Source: POWER GENERATION HANDBOOK

CHAPTER 5

STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

STEAM CHEST ARRANGEMENTS AND CONSTRUCTION

The steam leaving the superheater goes through the emergency stop valves (ESVs) and associated governing valves (GVs) before entering the high-pressure (HP) turbine.1 The ESVs and GVs are housed in steam chests. These steam chests are manufactured from closed-die alloy-steel forgings welded together, or from alloy-steel castings. They also have simple shapes. This is done to reduce the thermal stresses and hence the possibility of thermal fatigue. Similar steam chests house the reheat emergency stop valves (RESVs) and interceptor valves (IVs). These steam chests are located between the reheater and the intermediatepressure (IP) turbines. They are manufactured from alloy-steel castings. They are thinner but larger than the HP steam chests due to lower steam pressures. The steam chests are normally mounted alongside the turbine. The four steam mains, together with four ESVs and four GVs, are normally arranged two on each side of the turbine. Figure. 5.1 illustrates a typical steam chest arrangement of a 660-MW unit. There is a steam chest on each side of the machine. It has an ESV on each end and the two GVs are connected to the common chamber between the ESVs.

STEAM CHEST MATERIAL

The chests are manufactured from alloy steel. On 660-MW units operating at 565C, the material is usually 0.5 CrMoV steel. In some recent units operating at 538C, the chest material is 2.25 Cr steel. Higher-chrome ferrite steels with improved creep resistance are also used on larger units operating at 565C. The seats of the valves are of the removable-plate type. These seats are normally screwed in place. The mating faces of the valves and their seats are made of Stellite. This is done to resist wear caused by steam erosion. The wear will occur mainly when the valve is cracked open. A jet is propelled at high velocity due to the large pressure differential across the narrow port opening. The Stellite facing also provides protection against impact damage, which occurs during normal valve closure. It also occurs during frequent high-speed test closures. This damage is alleviated normally using cushioning devices in the relay system or slow-motion testing. Specially treated alloy-steel sleeves in the valve covers support and guide the valve spindles.

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STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

5.2 Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digitalengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

FIGURE 5.1 Typical steam chest arrangements.

STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

5.3

STEAM STRAINERS
Each ESV is surrounded by a cylindrical strainer. The strainer has many 2- to 5-mm-diameter holes. It prevents solid particles of foreign matter from getting entrained with the steam entering the turbine. These particles could cause serious damage to the turbine blading if they enter the turbine. It is essential to have a thorough steam blow of all pipework before commissioning a plant.

EMERGENCY STOP VALVES

The two purposes of the ESVs (also known as stop valves) are: 1. To interrupt the steam flow promptly during an emergency trip 2. To cut off the steam supply when the unit is shut down The valves are tested on-power regularly (at least once a month) to ensure they will close during an emergency. The load is reduced during this testing. The valves are tested in sequence, one at a time, during the on-load testing. The ESV is normally a single-seated unbalanced plug-type valve. It has an internal small pilot valve that opens first. The pilot valve can be opened against main steam pressure. It is also used during run-up because the steam flow is from 1 to 2 percent of the fullload steam flow. It also reduces the force required to actuate the valve. When the machine reaches operating speed, the GVs, which have been open, close in. At this stage, it is possible to open the ESVs because the upstream and downstream pressure of the valve have been equalized. Figure 5.2 illustrates a typical ESV. Flap valves are used as reheat emergency stop valves (RESVs) for some 500 and 660 MW units. The steam in these valves has moderate pressure and large specific volume.

GOVERNOR VALVES
The governor valves control the steam flow entering the turbine. Since the generator converts mechanical energy to electrical energy, the governor valves control the generator load when the machine is synchronized to the grid. Modern power plants use the governor valves to throttle the steam flow during turbine run-up to speed. However, earlier machines use pilot valves in the ESV in conjunction with the governor valves during run-up (the steam flow during run-up is less than 2 percent of the steam flow required during full-load operation). Figure 5.3 illustrates a typical governor valve.

REFERENCE
1. British Electricity International, Modern Power Station Practice, 3d ed., Pergamon Press, Oxford, United Kingdom, 1991.

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STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES 5.4

CHAPTER FIVE

FIGURE 5.2 Typical emergency stop valve. (*, shown out of position.)

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STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

5.5

FIGURE 5.3 Governor valve.

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digitalengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.

STEAM CHESTS AND VALVES

Downloaded from Digital Engineering Library @ McGraw-Hill (www.digitalengineeringlibrary.com) Copyright 2004 The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved. Any use is subject to the Terms of Use as given at the website.