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Power Generation

The money you can save and the downtime you can avoid by routinely sampling power plant equipment easily justifies the expense of oil analysis. Effective condition monitoring through oil analysis allows you to perform oil changes and necessary maintenance based on test results - what is actually happening within the unit - rather than on the basis of hours of operation or days elapsed on a calendar. Dramatically reduce unscheduled shutdowns. Give your maintenance program the power to predict failure—it costs so little to protect so much.

• Minimize component wear and extend equipment life
• Ensure lubricant suitability for continued use
• Monitor viscosity levels for optimum performance
• Reduce unscheduled downtime
• Increase reliability
• Boost company profits

Turbines, generator and back-up generator diesel engines, compressors, gearboxes and hydraulic systems are the units most critical to uninterrupted, trouble-free power generation. Fluid testing for power generation equipment can be separated into two regimes. Monitoring the condition of the unit and some fluid properties requires regular, monthly sampling to determine wear and contamination levels. Monitoring fluid quality requires sampling only once or twice a year from systems reservoirs, bulk storage tanks or new lube totes to determine its suitability for use.

Condition Monitoring

This testing monitors equipment condition and can identify types and possible sources of wear and contamination. It includes a Particle Count or Direct Read Ferrography. A Particle Count will identify all particles present measuring 4 to 100 microns in size. Direct Read Ferrography provides a ratio of large ferrous >5 μ particles to small ferrous <5μ particles only. Analytical Ferrography is a qualitative, rather than quantitative, analysis that provides digital imagery of those particles and can be added to the Advanced Condition Monitoring package.

Fluid Quality Testing

Testing fluid quality ensures that an oil meets manufacturer specifications and/or industry recommendations for long-term use. Sampling should be done once or twice a year from bulk storage tanks, new lube totes, or from a system's reservoir if a large sump capacity makes oil changes impractical. ASTM D 6224-98 is Standard Practice for In-Service Monitoring of Lubricating Oil and Auxiliary Power Plant Equipment. ASTM D 4378-97 is Standard Practice for In-Service Monitoring of Mineral Turbine Oils for Steam and Gas Turbines.

Applications

Turbines

Turbine oils lubricate and cool bearings and gears. They should resist oxidation, prevent the formation of sludge and contain rust, water separability and foam inhibitors. Even slight changes in these properties, as well as viscosity levels, can warrant corrective action.

Diesel Engines

Contamination and wear are constant hazards to a diesel engine. Routinely monitoring a lubricant's viscosity, as well as its ability to neutralize acids and disperse and suspend soot particles produced during combustion can tell you if anti-wear additive and dispersant / detergent levels are providing sufficient engine protection.

Compressors

High discharge temperatures and the continuous presence of heated air require compressor oils to be highly resistant to oxidation, which can adversely affect viscosity and acidity.

Condensation is also a frequent problem. If the oil cannot properly separate the water out, emulsions form preventing adequate lubrication of metal surfaces.

Gear Systems

The primary objective of a gear oil is to provide a film between moving metal surfaces sufficient enough to prevent wear and the damaging affects of pitting and scuffing. Low levels of sulfur, boron and phosphorous could indicate that wear-reducing additives have been depleted.

Hydraulics

A hydraulic fluid's viscosity should be low enough to minimize friction loss, yet high enough to prevent fluid leakage and provide satisfactory protection against wear. It should have good oxidation stability to prevent sludge from forming, sufficient water separability and air release properties and resistance to foaming.

Download the Power Generation Product Guide Here

Power Generation Test Packages

Download the Power Generation Product Guide

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