Steam Turbines

How many governors are needed for safe turbine operation? Why?
Two independent governors are needed for safe turbine operation:
One is an over speed or emergency trip that shuts off the steam at 10 percent above
running speed (maximum speed).
The second, or main governor, usually controls speed at a constant rate; however, many
applications have variable speed control.

How will you detect that misalignment is the probable cause of excessive vibration?
Coupling to the driven machine is to be disconnected.
The turbine is to be run alone.
If the turbine runs smoothly, either misalignment, worn coupling or the driven
equipment is the cause of the trouble.

In which part of the steam turbine does corrosion fatigue occur?

In the wet stages of the LP cylinder.
In which part of the steam turbine does stress corrosion cracking (SCC) occur?
In the wet stages of the low-pressure turbine.
In which zone of steam turbines has temperature-creep rupture been observed?
Damage due to creep is encountered in high temperature (exceeding 455C) zones. That is, it
has been found to occur in the control stages of the high-pressure and intermediate-pressure
turbines where steam temperature sometimes exceed 540C. In the reheat stage, it has been
observed that creep has caused complete lifting of the blade shroud bands.
What are the types of thrust bearings?
Babbitt-faced collar bearings
Tilting pivotal pads
Tapered land bearings
Rolling-contact (roller or ball) bearings
What are the types of turbine seals?
Carbon rings fitted in segments around the shaft and held together by garter or retainer
springs.
Labyrinths mated with shaft serrations or shaft seal strips.
Water seals where a shaft runner acts as a pump to create a ring of water around the
shaft. Use only treated water to avoid shaft pitting.
Stuffing box using woven or soft packing rings that are compressed with a gland to
prevent leakage along the shaft.
 What are the basic causes of the problem of rotor failure?
Normal wear.
Fatigue failure due to high stress.
Design deficiency.
Aggressive operating environment
What are the differences between impulse and reaction turbines?
The impulse turbine is characterized by the fact that it requires nozzles and that the
pressure drop of steam takes place in the nozzles.
The reaction turbine, unlike the impulse turbines has no nozzles, as such. It consists of a
row of blades mounted on a drum. The drum blades are separated by rows of fixed
blades mounted in the turbine casing. These fixed blades serve as nozzles as well as the
means of correcting the direction of steam onto the moving blades.
In the case of reaction turbines, the pressure drop of steam takes place over the blades.
This pressure drop produces a reaction and hence cause the motion of the rotor.

Boilers

Q. What is boiler?
Ans. According to Indian Boiler Act 1923, a boiler is a closed pressure vessel / steam
generating unit with minimum capacity of 22.70 liters, including all mountings and
accessories or we can say that the boiler is a steam generator which convert chemical energy
of fuel into heat energy which is utilized for steam generation .The steam can be generated as
per desired pressure and temperature.
Types of boiler:-There are generally three types of boiler used as.

i) Shell type of boiler - It is the most oldest technology has a simple shell with a feed pipe
and steam outlet mounted on a brick setting called furnace. It has very low steam generating
capacity and low efficiency as compared to other boiler.

ii) Fire/smoke tube boiler - This boiler was used as a steam engine in 18th century. Here the
fire/smoke passes through the tube which is immersed in water and heat transfer takes place
water converted to steam , collected through steam pipe. This boiler has the disadvantage that
gasses choke the tube path and restrict the gas flow.

iii) Water tube boiler - This boiler is considered as the most efficient boiler and mostly used
now days. Here the water passes through the tube and flame on the surrounding of
the tube.Very large capacity of steam can be generated in this type of boiler.
Q. What is circulation ratio of a boiler?

Ans.

It is the ratio of the quantity of water-steam mixture flowing through the circuit to the
quantity of steam produced in the circuit , The circulation ratio of once through / super
critical boiler is one because all water Is converted to steam.More circulation ratio means
less efficient is the Boiler.

The circulation ratios of,

1. Natural circulation industrial boiler - 10 to 25

2. Natural circulation utility boiler - 7 to 9

3. Assisted circulation boilers - 2 to 4

4. Forced circulation / once through boiler - 1

Q What are the boiler mountings?

Ans. The boiler mountings are used for safe and efficient operation of boiler, these are
placed in out side of the boiler.

1. Safety valve.

2.pressure gauge.

3.Water level gauge glass.. Pressure gauge.

4. Start-up vent.

5.Air vent.

5.Manhole.

Q. What are boiler accessories?

Ans. These are the integral part of boiler which help to run the boiler most efficiently These
are,

1. Super heater.

2. Economizer.

3.Air pre- heater.

4.ID and FD fans.

5. Ash handling system.

6.Dosing system.

7. Soot blower.

8.De super heating system.

Q. What is turn down ratio of boiler?

Ans. It is the operating range of boiler from maximum capacity to minimum capacity in
which the boiler can run efficiently without any external fuel support . The higher turn down
ratio greater the efficiency of boiler. For example if the boiler is designed 80mw and can
operate up to 20mw without any external fuel support and any variations of parameter then
the turn down ratio is 80/20=4.

Q. What is boiler efficiency?

Ans. It is the ratio of heat output to heat input of the boiler.

Boiler efficiency= Heat output / heat input *100.

=steam flow (enthalpy of steam -enthalpy of feed water) / coal flow * gcv.

For example if there is a 80mw boiler with 540 dig centigrade of main steam temperature,
feed water temperature of 300 dig centigrade , coal flow 56 ton, gcv 4000 kcal/kg then the
boiler efficiency will be =307(826.28-242.58)/56*4000=80%.

Q. What is foaming of boiler?

Ans. It is the generation of foam In boiler due to high concentration of solids, organic matter,
bubbles are build up on the surface of boiler water and passed out with the steam. This is
generally caused due to high concentration of solids in boiler.

Q. What is priming of boiler ?

Ans. It Is the carrying amount of droplet water in the steam, witch leads to carryover of Salt
crystals on the super heater and turbines. priming may be caused due to sudden change of
load and maintaining of high level of water.

Prevention of priming and foaming :-

The best remedy for foaming and priming carryover is the proper blow
down of TDS. The continuous blow down should be regulated to
maintain the TDS at 3,000 to 4,000 ppm. More blow down means less TDS but more
blow down is the more loss of the boiler so the blow down should be within control level.