HWANGE POWER STATION

SEPTEMBER 2022 REPORT

01-31 September 2022

Dennis Tavonga Muzila

GRADUATE TRAINEE- ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

Trainee: ____________________________ Date: __________________

Supervisor__________________________ Date: ___________________

Introduction
This report outlines the activities carried out by the trainee in the month of September 2022
and explains key learning points.

Key learning points

 Attended Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and Failure Mode Effects Analysis (FMEA)
workshop
 Learnt about Stage one boiler feed pump working principle
 Learnt about centrifugal pumps
 Removed metal casing of stage one turbine HP front pedestal
 Turbine Journal Bearing Inspection and shaft position check
 Cut gasket (kilingerite 1000) for 3B extraction pump
 Carried out alignment of motor and shaft axis of extraction pump 3B using Dial
Indicator Alignment method

Root Cause Analysis (RCA)

It is an easy to follow process to help find the true cause of an issue or a process for
collecting resolved issues for future references. An RCA is used when there is;
1. A repeat issue
2. A critical failure
3. Healthy and safety issue
4. Where teamwork is required

Steps involved on RCA

1. Define the problem (use the 5W, 1H approach) what, when, where, who, why and
how.
2. Define the process by going to the scene of the issue, recording the process
information, talking to people involved with the process and by drawing a process
map if required.
3. Identify possible causes by using the Fishbone analysis which separates into 6
categories (6Ms) man, method, measurement, mother- nature, material and machine.
 4. Identify the root cause by using the 5 Whys.
5. Implement countermeasures by identifying counter measures, planning
implementation, assigning owners due dates and follow up dates, ensuring that
improvements are measurable and agree on control measures. Maintain improvements
[ensure it does not involve any new risks to the process] and train employees on
change by use of SOPs. Implement preventative maintenance and use control charts to
monitor the process.
6.

Failure Mode Effects Analysis (FMEA)

Failure mode is a single event, which causes a functional failure. An FMEA is a systematic
process that requires consideration for all potential failure modes associated with a new
design or process. FMEA helps to identify potential design and process failures before they
occur and to minimize the risk of failure by either proposing design changes or, if these
cannot be formulated, proposing operational procedures. FMEA can generally be classified as
either a design (DFMEA) or a process (PFMEA) depending upon the application. DFMEA
analyses the design of a product by examining the way that item’s failure modes affect the
operation of the product. PFMEA analyses the processes involved in design, building, using,
 and maintaining a product by examining the way that failures in the manufacturing or service
processes effects on the operation of the product.

Benefits of carrying out an FMEA

Companies that follow the 10 steps of FMEA correctly have been able to.

 Increase product reliability

 Increase customer satisfaction
 Reduce complaints/time spent dealing with complaints
 Reduce the risk of safety failures
 Reduce manufacturing errors and help launch on time
 Reduce costs and increase profits
 Improve ways of working
 10 steps to creating a FMEA

1. List the key process steps in the first column.  These may come from the highest ranked
items.
2. List the potential failure mode for each process step.  In other words, figure out how this
process step or input could go wrong.
3. List the effects of this failure mode. If the failure mode occurs what does this mean to us
and our customer… in short what is the effect?
4. Rate how severe this effect is with 1 being not severe at all and 10 being extremely
severe.  Ensure the team understands and agrees to the scale before you start.   Also, make
this ranking system “your own” and don’t bother trying to copy it out of a book.
5. Identify the causes of the failure mode/effect and rank it as you did the effects in the
occurrence column.  This time, as the name implies, we are scoring how likely this cause
will occur.  So, 1 means it is highly unlikely to ever occur and 10 means we expect it to
happen all the time.
6. Identify the controls in place to detect the issue and rank its effectiveness in the detection
column.  Here a score of 1 would mean we have excellent controls and 10 would mean we
have no controls or extremely weak controls.  If a SOP is noted here (a weak control in my
opinion) you should note the SOP number.
7. Multiply the severity, occurrence, and detection numbers and store this value in the
RPN (risk priority number) column.  This is the key number that will be used to identify
where the team should focus first.  If, for example, we had a severity of 10 (very severe),
occurrence of 10 (happens all the time), and detection of 10 (cannot detect it) our RPN is
1000.  This means all hands on deck… we have a serious issue!
8. Sort by RPN number and identify most critical issues.  The team must decide where to
focus first.
9. Assign specific actions with responsible persons.  Also, be sure to include the date for
when this action is expected to be complete.
10. Once actions have been completed, re-score the occurrence and detection .  In most
cases we will not change the severity score unless the customer decides this is not an
important issue.

Boiler Feed Pump

The boiler feed pump function is to supply pressurized feed water to the boilers maintain the
water inventory at various operating loads. Stage one BFP is a six stage centrifugal pump
with a suction pressure of 0.6Mpa and discharge pressure of 16Mpa. The BFP has multistage
pumps in series (6) to ensure a high enough head and pressure. They have all impellers
arranged in one direction and therefore require a thrust balancing component. Pumps
structured to use double suction impeller at only the first stage are often used because this
structure can reduce the required NPSH by halving the suction flow because of the double
suction.

BFP pump is driven by an induction motor for energy efficiency and the pump is fitted with a
mechanical seal or labyrinth glands to prevent leakages along the shaft. It consists of a
balance piston to achieve hydraulic balance and a balancing line that connects the suction
chamber 1st stage to the discharge chamber the last stage to accumulate the Thrust in feed
water pump. The pump utilizes fully shrouded impellers and volute casing and it is made of
stainless steel to reduce corrosion. It consists a thrust bearing of pads and collars with a
forced lubrication system.

BFP Protection
 1. Pressure relief valve which consists of a relief line, are designed to open at a pre-set
pressure and discharge fluid until pressure drops to acceptable levels.
2. Balance leak off line that balances the centrifugal pump shaft from axial thrust and the
leak off line is used when there is high demand (overload).The leak off mechanical
valve is used for:
i. Compensation
ii. By passing when demand is low
iii. Check valve which allows flow in one direction to avoid reverse rotation.
3. Auto recirculation valve which allows the pump to operate at flow that is greater than
minimum continuous stable flow to avoid damage of bearings and abnormal
vibrations.

BFP ABB Motor Specifications

The motor is cooled by circulating water and motor air temperature determines the winding
temperature. Type MAI 560L2L No 4612451, 3 phase induction motor, phase connection-
Delta, Insulation class F, IP (ingress protection)-55, IC (International Cooling)-81W, IM
(International Mounting)-1001, Standard IEC 60034-1, Output 2875Kw, Output voltage
3.3Kv,current 566A, frequency 50Hz, Speed 2978 r.p.m, power factor 0.92 .

Centrifugal Pump

A centrifugal pump is one of the simplest pieces of equipment in any process plant. Its
purpose is to convert energy of a prime mover (a electric motor or turbine) first into velocity
or kinetic energy and then into pressure energy of a fluid that is being pumped. The energy
changes occur by virtue of two main parts of the pump, the impeller and the volute or
diffuser. The impeller is the rotating part that converts driver energy into the kinetic energy.
The volute or diffuser is the stationary part that converts the kinetic energy into pressure
energy. Note: All of the forms of energy involved in a liquid flow system are expressed in
terms of feet of liquid i.e. head.

Generation of Centrifugal Force

The process liquid enters the suction nozzle and then into eye (center) of a revolving device
known as an impeller. When the impeller rotates, it spins the liquid sitting in the cavities
between the vanes outward and provides centrifugal acceleration. As liquid leaves the eye of
the impeller a low-pressure area is created causing more liquid to flow toward the inlet.
Because the impeller blades are curved, the fluid is pushed in a tangential and radial direction
by the centrifugal force. This force acting inside the pump is the same one that keeps water
inside a bucket that is rotating at the end of a string. Figure below depicts a side cross-section
of a centrifugal pump indicating the movement of the liquid.

The key idea is that the energy created by the centrifugal force is kinetic energy. The amount
of energy given to the liquid is proportional to the velocity at the edge or vane tip of the
impeller. The faster the impeller revolves or the bigger the impeller is, then the higher will be
the velocity of the liquid at the vane tip and the greater the energy imparted to the liquid. This
kinetic energy of a liquid coming out of an impeller is harnessed by creating a resistance to
the flow. The first resistance is created by the pump volute (casing) that catches the liquid
and slows it down. In the discharge nozzle, the liquid further decelerates and its velocity is
converted to pressure according to Bernoulli’s principle.

HP Front Pedestal metal casing removal

A crane and chain block were used to remove the HP front pedestal metal casing. Turbine
consists of three pedestals which are the HP front pedestal, HP-LP pedestal and the LP-
Generator pedestal. Unit one turbine is of the condensing type, continuous maximum rating -
120Mw, speed -3000 r.p.m, turbine stages –HP (16 stages), LP-2*5 stages, casings (2),
exhaust flows(2), exhaust casing(1),turbine rotation from HP front is anticlockwise, live
steam at turbine inlet [P-8.4Mpa, temp-510℃, Exhaust downstream pressure (11.8Kpa),Bled
points(5), feedwater heaters(5){2HP heaters,2 LP heaters and a deaerator of counter flow
type.

In a steam turbine the inlet and exhaust pressures and the inlet temperature of the steam
determine the theoretical energy available at the turbine inlet. To release the energy inside the
turbine, steam flows over an alternate series of fixed and moving blades and as a result
expands from high pressure to low pressure. A turbine stage consists of a stationary set of
blades or nozzles, followed by a moving set called buckets or rotor blades. These two
different blade types together cause steam to do mechanical work on the rotor. The stationary
nozzles turn and accelerate steam converting the potential energy of steam (pressure) into
kinetic energy (velocity). The buckets convert the kinetic energy of steam leaving the nozzles
into both an impulse force (due to a change in direction of the steam) and a reaction force
(due to a pressure drop across rotating blades), causing the shaft to rotate and generate power.

Trainee learnt that the HP front pedestal consist of the following components the Turning
gear, journal bearing, thrust bearing , valve chest, Main oil pump, mechanical overspeed unit
and the governor system..

Turning gear

It rotates the rotor line at low speed during cooling down uniformly as this will prevent
distortion of the shaft and during cold start the turning gear prevents unequal heating of the
rotors and resultant distortion when steam is admitted to the shaft glands.it is driven by an
380v asynchronous motor at a speed of 50 r.p.m and torque is transmitted through a worm
gearing and an overrunning clutch to the HP rotor.

Journal Bearing

A bearing designed to carry loads that pass radially through the shaft and it is of the lemon
bore type with horizontal joint. Oil is admitted into the bearing from both sides at joint level
suitable for both clockwise and anticlockwise operation.it carries the weight of the turbine
rotor and allow it to rotate with least friction avoiding metal to metal contact. An oil film is
established between stationary surface and rotor to separate them (jacking oil system).Jacking
oil system provides a hydrostatic lift to establish an oil film during start to reduce break away
torque. The pressured oil is supplied at 15Mpa by means of high pressure pumps.

Thrust Bearing

It is of the kingsbury double acting –single collar tilting pad type designed to transmit axial
forces from the thrust collar on the rotor through hydro-dynamic oil film to the pads and from
there via equalising elements to the thrust bearing elements.it has 6 pads on loaded sides and
6 also on unloaded sides, speed -3000 r.p.m and oil inlet temp is 45℃.
Valve chest [LH and RH]

Each valve chest is provided with an emergency stop valve and two control valves. The steam
admission to the emergency stop valve is vertical from below and the inlet pipes from the
control valves to the HP casing are short and flexible. Both valve chests are supported on
swing links and are able to follow the heat expansion of the casing. Control valves are driven
by servo motors they open in a sequence which allows uniform expansion of the valve chest
to avoid rubbing [1-2-4-3]. The control valve chests and the HP casings can be heated to
permit a rapid start-up of the turbine from cold or semi-warm condition. For this purpose,
steam is introduced through a heating pipe into the two control valve chests whence it flows
through the steam admission pipes into the HP casing. In this manner all sections of the
casing are subjected to intensive heating before the turbine is started. This results in almost
uniform axial expansion conditions of the rotor and casing and largely eliminates the risk of
any rubbing.

Main Oil pump.

The oil supply for the turbo-generator in normal operation is maintained by the main oil
pump (single stage horizontal centrifugal pump) which is geared to the turbine shaft and
which has oil delivered to it by a transfer pump. The oil flow intended for bearing lubrication
is passed through an oil turbine, which drives the transfer pump, to reduce the pressure to the
level required in the bearings. The bearing oil and control oil flows are passed through a
fabric insert type filter. Two changeover type full-flow oil coolers are provided for cooling
the bearing oil.
During starting of the turbo-generator, 2 AC operated auxiliary oil pumps deliver oil to the
bearing oil and control oil circuits until the main oil pump reaches its full output. The
auxiliary bearing oil pump is also automatically cut in if the oil pressure downstream of the
main oil pump or the bearing oil pressure should fall below a predetermined limit. If the
pressure falls below the predetermined limit for the bearing oil pressure, the DC operated
emergency oil pump would be started automatically.

Two HP gear oil pumps are provided to supply oil at 150 bar to produce a hydrostatic lift
under the turbine and generator shaft journals during starting and during operation of the
turning gear. With the exception of the main oil pump, which is geared to the turbine shaft,
all oil pumps are accommodated, in an oil room which also houses the oil tank, the oil
coolers, oil filters and oil purifying plant. Grouping these items together facilitates servicing
and maintenance of this group.

Mechanical overspeed

It trips the turbine when the speed of the turbine reaches 3600 r.p.m.it has a clutch system
that disengages and closes the emergency stop valves and closes all the control valves.

Governor System

Woodward flyweight speed governor is used with nozzle governing system: There are
four control valves, which are required to open to give the desired linear output vs.
'frequency characteristic. The governing system is also provided with Automatic.
Pressure unloading gear and vacuum unloading gear. When the Boiler outlet steam
pressure falls below a set value, the machine is unloaded proportionately from full load
to no load to match the steam consumption in the turbine equal to the steaming
capacity of the Boiler. Similarly when the condenser vacuum falls below a set value,
the machine is unloaded proportionately. Provision is also made to prevent excessive
overshooting of the speed when large load (dp/dt) occur, by temporarily closing all the
control valves through a load shedding relay.

Journal bearing inspection and shaft position check

At some time during its life a bearing will have to be removed and measurements taken to see
how much wear, if any, has taken place, all the associated covers and fittings were removed
to gain access to the bearing housing. The following procedure was followed:
  Identify markings on bearing housing caps and bearing shells. Split and remove the
top half housing complete with the top half bearing and place it to one side.
 Remove the bottom half bearing by sliding the bearing around the shaft to the top, in
some cases the shaft will have to be supported to allow the bearing to rotate.
 Thoroughly clean both top and bottom bearing, housing, and shaft journal.
After the inspection was done it was observed that the bottom half white metal bearing
was wearing out due to insufficient supply of journal bearing oil as shown in the
diagram below.

The bottom half was scrapped using scrappers. The object of scraping is to "Bed" in the
bearing with the shaft, or journal, and to obtain the correct running clearance between the
bearing and shaft. To assist with the scraping a form of marking ink was used, this is called
Prussian, or Engineers Blue, and is used to "Highlight" the high spots on the bearing surface.
When the bearing has been scraped in correctly, the markings will show a number of areas of
contact uniformly scattered across the bearing surface, these are known as bearing patches
and should cover approximately 60% to 70% of the bearing contact area.

White metal is an alloy of lead, antimony, copper and tin, the ratios of which govern the use
to which it is put. For example, the higher the lead content the more susceptible to corrosion
it becomes (by the acid products of the oxidisation of the oil). The major weakness of lead
based white metal (sometimes called Babbitts metal) bearings is the rapid loss of strength as
the temperature rises above 150°C. Hence it is important that bearings are well lubricated in
order to reduce working temperature. Clearance between shaft and bearing was also checked
using micrometre. Running clearance must be provided between shaft and bearing. It is
general practice to allow 0.0010 inch to 0.0015 inch for each inch diameter of shaft. The
running clearance cannot be standardised as it has to be chosen with due regard to the
materials of the journal and the bearing liner and also the operating characteristics. It can be
seen that all the clearance, when the shaft is at rest, is on the top half of the bearing. But at the
junction of the top and bottom halves the clearance will be divided equally between each side
of the shaft.

Cut gasket (kilingerite 1000) for 3B extraction pump

A gasket stores energy like a spring and seals two mating surfaces that fails to perfectly meet.
The thicker the gasket the more sealing it offers. Factors to consider when looking for a
gasket are

 Pressure
 Temperature
 Material
 Medium to be sealed

Alignment of motor and shaft axis of extraction pump 3B (using Dial

indicator alignment method)

Shaft alignment is the process to align two or more shafts with each other to within a
tolerated margin. Three methods of alignment are the laser optic, dial indicator and straight
edge and feeler gauge method. There are three types of alignments which are

• Parallel or Lateral alignment

• Angular alignment

• Combined Angular and Lateral alignment

Disadvantages of Misaligned shafts

 When shafts are misaligned, forces are generated, these forces are results in vibration,
noise, bearing damage, shaft damage, coupling damage and Looseness
 In extreme cases the bending stresses applied to the shaft will cause the shaft to
fracture and break.
Shaft Alignment procedure

Preliminary Checks
  Visually check coupling, pipe hangers, base bolts, coupling spacing etc.
 Check for coupling & shaft run out.
Sag Check
 Clamp the brackets on a sturdy piece of pipe
 Zero both indicators on top, and then rotate to the bottom.
 The difference between the top and bottom reading is the sag
 Each time alignment reading is taken then the sag must be accounted for subtracting

The following procedure was followed

 The indicators are zeroed on the top and read at the bottom.

 Record the indicator reading and consider the sag compensation by subtracting it from
the recorded reading.

 Move the motor to the required distance for vertical alignment by adding shims in
place.

 Tighten all bolts and take and check the readings. If the readings are within tolerance
than the equipment is aligned After the test the total run out was found to be 0.01
which was acceptable and also the float was measured which was divided by two to
determine the impeller position.

Extraction Pump motor specifications

 It is a three phase Asynchronous motor, IP-55,output-275Kw, speed -1480 r.p.m, power
factor -0.85, voltage -3.3KV,current-60.5A, duty cycle is continuous ,insulation class F and
weight -2180Kg .The pump is a four stage centrifugal pump.

Recommendations

Trainee observed that the bottom half white bearing was wearing out due to insufficient
supply of jacking oil due to dirty oil system interiors (piping, tanks, coolers etc), jacking oil
to provide a lift to prevent contact between shaft and bearing therefore the trainee
recommends that hydrodynamic cleaning and flushing with oil at turbulent flow rates must be
done thoroughly when there is an overhaul. Trainee also recommends that for shaft alignment
the laser alignment method can be used since it is the best alternative to using dial indicator
since there are no reading errors or parallax effects and also no tilting error as long as the
system components can be securely mounted on the shafts or solid coupling hubs, no error
can occur since the only movement registered is that of the beam across the sensor caused by
misalignment of the shafts as they are turned.