Combined Cycle

Reheat Attemperator

Reheat Attemperator Background Reheat Attemperators are used as a final control element of steam temperature into the IP section (sometimes LP section depending on plant design) of the Steam Turbine. The steam extracted from the HP section of the turbine is passed back through the boiler and reheater prior to entering the next stage of the turbine.  These attemperators spray water into the reheat line to control the steam temperature. Like superheat attemperators, reheat attemperators are subject to the changes made in controlling flue gas temperature in combustion. However, the reheat steam pressures exiting the HP are much less than superheat steam pressures entering them – meaning the pressure drop across reheat temperature control valves is much greater. This dynamic can create cavitating process conditions creating rapid and excessive trim wear in these valves.  Using REXA Linear and Rotary actuators in reheat temperature control applications increases cycling power plants’ efficiency allowing for minimal valve throttling capabilities, tight shutoff and maximum trim life. Learn more in the full Application Spotlight below!  Literature Download the Attemperator Spray Control Application Spotlight! Download

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Inlet Guide Vanes

Background on Inlet Guide Vanes Inlet Guide Vanes (IGVs) deliver air to the inlet of a gas turbine’s axial compressor. While maintaining proper fuel-to-air ratio through various load ranges, they minimize the potential for unwanted emissions. In present-day Combined Cycle power plants, IGVs ultimately control the exhaust gas temperature – a critical input to the Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG). Stable control of the exhaust gas temperature enhances the combined unit’s level of efficiency.  Many current day turbines use low NOx combustors that require a lean air-fuel mixture. As hot gas temperatures decrease, the formation of NOx also decreases. With a higher air mix, it’s critical to control the exact amount of air in the combustors – especially during low loads.  The REXA Solution REXA’s Electraulic™ Actuators provide responsive, repeatable control for IGV applications on all major manufacturers’ combustion turbines. Designed for continuous modulating service, the patented self-contained and closed-loop hydraulic circuit within our actuators provides stiff and stable control in the harshest environments. This system does not need any filters or oil-based maintenance.  A membrane keypad on the enclosure cover ensures simple set-up and calibration. Actuator performance is unmatched within the industry with adjustable dead-band to 0.05% of stroke, resolution of <0.1% and frequency response of 1.5 to 5.0 Hz. Literature Download our full Application Spotlight on Inlet Guide Vanes to learn more! Download

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Turbine Bypass System Control

Turbine Bypass System Control What are Turbine Bypass Systems? Turbine bypass systems in Combined Cycle Power Plants (CCPPs) are utilized to ramp units online and offline, stably controlling Main Steam Pressure and Reheat Pressure in the Heat Recovery Steam Generator. In addition, these systems safely maintain vacuum at the condenser. CCPPs are cycled more frequently, therefore making turbine bypass systems utilized more often – further proving how critical they are to plant operations.  Potential Problems Improperly functioning turbine bypass system valves represent more than just an inconvenience to effective operation of CCPPs. They routinely contribute to unscheduled downtime and trip events. Every unscheduled trip event adds to equivalent plant starts, and greatly reduces the planned maintenance intervals as part of Long-Term Service Agreements (LTSAs), causing plants to spend millions of dollars before they should be required to do so.  Our Solution Through responsive and repeatable performance, our Electraulic™ Actuation enables CCPPs to optimize transitions and eliminate nuisance trips during ramp-up, ramp down and emergency response scenarios. Our actuators provide hydraulic control capable of steps to .05% resolution – completely eliminating the effects of stick-slip inherent of pneumatic actuators. We design our actuators for continuous modulating service and provide stiff, stable control even in the harshest environmental conditions (-40°F to +250°F).  Customer Testimonial “Performance issues with our pneumatically-operated turbine bypass valves were an ongoing problem at our plant for years. The previous actuators were not stiff enough in ramping/de-ramping and blending scenarios. The resulting valve hysteresis caused unstable operation, degradation to the valve trim and long transitioning periods. Upgrades to REXA actuation have reduced ramp times by as much as 20 minutes, leading to increased generation revenue, and has completely eliminated unwanted trip events. This was the best investment we have made at my plant in my tenure…”  Literature Download our Turbine Bypass System Optimization Application Spotlight! Download

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Feedwater Regulator for Drum Boilers

Feedwater Regulator for Drum Boilers Keeping accurate and stable drum level control is vital to optimal plant operation, but there are many challenges that are inherent with this process. Innate to level control on a drum style boiler is a dynamic called “shrink and swell”, which is caused by the formation of vapor bubbles in the boiler evaporation tubes as steam demand changes. On increase of steam demand, the drum pressure decreases which, in turn, causes additional steam to be created through water evaporation, and causes expansion of the vapor bubbles below the surface of the water. This phenomenon causes the drum level to rise initially, instead of the drop that would be expected upon more steam leaving the drum (swell). Likewise, on a decrease of steam demand, the pressure in the drum increases and the drum level initially drops (shrink). In order to control drum level accurately, the effects of “shrink and swell” are typically compensated for in the control system with a cascade/feed-forward control strategy that utilizes steam flow and feedwater flow transmitters in conjunction with the drum level and drum pressure transmitter measurements.  Literature Download the Feedwater Regulators Application Spotlight! Download

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