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NOVEMBER 2022 | HydrocarbonProcessing.com

NOVEMBER 2022

PROCESS CONTROLS,
Steps to building an
ANALYZER SYSTEMS
INSTRUMENTATION MAINTENANCE PLAN
PROCESS CONTROLS, INSTRUMENTATION AND AUTOMATION

Can hydrogen be used to

AND AUTOMATION DECARBONIZE
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INTEGRATING NEW TECHNOLOGIES
TO INCREASE PLANT EFFICIENCY

ANNI V E
RSA R Y
 Maintenance
and Reliability
Originally appeared in:
November 2022, pgs 39-45 J. RISKO, TLV Corp., Charlotte, North Carolina
Used with permission.

Trip your turbine troubles: Optimize the reliability of

steam-driven turbines
Steam turbines are essential for suc-
cessful operations in refining and petro-
chemical plants, such as at the wet gas
compressor and regenerator air blower
of a fluidized catalytic cracking unit
(FCCU). However, other smaller tur-
bines can also perform critical functions
that are important to the overall opera-
tion of production units. Much focus is
commonly given to the main production
process itself; as a result, turbine reliabil-
ity improvement considerations may be
secondary—that is, until severe damage
occurs, sometimes causing manufactur-
ing shutdowns for weeks on end.
As one example, severe turbine issues
in a medium-size refinery shut down
both the FCC and hydrogenation and FIG. 1. Even simple, single-stage turbines are sophisticated equipment requiring appropriate care.
catalytic cracking (HCC) units for more
than 5 wk, resulting in production losses
exceeding $65 MM. Such incidents can sate discharge locations (CDLs)—in-
be mitigated by optimizing the steam cluding the steam traps and valves—
quality that drives turbines. This re- and installing high-efficiency moisture
quires designing effective condensate separators upstream of steam turbines.
drainage from both the supply lines and Although most of the steam trapping
respective turbine installations, as well requirements are relatively simple, load
as disentraining wetness from the steam calculations should be done to properly
flow to mitigate against erosion, precipi- size the traps used to drain condensate
tate and slug damage. from any inlet separator used and from
Following the delivery of high-quality the exhaust side of back pressure or
steam, turbines must also be adequately vacuum turbines relative to the potential
drained of condensate to help prevent higher load from steam wetness and con-
trips during startup, corrosion during densation. Although not a common con-
idle periods, condensate accumulation sideration, the condensate loads at both
FIG. 2. Lowering risk requires reducing the
during operation, and hydraulic shock to the separator and the turbine exhaust probability of failure (PoF) for an equipment
downstream steam lines or equipment. side can be substantial. asset. In the case of turbines, this can correlate
Condensate removal also helps reduce When properly designed and in- to lowering the probability of failure caused
precipitate buildup. stalled, a high-quality steam supply helps by condensate.
Optimizing the steam system quality optimize turbine efficiency and reduce
begins with proper design of the main reliability issues associated with blade tions require additional design consider-
utility headers. This requires effective erosion, plating, turbine trips and severe ations relative to the steam quality sup-
collecting leg design, proper selection, damage from hydraulic shock. plied to the ejectors. Improvements to
placement and maintenance of conden- Vacuum/condensing turbine installa- steam quality can be achieved by incorpo-
Hydrocarbon Processing | NOVEMBER 2022 39
 Maintenance and Reliability

Due to concerns of production inter-

ruptions from downtime, many steam
turbine areas can look like a fog zone,
which is the result of multiple open steam
bleeders as an attempt to prevent damage
or imbalance. Even in such instances, tur-
bines can experience incidents because
the systems are either improperly de-
signed or inadequately maintained.
One professional method to mitigate
risk is to follow the principles of API RP
580/581.1,2 FIG. 2 shows a typical risk
mitigation matrix. Risk is the product
of the probability of a failure event mul-
tiplied by the consequence of the event
(typically in monetary terms). While the
consequence of an event usually cannot
be lessened without a change in design,
FIG. 3. Dry steam cannot be distributed in a steam system. Steam is either superheated or wet. multiple actions can be taken to reduce
the probability of failure. This article pro-
vides focus on some of the possible miti-
gation designs that can help reduce the
probability of failure relative to the steam
system, water entrainment in steam, and
condensate removal.
Notice the blue arrows in the matrix
shown in FIG. 2 representing the reduc-
tion of risk deeper into an acceptance
zone for two assets (such as turbines). It
is recommended and possible to incor-
porate risk mitigation practices for all
FIG. 4. If not superheated, steam contains turbines in a plant, as well as other criti-
substantial moisture that should be cal pieces of equipment, which lowers the
disentrained and drained. combined risk of unwanted events.

Steam quality. Steam that drives the

turbines can be either superheated, near
FIG. 6. A collecting leg must be adequately
saturation or wet. It is important to
sized for high-velocity condensate to have steam without wetness as the drive
drain into it. source, and this is often the reason super-
heated steam is often selected for the de-
sign (FIG. 3).
spheric turbine case and exhaust pip- There is a common misconception
FIG. 5. All steam systems can have
ing. If drainage is inadequate, significant that plant steam is either superheated or
condensate flowing along the bottom
of the pipe, and moisture is expected in
damage to internal turbine components, saturated, but this is inaccurate because
flowing wet steam supply. as well as a reduction in performance of dry saturated steam cannot be sustained
downstream surface condensers, may oc- in a plant’s steam system.3 Boiler steam
cur. Each of these elements are reviewed has significant wetness if not passed
rating best practice design recommenda- in detail in the following sections. through a superheater, and usually much
tions to help reduce ejector nozzle/throat more wetness if generated from a waste
erosion and precipitate buildup. These Reducing risk. Steam turbines, even heat boiler (FIG. 4). Steam quality with-
actions can help optimize and sustain small ones, are sophisticated pieces of out wetness is so important to turbine re-
benchmark vacuum pressures and surface equipment (FIG. 1). It is common that liability that systems that are not supplied
condenser operation for longer periods. turbines are the unnoticed, unsung he- with superheated steam are recommend-
Properly draining pedestal-mounted roes of the plant, functioning properly ed to have a best practice steam trapping
vacuum steam turbines can be especially for extremely long periods of time—in a design just before the turbine entry point,
challenging, as pumping (rather than sense, forgotten until there is damage that in addition to a steam separator and drain
trapping) systems may be required to can result in significant maintenance cost combination between that trapping loca-
remove condensate from the sub-atmo- and service or production interruptions. tion and the turbine entry point.
40 NOVEMBER 2022 | HydrocarbonProcessing.com
 Maintenance and Reliability

The need for adequate drainage and as CDLs (FIGS. 9 and 10).4 Turbine reli- Superheat. A misconception persists
separation can be seen by examining ability begins with well-maintained util- regarding superheat systems: that be-
FIG. 5. Disentrained condensate flows ity lines. cause the steam is superheated, adequate
along the bottom of the steam system Another key improvement is to install
piping and some water remains en- an engineered separator and drain after
trained in the steam flow for wet steam an appropriate CDL and before entry
systems. A first stage of removal can be into the turbine to disentrain a substan-
accomplished by installing a properly tial amount of wetness that may be car-
designed collecting leg for condensate ried in the steam flow. This not only helps
capture (FIG. 6). prevent erosion of the turbine blades, but
also mitigates precipitate buildup. Exam-
Capturing and discharging conden- ples are shown later in this article.
sate. Consider that steam’s design pipe It is common to see a fog zone around
velocity is commonly at or above 90 turbines in many plants, the result of
mph.4 A key requirement is to remove the open steam bleeders with the intention
condensate flowing along the bottom of to mitigate damage from condensate
the pipeline that has already been disen- slugs (FIG. 11). Regardless, this practice
FIG. 11. Fog zones can create visual hazards
trained from the vapor. If not removed, often does not preclude incidents and and still be ineffective to mitigate turbine
it can form dangerous slugs—many case proper CDL design and sustained main- damage.
histories of significant plant shutdowns tenance are recommended.
due to the resulting damage caused are
documented (FIG. 7). The velocity of
steam under constant load requirement
conditions elevates dramatically as the
available non-liquid-filled portion of the
pipe decreases, escalating the propulsion
given to the slug to create turbine de-
struction (FIG. 8).
Slug buildup can be mitigated by the
installation and sustained maintenance
of well-designed condensate collecting
legs and steam trap stations, also known

FIG. 9. A properly designed collecting leg FIG. 12. This 24-in., 220-psig superheated
requires adequate diameter, depth and steam line had a 400-ft section moved
distance before the trap take-off. 7 ft by slug hammer.

FIG. 7. As a slug’s mass builds and closes

off the pipe’s cross-section, its velocity can
rapidly accelerate.

FIG. 8. The potential damaged caused by

slug-induced water hammer should not be FIG. 10. CDL refers to the entire pipe assembly used to drain condensate, including the
underestimated. steam trap, piping and all valves.

Hydrocarbon Processing | NOVEMBER 2022 41

 Maintenance and Reliability

CDLs are unnecessary. FIG. 12 shows a Turbine drainage. After utility lines are of the turbine installation can pool
result in systems that are not adequately confirmed to have best-practice trapping condensate and appropriate CDLs can
trapped. Water hammer from a slug of and moisture separator installations, it mitigate issues.
condensate moved a 400-ft. section of is useful to examine at least seven areas FIG. 14 provides additional detail on
this 24-in., 220-psig superheated line a on a turbine installation, starting with the inlet side of a turbine installation.
distance of 7 ft. When the drain valves the inlet separator and continuing with The trap on the separator is commonly
were later opened, condensate drained multiple important stages through the larger than a standard utility main drip
continuously for 3 d.5 The moral of this turbine and its exhaust (FIG. 13).6 trap or the trap at the inlet of the control
case history is that superheated mains The CDL before the separator is in- valve due to anticipated wetness to be
can carry a lot of condensate and require tended to remove condensate that has removed, while the inlet to the control
well-maintained CDLs. already been disentrained. Each stage valve steam trap is typically a smaller size.
It is common to see inadequate drain-
age at the steam chest, trip and throttle
valve, and even the casing drains. Often,
these drains are plugged, which can lead
to condensate buildup that causes dam-
age. For these reasons, those connections
are recommended for steam trap drain-
age (FIG. 15).
The supply steam quality and work
efficiency of the turbine determine the
amount of condensate on the exhaust
side. Often, the trap for the turbine ex-
haust is larger than a simple utility main
drip trap due to the potential for wet ex-
haust flow (FIG. 16).
Another misconception about steam
trapping on turbines is that any type of
trap can be used. However, many types
of traps, such as inverted bucket, bimetal
or expansion or balanced pressure ther-
mostatics, and thermodynamic, have
cyclical discharge characteristics, mean-
FIG. 13. Installing effective CDL at these seven drainage points can be crucial to improving ing they can back up condensate into
turbine reliability. the turbine, which is undesirable. Some
traps, such as bimetal or expansion de-
signs, can have large temperature sup-
pression, draining condensate on cold
startup but not draining effectively dur-
ing normal operation. For this reason, it
is preferred to use immediate response
float trap designs (FIG. 17).6,7
Steam trap condition health is some-
times not carefully managed, and this
can have a significant effect on turbines
and other equipment, such as ejectors
on air exhauster systems (reviewed later
in this article). A blocked trap causes
condensate backup into the separator it
needs to drain and can render it useless,
which highlights the need for effective,
sustainable trap testing and maintenance
(FIG. 18).8

Condensing turbines. Some turbines

are designed to have their steam fully
condensed by a surface condenser to
FIG. 14. The turbine inlet piping is the last defense to provide high-quality drive steam create a vacuum or to generate optimum
to the turbine.
power. One such example is a condens-
42 NOVEMBER 2022 | HydrocarbonProcessing.com
 Maintenance and Reliability

ing turbine driving a gas compressor.

Those turbines mounted directly on
top of a condenser typically do not ex-
perience issues with condensate removal
from the turbine casing. However, tur-
bines mounted on a pedestal that ex-
haust steam upward to the condenser
can experience significant difficulties in
getting proper condensate drainage from
the turbine casing.
Consider the desired discharge of con-
densate from a turbine casing through a
steam trap to atmosphere. Depending on
the elevation of the turbine over the trap
and because the turbine drain/trap inlet
is at vacuum, approximately 35 ft of head
is needed to discharge to atmosphere.
Typically, this is not available and, there-
fore, the system cannot drain (FIG. 19).6
An alternative might be to discharge
the casing drain condensate to the ho-
twell, but unless the condensate can FIG. 15. Once steam enters the turbine, condensate can pool from work and radiation, and must
drain down by gravity, this system can- be drained.
not work. Condensate will try to flood
the turbine casing by manometer effect
up until the horizontal entry level into
the hotwell. However, it is likely that the
water is spun by the turbine blade itself
before this higher condensate level is
reached. This can cause damage, loss of
power, erosion and precipitate buildup
issues (FIG. 20).
Since the turbine casing is in vacuum,
a pumping method is needed where
condensate gravity drains down into the FIG. 17. A correctly selected float trap
pump’s reservoir to be pumped into the can discharge condensate immediately,
hotwell (FIG. 21). FIG. 16. If an exhaust side trap is not while maintaining a water seal.
properly installed or maintained, condensate
Air removal and steam ejectors. Con- must pool to rise.
denser systems condense steam, but not
non-condensable vapors such as air. As to have significant amounts of air present
a result, an air exhauster/removal system on startup, so an additional “hogger” jet
is needed. FIG. 22 shows basic details of is often used initially to pull substantial
such a system, incorporating first- and amounts of air out of the condenser and
second-stage ejectors as well as a hogger exhaust it. Hogger systems do not have
jet system for large volume air removal additional condensers, so a lot of steam
on startup. can also be exhausted. For this reason,
Steam ejectors are critical to create hogger systems should only be used on
the necessary suction to pull air from startup, but many are commonly used
the condenser, but the resulting mixture during normal operation to supplement
contains both some of the motive steam the rest of a deficient suction system.
and air in the entrained flow. The multi- A hogger used in normal operation FIG. 18. The low temperature indicates a
ple stages of the exhauster system are de- typically indicates that the main air ex- trap or other blockage failure, reducing
signed to condense that motive steam as hauster system is not pulling enough air separator effectiveness.
it passes through, and eventually enable out of the condenser and the hogger is
the air to be vented to atmosphere at the used to compensate. In many cases of can be an indication of poor steam sup-
end of the second stage in the example proper ejector sizing, it indicates that the ply to the ejectors. There may also be a
shown in FIG. 22. ejector nozzles and/or throats may have precipitate buildup on the diffuser that
A condenser system can be expected become enlarged due to erosion, and this further weakens the suction produced.
Hydrocarbon Processing | NOVEMBER 2022 43
 Maintenance and Reliability

Virtually every article published by

Graham Manufacturing Corporation or
such industry experts as J. R. Lines, R.
T. Smith, Elliot Spence, Loren E. Wet-
zel, Norman P. Lieberman, Scott W.
Golden and Andrew Sloley—to name
a few—recommends the necessity of a
well-insulated steam supply line, near
saturated steam as the motive source,
and comments on the importance of
having a steam trap and separator/drain
installed before the steam ejector. Even
so, it is common to see neither insula-
tion, a steam trap, nor separator/drain
before an operating system.
The necessity for insulation and the
FIG. 19. A trap with supply side connected to vacuum cannot easily discharge to atmosphere.
separation and drainage equipment is
to minimize and remove the wetness
present in typical steam supply to the
ejector. What may not be considered is
that the steam velocity exiting the ejec-
tor’s motive nozzle is in the range of
3,000 ft/sec–4,000 ft/sec.9 The pres-
ence of wetness in the steam has mul-
tiple debilitating effects, from reducing
the suction to eroding the orifice. Once
the orifice diameter is enlarged by 7%,
it must be replaced—until that is done,
the vacuum is reduced and the steam
demand increased. The reduced vacuum
strength requires other ejectors to be put
into service if additional suction is need-
ed, which can significantly increase the
steam used above the flow through the
enlarged nozzle (FIG. 23).
FIG. 20. A trap can only drain into the hotwell if there is sufficient hydraulic head or downward An additional common error found
flow by gravity. on the inter- and after- condensers in
an air exhauster system is the balancing
of the drain trap (FIG. 24). Improper or
non-existent balancing is frequently ex-
perienced, and this practice can severely
impact the condenser performance due
to insufficient drainage from and subse-
quent reduction of heat transfer duty of
a flooded/partially flooded condenser.
Close attention should be given to the
correct installation and drain trap bal-
ancing, as well as maintaining the trap
to correct operating condition, to help
optimize condenser performance.

Takeaways. Consider these case history-

based experiences to help improve steam
turbine performance and vacuum system
reliability. Begin by improving the quality
of steam supplied from the utility headers,
supported by proper CDL placement and
FIG. 21. Getting condensate to flow up to the hotwell requires a pump system when hydraulic maintenance (FIGS. 4–10). This is crucial
head is insufficient. to turbine efficiency and reliability, with-
44 NOVEMBER 2022 | HydrocarbonProcessing.com
 Maintenance and Reliability

out which optimization becomes impos-

sible. Then, drain and separate moisture
from the steam supply immediately before
each turbine. Drive steam can travel a long
distance through piping systems that may
have insufficient insulation, along lines
where there may be insufficient or blocked
CDL and, in some cases, where steam is
improperly pulled from the bottom of the
utility header rather than the top. Plants
are complex and it is common that the
lines supplying steam to the turbines may
have some improper piping practices, so
optimizing the steam quality at the tur-
bine’s entrance is a best practice recom-
mendation. Properly select and size float
traps to provide effective drainage through
the turbine itself, as shown in FIG. 13.
Condensing turbines require special
considerations when draining from vacu- FIG. 22. Optimal ejector entrainment is crucial to effective air removal and system performance.
um to atmosphere or into the condenser
hotwell, such as pumping condensate or
using extremely high hydraulic head to fill
a trap with condensate (FIGS. 19–21).
Air exhauster systems are critical to
condenser operation, and similar steam-
quality and condensate-removal prin-
ciples are recommended for the steam
supplied to ejector systems to optimize
nozzle reliability and benchmark perfor-
mance (FIGS. 22 and 23). Finally, drain
traps on inter/after condensers must be
properly balanced for proper condenser
performance (FIG. 24).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The author would like to extend special thanks to
Justin McFarland and Tracy Snow for their kind review
and comments.

LITERATURE CITED
1
Cane, B., “Risk based methodology for industrial
steam systems,” Inspectioneering Journal, Vol. 23,
May/June 2017. FIG. 23. Poor quality motive steam can cause accelerated wear and costly but weakened
2
Hou, M. and T. Mita, “Advanced steam system
performance.
optimization program,” Hydrocarbon Processing, May
2018.
3
Risko, J. R., “Steam quality considerations,” Chemical JAMES R. RISKO is President of
Engineering, May 2020. TLV Corp. and is responsible for U.S.
4
Risko, J. R., “Allocate new plant focus to steam and Canadian operations. He has
system design—Part 1,” Hydrocarbon Processing, 46 yr of steam systems experience,
January 2019. has authored more than 60 technical
5
Risko, J. R., “Steam trap management: Do something, articles, provided webinars to more
anything, please!” Chemical Engineering Progress, than 3,000 attendees globally, and
October 2017. presented papers for the Kister Distillation Symposium,
6
Risko, J. R., “Optimize reliability of steam-driven Distillation Experts Conclave, Fractionation Research
turbines,” Distillation Experts Conclave 2022, Inc., AFPM, AIChE, the Ethylene Conference, RefComm,
online: https://www.tlv.com/global/US/webinars/ IPEIA, IETC, eChemExpo, AEE World and ASHRAE.
optimize-reliability-of-steam-driven-turbines.html He co-invented the world’s first combination pump/
7
Risko, J. R., “My steam trap is good—Why doesn’t it traps and created the “Extended Stall Chart” for
work?” Chemical Engineering Progress, April 2015. draining stalled coils, heat exchangers and reboilers.
8
Risko, J. R., “Beware of the dangers of cold traps,” A past Chairman of the FCI, Risko is active in FCI and
Chemical Engineering Progress, February 2013. ANSI standards development. He is an avid tennis FIG. 24. An improper 3/8-in. to ¾-in.
9
Lines, J. R. and R. T. Smith, “Ejector system and guitar player and has three energy management
balance connection can severely
troubleshooting,” The International Journal of certifications. The author can be reached at
Hydrocarbon Engineering, 1997. hinder system operation.
[email protected].

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