buy? 31 • Pre-filter
Retrofits of GT controls can cost far • Air-cooled J-series
more than anticipated, units can be • Hydraulic valve
down for extended periods and turbine • Surface and edge conditioning
functionality can be restricted. Yet • Internet of Things platform
there are compelling reasons to • Reduced pressure in valves
upgrade gas turbine control systems. • Siemens controls
Rainer Kurz & Klaus Brun • GE Predix update
30 • Smaller skid
• Shaft collar 3D prototype

Cover Photo: The ditigal power plant,

courtesy of GE

...more
www.turbomachinerymag.com January/February 2017 • Turbomachinery International 1
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January/February 2017, Volume 58, Number 1 www.turbomachinerymag.com

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

FEATURES
Cover Story Oil & Gas
16 A new wave of digitization 26 Labyrinth seal alternative
Could we be nearing a digital future How to improve rotating equipment
where manufacturers earn their revenue performance with dynamic, non-
primarily through services rather than contacting seals that are pressure-
selling equipment and controls? balanced.
Digitization appears to be heading us in Harry Miller
that direction and companies such as
Siemens, GE, MHPS, Schneider Gas Turbines
16 Electric, Emerson, OSIsoft, MAN 28 Relocation of gas turbine
Diesel & Turbo and ABB are leading generators
the charge. Aging plants in some locations may be
Drew Robb able to make an economic case for
relocation. By moving elsewhere, the
Operations & Maintenance economic picture can sometimes
20 Vibration reduction change dramatically.
This article is all about how to apply John Clifford
guidelines for avoidance or reduction
of vibration in small diameter piping.
Sarah Simons, Francisco Fierro &
Benjamin White

Show Report
20 22 CHP Stressed at PowerGen 2016
Combined heat and power (CHP),
microgrids and advanced-class turbines
came in for the lion’s share of attention
at PowerGen 2016 in December in
Orlando, Florida.
Drew Robb

22

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I NI NTTE ERRNNAT
ATI OI ONNAAL L

www.turbomachinerymag.com

Established in 1959 GERMANY, AUSTRIA, SWITZERLAND

Founders Sven Anacker
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Editor-in-Chief sanacker@intermediapartners.de
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TURBO SPEAK

DIGITIZATION
D
igitization is the latest buzz word to hit the turbomachinery field. It is all about
unifying the various plant and equipment systems onto one platform so you
can analyze the big picture and make decisions based on better data. Vendors

AND POISONED are touting benefits such as lowered plant costs, streamlined maintenance,
greater control, and more.

DOG FOOD
Our cover story takes up this topic and dives into the advantages as well as the
battle that has just begun to see which platform will rise to dominance. The stakes are
high — the winner controls the platform others use to develop applications for their
various systems.
Think of it like this: Apple’s iOS is the boss with regard to the millions of apps that
run on it; similarly, Amazon is king as millions of people use it to sell their products. An
industrial platform could wield similar power.
But like everything else, the ideas of digitization can be taken a little too far. At
PowerGen 2016, for example, one speaker outlined a Jetson-like vision:
Digitization would enable plants to do away with just about all their existing per-
sonnel. He even mentioned the elimination of security guards walking the perime-
ter and inspecting the facility.
In his idealized digitized universe, you would only need one person and a dog to
man the plant. The person’s job would be to sit there, stare at screens and do noth-
ing else except feed the dog. The dog’s role would be to bite the guy if he attempt-
ed touch to anything.
Such schemes unravel quickly. Poisoned dog food comes to mind as a simple strat-
egy for someone to gain control of the facility. This futuristic vision also conjured up
images of the movie “Jurassic Park.”
Put too many functions in the hands of the few and they can do a whole lot of dam-
age. But I don’t think digitization will ever go quite that far. No matter how good the
machinery, how sophisticated the computers or how insightful the analytics, there is no
Drew Robb substitute for experienced engineers and technicians who know every inch of the plant
Editor-in-Chief and how it should run.
One final thought: digitized government. If it is possible to digitize and optimize a
fleet, how about optimizing government and modeling the impact of policy in a coun-
try? The analytics systems appear to be in place to crunch all the numbers, simulate the
many possible approaches, and perhaps even pass regulations that may lead to fewer
stranded assets and more favorable economic consequences. But maybe we are veering
here into the realm of science fiction.
We hope you enjoy the current issue, whether it is the digital version or in print.

6 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com

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INDUSTRY NEWS

MECHANICAL DRIVES BOOST GAS TURBINE DEMAND

The market for gas turbines (GTs) in the worldwide oil and gas requirements for reliability, availability, efficiency, and environ-
industry will see significant expansion thanks to rapid growth in mental compatibility, providing low life-cycle costs and the best
demand for floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) possible return on investment,” said Stuart Slade, FI’s Senior
vessels used in offshore oil and gas exploitation projects, accord- Industrial and Marine Gas Turbine Analyst.
ing to Forecast International (FI). Increasing use of natural gas as
The growth of the oil and gas fuel for industrial applications is
industry, especially LNG, has also accelerating demand for
resulted in the use of complex mechanical drive GTs, according to
mechanical drive turbomachinery Slade. The share of the market held
for pumping, compressor and by natural gas will grow to over
refrigeration service. Expansion of 19% in 2017 to more than 21% by
the oil and gas segment is forecast to 2020, and to 23.5% by 2025. GTs
reach a 12% growth rate by the end are now the drivers of choice for the
of the decade. However, that oil and gas industry, particularly the
increased mechanical drive capacity LNG industry, said Slade.
will not be reflected by parallel The annual production of gas
growth in the number of machines turbines for mechanical drive
procured, since power output per duty will increase steadily
turbine is increasing faster than the through the coming decade, he
aggregate demand for added power. said. This projection is predicat-
FI’s Platinum Forecast ed on the worldwide potential
System projects the sales value Solar Turbines leads the field with a 37.4% share of market for oil and gas production and
of mechanical drive industrial transport. The market will be
gas turbines delivered between 2016 and 2030 to total driven by large-scale, high-capacity pipeline and FPSO con-
$27.8 billion. Approximately 4,220 turbines will be sold struction, fostering continued demand for high-powered
during this period, with a per-unit price of $6.5 million. aeroderivative machines.
These GTs will be used for pipeline compression and Production is expected to reach a high of 295 units in 2025,
pumping, and in LNG applications, as well as in refineries, before leveling off slightly in the following years. In terms of value
and in the chemical and petrochemical industries. of production, Solar Turbines will lead the field with a 37.4%
“Gas turbines used as compressors or pump drives meet the share, followed by Siemens (23.2%) and GE Energy (20.7%).

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Mobile turbines pipeline injection project in the U.S., turboexpander-compressor units designed
APR Energy has renewed its alliance with demonstrating the use of excess electricity for cryogenic processing from an EPC
GE to provide mobile turbine technology that would otherwise go to waste. P2G is a provider. The orders include two L2000
for power rental. APR Energy has exclusiv- technique for converting surplus energy expander-compressors each engineered for a
ity around the globe as the rental provider of from solar panels or wind farms into plant capacity of 60MMSCFD; and two
GE mobile gas turbines (GTs) under 50 hydrogen, which can be blended with nat- L3000 expander-compressors, both designed
MW. It will acquire new GE TM2500+ ural gas and used in everything from home for a plant capacity of 200MMSCFD. Units
mobile turbines and both companies will appliances to power plants. The renewable will be shipped throughout 2017.
collaborate on business leads. fuel can also be stored in containment ves-
sels for later use, such as in hydrogen fuel Capstone digest
Parker acquires Clarcor cell vehicles. Capstone Turbine has received a sixteen-
Parker Hannifin is acquiring Clarcor for “One of the big challenges we’ve unit order for a C800, two C600s, and mul-
about $4.3 billion in cash. Headquartered in faced in adding wind and solar to the grid tiple C65 and C30 microturbines totaling
Franklin, TN, Clarcor, is a manufacturer of is what to do with the excess electricity,” more than 2.6 MW for a repeat oil and gas
mobile, industrial and environmental filtra- said Jack Brouwer, associate director of customer in the Mancos and Gallup shale
tion products with annual sales of approxi- UCI’s Advanced Power & Energy plays, situated in the San Juan Basin in the
mately $1.4 billion and 6,000 employees Program. “We’ve shown you need not halt Southwest U.S.
worldwide. It adds industrial air and liquid renewable power generation when Capstone distributor Horizon Power
filtration products and technologies to demand is low. Instead, the excess elec- Systems placed the order, which is expected
Parker’s filtration portfolio. tricity can be used to make hydrogen that to be commissioned in three phases begin-
can be easily integrated into existing nat- ning in December 2016. The dual-mode
Ansaldo CEO ural gas pipeline infrastructure.” microturbines will be installed at various
The ordinary general The pilot project began last summer locations within the San Juan basin to help
shareholders’ meeting of with funding from the Southern California boost production using a microgrid system.
Ansaldo Energia voted to Gas Co. and the participation of Proton They will drive artificial lifts and assist with
renew the company’s top OnSite, provider of an electrolyzer that the transfer of oil and water.
management team, produces hydrogen from electricity and Capstone received an order from a
appointing Giuseppe water. APEP engineers worked with food retailer for a C1000 Signature
Zampini as the new Facilities Management technicians to Series microturbine with five integrated
Chairman and Filippo install the equipment adjacent to the cam- hot water heat recovery modules.
Abba’ as a new board pus power plant. P2G systems are current- Capstone distributor RSP Systems
director. The subsequent ly in place in Germany and Canada. secured the order, which is scheduled to
board meeting then Giuseppe Zampini The central component of the process ship in March and to be commissioned
resolved to appoint Abba’ as new CEO and to is the electrolyzer, which takes in water in late 2017. The natural gas-fueled
assign strategic responsibilities to Zampini. and uses excess electricity to power an microturbines will be installed in a CHP
Zampini, who has been CEO for almost six- electrochemical reaction that splits it into configuration and operate in parallel
teen years, will replace Umberto della Sala, hydrogen and oxygen. The latter is with the main electrical distribution sys-
who will continue to be a member of the board. released into the atmosphere, and the tem to power the facility. The thermal
hydrogen is compressed and sent about energy generated will offset the use of
EthosEnergy digest 60 feet through a stainless steel tube to an gas-fired boilers to make hot water for
EthosEnergy has been awarded a seven-year injection point in UCI’s natural gas the onsite cleaning system. Additionally,
contract for full operations and maintenance pipeline. The hydrogen is mixed with the microturbine will provide about 700
(O&M) services by Rockland Capital in sup- natural gas and burned in the GT power kW of backup power.
port of Michigan Power for a 1x1 GE 7EA plant to generate electricity and heat for
natural gas-fired combined cycle CHP plant the campus. MAN in Iran
in Ludington, Michigan. This includes instal- MAN Diesel & Turbo will deliver two
lation of EthosEnergy’s Ecomax auto com- LA Turbine digest turbomachinery trains of its ReTPac
bustion tuning technology. The contract is for Premium Energy and L.A. Turbine concept (Refinery Train Package) to a
full care, custody and control operations. received their fifth turboexpander order refinery about 450 km south of
EthosEnergy has been awarded a five- from Gazprom. The L3000 turboexpander- Tehran. The machinery has been
year contract for O&M by Quantum Utility compressor for a Russian processing ordered by Iranian EPC Nargan
Generation for their Nevada Cogeneration plants is a flange-to-flange unit including a Company and will be operated by
Associates #2 plant in Clark County, PLC-based control system. Premium Esfahan Oil Refining Company.
Nevada. The contract is for care, custody and Energy will provide the skid mounting The ReTPac trains will serve the
control operations, and maintenance includ- including the lube oil and seal gas systems, process of hydrotreating, ensuring an
ing mobilization. EthosEnergy’s operations and complete the packaging of the unit. efficient production of ultra-low sulfur
and management system focuses on maxi- Shipment is scheduled for February 2017. fuels. MAN also received several
mizing plant performance and availability, A Chinese-based engineering and pro- spare part orders from the Iranian Oil
mitigating risk, complying with all regulato- curement company (EPC) selected L.A. Pipelines and Telecommunication
ry requirements, transparent and regular Turbine for the manufacture of an L2000 Company, where MAN services and
communication, reliability, cyber security turboexpander-compressor. The unit will upgrades turbomachinery equipment
and risk management expertise. be installed in a gas processing and LPG along the Marun-Isfahan oil pipeline.
recovery plant in Pakistan. The turboex- This includes delivery of spare parts
Power-to-gas pander design is in compliance with API for gas turbines of the S-Series, a
University of California, Irvine (UCI) 614, 617 and 670 standards and shipment MAN heritage brand. The company
engineers have successfully implemented is scheduled for February 2017. also reopened its local branch, MAN
the first power-to-gas (P2G) hydrogen L.A. Turbine announced four orders for Iran Power in Tehran.

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Blossoming GT services Thailand and Vietnam. Hydro power plants GTs are forecast to produce 1,020 engines
The GT services market is projected to account for most of Laos’ 3.27 GW genera- worth $8.5 billion. Rolls-Royce will hold
reach $18.45 billion by 2021, growing tion capacity, expected to increase to 11.0 31.4% of the marine gas turbine market in
annually by 4.1% from 2016 to 2021, GW by 2020. terms of market value, followed by Zorya-
according to Research and Markets. A Mashproekt of Ukraine with 29.1% and GE
rise in the number of combined cycle Fleet maintenance Power with 28.9%. Together, these three
plants, along with upgrades to the National Grid has awarded RWG a frame- companies will account for almost 90% of
existing fleet are two of the main dri- work agreement to maintain its fleet of marine GT sales for the next 15 years.
vers in the power generation segment. Siemens aeroderivative gas generators. This Zorya’s UGT GTs, made by Ukrainian
company Zorya-Mashproekt, remain large-
ly confined to the home markets and its
licensees in India and China. Thus, the GT
propulsion market continues to be largely
driven by the GE LM2500 and the Rolls
Royce MT30, with the Rolls-Royce MT7
now having a near-monopoly on known
demand for smaller turbines. A fully inte-
grated electric drive is becoming the pow-
ertrain configuration of choice for future
naval vessels.
“Gas turbine-powered electric drive
offers significant benefits for warships in
terms of reducing ship lifecycle costs and
increasing ship stealth, payload, survivabili-
ty, and the amount of power available for
non-propulsion uses,” said Stuart Slade,
Senior Analyst for Forecast International.
While marine GTs now dominate naval
warship construction, they have failed to
make a significant impact on the civilian sec-
tor, where diesels dominate. One exception is
the cruise ship market, where GE Marine
Engines’ GE LM2500+ COGES (combined
Doosan Škoda steam turbine GT and ST integrated electric drive system)
plant powers Royal Caribbean International’s
Doosan Škoda steam five-year agreement provides continuity of Brilliance of the Seas cruise ship.
A Doosan Škoda Power steam turbine (ST) support for scheduled maintenance and field Gas turbines have a significant advan-
model DST-S10, generator, heat exchang- services for National Grid’s Industrial Avon tage in this sector, Slade says, since “the
ers, oil system, feed water tank, steam and and Industrial RB211 gas generators. LM2500+ COGES ships operate on distil-
heating piping, and other related equip- RWG has secured a separate contract for late fuel to reduce emissions of most air-
ment are being supplied for the the overhaul of three Siemens Industrial borne pollutants and other particulates, as
Amagerværket CHP plant in Copenhagen. Avon gas generators. Each engine is subject- compared to a diesel-electric power system
Doosan Škoda will also assemble and ed to a condition-based work scope, tailored operating on distillate fuel oil. This is impor-
commission the equipment. The rated out- to National Grid’s operational requirements. tant inshore, where cruise ships spend much
put of the single body backpressure DST- Engine refurbishment is nearing completion of their time.”
S10 ST is 150 MW, with a maximum at RWG’s OEM-approved Industrial Avon
power for heating of 617 MWt. The new overhaul facility in Aberdeen, UK. Korean steam
block will burn biomass. National Grid has a large fleet of The UK’s Hayward Tyler Group said its
Doosan Škoda Power will also supply a Siemens aeroderivative industrial gas gener- Peter Brotherhood subsidiary has delivered
183 MW turbine set to expand the Hussein ators, including 30 Industrial Avon and 13 a ST generator to an S-Oil refinery in South
Thermal Power Station, located near Industrial RB211 engines. Korea. The 22.6 MW extraction back-pres-
Amman, Jordan. That will take the CCPP up sure ST was manufactured and tested in
to a total output of 485 MW. The EPC con- Turbine Efficiency Group accordance with American Petroleum
tractor is SEPCOIII. Turbine Efficiency Group has received Institute (API) 612 standards. It includes an
investment from Core Capital, a new major- API 614 lubrication and control oil system,
Toshiba gensets ity shareholder. Turbine Efficiency is a spe- as well as an API 613 gearbox.
Toshiba has won an order to supply three cialist engineering company based in
sets of 44 MW hydroelectric generating Lincoln, England. It is a provider of mainte- Competitive recips
equipment for the Nam Ou 4 Hydro Power nance, repair and overhaul services for In recent years, reciprocating engines
Plant in Luang Phabang Province, Laos. industrial gas turbines. have begun to compete in larger power
Equipment delivery will start in March 2018, plant and CHP projects. A good example
and the plant is scheduled to start commer- Marine turbine report is Wärtsilä supplying a 100 MW CHP
cial operation in 2020. Rolls-Royce will dominate the naval GT plant to Kraftwerke Mainz-Wiesbaden in
Laos, rich in water resources, including market during the 2016-2030 period, accord- Germany. The Smart Power Generation
the Mekong, is known as “the battery of ing to data contained within Forecast power plant, consisting of ten Wärtsilä
Southeast Asia” for exports of hydro-gener- International’s Platinum Forecast System. 34SG engines running on natural gas, is
ated electricity to neighboring China, During this time, manufacturers of marine scheduled to be fully operational by the

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end of 2018. Wärtsilä’s scope covers design-automation tools for the develop- be commissioned in Pennsylvania this
EPC, as well as a 15-year service agree- ment and testing of advanced electronic fall. These two power plants are the first
ment with performance guarantees. systems. Siemens wants to use the tools in the nation to employ the Siemens
“Unlike traditional CHP power plants to digitize old-line factories. SGT6-8000H single shaft configuration.
based on coal-fired units or GTs, the Siemens and Panda Power Funds These two natural gas power projects will
Wärtsilä gas engines can be started and commissioned the Panda Patriot Power use Marcellus Shale gas.
stopped within two minutes,” said Lars Project in Clinton Township, Siemens has shipped its first
Eigenmann, CEO at Kraftwerke Mainz- Pennsylvania. This 829 MW natural gas- Industrial Trent 60 gas turgbine package
Wiesbaden. “This allows us to operate in fueled power plant features Siemens’ H- from its manufacturing facility in Mount
the balancing markets, since we can class GTs. With the Liberty Power Vernon, Ohio, to Abu Dhabi Marine
adjust the power output quickly to Project in Bradford County dedicated in Operating Company’s (ADMA-OPCO)
respond to fluctuations in power demand October, Patriot is the second of two new Satah Al-Razboot offshore oil field pro-
as signaled by the electricity price.” Panda Power Funds generating stations to ject on Zirku Island. This will be the
As part of the German climate
action plan, the country has committed
to increasing the share of electricity
produced by CHP power plants to 25%
of total electricity production by 2025.
To meet this target, the renewed CHP
Act favors flexible and environmentally
friendly CHP power plants that can
operate in balancing markets, while at
the same time generating heat for the
community.

Siemens digest
Siemens signed an agreement with
Sudanese Thermal Power Generating
Company (STPGC) to supply five SGT5-
2000E GTs. These machines will deliver
a combined capacity of 850 MW for the
Sudanese national grid. All five units are
scheduled to commence commercial
operation at the end of 2017.
Siemens’ scope of supply also com-
prises five associated SGen5-100A gen-
erators as well as Siemens’ SPPA-T3000
control systems. Three of the machines
are destined for Garri Power Station in
Khartoum, while the remaining two units
will generate power farther east in Port
Sudan. All five of these turbine-generator
sets will be initially commissioned as
simple cycle GT power plant units. STs
will be added later to expand the units to
combined cycle configurations.
Siemens has received orders from
Argentina for a total of seven SGT-800
industrial gas turbines and two Industrial
Trent 60 gas turbines. They will provide
500 MW. This includes two SGT-800s to
each of the power plants in Rio Cuarto
and San Miguel de Tucuman. Three of
the turbines will be installed in Ezeiza.
The two aeroderivative turbines will gen-
erate electricity in the gas-fired power
plants in El Salto and Rio Tercero.
Siemens will produce all seven SGT-800
turbines in its factory in Finspong,
Sweden, and the two Industrial Trent 60
turbines in Mount Vernon, NY, and
Montreal, Canada.
Siemens is planning to acquire
Mentor Graphics Corp. for $4 billion, its
latest play in the race to digitize heavy
industry. Mentor, located in Wilsonville,
Oregon, sells software and hardware

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first of five Trent 60 packages for

ADMA-OPCO. The Trent 60 generates
up to 66 MW in simple-cycle service at
42% efficiency.
Siemens is filling an order from
Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation
(MIC) for the installation of aeroderivative
GTs at the Bayonne Energy Center (BEC),
which delivers power through a dedicated
6.5-mile underwater transmission cable to
the Consolidated Edison Gowanus substa-
tion in New York City. BEC can produce
full power from a standing start in less than
ten minutes of receiving a request from the
power distributor. These two Industrial
Trent 60 Wet Low Emission (WLE) GTs
and two generators expands Siemens exist-
ing support for the BEC plant. BEC previ-
ously purchased Trent 60s.

Dresser-Rand
Dresser-Rand (D-R) will supply three
SGT-400 GTs and associated generators
to Egypt-based Petrobel for what the
companies call the largest natural gas
field in the Mediterranean Sea.
Petrobel is developing the Zohr gas GE will supply three 7HA gas turbines plus other equipment for a 1.5 GW power plant in Brazil.
field, located about 200 km off Egypt’s
Mediterranean coastline. The accompa- The GTs were manufactured at GE digest
nying service package includes spare MHPS’s Savannah Machinery Works in GE has secured an order with Centrais
parts supply and on-site maintenance. Georgia and have been delivered to site. Elétricas de Sergipe S.A. (CELSE) for
The turbine-generator sets are slated for The plant will harness digital analytics to Brazil’s Porto de Sergipe CCPP. With a
delivery in early 2017. optimize plant performance and antici- generating capacity of 1,516 MW, the
D-R received an order for the supply pate potential maintenance needs. facility will be the largest gas power plant
of five GT-driven compressor trains for MHPS has received an order for two in Latin America and can deliver an effi-
two pipelines in Mexico. Mexican project CCPPs for the 900 MW Turakurgan ciency rate of over 62%, said GE.
developer, Fermaca Enterprises, placed Thermal Power Plant Construction It will incorporate three of GE’s 7HA
the order. The trains are expected to be Project Uzbekistan. The order includes gas turbines and a D654 ST, as well as a
commissioned in the winter 2017 to M701F GTs and STs. The equipment will heat recovery steam generator (HRSG)
begin commercial operation in early be used at the Turakurgan thermal power and other related equipment added to the
2018. The parties also signed a 25-year plant in eastern Uzbekistan. GE portfolio through the Alstom acqui-
service agreement for the units. Each A consortium led by MHPS has sition. The contract also includes a
compressor train consists of an STC-SV received orders for integrated coal gasifi- transmission system provided on a
single shaft compressor, driven by a cation, combined-cycle (IGCC) plant turnkey basis by GE Energy
Siemens SGT-400 GT. The equipment facilities from Nakoso IGCC Power GK Connections. This system incorporates a
will provide compression power for a and Hirono IGCC Power GK. Both high-voltage, step-up substation at the
1,500-km pipeline that will transport nat- Japanese plants will have a generating power plant, transmission lines and a
ural gas from the north to the center of capacity of 540 MW, with operations bay at an existing substation.
the country. slated to commence in September 2020 GE Digital has acquired Bit Stew
and September 2021, respectively. Systems to bring its data intelligence
Fan design In an IGCC system, coal is gasified in capabilities to Predix and other industri-
BHEL (Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd.), a high-temperature, high-pressure fur- al solutions. Bit Stew applies its
India’s largest manufacturer of auxiliary fans nace, and power is generated using a com- machine learning and artificial intelli-
for power and industrial applications, has bined-cycle format integrating gas and gence (AI) capabilities to automate the
switched to SoftInWay AxSTREAM for the steam turbines. CO2 emissions are 15% process of data modeling, mapping and
design of axial and centrifugal fans (both sin- lower than in a conventional coal plant. ingestion. This helps GE organize large
gle-stage and multi-stage). BHEL deals in MHPS has received an order from amounts of data through efficient data
industries such as power, railways, renew- China Shenhua Guohua Power Co. to organization at the source.
able energy, oil and gas, and defense. supply GT preventive detection services. GE Digital also acquired Wise.io,
The service is scheduled to begin in April another machine learning and intelligent
MHPS digest 2017 for a CCPP supplying electricity to systems company. This will enable GE
Dominion Virginia Power broke ground for the Beijing area. The detection services Digital to accelerate development of
its Greensville County Power Station, which will be provided for the Shenhua Beijing machine learning and data science offer-
will use three M501J GTs from Mitsubishi Guohua Gas-fired Thermal Power Plant. ings in the Predix platform. This is said to
Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS). It also fea- The 950 MW plant began commercial be critical to GE’s development of scal-
tures an ST to provide the largest CCPP in operations in 2015 using two M701F able digital twins.
North America (1,588 MW). GTs delivered by Dongfang Turbine. GE Oil & Gas has signed an agree-

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ment with Trans Austria Gasleitung, a increasing electricity demand. for flare gas recovery systems (FGRS)
pipeline operator with stations across Siemens is expected to emerge as the globally. The global FGRS market is pre-
Austria, to install its new Tuning largest player in the industry and is antic- dicted to take a leap from $ 1,087.5 mil-
Maintenance Software (TUMAS) digital ipated to hold over 20% of the market lion in 2015, according to a report by
solution across their fleet of 16 PGT25 share. Other companies operating in the Persistence Market Research (PMR).
GTs. TUMAS software improves relia- market space include GE, Mitsubishi Consumption of FGRS is surging
bility and availability by increasing the Heavy Industries Ltd., Toshiba, Ansaldo for captive or co-generation of power.
elapsed time between mapping activities and Hitachi. This will continue to propel the near-
so the turbine can run longer at a set level future demand. Increasing environ-
and not require further adjustments. Flare gas recovery mental concerns about energy use and
GE Marine now offers electric start Dynamic expansion of the oil and gas carbon emissions during natural gas
systems for its aeroderivative marine industry, followed by boosted invest- production processes will also impact
GTs. Along with lower life cycle costs ments, will continue to fuel the demand positively on the global FGRS market
and improved reliability, military and
commercial marine customers will enjoy
60% less in acquisition costs with GE’s
electric start system compared to a
hydraulic start system.
GE scaled the electric start system
technology to match the requirements for
its LM2500 series. The initial application
is on the LM500 GTs that power the
Republic of Korea’s PKX-B patrol boats.
GE’s LM6000PC and LM6000PG GTs
also are available with an electric start
system. Such a system includes an inte-
grated clutch design included. The elec-
tric start system requires only a single
cooling interface on the module with the
option for either fresh water or mineral
oil cooling mediums.

Steam turbine market

The global steam turbine market is expect-
ed to reach $15.48 billion by 2025, accord-
ing to a new report by Grand View
Research. STs have been a key part of the
global power generation systems.
However, factors such as limited
primary energy sources and increasing
awareness regarding environmental
pollution has resulted in rising demand
for the development of efficient STs.
The global ST market capacity was
103.16 GW in 2015 and is expected to
reach 121.27 GW, growing at an annu-
al growth rate of 1.6% between 2016
and 2025.
STs with <120 MW capacity are
expected to be the fastest growing
segment based on increasing demand
for small capacity CHP units. Power
& Utilities are expected to emerge as
the largest application segment and
account for over 70% of total capaci-
ty in 2015.
The industrial application segment
is expected to witness the highest
growth of 3.3% in terms of revenue
over the forecast period. Asia Pacific
was the leading regional market with
capacity share exceeding 50% in 2015.
Asia Pacific is also expected to wit-
ness the fastest growth of 3.2% over
the forecast period owing to rapid
industrialization and increasing focus
on thermal power plants to fulfill

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ment will continue to attract the maxi-

mum revenue to the FGRS market.
Based on region, the market for FGRS is
highly concentrated in North America
and Europe, especially in the U.S. and
Western Europe. Some of the companies
operating in the market include Zeeco,
Gardner Denver Nash, and John Zink
Hamworthy Combustion.

Kobe Steel marine order

Kobe Steel has received an order for
two screw compressors for use with
marine dual-fuel engines. This is the
first time that screw compressors will
be used to supply fuel to marine dual
fuel engines. The compressors will be
installed in an LNG carrier to be
owned by a 50/50 joint venture
between Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL)
and Itochu Corporation for Uniper
Global Commodities, who will charter
Kobe Steel compressors are being installed on an LNG carrier the carrier for 20 years.
Plans call for Kobe Steel to deliver
condition. Several environmental implementation of FGRS by oil and the compressors in August 2017 to
organizational guidelines regarding natural gas companies for the optimum South Korea’s Daewoo Shipbuilding &
the same will continue to support the energy-efficiency, will also support Marine Engineering Co., which is con-
market. market growth. Based on capacity, the structing the vessel. The market size of
A number of manufacturers will market will witness a shift from small nonstandard compressors for marine
remain major consumers of FGRS for and medium capacity FGRS to large dual fuel engines is forecast to total
re-injection into production wells, and very large capacity FGRS over the over 20 billion yen ($1.77 billion) for
boosting the market growth through- forecast period. the coming five years, according to
out the forecast period. Increasing By component, the compressor seg- Kobe Steel.

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TURBO TIPS
GAS GATHERING AND FIELD GAS COMPRESSION
AMIN ALMASI compressors. The optimum turbocompres- rated power of wellhead compressors is
sor selection and design is based on: much more than that of many wellhead

G
Identical turbocompressor packages; a mini- facilities. Non-API compressors cannot
as engine driven compressors may mum number of compressor stations; and offer the required availability and reliability
seem a good solution for gas gather- large compressor sizes, requiring fewer com- for unmanned wellhead units, but cost up to
ing and gas compression applica- pressor trains overall. four times less compared to API ones.
tions, particularly nodal gas com- In the presence of low suction pressure Economic analysis rarely comes out in
pressors (compressors installed at nodes events or suction pressure variations, a posi- favor of the deployment of many small well-
within the gas collection network to gather tive displacement compressor has tradition- head compressors distributed in a relatively
gas) or field compression units. However, ally been a more popular option. However, large area. Therefore, it is recommended that
there are certain issues which discourage modern centrifugal compressors can also gas gathering compressors (or field com-
the use of gas engine drivers and favor handle these conditions. pressors) be designed with a low suction
electric motors. Noise generation can be a critical issue pressure capability to facilitate gas collection
These include: for a gas gathering or field compressors for the lowest possible well pressure.
• Relatively high maintenance and lower depending on the location, local rules and
reliability of gas engines nearby inhabitants. A noise limit of 30 Large project
• The higher cost of gas engines compared dB(A) or lower at the recipient may be spec- For a large gas gathering project, the tradi-
to electric motors of similar power ratings ified in some places, compared to 85 dB(A) tional design is 17 nodal compressors (using
• The lower efficiency of gas engines at one meter for most facilities. oil-flooded screw compressors) and four large
compared to electric motor (considering that hub centrifugal compressors. Nodal compres-
electric power would typically be generated
in highly efficient centralized power plants) “Cost and mainte- sion modules for compression from 1 Barg to
17 Barg and hub compression units increase
• The large size, weight and presence of
high dynamic or shaking forces in gas nance issues dis- the pressure to around 110 Barg. However,
this design is not feasible due to high costs.
engines (thus their requirement of a large
foundation and various accessories). courage the use of A redesign called for the elimination of
the nodal screw compression units. It fea-
As a rule of thumb, the cost of a gas
engine driven compressor in the 1 MW to 3 gas engine drivers tured medium-sized hub compression units
with each compressor station using a single

and favor electric

MW application range is around 25% to or two identical centrifugal compressor
40% higher. trains, instead of large hub compression units.

motors.”
In total, eight hub compression stations
Sizing turbomachinery increased the pressure from around 1 Barg
Some engineers do not believe in to 110 Barg. The same centrifugal com-
economies of scale, preferring to specify Compressors can be installed within pressor model was used for all stations,
smaller units instead of one large unit. enclosures but they are not popular because with some requiring only one unit and oth-
But economic realities often refute that of access problems, ventilation issues, and ers needed two. This greatly reduced costs
opinion. The cost of turbomachinery potential risk and safety concerns. Another and eased maintenance.
reduces slowly with size. Usually, the option of noise control is local insulation or
cost per MW is around 1.2 to 1.6 times coverage for the compressor, and insulation Unconventional gas
for turbomachinery that is half the size. of the piping and accessories. A series of unconventional gas gathering
In other words, using two machines Another important issue is compressor facilities in an area of around 12 km × 12 km
with half the capacity of a single unit (e.g., availability. The availability of a small well- contained about 240 wells. The wellhead gas
two 1 MW units instead of a single 2 MW head facility is often as low as 90%. pressure was around 2 to 4 Barg. Based on
machine) can result in a cost increase of However, gas gathering compressors usually initial sizing, the best arrangement was to
20% to 60%). target availability above 96%. have one 6.5 MW centrifugal field compres-
In addition, the price for accessories and sor for every 120 wells.
auxiliaries, such as foundation, piping and Wellhead compressors Both field compressors are in the middle
supports, and operation and maintenance, There have been some applications for of the area to limit pressure drop. The far-
rise as more units are employed. The actual fan-type or blower-type (small) wellhead thest distance to remote wells is around 6
turbomachinery cost depends on the vendor compressors with relatively low capacity km, equivalent to a pressure drop of 0.6 Bar.
price point, design of the package, and other and a differential pressure of around 1 or Therefore, the minimum suction pressure is
complex factors. 2 Bar. This could be considered as a last about 1.4 Barg.
resort for companies that sold gas on a
Compressor type long-term contract basis (usually for a Amin Almasi is a
Reciprocating compressors have low relia- competitive price) and now face rapid Chartered Professional
bility, unscheduled shutdowns and high pressure drop in their gas wells. Engineer in Australia and
maintenance costs. That is why they are gen- In such a situation, a costly and complex U.K. (M.Sc. and B.Sc. in
erally not recommended for gas gathering wellhead compressor network should be mechanical engineering).
facilities, field compression units and well- considered, as there is no other option. He is a senior consultant
head gas compressors. The same is true for Electrical power distribution for such a specializing in rotating
equipment, condition mon-
screw compressors. complex network of compressors is costly;
itoring and reliability.
These issues open the market for turbo- this is particularly true considering that the

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COVER STORY

A NEW WAVE OF DIGITIZATION

TURBOMACHINERY OEMS, CONTROLS VENDORS AND SOFTWARE PROVIDERS ARE
HARNESSING DIGITIZATION TO REDUCE COSTS, IMPROVE EFFICIENCY AND SPEED
TIME TO MARKET

Digitization of power plants aims to simplify maintenance and increase performance

The consumer sector is rife with success months ahead of time what the issue is and
DREW ROBB stories derived from this approach. Amazon, take steps to either eliminate or minimize
Alibaba, Uber, eBay and Airbnb have fig- downtime (Figure 1).

A
previous wave of digitization took ured out how to harness analytics to domi- “There is a huge amount of data generat-
place a couple of decades ago as nate their respective markets. ed by sensors inside turbines and auxiliary
systems began the switch from ana- This strategy is now finding its way equipment. Yet only 2% of the data generat-
log to digital. But that was only the into the turbomachinery field. Companies, ed is ever used,” said Bolick. “The goal of
beginning. While individual systems may such as GE, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power digitization is to gain more insight from this
have been digitized, they had little or no Systems, Siemens Energy, Schneider information. We have reached the tipping
ability to integrate with each other. Electric, Emerson, OSIsoft and ABB are point for digital adoption.”
The latest wave of digitization, therefore, creating digital platforms to respond to Consider this:
is all about achieving a complete view of the customer behavior. • The average power plant produces 2
plant where all systems work seamlessly “A digital focus is critical for near- and TB per day of data
together to help owners lower operating long-term growth.” said Scott Bolick, Head • Tens of thousands of wind turbines
expenditures and gain a better return on cap- of Product Management and Portfolio output a data point every 10 seconds
ital by reducing unplanned outages. Strategy, GE’s Power Digital Solutions. “The • 600 million smart meters are already
Maintenance employees become more solutions are real, it’s happening today and in the field
effective and vendors can increase revenue early adopters are seeing tangible outcomes.” • Many other sources are generating a
by selling value-added services. Take the case of a poorly performing massive amount of information.
These outcomes are achievable as facil- asset. Currently, it might be taken down for Yet hardly any of it is ever analyzed,
ities gain access to a huge pool of unified several days of troubleshooting to find out said Bolick. The hope is that as much as
information that can be analyzed by the lat- what is wrong. With digitization and ana- 75% of all unplanned downtime could be
est analytics engines. lytics, it may be possible to know six eliminated by gaining greater insight from

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another example. The fan manufacturer’s

advice was to shut down the problem fans.
But that would have led to revenue losses.
“The data indicated that the fans could run
for another year without a breakdown,
although there would be some deterioration
in their performance,” said von Plate. “With
knowledgeable plant staff armed with full
data and good analytics, you have the tools
to make correct decisions.”
Another aspect of digitization related to
the demographics of the industrial workforce.
Going back two or three decades, power
plants and utilities retained large, competent
in-house maintenance teams. Today these
teams are down to bare bones. To make mat-
ters worse, said von Plate, at half the utilities,
Figure 1: Digitization can move turbomachinery maintenance and management from more than 50% of current professional are
the “what happened?” stage on the left to “what will happen?” and “make it happen” due to retire within five years.
on the right. This is being achieved by unifying all plant information into one platform “We have to document the tacit knowl-
and subjecting it to advanced analytics Courtesy of GE edge of these asset operators and automate
this information. asset management. these actions so that future generations can
“The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) But changes must occur before that can benefit,” said von Plate.
enables predictive maintenance and proac- happen. Industrial data inside proprietary
tive replacement of assets,” said Thomas software programs, PLCs or other systems Digital transition
Trepanier, Senior Vice President of Product tend to be tied up in information silos. This For decades, manufacturers earned their
Management at ABB Enterprise Software. lack of information sharing has to be over- revenue primarily through selling equip-
“It makes it possible to optimize power gen- come if the vision of digitization is to be ment. Digitization is changing that by turn-
eration for various market conditions fully realized. ing transactional sales into an ongoing rela-
through real time analysis, thereby reducing Software specialists must be trained on tionship, said Enrique Herrera, Industry
operating costs and increasing the fleet’s how the gathered insights relate to the real Champion, OSIsoft.
overall output.” world of the turbine, compressor, pump, or “We’re seeing companies embed digital
There are already 13 billion connec- the entire plant. “You have to combine ana- subscription services into pumps, tractors and
tions worldwide that comprise the con- lytics with engineering know-how to achieve other heavy equipment,” he said. “These sys-
sumer internet, also known as the Internet the best results,” said von Plate. tems can alert a customer to an impending
of Things (IoT), said Trepanier. IIoT makes Among the many inefficiencies that exist failure and avoid a costly breakdown.”
up part of that total via sensors embedded in among current maintenance practices, von But the shift to digitization will not nec-
turbomachinery and its supporting auxil- Plate cited the wind turbine industry where essarily go smoothly. Manufacturers will
iary equipment. But that number is expect- the assets are dispersed. Maintenance need to integrate software, supervisory con-
ed to skyrocket. requires sending people and expensive trol and data acquisition (SCADA) and other
Many costly failures and unscheduled cranes. Good diagnostics could greatly systems into their products. This requires
shutdowns could have been prevented by reduce costs by knowing in advance which applications that allow users and engineers to
analyzing available data, said Moritz von wind turbines need the most attention so bet- more easily access data and analyze the vast
Plate, CEO of condition monitoring ven- ter planning of the deployment of people and amounts of data that accumulate.
dor Cassantec, a provider of condition- cranes can be carried out. That is why so many are touting the ben-
based prognostic solutions for industrial Inefficient power plant fans provide efits of various platforms. These platforms
solve the integration dilemma in the same
way that the iPhone’s platform makes it easy
for millions of apps to run on smartphones.
Application developers use the Apple plat-
form and write all their software to run on it.
This greatly simplifies the integration picture.
Similarly, in the industrial space, various
platforms are emerging:

GE Predix
Predix is built for developing, deploying,
operating and monetizing Industrial
Internet applications. Through acquisitions,
investment in startups, internal develop-
ment and partnerships, GE is putting
together a platform where the different
industrial software components can con-
Figure 2: GE Predix hopes to be the platform on which other OEMs build applications that can verge and be unified (Figure 2).
integrate easily to create the digital power plant The general concept is that Operational

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Technologies (OT) and Information

Technologies (IT) need to be more tightly
coupled to drive operational efficiencies, cost
reduction and enhance the user experience.
GE partnerships include IT heavyweights,
such as Oracle, Intel, Cisco, Capgemini,
Deloitte Digital, Infosys and Wipro.
“Intel and GE have been working on
IoT standards and initiatives for several
years to accelerate deployment, and those
efforts are now paying off,” said Doug
Davis, senior vice president and general
manager of IoT at Intel.
Elements such as Asset Performance
Management (APM), Cybersecurity,
Operations Optimization (OO), Business
Optimization (BO), Edge Computing and
Advanced Controls are included in Predix. Figure 3: The Emerson Ovation control room
The immediate result of these initiatives are
the Digital Power Plant and Digital Wind has created dashboards that gives its execu- For this to be possible, once a machine
Farm. GE has already signed 15 Digital tives real-time insight into gas flows, pricing, event is detected, it’s critical to predict how
Power Plant customers including Exelon, potential problems and other information. long the machine will be able to run until it
RasGas, Bord Gais, Crestwood, PSEG, Because they had this information, reaches alarm level. Doing so provides a
Sapphire, Engro and Saif. Columbia could reroute gas deliveries dur- window in which the outage can be planned
Software Modeling is used to incorpo- ing the polar vortex in 2014 and avoid dis- for with reasonable certainty. Accordingly,
rate high-fidelity, physics-based models to ruptions, added Herrera. Since 2011, the Ovation has integrated machinery health,
create digital twins of plant components. For company believes it saved over $9.8 million which includes an algorithm called Peak
example, performance, combustion and life in event prevention. Vue, aimed at predicting machinery failures.
models can be used to operate gas turbines But digitization goes beyond the
closer to design boundaries to meet a desired Emerson’s Ovation machine level by helping determine the opti-
outcome in terms of efficiency or output. The Ovation platform has been steadily mal process conditions for running an entire
“Power plant operation involves many marching forward in functionality for many plant or the optimal startup sequence in order
tradeoffs, such as output, availability, relia- years. It recently added high-fidelity embed- to maximize performance and costs, while
bility, maintenance costs, flexibility, wear ded simulation (Figure 3). minimizing wear and tear on the equipment.
and tear and efficiency, but you can’t have “As users seek improved performance in
all of them,” said Bolick. “So you have to areas such as unit and fleet availability, flex- ABB’s Enterprise Asset
use modeling and analytics to determine ible operations and workforce effectiveness, Management
the best way to achieve immediate and virtual simulation tools provide them with ABB stresses that digitization enables tools
long-term goals.” unprecedented insight into their operations,” like enterprise asset management (EAM)
said Bob Yeager, president, Power & Water, software to bring more efficiency to the work
OSIsoft Emerson Automation Solutions. cycle through capabilities, such as electronic
OSIsoft’s PI System is used by about 65% of In the virtual power plant of the future, work packages. This makes it easier to take
the Fortune 500’s industrial companies. It the high-fidelity Ovation simulator runs in assets out of and back into service more
captures data from sensors, machinery and parallel with the Ovation control system. rapidly. Enhanced efficiency tied to an EAM
other pieces of equipment to provide insight Operators can test control logic changes in system with features such as electronic work
into ongoing operations. The customer base advance based on real-time plant data to packages can lead to expected cost savings
includes 75% of U.S. nuclear reactors, ensure these changes will not disrupt opera- for a two-unit power plant of about $3.5 mil-
Kellogg’s, the City of Halifax, Nova Scotia tions or cause a forced outage. lion per year, according to DataGlance.
(saving 38 million liters of water a day Other Emerson technologies, such as ABB is assembling its ABB Ability plat-
because of leak detection), over 1,000 utili- pattern recognition, Pervasive Sensing and form to connect facilities to the power of the
ties, eBay, Major League Baseball, Shell, analytical tools will enhance the virtual IIoT and turn data insights into action.
Chevron, Saudi Aramco, Caterpillar and experience. The Ovation system is used in Trepanier cited European utility EDF reduc-
Johnson & Johnson. thermal power plant applications, and as a ing outage windows from 75 days to 30 days
“Over 1.5 billion sensors in more than turbine control system on steam turbines, gas due to software efficiency and digitization.
127 countries are feeding data into PI turbines, boiler feed pumps and compressors
System servers,” said Herrera. “Rockwell by OEM’s or as a retrofit system. MHPS’s Partnership
Automation integrates PI System into its “A developing trend we’ve seen is the with OSIsoft
control products, as do Flowserve, Dell, operator/owner’s desire to identify when a Instead of erecting its own platform,
Cisco and Mitsui.” machine is deviating from normal operation MHPS has formed a partnership with
OSIsoft’s software makes it easy to port and will soon require maintenance — well OSIsoft to leverage the combination of PI
data to applications, such as the ESRI before the first alarm is received,” said System and MHPS’s power plant design
ArcGIS mapping system or the Microsoft Yeager. “The goal is for all maintenance out- and operational expertise.
Azure cloud, as well as visualization tools ages to be planned, completely avoiding “Most of our customers already use the
that allow people to analyze data in the PI unplanned or forced outages and the signifi- PI System so why tell them there is some-
System. TransCanada CPG, for example, cant disruption they cause.” thing else they have to buy and train their

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people to use,” said Paul Browning, bines digital technology with customer col- digital service, Conext 2 Advisor, is a
President and CEO, Mitsubishi Hitachi laboration and total plant design, operation secure monitoring and control solution for
Power Systems Americas. and maintenance experience. It offers a managing and optimizing the performance
“OSIsoft’s ecosystem of software range of data-driven solutions to meet of solar power plants.
encompasses over 250 partners providing increasing needs for operational flexibility,
services and applications for the PI System more challenging duty cycles and reduced Siemens’ MindSphere
to facilitate process efficiency, asset health maintenance as the power industry evolves. MindSphere is a cloud-based approach to
and energy management through real-time High bandwidth data communications, the development of industrial applications,
decision support and advanced analytics,” he data security and analytics are other impor- and analyzing large volumes of production
said. “MHPS already uses the PI System and tant elements, so engineering analysis and data. It provides a foundation for applica-
many of those applications for our own mon- fleet-wide comparisons can take place in real tions and data-based services from Siemens
itoring and diagnostics services.” time without a large team of experts located and third-party providers.
This partnership highlights an easier at each power plant. “MindSphere offers customers a devel-
pathway to digitization. According to an In parallel, sensor technology is evolv- opment environment in which they can inte-
MHPS survey, almost 75% of power plants ing, steadily increasing the quality and quan- grate their own applications and services,”
in the U.S. are already remotely monitored, tity of available operational data. said Aymeric Sarrazin, Vice President of
with approximately two thirds of those hav- “Monitoring of a large fleet with advanced Strategy, Siemens.
ing at least one major system remotely mon- pattern recognition software becomes less For example, Siemens offers a zero
itored by the original OEM of that equip- manpower intensive since the software is degradation service. Although any plant suf-
ment, usually a gas turbine. constantly performing analysis and alerting fers performance degradation over time,
Outside the U.S., slightly over half of personnel when anomalies emerge, or ideal- Siemens works with its customers to reduce
plants are remotely monitored. Further, ly inform personnel of anomalies before they degradation. It achieves this by conducting
about 70% of GTs, and over 50% of steam happen,” said Browning. modernization and upgrade projects to neu-
turbines are remotely monitored. For those tralize any performance loss.
already comfortable with remote monitor- Schneider Electric’s Siemens also offers digital services, run-
ing, therefore, it is not too much of a leap to Demand Side Platform ning on MindSphere, which offer plant-spe-
embrace the digital platform concept of not Schneider Electric’s cloud-based software cific analysis to optimize performance and
just remotely monitoring a few major sys- services sit on top of new and existing micro- reduce downtime. The MindSphere ecosys-
tems but the entire process and the major grid control systems. This Demand Side tem integrates, manages, analyzes and visu-
systems within. Operation platform provides forecasting, alizes data to enable experts to predict and
The PI System will serve as the core for ancillary services, optimization and weather prevent failures, and uncover opportunities
analytics services MHPS will use at power services to make consumption, production or for performance improvements, as well as
plants worldwide, with cloud-based and on- storage decisions easier, said Drew Gravitt, energy and cost savings.
premises options. In addition, the PI System National Sales Manager for Economic
will continue to form the digital data infra- Optimization at Schneider Electric. MAN Diesel & Turbo
structure for existing total plant remote mon- The platform incorporates connected While there are many platform options,
itoring and diagnostics services, both for products, advanced algorithms, analytics and most companies are happy to develop their
MHPS and other manufacturers’ equipment controls in a service model. Schneider is own software and couple it with other tools
in gas turbine combined cycle and conven- partnering with the likes of Duke, Intel and to achieve the goals of digitization. MAN
tional steam power plants. Microsoft as part of this initiative. Diesel & Turbo, for example, has been
MHPS adds several of its own elements Schneider Electric also leverages the using such tools in its HOFIM electrically
as part of its digital power plant initiative Microsoft Azure cloud platform to deliver driven subsea compressor, which transmits
(Figure 4). MHPS Information and its digital services, apps and analytics on real-time performance data that can be
Communication Technology (ICT) com- computers and mobile devices. One such checked from a remote control station.
“We deliver all machines and trains
ready for remote diagnosis,” said Harald
Stricker, Senior Vice President Engineering,
Turbomachinery, MAN Diesel & Turbo.
“You now have a thousand signals from a
machinery train, compared to about 50 sig-
nals some decades ago. The next steps are
clearly about more intelligent functions and
interconnections.”
A few decades ago, automobile dri-
vers would tinker with their vehicles
every weekend, check fluid levels, tire
pressure, and adjust the carburetor and
spark plugs to ensure optimum operation.
“Nowadays, a warning light tells you
that an inspection is needed,” said Terry
Maxey, Managing Director, Global Power
Generation Lead, Accenture. “A computer
provides the diagnosis so you don’t even
need to open up the engine. That’ where the
Figure 4: MHPS is using the OSIsoft platform, combined with its own digital power plant tools industry is going.”

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OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE

VIBRATION REDUCTION
NEW ALTERNATIVE GUIDELINES AVOIDE OR REDUCE VIBRATION IN SMALL
DIAMETER PIPING
al frequency (resonance), vibration ampli-
SARAH B. SIMONS, FRANCISCO FIERRO & tudes will be amplified, often by a factor
BENJAMIN A. WHITE between 10 and 50.

S
As high amplification occurs during res-
mall diameter branch connections onance, the simplest solution is to avoid res-
often develop vibration related fatigue onance. But in cases where mechanical res-
failures due to mechanical excitation. onance cannot be avoided or where excita-
Many installations do not design small tion forces are considered excessive, detailed
diameter piping to avoid this issue. However, structural modeling should be performed.
the risk of fatigue failure of small diameter The EI guideline categorizes the
branch connections (SBCs) can be reduced branch lines into four main configurations
using two alternative guidelines developed (Figure 2):
by the Energy Institute (EI), and Pipeline 1 – Cantilever type
Research Council International (PRCI)/Gas 2 – Continuous — in and out the same
Machinery Research Council (GMRC). main line
Vibration of piping due to mechanical 3 – Continuous — with intermediate
excitation is present in nearly any environ- Figure 1: Small-bore piping in the vicinity supports
ment where SBCs of two inches and of turbomachinery can suffer from 4 – Continuous — between different
vibration problems
below are used. In initial piping designs, main lines (with no intermediate
SBCs are often not considered or fully tion in the main piping: Discrete and broad- supports)
defined (Figure 1). band. Common sources of discrete excita- The flowcharts in the EI guideline can be
While finite element techniques are tion include mechanical excitation from rec- used as a broad-based screening criterion in
frequently used to model the main piping iprocating machinery, pulsation from posi- the design phase of most SBCs to determine
system, it is time consuming and expen- tive displacement compressors and pumps, which are at risk of vibration. Weights are
sive to include all small bore piping. In and vortex shedding. given to various characteristics to evaluate its
addition, predictions of vibration and These sources can introduce a significant susceptibility to vibration and fatigue.
dynamic stress and strain amplitudes made amount of energy in the system at each exci- The PRCI/GMRC guideline is a more
using finite element models are subject to tation harmonic. Broadband excitation, such specific guideline designed for use in evalu-
a range of uncertainty due to assumptions as from flow turbulence in a meter station, is ating SBCs at reciprocating and centrifugal
that must be made regarding the excitation typically of lower amplitude but spread over compressor stations. The design philosophy
sources, damping, restraint stiffness values a wider frequency range. for this guideline is to reduce risk by placing
and end conditions. All structural systems will have multiple the lowest mechanical natural frequency of
mechanical natural frequencies at which the branch connection above the frequencies
Two simple approaches they will vibrate when impacted, much like of most significant excitation occurring at
There are two simpler approaches: EI’s a tuning fork. If the piping system is excited the base of the branch line.
“Guidelines for the Avoidance of Vibration by a harmonic load, such as pulsation or In addition, a secondary non-resonant
Induced Fatigue and Process Pipework” and mechanical vibration at its mechanical natur- stress criterion is also included for dynamic
the PRCI/GMRC’s “Design Guideline for
Small Diameter Branch Connections.” They
can be used to reduce or avoid vibration
problems in SBCs without requiring a
detailed study.
The GMRC/PRCI guideline provides a
way to estimate the mechanical natural fre-
quency of the side branch connection to
avoid a coincidence with the frequency of
excitation in the main piping using a separa-
tion margin. However, it assumes that if a res-
onance is avoided, the likelihood of failure is
low and, therefore, it does not consider fitting
type, mainline risk factors, or the wall thick-
ness of the branch or main line piping.
The EI guideline assumes the user will
calculate the mechanical natural frequency
of the side branch to ensure there is no coin-
cidence. Once the user is sure that a reso-
nance will be avoided, this guideline consid-
ers a wide range of factors to quantify the
robustness of the branch design.
There are two primary types of excita- Figure 2: SBC geometry types used in the EI guideline
20 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com
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More broadly, all structural natural fre- of 10,000 lbf/in in all three translational
quencies should be at least 10 Hz for directions is recommended
straight horizontal spans and closer to 15Hz • A good restraint should be triangulated
for all other configurations to reduce the in multiple planes to provide stiffness in
likelihood of excitation. multiple directions. A restraint mounted to a
But use caution when installing SBCs tall, single slender support will typically be
within 25 feet of a centrifugal compres- very flexible and ineffective in controlling
sor. There is often high frequency excita- vibration in directions other than the axial
tion of the shell modes of the piping direction of the tall support
which can cause small bore piping con- • Simple weight supports and springs
nection failures. typically provide very little vibration control
The PRCI/GMRC guideline provides • It is typically preferred to brace the
recommendations for branch connections branch line back to the mainline piping.
with nominal pipe diameters equal to or less Bracing the branch line to a stiff external
than two inches, and where the nominal support can increase bending stresses due to
branch diameter to main pipe diameter ratio relative displacement from vibration and
is less than 25%. It covers six different con- thermal expansion. A relatively stiff external
figurations (Figure 3): support should not be installed too close to
1 – Straight cantilever the branch connection
Figure 3: Various branch connection 2 – Cantilever with elbow • Strap type clamps are typically more
configurations covered by the 3 – Pressure safety valve (PSV) effective than U-Bolt type restraints. If U-
PRCI/GMRC guideline 4 – Double connection at source Bolts are used, they should be used in pairs
stress (and strain) when there is significant 5 – Straight connection with external to prevent rotation
vibration in the mainline. restraint • Gusset plates can add stiffness but also
This guideline provides recommenda- 6 – Connection with external restraint add high stress intensification factors and
tions on unsupported span lengths with with elbow. should be used with caution. If used, any
and without added masses such as valves gussets should attach to a reinforcing pad
to minimize the possibility of fatigue fail- Best SBC practices and not directly to the mainline.
ure. It is meant to be quick and easily used Based on experience with the application of To prevent fretting, all clamps should be
with few calculations and no special the above guidelines, the following best lined with a resilient liner material (Fabreeka
instrumentation or software. design practices for small bore piping are or similar).
Rather than having to predict the recommended. For piping design:
structural natural frequency, it delineates • Small bore piping wall thickness Sarah Simons is a
an area on a graph showing what range of should be schedule 80 or higher Research Scientist in the
lengths and masses will raise the structur- • Fittings with higher stress concentra- Fluids Machinery Systems
al natural frequency sufficiently above tion factors (such as threaded connections) Section at Southwest
the primary excitation frequencies to should be avoided in higher risk areas, such Research Institute (SwRI).
avoid a coincidence. as near compression equipment. Therefore, In this position, she has
In most cases, the lowest mechanical nat- weldolets are preferable over threadolets acquired extensive experi-
ence in flow and acoustic
ural frequency of the branch should be at • Branch line lengths should be kept as
analysis, research and
least 20% above the first, second, or fourth short as possible with minimal attached weight
testing working with
multiple of the compressor running speed to raise the structural natural frequency pipelines, industry consor-
(guidance on frequency selection is included • If possible, locate the branch line away tiums, and the U.S. DOE.
in the guideline). Not having to calculate the from valves, reducers, bends and tees in the
structural natural frequency is a significant main line where flow turbulence and acoustic Francisco Fierro is a
advantage, especially when evaluating a induced vibration may cause problems Research Engineer in
large quantity of SBCs. • Threaded fittings should be tight and the Fluids Machinery
This guideline is primarily suggested to back welded so there are no exposed threads; Systems Section at
screen for potential vibration problems threadolets are generally not recommended SwRI. He has extensive
where the mechanical natural frequency of • Standard or higher schedules are rec- experience in the fields
the SBC is unknown. A quick visual check ommended for main line piping to reduce of mechanical vibra-
of the appropriate graph can give the user the the stress concentration at the connection tions, finite element
option to choose whether changing the to the SBC. analysis, acoustics, and
length, diameter, or weight of the SBC is the Additionally, the installation of an compressor and piping
best option to stay inside the limitations of external restraint (support, bracing, and so system design.
the line on the graph and how much to on) will add stiffness to the branch line,
change each factor. raising its minimum mechanical natural Benjamin White leads the
For centrifugal compressors and pumps, frequency and reducing the risk of exces- Fluid Machinery Systems
the guideline design frequency for SBCs is sive vibration. Section at SwRI, which is
responsible for the
15 Hz. Mechanical natural frequencies for As there are an almost unlimited number
design, analysis, and
all SBCs should be designed to exceed 15 of potential branch line configurations, it is
field testing of a variety
Hz to significantly reduce the risk of vibra- not possible to recommend specific restraint of gas and liquid machin-
tion from low frequency broadband excita- configurations that will cover all feasible lay- ery piping systems. For
tion sources. This guideline can be extended outs. However, the following general guide- more information, please
for the use for SBCs in meter stations and lines are provided: contact Sarah Simons at
other areas where flow turbulence excitation • The stiffer the restraint, the more effec- sarah.simons@swri.org or
is a primary concern. tive it will be. A minimum restraint stiffness visit pulsations.swri.org

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SHOW REPORT

CHP STRESSED AT POWERGEN 2016

COMBINED HEAT AND POWER, MICROGRIDS AND ADVANCED-CLASS TURBINES
AMONG THE TOP TRENDS AT THE ANNUAL INDUSTRY GATHERING

DREW ROBB

T
he PowerGen International show in
December of 2016 brought together
close to 20,000 people for the indus-
try’s biggest gathering. Some 300
speakers and almost 80 sessions covered just
about every conceivable side of the industry.
By far the dominant themes were Combined
Heat and Power (CHP), flexible generation
and microgrids.
In the first keynote, Rick Hali, Senior
Vice President and General Manager for
Energy at Burns & McDonnell discussed a
trend toward flexible generation, driven by
government policy. Baseload coal and
nuclear are being replaced by gas and
renewables, he said. He referenced the City
of Denton, TX, which added 255 MW of
reciprocating engine power to provide rapid
ramp rates from multiple units that would
require multiple starts per day.
Individual power consumers and facil-
The OATI data center in Minneapolis was featured at PowerGen. It combines grid power,
ities are having a greater impact on the solar, wind, microturbines, CHP, batteries and energy storage as part of its microgrid
industry. “They want resiliency, security
and sustainability,” said Hali. “Nowadays, Amazon Prime and Google. That is the level Meixner also discussed digitization
the consumer has more control than ever of service that customers expect of a utility, and the value it can bring to power gener-
and we are seeing more commercial com- said Glenn. His solution is for the industry to ation. He views power generation as a
panies exerting control.” invest even more in smart grid technology whole, rather than just one plant or one
and to treat customers as individuals. asset. “Digital value creation is expected
Seizing the energy future Further investment is needed in power gen- to lead the way in power generation in the
CHP is a major outcrop of consumer and eration and energy storage, he said. coming years,” he said.
commercial involvement. Universities, hos- Accordingly, Duke Energy is invest- Anthony Wilson of Mississippi
pitals and refineries are seizing their energy ing $40 billion over next couple of Power concluded the keynotes. He
future and building projects so they control decades. Its portfolio includes 2,200 spoke about the Kemper County Energy
their own destiny, added Hali. Some are even MW of peakers that are close to the end Facility, where lignite from a nearby
setting up microgrids for their facilities of their useful life. mine is converted to synthesis gas. Two
where they manage their own generation, William Meixner, CEO of Siemens coal gasifiers and an onsite chemical
transmission, control and storage. He cited Power & Gas Division, stressed the need to plant strip out anhydrous ammonia, sul-
the example of the Eight Flags CHP project balance renewables with flexible and reliable furic acid and carbon dioxide to produce
in Florida’s Amelia Island. This 20 MW power generation assets. Key market drivers clean coal-based power. Integrated gasi-
plant provides steam, heated water and include sustainability, economic efficiency fication combined cycle plants, like this,
power via a Solar Titan 250 turbine and a and achieving an optimized mix of supply. are advantageous in comparison to con-
Rentech HRSG. He pointed out that 2015 marked the ventional coal power plants due to their
In the second keynote, Alex Glenn, first year global investment in renew- high thermal efficiency, low non-carbon
President of Duke Energy Florida, ables exceeded all other power invest- greenhouse gas emissions and capability
explained that since the Edison vs. ments. He expects that trend to continue. to process low-grade coal.
Westinghouse fight over AC and DC power
in 1885, there has been no major transfor-
mational change in the industry until 2007,
with the release of the iPhone.
“This reinvented the way we buy things,
how we do commerce, and it changed our
industry,” said Glenn. “Such devices give
customers control.”
Rather than being compared to other
power providers, utilities are now measured
against online services, such as Uber, Mississippi Power’s Kemper County Energy Facility
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This marks a definite shift from previous

years when a 50-50 split was the norm
MHPS boasts the largest installed base
and orders for advanced class machines,
claiming more than Siemens and GE com-
bined. The MHPS JAC-Class turbine has
11,000 operating hours with an air-cooled
combustor while running at the T-Point facil-
ity in Takasago, Japan and other plants
around the world.
“We have now released the air-cooled J-
Class gas turbine to the general market,” said
Browning. It is currently rated at more than
63% efficiency and we are rapidly heading
toward 65%.”
It is clear from PowerGen that com-
bined heat and power (CHP) is gaining
ground in the market. It was granted an
entire track at the show consisting of many
sessions. Anthony Cirillo, Senior Project
Director for Power at AECOM, explained
that CHP has been around since the end of
the 19th century. The Public Utility
Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) legisla-
tion in 1978 triggered the expansion.
However, the Energy Policy Act of
2005 handcuffed CHP while simultaneous-
ly exempting renewables from grid market
rules. This adversely affects existing, stal-
wart baseload fossil and nuclear genera-
tion, and hampers the viability of some
CHP plants.
“Today’s grid is antiquated, and could
GE used the PowerGen show to highlight orders for its HA gas turbines as well as its benefit from CHP’s sustainability and relia-
digital software capabilities bility characteristics,” said Cirillo. “Yet
CHP is largely left out of the renewables
OEM briefings for GE Power. Orders include: equation and needs a little, corrective leg-
Prior to the Alstom deal, GE did not ser- • Two GE 7F.05 GTs and one GE D600 islative help.”
vice other-OEM steam turbines and Heat steam turbine (ST) with Engineering,
Recovery Steam Generators (HRSG). Procurement and Construction (EPC) The virtues of CHP
Thanks to the technology collaboration responsibility for building and commis- He extolled the virtues of CHP, such as a facil-
with Alstom, GE can now service them sioning the expansion of Alliant Energy’s ity being able to self-regulate its own power
all. The company is taking advantage of 700 MW Riverside Energy Center in imports and exports, drop from the grid and
this added capability to upgrade GT Beloit, Wisconsin island itself, and provide ancillary services,
packages at plants with equipment 10 • Turbine generator equipment and tech- such as black-start capability.
years old or more. nical support for the Grand River Energy “CHP can shed load to zero and
“Our combination with Alstom con- Center in Oklahoma island, or create load and export power,”
tinues to pay dividends on the growth • Multiple HRSGs for Dynegy and said Cirillo.
side,” said Joe Mastrangelo, President & Oglethorpe Power. One of the big challenge of CHP is
CEO, GE’s Gas Power Systems. “In the Paul Browning, that most companies tackle a CHP project
30 MW-to-200 MW range, combining our President and Chief only once. So they do not gain from expe-
turbines with Doosan and Alstom HRSG Executive Officer of rience. One way around this is to apply
technology is enabling us to achieve Mitsubishi Hitachi best practices.
greater performance.” Power Systems “CHP projects often hang up on the ini-
GE shipped two HA-class gas turbines in Americas (MHPSA), tial capital investment as they are not being
the first production year of 2015, 25 units in discussed the demand sold the right way,” said Thomas Adams,
2016 and is targeting about 25 for this year. surge for advanced Vice President of Power Business
The company is also selling more machines class turbines (H-, G- Development, ABS Group. “CHP brings
for combined cycle than simple cycle duty. or J-class machines). savings on operating costs, earns a compen-
“The HA has great value when you These machines have satory return on investment and reduces
want to turn down the plant very low while displaced the F-class as Paul Browning long-term energy risk.”
keeping emissions in compliance,” said the most popular GTs of MHPSA But that doesn’t mean that every project
Guy Deleonardo, Executive Product in the market, he said. makes sense, he said. The green light
Manager, GE’s Gas Power Systems. “A Almost all new orders in 2016 were for depends upon good economics based on the
1,100 MW HA plant can provide a 100 advanced class machines with few F-class cost of electricity and fuel, as well as a fore-
MW a minute ramp.” sales. The pipeline for upcoming sales shows cast of future costs. In addition, replacement
All this adds up $660 million in orders a continuation of this trend, said Browning. costs for older equipment need to be consid-

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Energy. Bergen County Utility Authority,

Little Ferry, NJ implemented a 2.8 MW rec-
iprocating engine design using biogas from
wastewater treatment as well as natural gas
to fuel the engines.
The CHP serving Montclair State
University is a 5.4 MW CHP plant that pro-
vides steam and electricity via a Solar Taurus
70 GT with a York ST to drive a chiller and
a waste heat recovery unit from Rentech.
The Marina Thermal Facility in Atlantic
City, NJ is a Solar Taurus turbine-based CHP
plant. Emergency gear and sensitive electric
equipment built on the second floor avoids
the potential of flooding.

Microgrids
CHP is also gaining ground as a way of
implementing a microgrid, said Anne
Hampson, Senior Manager, Distributed Grid
Strategy and Management for CHP at ICF
International. She defined CHP as a form of
distributed energy with the ability to isolate
from the grid, having an active management
system and is self-sustainable for critical
loads during power outages.
“End users are looking for more
resilience, energy security and lower energy
costs,” said Hampson. “CHP can often act as
Siemens promoted CHP, microgrids and the digital power plant at this year’s the anchor for microgrids.”
PowerGen show She suggested this approach for campus-
ered as well as the production impact bine. Waste heat from circulating water pro- es, universities, hospitals, military bases and
(improvement in uptime and plant reliabili- vides supplemental heat for the city’s under- a group of buildings owned and operated by
ty) and the existence of any incentives. ground snowmelt system. a single entity. They can generate their own
“It is important to look at the long- “CHP offers opportunities for differ- power, sell excess power to the local utility
term investment horizon for CHP,” said ent applications based on proven tech- and use the main grid for backup power.
Adams. “You also want your plant to nologies,” said Dalia El Tawy, Business Microgrids can also be tied to district energy
enjoy long hours of stable operation to Development Manager at Siemens systems to provide steam, hot or chilled
obtain the best value.” Energy. “CHP is also the anchor of micro- water and electricity.
One way to find out if local conditions grids and serves an important role in inte- “Natural gas systems are best suited for
are favorable to CHP is to check with the grating renewables.” this role, as natural gas supply lines are rarely
neighbors. If they are using CHP, then suc- Further examples of CHP were provided affected by natural disasters,” said Hampson.
cess is more likely. But equipment choice, by Jonathan Wohl, Vice President of Project There are already 82 GW of CHP in
size of plant and location must be given Development at EPC contractor, DCO the U.S in over 4,400 installations, accord-
careful thought. Adams said it is a mistake,
however, to rush ahead on equipment
specs. It is better to consider all factors
together to determine what kind of equip-
ment is the best fit.
He cited an aeroderivative gas turbine
design for a CHP plant at a refinery. In that
case, equipment specification and procure-
ment got ahead of everything else. Engineers
wasted a lot of time by not thinking through
the whole project. Siting and interconnect
issues and uncertainties made it clear that
there were better options than an aeroderiva-
tive in this case.
“In terms of output, buy only what is jus-
tified economically, as sometimes smaller
may be better,” said Adams. “Also, don’t just
look for the lowest heat rate as heat recovery
is the goal.”
The 145 MW City of Holland CHP facil-
ity in Michigan, for example, is replacing an
aging coal plant. It includes two Siemens
SGT800 GTs and one SST400 steam tur- Some 80% of the microgrid operational generation capacity resides in seven states
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An evolving feature of CHP-based

microgrids is the willingness to harness
multiple sources of power. The City of
Fairfield, Connecticut, for example, has a
30 MW gas turbine, 2.8 MW of biogas-
based fuel cells and 1.2 MW of photo-
voltaic solar power.
“By 2020, the number of microgrids
could at least double,” said Hampson. “They
represent a great opportunity for existing
CHP and new potential CHP.”
The Open Access Technology
International data center in Minneapolis is
powered by the local grid, solar panels and
six wind turbines on the roof, a Capstone
C600 microturbine, lithium ion batteries and
a diesel generator. Energy storage technolo-
gy is provided by Encync Matrix.

Keeping cool
“CHP is being diverted into multiple areas
of our five story, 100,000 square foot
tower,” said Terry Mohn, Executive
Microgrid Consultant at OATI. “Waste
heat is used for chillers to keep the data
Solar panels on the roof of the OATI data center center cool.”
ing to ICF. It expects the market to expand ties for interconnected microgrids that could In emergency mode, the facility is capa-
greatly in the next few years due to small- serve critical facilities,” said Hampson. ble of self-generation using natural gas
er CHP packages with high replicability, U.S microgrid capacity is currently at power from its microturbine as well as its
more own-operate business models, and 1,100 MW, according to GTM Research. batteries. Similarly, if electricity becomes
more incentives About 50% of existing microgrid capacity too expensive, it can go into island mode and
“With multiple CHP systems in proxim- includes CHP and 80% of microgrid capaci- operate as a microgrid. This new campus
ity, it is wise to identify strategic opportuni- ty exists in seven states. replaces an aging facility.

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OIL & GAS

LABYRINTH SEAL ALTERNATIVE

IMPROVE ROTATING EQUIPMENT PERFORMANCE WITH DYNAMIC, NON-CONTACTING
SEALS THAT ARE PRESSURE-BALANCED
HARRY MILLER

S
eals play an integral role in turboma-
chinery applications. In addition to
minimizing leakage and recircula-
tion power loss, effectively sealing
the fluid flow path between rotating and
stationary components is critical to reduc-
ing emissions, lowering fuel consumption,
and maximizing equipment uptime.
Several types of seals can be used to per-
form this function, including labyrinth seals,
pressure-activated leaf seals, finger seals and
brush seals. Labyrinth seals come in a vari-
ety of forms — stationary, rotating,
stepped — and are found in a wide range of
rotating equipment applications throughout
the oil and gas sector.
One of four Dresser-Rand Datum compression trains containing Dynamic Pressure-
Most labyrinth seals feature simple- Balanced (HALO) seals destined for offshore installation in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico
toothed designs comprised of grooves that prior to shipment
press tightly inside an axle so that fluid con-
tained within the housing travels through a contacting DPBs are compliant, self-adjust- fixed ring with a flexible spring. These
long and difficult path to escape. The tortuous ing, low-leakage seals that have been adapt- shoes follow the rotor in real-time, main-
flow path produced by the teeth also helps ed for use in oil and gas turbomachinery taining the clearance set point via aerody-
protect against the ingress of contaminants. applications (Figure 1). namic pressure balance. The seal can be set
For labyrinth seals on rotating shafts, a DPBs take advantage of the variation in for any clear gap desired, and can accom-
small clearance must exist between the tips hydrostatic pressures with seal tooth clear- modate both rotor offset and run-out varia-
of the teeth and the running surface of ance to develop a force-balanced opera- tion during operation (Figure 2).
grooves for sealing to be effective. Thus, tional clearance as small as a few thou-
labyrinth seals are typically made from a sandths of an inch. The acceleration of fluid Comparison test
soft, abradable, rub-tolerant material (i.e., between the seal and the rotor creates a low- A test for a major oil and gas operator mea-
aluminum, bronze, Babbitt), which mechan- pressure region that draws the seal toward sured the performance of dynamic pressure-
ically deforms when contacted by the rotor. the rotor. As the seal approaches the rotor balanced seals vs. traditional labyrinth seals
This prevents damage to the harder surface, the velocity of the fluid decreases, in a multi-stage centrifugal compressor
base metal. Over time, however, continu- resulting in a pressure rise that increases the designed for gas lift service offshore in the
ous rubbing of the softer alloy creates addi- outward force on the seal. U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The compressor is dri-
tional clearance between the stationary Seal dimensions are tuned to create the ven by a constant speed motor through a
labyrinth and the rotor, thereby increasing desired operational clearance. This is variable speed gearbox and uses seven
leakage by allowing fluid to recirculate achieved when the outward force is balanced impellers in a back-to-back configuration,
around the flow path. with the inward force from the upstream and driven through the high-pressure section.
In turn, energy consumption is increased downstream pressures acting on the backside It employs a modular design with readi-
and efficiency is reduced because more of the seal. The clearance remains consistent ly removable internals in a single cartridge
power must be applied to the rotor to main- throughout operation, resulting in less wear assembly from the non-drive end. The max-
tain design flow rates and discharge pres- and leakage, and more reliable performance. imum working pressure (MWP) of the cas-
sure. Eventually, the compressor must be DPBs feature pads that are attached to a ing is 5,250 psi (362 bar). Each impeller is
shut down for maintenance to replace the
worn seals.

Pressure–Balanced
Non-contacting, self-adjusting, dynamic
pressure-balanced (DPB) seals have been
designed to overcome many of the issues
experienced by conventional labyrinth
seals. They have proved to be effective in
controlling leakage, reducing power con-
sumption, and improving the reliability of
rotating equipment.
Originally developed for use in the mili-
tary aircraft and aerospace industries, non- Figure 1: Dresser-Rand HALO Dynamic Pressure-Balanced Seals
26 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com
DR_1-2 '17_CAREB 05-09.qxd 1/27/2017 2:02 PM Page 27

Figure 2: Shoe clearance vs. seal shoe force and shoe clearance vs.
leakage flow. These typical analytical curves illustrate how net radial
force increases as the seal pad approaches the rotor surface.
10.49 inches (266.4 mm) in diameter and rotor maximum continu-
ous operating speed (MCOS) is 13,881 rpm.
The compressor was purchased with a standard aluminum tooth
labyrinth design. The user requested that DPBs be installed and test-
ed in parallel with labyrinth seals.
In using the DPB seals, the client sought to maintain compres-
sor efficiency and design flow leakages for longer run times
between service intervals than conventional labyrinth seals, to
raise the aerodynamic efficiency of the compressor and increase
tolerance for rotor excursions. Figure 3: Full load, full pressure test results, work input (mu input) vs.
To compare mechanical and aerodynamic performance, the DPB flow divided by speed. The solid line represents work input (mu input)
seals were designed to physically fit into the same operating envelope to achieve the desired head rise and delivered mass flow with the
as the traditional aluminum tooth labyrinth seals. labyrinth seals and the dotted line represents the same for the DPB
Static considerations, such as mounted component growth (from seals. The actual test data is shown with the open diamond shapes
the interference fits of the impellers and interstage spacers), rotor sag while the lines represent a curve fit to the data points. The fact that
the two lines are nearly parallel indicates that the variability (i.e.,
(gravitational effects on the rotor), rotor bearing drop, and concen- uncertainty) between these two tests is low.
tricity at each seal location were included in the DPB (non-activated)
seal clearance to ensure that the rotor (non-rotating) did not come integrity of the dynamic pressure-balanced seals for oil and gas tur-
into contact with the DPB seals. bomachinery applications.
Most notably, the compressor with installed DPB seals required
Baseline aero performance less power to achieve the same head level across the entire range of
An ASME PTC-10 Type II performance test was done to establish a inlet flows and pressure ratios when compared to the same testing
baseline aero performance. This was compared to predicted perfor- with conventional labyrinth seals.
mance with labyrinth seals, and an API mechanical run test was done. After all the testing, the compressor was disassembled.
In addition, an ASME PTC-10 Type I performance test with Inspection of the hardware indicated no rubbing between the dynam-
Operational Modal Analysis (OMA) was carried out to determine ic pressure-balanced seals and the rotor. This demonstrated that
rotor dynamic stability with labyrinth seals. This made it possible to DPBs can maintain compressor efficiency and design flow leakages
evaluate the mechanical and aero performance of labyrinth seals. The for longer run times between service intervals than conventional
compressor was then disassembled to remove the labyrinth seals and labyrinth seals. To that end, the client chose to ship the compressor
install the DPB seals. The same steps were then done for the com- to its location in the Gulf of Mexico with the HALO dynamic pres-
pressor with dynamic pressure-balanced seals sure-balanced seals installed.
The results showed similar rotor behavior. The location of the
first natural frequency, the amplification factor of the first natural fre- Reference: “Meeting Motor Driven Compressor Base Package Design Requirements
quency and the overall rotor vibrations at full speed were similar, for Service on Floating Production Storage and Offloading Vessels,” Turbomachinery
which was consistent with predicted performance. and Pump Symposium, 2015, by Harry Miller and Edward Abraham.
OMA stabilization diagrams, modal distributions, and spec-
tral data, showed no indications of significant changes in rotor Harry Miller is the Director of Emerging Technology at
dynamic stability between the DPB seals and labyrinth seals. the Dresser-Rand business, part of Siemens Power and
Both systems are stable. Gas Division. The Dresser-Rand business now offers the
HALO seal – a non-contacting, self-adjusting, low-leak-
The results of the ASME PTC-10 Type 1 aero performance test,
age dynamic seal for turbomachinery applications origi-
however, indicated that 2.8% less power was needed across the entire
nally developed by Advanced Technologies Group. For
range of inlet flow rates and pressure ratios for the DPB sealed com- more information, visit www.dresser-rand.com
pressor compared to the labyrinth sealed machine (Figure 3).
The performance test conducted on the centrifugal compressor
demonstrated both the aerodynamic and mechanical-rotor dynamic

www.turbomachinerymag.com January/February 2017 • Turbomachinery International 27

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GAS TURBINES

RELOCATION OF GAS TURBINE GENERATORS

IMPRACTICAL POWER PLANTS COULD BENEFIT FROM RELOCATION. BUT RISKS AND
REWARDS MUST BE CAREFULLY EVALUATED

JOHN CLIFFORD Aging plants in some locations can make an economic case for relocation. By moving
elsewhere, the economic picture can change dramatically

A
typical lifecycle of a gas turbine cost of new construction ran into a return on equipment and a disposition recommenda-
(GT) power plant is 20 to 30 years, investment (ROI) hurdle that was too high. tion for repair or replacement. All parts,
depending upon the application By relocating the current facility to a new major components and transferrable items
duty, power purchase agreements site with more market potential, however, the were catalogued with a barcoding device
(PPAs), host requirements, and electricity owner could gain another twenty or more during disassembly.
demand. After 20 years, the turbine has years of productive life with a more rapid All high-speed rotating equipment,
probably undergone a few major overhauls ROI and lower capital costs. bearings, inlets, outlets, pipes, pumps, ducts
and is in need of upgrades to improve out- In addition, high summer peak prices and wiring had to be sealed, bundled,
put and efficiency. In short, the owner will made Texas a prime relocation candidate. wrapped and protected and ready for ship-
need to make significant investments to The IPP chose a site in Houston where high ping. Road permits were required for a jour-
keep the plant competitive and economi- load concentrations, growing demand and ney through five states. Site preplanning had
cally viable. In certain cases, it may make spot peaking prices were sufficient to meet to consider load-bearing soil laydown areas,
sense to relocate the power plant. the IPPs targeted investment returns. cribbing and weather protection for all the
An Independent Power Producer (IPP) equipment as it arrived. From there, EPC
based in Houston, Texas opted to relocate a Relocation challenges work followed a similar path as the con-
GT plant in Florida. Originally built a couple On the downside, environmental regulations struction of a new plant.
of decades ago, the plant had been shut down at the new site required NOx emissions of no Relocation of GTs and entire power
due to the presence of more competitive more than 9 ppm. The IPP reviewed a vari- plants involves a thorough evaluation of risk
capacity additions in the local market. The ety of upgrade possibilities. For example, the and reward. In some cases, it can be an eco-
IPP needed to make a decision: Upgrade the GT required a major rotor overhaul. The nomical and fast-track way to gain value
plant; decommission and scrap it; sell it to generator required rewinding and the control from stranded assets.
new owners, or relocate to a better market. system needed upgrading.
Replacement would be costly, and even Additionally, financing requirements John Clifford is Vice
then, the capacity from a new facility may drove the need for single-point warranties President of Equipment
not be required in the market. Upgrading and guarantees. The owner located a turnkey Solutions at EthosEnergy,
the GT with new technology would mean EPC contractor who could provide this spe- an independent service
the plant could take advantage of existing cific scope of services. provider of rotating equip-
permits and infrastructure. Facility reloca- The IPP chose to work with EthosEnergy ment services and solu-
tion would make it more competitive, but to provide a turnkey EPC relocation wrap tions to the power, oil &
would incur removal, refurbishment and gas, and industrial mar-
that included gas turbine overhaul and
kets. EthosEnergy has per-
associated EPC costs. upgrade. Relocation involved an inventory of
formed more than 25 gas
All options were evaluated against a existing equipment, with clear definition of turbine relocations.
study of market opportunity at the current the scope of supply to be relocated. This
and a possible new location. The installed included a survey of the condition of the

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Q and A_1-2 '17_Japikse 03-11.qxd 1/26/2017 10:56 AM Page 30

Q&A

DIGITIZATION AND THE FUTURE

OF TURBOMACHINERY
Enrique Herrera, whack? How can they achieve more OPEX while establishing a long-term rela-
Industry efficiency? We serve up the data that tionship with your customer. There aren’t
lets them answer those questions. a lot of downsides.
Champion at
OSIsoft, discusses How is the trend toward Where do you see the tur-
the evolving trend digitization impacting the bomachinery sector going
of digitization and turbomachinery sector? in five years or more based
what the Digitization is the future for everyone on more use of digitization?
turbomachinery in industrial equipment. We’re seeing It’s hard to overestimate the impact that dig-
sector needs to do companies embed digital subscription itization will have. Industry uses approxi-
services into pumps, tractors and other mately 54% of the world’s energy — that’s
to prepare for it. heavy equipment. These systems can more than transportation, commercial build-
alert a customer to an impending fail- ings and consumers combined.
What does OSIsoft do? ure and avoid a costly breakdown. Yet, if you’ve ever been in a factory
We make the PI System, which cap- Potentially, everyone will be better off you know there are ways to save.
tures and normalizes data from opera- than they were before: Lower costs for Maintenance is a big problem, too. U.S.
tional equipment, such as sensors, the customer and higher revenue for manufacturers alone lose more than
power supplies, manufacturing tools the vendor as we saw at the beginning $20 billion a year due to unplanned out-
and even large things like ships. This of the PC revolution. This bodes well ages and most of them could be stopped
enables people to boost production, for growth. with the right technology. Everyone
save money, improve safety or con- sees the potential. The exciting part is
duct analytics. How does the turbomachin- that we are finally at the point where
ery industry prepare for this the technology is making it possible to
How has the PI System change? take action.
added value? The first step is technical. They must
• Xcel Energy saved $46 million over embed these tools into their products. The Tell us more about your
six years with better wind forecasting second stage, which can be tougher, is cul- software.
• In 2015, ArcelorMittal boosted iron tural. What applications do people want? PI System captures and organizes machine
ore production from 23 million tons How do you design an interface so people data. Our PI Integrators take PI System
to 26 million tons by fine tuning its keep using the data streams? How do you data and translate it so it can be ported to
supply chain establish the return on investment? SAP HANA, Microsoft Azure or other
• Syncrude saves $20 million a year cloud platforms for deep analysis. Without
through predictive maintenance What are the consequences Integrators, that data have to often be sort-
• Dong Energy uses PI for predictive for those that choose not ed by hand. PI Integrators automates it.
maintenance on offshore wind farms to make the change? One of our customers, Cemex, used to
• China National Bluestar optimized They will be left behind. The results from spend over 740 hours collecting and prep-
12 of its sites. At one site, it saved early applications like predictive mainte- ping data for performance reports cover-
$200,000 in steam costs alone nance are already in. It works. Companies ing its 70 plants. Now, with PI Integrators,
• Maynilad, the water company for that don’t move to embed technology for it takes less than an hour.
Manila, reduced leakage from 67% this into their products will find they don’t
to 32% by tracking pressure losses. have buyers because their customers will So, is everything going to
have already reorganized their operations the cloud?
What do you do in the to take advantage of the technology. No. The latency and bandwidth costs
turbomachinery field? are too daunting. Imagine trying to
We produce software for operational What will be the benefits control an automated mining tractor
intelligence that acts as the data layer. for those that make the via the cloud, or an offshore oil plat-
Operators want to know the health of transition? form. We’re going to see a mix of on-
their systems. Are they running cor- Happier customers and likely better sales. premise and cloud systems for a long,
rectly or is there something out of With digital you can lower down time and long time.

30 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com

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NEW PRODUCTS
isotropic surfaces, and deburring and edge-
contouring sharp-edged features.
www.turbofinish.com

Internet of Things platform

Schneider Electric has launched the
EcoStruxure platform to deliver Internet
of Things (IoT) enabled solutions at scale
for building, grid, industry and data center
applications. It connects the three core lay-
ers of Schneider Electric’s technology
stack, from connected products, to edge
control, applications, analytics and ser-
vices. It is said to deliver enhanced value
around safety, reliability, efficiency, sus-
tainability, and connectivity of IoT-
enabled operations. It combined controls
with the power of analytics.
www.schneider-electric.com

Reduced pressure in valves

Conval offers custom-designed Whisperjet
liquid and gas reduction devices for new or
retrofit installations. These devices reduce
liquid or gas pressure through a series of
multi-pressure reduction stages. There is
Viledon hydroMaxx coalescer prefilters provide gas turbines and compressors with protection virtually no part erosion. With steam appli-
against moisture, salt and corrosion cations, noise is reduced because orifices
on each stage are sized to keep the flow of
Pre-filter ings were enhanced in the turbine section to steam below critical velocity. Whisperjets
Gas turbines at coastal locations or in tropi- allow for a higher firing temperature. MHPS are available in conjunction with
cal and subtropical regions, as well as on off- also conducted full-speed full load testing of Clampseal globe valves or standalone, in
shore platforms, absorb water droplets and the JAC at the T-Point facility in Japan, fol- ASME pressure classes up to 4500#, in
salt into combustion air. The penetration of lowed by more than 11,000 hours of reliabil- sizes ½” and up, with socket weld, butt
salt-containing water leads to reduced com- ity verification in commercial operation. weld or flanged connections.
pressor efficiency and corrosion on the MHPS JAC units are being built and www.conval.com
blades as well as in the hot gas section. The shipped from the Savannah Machinery
latter occurs especially when sulfur com- Works in Georgia, as well as the Takasago Siemens controls
pounds from the fuel react with the salt’s Works in Japan. The JAC maintains features, Siemens’ has launched Version 14 of its
sodium ion. such as a compressor shaft-end drive, two- Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) Portal
The Viledon hydroMaxx coalescer pre- bearing rotor structure, axial flow exhaust, which shortens the time to market for
filter for GTs and compressors from bolt-connected discs with torque pins on the machine manufacturers and increases pro-
Freudenberg Filtration Technologies keeps compressor rotor, and Curvic couplings on ductivity through a cloud-based engineering
downstream filter stages dry and reduces salt the turbine rotor discs. Horizontally split cas- framework. Users can access the plant con-
intake. It is a reversed pocket filter with good ings facilitate field removal of the blades and troller from their private cloud with the TIA
droplet separation capacity thanks to the vanes with the rotor in place. They are also Portal Cloud Connector or through the
drainage effect on the front of the filter. This digitally enabled Siemens MindSphere cloud system. New
new generation of filters is easier to handle www.mhpsa.com features include: An interface to simulation
and install while also being lighter and more software to create a digital twin; product data
flexible than the previous generation. Surface and edge conditioning management; motion control functionality;
www.freudenberg-filter.com Turbo-Finish’s surface and edge condition- and automatic device synchronization.
ing process can produce isotropic surfaces
Air-cooled J-Series on rotating parts so they are less suscepti- GE Predix update
Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) ble to problems associated with crack With more than 19,000 software developers
released the M501JAC, an enhanced air- propagation. The elimination of stress ris- building applications on the Ge Predix oper-
cooled J-Series gas turbine (GT) offering ers and the generation of round edges help ating system today, the latest addition to
99.5% reliability. It has picked up seven extend component life. Predix aids in the development of digital
technical selections by utilities and indepen- Highly finished surfaces tend to pick up twins, which are virtual representations of
dent power producers in the past few less residual contaminants from operations, physical assets.
months. The MHPS JAC operates with a and smooth isotropic surfaces generate less Further upgrades include Current, pow-
combined cycle output of 540 MW and effi- turbulent airflow. The Turbo-Finish process ered by GE Digital Energy Management,
ciency exceeding 63%. imparts compressive residual stress, produc- GE Energy Connections to extend the main-
To convert the J-series from steam cool- ing a stress equilibrium throughout the entire tenance optimization benefits of GE’s Asset
ing to air cooling, modifications were made part. It is capable of producing peening-like Performance Management (APM) software
to the combustor and thermal barrier coat- metal surface effects, while developing (Continued on p. 32)

www.turbomachinerymag.com January/February 2017 • Turbomachinery International 31

New Products_1-2 '17_New Products 03-11.qxd 1/30/2017 10:25 AM Page 32

to the electricity grid, Predictive Corrosion Shaft collar 3D prototype

Management (PCM) continuous inspection 3D printing is finding its way into the tur-
data and cloud-based analytics of pipe con- bomachinery field in many different
ditions to help operators manage corrosion- ways. It enables designers to create com-
related risk, improve uptime, and minimize ponents much more rapidly and optimze
the total cost of operations, an update to its designs to improve performance or
Digital Power Plant software for gas, steam reduce material costs. Stafford
and nuclear plants (new tools to help cus- Manufacturing has introduced a new
tomers reduce unplanned downtime by up to shaft collar and component protype 3D
5%, reduce false positive alerts by up to printing program that lets users create
75%, and reduce operations and mainte- their own working models of special pur-
nance costs by up to 25%). pose parts within hours.
www.ge.com/digital/predix The Stafford 3D Prototype
Development Service lets users rapidly
Smaller skid create a 3D printed part from a print, and
Young & Franklin has introduced the 7600 test the form, fit and function to provide
Series EGCV/ESRV Skid. It has a much immediate feedback on proof-of-concept
smaller and more accessible footprint than testing. Ideally suited for shaft collars,
its hydraulic predecessor, and at 1,033 lbs., couplings and mounting devices, a fin-
the electric upgrade weighs less than half of ished machined part can be delivered
the 2,300 lb. original. Virtually mainte- within two to three weeks after proofing.
nance-free, the electric 7600 Series Skid As well as enabling design engineers
uses no lube oil, servos, or filters, which to speed product development, this
means leaks and varnish are things of the Stafford service can also validate manu-
past. The 7600 Series Skid is comprised of facturability. For users who require in-
the 8655 Series Electric Stop/Ratio Valve depth design engineering assistance, the
and the 3010 Series sonic flow Gas Control company can optionally employ its com-
Valve. Valves can be independently ponent design and manufacturing experi-
removed for service. Compatible with ence to the benefit of the customer pro-
Triple Redundant -8 to +8 mA Servo ject. The Stafford 3D Prototype
Commands or 4-20 mA Position Development Service is priced according
Command. to requirements.
www.yf.com www.staffordmfg.com

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Contact Bob Maraczi for more information. phone 203.523-7040 email Bob.Maraczi@UBM.com

32 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com

Corporate Profiles_1-2 '17_0003.qxd 1/31/2017 8:34 AM Page 33

CORPORATE PROFILES

www.turbomachinerymag.com January/February 2017 • Turbomachinery International 33

Corporate Profiles_1-2 '17_0003.qxd 1/31/2017 8:48 AM Page 34

CORPORATE PROFILES

34 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com

Corporate Profiles_1-2 '17_0003.qxd 1/31/2017 12:06 PM Page 35

CORPORATE PROFILES

RENTECH BOILER SYSTEMS CONTINUES TO LEAD THE INDUSTRY

IN PRODUCING NEW, INNOVATIVE BOILER DESIGNS.
Our boiler manufacturing experience and passion for customer MW size range. Our expertise in high-fired applications
service has made a significant difference to our customers, who incorporates full optimization of the duct-burner performance
include the largest independent power producers, refining, while utilizing Catalytic Oxidation and SCR for control of
petrochemical, and industrial companies in North America. At emissions from the entire system.
RENTECH, we aren’t resting on our reputation – we are
continually building one! MARKET LEADER IN LARGE FIRED PACKAGED BOILERS
Our Packaged Boiler design has been specified time and again
HRSGS FOR SMALL- AND MEDIUM-SIZED GAS TURBINES for critical industrial processes, turbine warm-up and auxiliary
We specialize in, and are the largest supplier of, HRSGs for boiler applications because of its rugged design and proven
today’s high-efficiency gas turbines that operate in the 3-40 reliability. 100% Membrane Wall construction eliminates the
need for refractory and enables quick start-up to achieve full
steam capacity of the boiler in a fraction of the time that it
takes with older designs.

INTEGRATED SOLUTIONS FOR ACHIEVING LOWER EMISSIONS

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complies with all performance criteria and is backed by a
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www.turbomachinerymag.com January/February 2017 • Turbomachinery International 35
Myths Busters_1-2 '17_Myths 03-11.qxd 1/26/2017 11:11 AM Page 36

MYTH BUSTERS

GAS TURBINE CONTROLS RETROFITS —

TO BUY OR NOT TO BUY?
KLAUS BRUN & RAINER KURZ younger engineers and technician operators compressor station has been demonstrated to
are often not familiar with older electrical increase station efficiency by several per-

W
components and systems and have only been centage points.
e recently retrofitted and trained on modern digital systems. But one should not forget that the con-
updated the control system of Sometimes the modern digital control trols retrofit can be costly and cause sig-
one of our older gas turbine- system cannot even communicate with older nificant downtime. In many cases, the
driven centrifugal compres- sensors, alarms, and switches. This is espe- retrofit will take at least two to three weeks
sor units. The experience turned out to cially true when the operator aims to of complete machinery shutdown since
be rather traumatic. improve long-term data trending using his- most of the instrumentation, alarms,
The retrofit cost far more than anticipat- torical data loggers for improved condition- switches, and SCADA communication
ed, the unit was down for an extended peri- based maintenance practices. must be rewired or replaced.
od, and the functionality of the gas turbine To integrate older analog instruments,
(including operating load and speed range)
actually became more restricted than it was “There are often valves, and sensors into modern digital con-
trollers, the controls retrofit may also
with the old analog controller.
There was much complaining and grip- compelling reasons require substantial replacement of non-con-
troller related equipment in a station. And

to upgrade a gas
ing amongst management and engineers and when the control system is changed, opera-
the justifiable question was asked: “Why did tor training on the new system is required
we do the controls retrofit in the first place?” which can also be costly and cause opera-
The old engineering adage, “If it
ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” should have turbine control tional interruptions.
So, although the adage of “if it ain’t
been applied. But there are other reasons
why a control system must sometimes system.” broke don’t fix it” still holds, there are often
other compelling reasons to upgrade a gas
be retrofitted. turbine control system.
And equally, there are some times when Modern control systems often directly In our case, upgrading the turbine was
it is better to continue operating with a basic interface with the manufacturer’s centralized necessary primarily due to instrumenta-
but still functional control system. So here is expert support staff to help diagnose opera- tion obsolescence and the need for
a discussion, some reasons, and typical mis- tional issues and faults before they become a improved surge control. Nonetheless, it is
conceptions as to when a machinery controls significant problem. always worthwhile to carefully evaluate
retrofit is appropriate or not. Equipment upgrades, such as upgrading all the pros and cons of the retrofit before
The basic function of a compressor con- the diffusion-flame combustion system on making a decision.
trol system is to provide startup and shut- an older gas turbine to a modern, low-emis-
down sequencing, operational and process sion, lean-premix combustion system, or the Klaus Brun is the
control, human machine interfacing and replacement of a wet-seal system on a com- Machinery Program
monitoring, and equipment safety alarms pressor with a dry gas seals system, often Director at Southwest
and shutdowns. require a controls retrofit or upgrade. Research Institute in San
Even the oldest controllers easily offer The older controllers usually cannot han- Antonio, Texas. He is also
this set of minimal functionality, albeit dle the more complex startup, shutdown, the past Chair of the Board
sometimes they are slow and their operator tuning, and air management sequencing of Directors of the ASME
interfaces are not very convenient. So why required for the operation of lean, premixed, International Gas Turbine
Institute and the IGTI Oil &
would someone want to upgrade the con- low-NOx combustors. In some locations,
Gas applications committee.
trol system? continuous emissions monitoring is required
The primary reason operators change the to meet government regulations. Although Rainer Kurz is the
control system is simply that it is getting old, third party, free-standing systems can be Manager for Systems
requires frequent repairs and causes costly used for this task, it is often easier to have an Analysis at Solar
downtime. In fact, for many users, the num- integrated machine controller with continu- Turbines Incorporated
ber one reason for unplanned shutdowns is ous emissions monitoring built in. in San Diego, CA. He is
aging controls. Modern control systems come with an ASME Fellow since
This is often associated with parts obso- advanced load sharing and process control 2003 and the chair of the
lescence, especially for old analog-type con- algorithms that can significantly enhance IGTI Oil and Gas
trollers. Frequent shutdowns result in signif- machinery and plant performance. For Applications Committee.
icant downtime and operational losses. Also, example, an advanced surge control system
most controller-related, forced outages cause can significantly improve a compressor sta-
a plant blowdown and, thus, result in added tion’s efficiency since it avoids unnecessary Any views or opinions presented in this article are solely those
of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of Solar
greenhouse gas emissions. or excessive recycling. Similarly, optimized Turbines Incorporated, Southwest Research Institute or any of
Other less obvious reasons are that load sharing between multiple units in a their affiliates.

36 Turbomachinery International • January/February 2017 www.turbomachinerymag.com

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