Turbine and Gas Generator condition monitoring is a key to ensure safe, reliable and efficient operation. The work of inspecting these systems from the inside to the deeper parts of the internal zones can be expensive and time consuming, however, and may need to be shutdown. The borescope is a practical, safe and cost-effective way to meet this challenge.
Turbines are critical to power generation systems, such as wind and hydroelectric, which rely on them to continuously generate power. It is also crucial that backup power equipment be properly maintained in order to be able to use it when needed.
Inspection procedures need to go deep into turbine interiors to find indications of deterioration of turbine materials, including oxidation, corrosion and thermal cracking. The basic operation of a turbine might seem quite straightforward, but there are many parts that are specialized and perform at very close tolerances, making it difficult to make an error while running the turbine.
Other environments, such as very high temperature, cause high rates of degradation and wear for gas turbines. Such severe working conditions add to the complexity and risks of condition-monitoring inspections.
The manufacturers of turbines set baseline data for future inspections. The common parameters of these benchmarks include level vibration, temperature, pressure and output performance. A well planned and professionally executed maintenance programme is important to ensure that turbines are maintained in accordance with manufacturers' standards. However, a turbine shutdown and dismantle can lead to a significant amount of downtime and costs associated with dismantling and commissioning the turbine.
In many instances, the equipment is shut down for several weeks, and then inspections are conducted to find that the turbine is in good condition and that there are no major defects.
Borescopes are valuable tools for the technician to use to safely inspect the inner workings of turbines without costly shutdowns, and they are used to rapidly inspect the turbine's inner works. They are used to collect essential data to assess the condition of the equipment and, when required, to decide whether corrective action is needed and what it should be. Where repairs are needed, they can be scheduled for planned outages which can be substantial savings in time and operational costs. Also during scheduled shut-downs, facility managers can implement upgrades or improvements that can increase turbine efficiency, extend the service life, or otherwise improve overall turbine performance.
There are different borescope systems with different measurement and inspection capability. In addition to the initial inspection, companies can also rent advanced metrology capable borescopes for more in-depth analysis when irregularities are found without having to invest in new equipment.
To summarise the many benefits of borescopes include:
- Easy to use and operate.
- Advanced image and video capture capabilities.Advanced image and video capture ability.
- Very high accuracy - some systems are able to detect defects as small as 0.0001 mm in turbine parts.
- Excellent reach (boroscopes are flexible and articulating, reaching far inboard, including areas over 60m away, and providing detail and precision).
- Advanced software and analysis capabilities.
The use of borescopes has revolutionized the difficult and often dangerous job of inspection of gas turbines, making it safer, faster and more efficient. If you are looking for the best borescope solution for your inspection needs, get expert advice from Nexxis.
Source: https://nexxis.com.au/borescopes-needed-for-turbine-maintenance/
