scope:

OBJECT AND SCOPE

The test procedures presented herein do not supplant the Code as the basic procedure for turbine acceptance tests. The Code provides for the accurate testing of steam turbines for the purpose of obtaining the absolute level of performance.

This Report presents general recommendations for instrumentation and test planning in Sections 3 through 5. These recommendations are based on current industry practice for the periodic determination of turbine-cycle performance. Section 6 discusses interpretation of test results and shows typical plots of test data for analysis of turbine performance.

Sections 7 through 12 present typical procedures for selected types of turbine cycles. Each of these procedures contains specific recommendations for instrumentation and method for testing a selected turbine type. No attempt has been made to cover all possible turbine types, but typical examples have been detailed. Combinations of the presented types may be used to cover other arrangements. For each recommended test procedure, the expected value of repeatability is estimated on the basis of current industry experience. This value of repeatability must be used to judge the significance of the indicated level of performance as compared to the chronological trend of past performance. (See Par. 3.9 for discussion of repeatability.)

The primary intent of these test procedures is to monitor changes in overall turbine cycle performance. Supplementary instrumentation and data may be included in the test procedure to diagnose the causes of changed performance. This secondary information may assist in evaluating the effect of component changes on the overall performance. Turbine-shaft vibration readings and turbine-metal temperatures, although not direct indicators of turbine thermal performance, provide data trends which may forewarn of future problems. Some users may prefer the simplicity of the recommended procedure and then run a second test only when a detailed analysis is required. These procedures define both primary and secondary data for a turbine-performance analysis.

For reference purposes only, Section 13 presents other test procedures for determining turbine-performance trends; however, these procedures may not provide complete data for analysis of all components in the turbine cycle. In special cases, they may provide adequate information and be advantageous due to their low cost and simplicity.

For on-line computer monitoring of steam-turbine performance, the simplified test procedures given in this Report can serve as a basis for choice of instrumentation and development of calculation procedures. The instrumentation is selected to achieve repeatable results consistent with the objective of monitoring the trend of turbine performance.