2010

Monitoring and Measuring the Availability and Reliability Performance (RAM) of one OEM’s Advanced Gas Turbine Class Fleet: Computation Method Based on Continuous Data Collection
(PowerGen Europe June 2010)Carlos Koeneke (Mitsubishi Power Systems America) & Sal Della Villa

The availability and reliability characteristics of today’s power generation product offerings are
key performance indicators for both owner/operators and equipment manufacturers alike. For
the owner/operator, how the equipment performs on a service hour per start basis, impacts
maintenance schedules and outage durations, influences parts lives and spare part requirements, and ultimately determines whether pro forma profitability goals are achievable. For the equipment manufacturer, availability and reliability performance are a reflection of both product and service quality. Consequently, the owner/operators and equipment manufacturers have a shared objective; to ensure that the actual availability and reliability performance of the
operating asset is measured, is acceptable, and is sustainable. This data can be used for
benchmarking purposes but needs to be calculated following a common standard and preferably by an unbiased party.

The use of remote monitoring systems in the power generation industry has proven to be a very
effective tool for early detection of potential malfunctions and trouble shooting. In addition, the
remote monitoring data can also be used for availability and reliability calculations. This
automated approach can reduce the burden of data input at the owner/operators end, providing an opportunity to obtain timelier, accurate, and reliable data by eliminating errors that can result
through manual input. 

Request Full Document  

A Historical and Current Perspective of the Availability and Reliability
Performance of Heavy Duty Gas Turbines: Benchmarks and Expectations
(ASME Turbo Expo June 2010)Carlos Koeneke (Mitsubishi Power Systems America) & Sal Della Villa

Since its inception the gas turbine market has been driven by an emphasis on improved operating efficiency, greater megawatt output, with reduced environmental impact through technology advancement.  The technology advances that have taken place include; higher firing temperatures and pressure ratios, improved cooling schemes with advanced metallurgy and coatings for hot gas path parts, consideration for tighter clearances, low emissions combustion systems, and fuels flexibility.  Contemporaneously, there has been a commensurate focus on ensuring that the achievable levels of availability and reliability of these evolving product offerings would be optimized for various duty cycles, applications, and plant arrangements.  In fact, as product evolution and advancement has taken place, there has been an expectation that availability and reliability performance would be consistent with the best achievable levels experienced by existing and more mature technologies.

The purpose of this paper is to address the industry focus on availability and reliability (from EPRI to DOE), and to discuss the current and historical availability and reliability performance of gas turbines based on class; specifically “E” and “F” class.  Additionally, this paper will also address the positive impact that “remote monitoring” has had; through the automation and computation of availability and reliability metrics.  “Remote monitoring” has been introduced to provide an extra level of protection and diagnostic capability; providing an emphasis on performance, operability, and availability of the power generation equipment.  The fact that “remote monitoring” has facilitated rapid data acquisition has had a positive impact on the calculation of availability and reliability metrics, making them more timely and accurate.  This important point will also be discussed.  

Request Full Document  

If you are interested in the full text of any of the whitepapers listed, please click on the request button below each article  . Please be sure that the article name is in the subject line.