Specified Maintenance of Steam Turbines in Geothermal Power Plants

Abstract

In a geothermal power plant the working fluid used to produce electricity is often wet steam composed of corrosives chemicals. In this situation, more frequent maintenance of the equipment is required. By constructing an overview for maintenance in geothermal power plants and how it can be done with minimum power outages and cost, the geothermal energy can be made more competitive in comparison to other energy resources. This work is constructed as a part of a project, which has the aim of mapping the maintenance management system at the Hellisheiði geothermal power plant in Iceland. The object of the project is to establish Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) program for Hellisheiði power plant that can be utilized to establish efficient maintenance management procedures. The focus of this paper is to examine the steam turbines, which have been defined as one of the main subsystems of the power plant at Hellisheiði. A close look will be taken at the maintenance needed for the steam turbines by studying for example which parts break down and how frequently they fail. The local ability of the staff to repair or construct turbine parts on-site is explored. The paper explores how the maintenance and condition monitoring is carried out today and what can be improved in order to reduce cost. The data collected is analyzed using Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) in order to get an overview of the system and to help organizing maintenance and condition monitoring of the power plant in the future. Furthermore, the paper presents an overview of currently employed maintenance methods at Hellisheiði power plant, the domestic ability for maintaining and repairing steam turbines and the power plant’s need for repairs. The results show that the need for maintenance of the geothermal steam turbines at Hellisheiði power plant is high and that on-site maintenance and repairs can decrease the cost.