Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty

Special Risks for Steam Turbine

Operation due to changed energy
markets

Stefan Thumm, Dr. Martin Eckel,

Dr. Rdiger Beauvais, 4.11.2013, Munich

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG, 08.11.2013

 Claims, Allianz Zentrum fr Technik (AZT)
and the Allianz Risk Consultants Network (ARC)

Common support for underwriters, clients and loss adjusters Underwriting

with pre- and post loss expertise and services.

ARC Global network of more than 260 engineers,

specialists and industry experts. Client

Risk
AZT services include in-depth failure analysis, Management Claims
failure prevention and evaluation of prototypical
technologies AZT

AZT is an independent service provider within the

ARC network. Services are provided to AGCS clients
and independently via the Allianz Risk Consulting GmbH.

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG, 08.11.2013

2
Our perspective on damage and risk

Wear and
Tear
3
Our perspective on damage and risk

Design

Handling
Operation Material
Conditions Issues

Multiline
Lifetime
Consumption
Wear and
Tear
Interdisciplinary
4
Why the changed energy markets lead to
new risks for steam turbines

Can you mitigate these risks ?

5
Table of
contents 1 General Technology and Risk Aspects
2 The new energy world
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

6
Table of
contents 1 General Technology and Risk Aspects
2 The new energy world
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

7
 Steam Turbines, Some Key Facts

Antique Heron wheel Laval: 1883 Today

Largest single steam turbine set: ~1650 MW

Max. Lengths of rotor trains: ~ 65 m
Weight of a LP rotor: 300 t

Max. LP Exhaust Area: 30 sqm

Min. radial clearance: 0,3 mm

Value up to : 200 Mio

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Steam Turbines, Some Key Components Last stage blade

L-0 blade

rotor
vanes

9
Source: Siemens
 Steam Turbine Evolution (1)
Development Steam Turbines in Fossil Fired Power Plants in Germany
700

Life Steam 1100

Temperature Neurath F, G
(C)
Niederauem K
1000

Lippendorf R,S
620 900
Heyden

600 R&D 800

Scholven G ongoing
Supercritical Ni-base
580 materials Max.
Subcritical Unit
Current
market Capacity
560 Mature Technology introduction (MW)

1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 Time

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Steam Turbine Evolution (2)

Length of Last Stage Blade (LSB), development steps 3000 rpm

mm
1500

titanium
1400

1300

1200
48 inch longest LSB
of many manufacturers
steel 2005 - 2012
1100

1000

1990 2000 2010 Time

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Risk Evaluation for Steam Turbine operation

Loss Experience Operation

Parameters

Technology Level Maintenance

Concept/Budgets

Operational
Field Experience Excellence

Repair Options Protection

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Transfer into standardized risk assessment tool

identical and consistent for all lines of business

providing qualitative and quantitative results

Global network management, Expert Teams and Lessons Learned provide

best practice and consistency

10,00 120.000.000 10

100.000.000 4,4
5,00 6,6 5
5,0 80.000.000 2,3
1,3
2,2 0,0
0,00 60.000.000 0

-5,0 40.000.000
-5,00 -5
20.000.000

-10,00 0 -10

Plant A

Plant B

Plant C

Plant D
P la n t A

P la n t B

P la n t C

P la n t D
.. transformed into risk quality .. and processed to the business
describing ..

Local risk information captured by

ARC engineers

Portfolio

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Table of
contents 1 General Technology and Risk Aspects
2 The new energy world
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

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 In 2012 the renewable share generated was 22%
of which 11,3 % are solar + wind

Electricity generation in Germany 2012 :

617 MRD KWh
Hard coal

Gas
0,80%
11%
6% Waste
4,60%
Oil, pump
storage , 19% Solar
others 3,30%

Renewables 22% Hydro

5,80% Biomass

Nuclear Wind
26% 7,30%
16%
Lignite

Quelle : BDEW 2012 15

 In 2012 the renewable share generated was 22%
of which 11,3 % are solar + wind

Electricity generation in Germany 2012 :

617 MRD KWh
However:
Hard coal Steam Turbines
Gas
stand for 2/3 of
~3,5% 7,5%
6%
generation
Oil, pump
storage , 19%
others 16,2%
Renewables

~3,5%
Nuclear
26%
16%
Lignite

Quelle : BDEW 2012, and AZT estimates 16

 The first day in Germany with Green energy
production peaking over conventional generation

GW Electricity Generation in Germany on ? 18.04.2013

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

Coal + Nuclear Wind Solar

Your guess ?
Source : IWR 2013 17
Operation Conditions Germany

high wind and solar production mainly impacts hard coal based production

nuclear and lignite with

moderate and hard coal with
high load variation
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Operation Conditions of a german hard coal power plant

Balancing PVs

Technical min. Load during

nights

No operation on weekends

No operation 26th to 29th October due to strong wind

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 Table of
contents 1 General Technology and Risk Aspects
2 The new energy world
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

Copyright Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty 13-11-08

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New situation for power plants (hard coal, CCPP)

1. Specific costs and contracts determine usage

2. Profitability difficult to maintain

Maintenance budgets and periods under question

3. Primary and Secondary power operation mode

4. Operation as consumer for capacity power (Gts, pump storage, NPP Biblis)

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New operation for power plants (hard coal, CCPP)

1. Decreased low and minimum loads

2. Increase of operation in low and minimum loads

3. Increased number of starts

4. Increased load gradients

5. Increased number and longer time of outages

How does this work and

what are the upcoming
risks out of this
challenging boundaries
for the steam turbines ?

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Additional Aspect:
The German Capacity of hard coal Power Generation is 36 Years old

The average power plant

and steam turbines were
designed for base load
and middle load (night
stand still, daily starts )

Ref. : Public data of Umweltbundesamt, Bundesnetzagentur 23

 Table of
contents 1 General Technology and Risk Aspects
2 The new energy world
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

Copyright Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty 13-11-08

24
Change of load situation
load range

max. capacity

Flexibility:
load ramp and
no. of starts

min. load

time time
Increased Risks due to changed loads (1)

Minimum 1. Increased HP-IP vibrations (partial arc admission)

Load 2. Expected Higher Nozzle and Valve Erosion Rates

3. More water droplet erosion due to lower live steam temperatures

4. Increased Exhaust Temperatures due to LP ventilation,

different axial expansion
increased spray flow and erosion
reduced clearance and potential rubbing
5. Excitation of LP blades due to ventilation

6. HP ventilation

7. IP valve vibrations
8. Changed frequency band
Increase of wear and
of feed water pump turbines
tear and damage risk

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Increased Risks due to changed loads (2)

1. Increased HP valve vibrations

Max
Capacity 2. Higher Nozzle, Valve and LP section Erosion Rates
3. Increased Exhaust Pressure
critical in air condenser applications
increased load on LP blades at trips

4. Excitation of LP blades due to Flutter Vibration

5. Changed frequency band

of feed water pump turbines

Increase of wear and

tear and damage risk

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Increased Risks due to changed loads (3)

Flexibility 1. Hot Components with higher Low Cycle Fatigue (thermal)

2. LP blades + rotors with higher Low Cycle Fatigue (mech.)

3. Increased risk of crack propagation especially of

precracked or prefatigued rotating components

4. LP blades: extended operation

times with high cycle fatigue
5. Valve seat and sealing wear

6. Stand still corrosion

7. Drainage Issues in case of manual

drainage
Increase of wear and
tear, corrosion, fatigue
and damage risk

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Increased Risks due to changed loads (4)

Min Load

Max
Capacity Increase of:
- wear and tear
- corrosion
- fatigue
- damage risk
Flexibility

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Table of
contents 1 The new energy world
2 General Technology and Risk Aspects
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

30
What do you need to expect out of this

based on damage cases where turbines already

operated under respective load conditions

based on proven engineering know how and

average ability of engineers to predict ;-)

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Max
Capacity

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Example: Blade Failures on feed water pump turbines

Detachment after 80.000 to 130.000 operation hours

Fubruchstck mit Rastlinien

First free standing blade row

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Damage Causes

Fatigue fracture caused by periods of resonance due to modified

speed range (load uprate of main turbine)

+ corrosion fatigue

+ pitting corrosion
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due to stand stills
Example: Flutter Vibrations
Occuring at high steam flows
Self exciting mechanism
High effort to calculate
Measurable

Potential blade failures

Blade aplitudes

01/ 2011 Copyright Allianz

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Increased
Flexibility

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 Example: LCF in Rotor groove cracks
L-2 after 170.000 h / 1.500 Starts L-1 after 100.000 h / 1.000 starts

Even with former moderate start/stop

sequences rotor grooves and balde roots
require attention and special Increase of starts will reduce
years of component usage
maintenance efforts

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 Optimizing a 40 year old mid size power generation turbine for
secondary load control

Normal Operation Optimization for 12 MW/min: 4

550C 4closed, 3 MW/min rapid open and closing,

180 bar

Did the additional load cycles of optimization

cause the cracks in the valve inlet section
of the outer casing ?
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Data Aquisition
Geometry
no drawings or CAD
optical 3 D scan
FE model

Boundary Conditions
analysis of operational
/data
Wm-
estimation of heat transfers
2K-1

determination of a load cylce

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 Results: Temperature Differences

Diff. Temp of load cycle, Valve 4

02/ 2012 Copyright Allianz

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 Resulting stress

Stress vs time at crack location

FE

Location of highest stress matches with observed crack location

Optimization of operation leads to crack growth,
But: Value of stress amplitude shows that additional factors need to increase the stress locally.
Stress amplification can be caused by low casting quality

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Other consequences of increased load ramps

LCF-cracks at an HP-Casing

The consequences are

-Increased maintenance costs
and outage time for repair
- reduced remaining lifetime

LCF-cracks at stationary blading

of IP-turbine

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Reduced
minimum
loads

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Blade Failures caused by low load

L-0

L-1

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The problem with low loads

This is like diving your car in 1st

gear only
Source: ASME paper 1986 Design Criteria for Reliable
Low-Pressure Blading, Meinhard Gloger, et al. 45
The problem with loaw loads: excitation by ventilation

Rule of thumb: below 25 % nominal flow ventilation must be expected

CFD calculation: vortex area depending on individual exhaust cone

Source

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Identifying low load failures: Fatigue Fracture

Low load

ventilation

Random blade excitation

Fatigue Fracture

Danger of rotor failure

47
Identifying low load failures:
Droplet erosion at the trailing edge close to the root
Low load

ventilation

Backflow with saturated steam

Droplet erosion

Increased notch factor and risk of

crack growth

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48
 Identifying low load failures: Tip rubbing

50 51 52 1 2 3
49 4
5
47
48
6 Low load
46 7
45 8

44 9

43 10
ventilation
42 11

41 12

40 13

39 14 Local temperature increase

38 15

37 16

36 17

35 18 Local temperature increase

34 19
33 20
32 21
31 22
30 23
29 28
27 26 25
24 Additional Elongulation of blades

Blade Row L-1:

fractured
tip rubbing
ok
49
Identifying low load failures:
Discoloration and / or build up of scale

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 Identifying low load failures:
Analysis of operational data

14%

12%

10%

8%

6%

4%

2%

0%
0 bis 1 1 bis 1,1 1 ,1 bis 1,2 1,2 bis 1,3 1,3 bis 1,4 1,4 bis 1,5 1,5 bis 1,6 1,6 bis 1,7 1,7 bis 1,8 1,8 bis 1,9 1,9 bis 2,0

=> Pressure ratio over last stage below 1 (at load over 200MW)

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51
Other consequences of low load operation

Erosion of casing splitting LP-Last stage blading drop erosion

This is not easy and not fast to repair

LP-Last stage stationary blading erosion

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Table of
contents 1 General Technology and Risk Aspects
2 The new energy world
3 Consequences for Steam Turbines
4 Description of Increased Risks
5 Some Examples
6 Risk Mitigation

53
Ageing of turbine fleet Risk Increase

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Changed Risk Balance

Risk Balance

Risk
Increase

Wear and Tear

Corrosion
Fatigue
Material Damage
Business Interuption
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requries individual and joint approach

Risk Balance

Risk
Risk Mitigation
Increase Measures

Wear and Tear Individual plant analysis

Corrosion Apropiate Operational Measures
Fatigue Tailor Made concepts of Manufacturers
Material Damage Awareness
Business Interuption Risk Control

Development needs not only to consider

efficieny and costs but also flexibility and to mitigate new risks
reliability !
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Loss Control programs help mitigate the new risks

Technical risk assessment Loss control programs Special services

Underwriting services Client services Know-How transfer

DTR (Desk Top Review) Monitoring and coordination Loss analysis & support
CRM programs
MFL/PML calculation and Laboratory forensics
risk evaluation Risk improvements and
loss mitigation concepts Emerging Risks
Risk Survey Observation
Business Continuity
Lessons Learned
Recommendation tracking
Engineering Consulting generation

Core Service/
Portfolio protection Additional Services bundled / unbundled

Prototype Evaluation.

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Contacts

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG

Dr. Martin Eckel

Engineering Claims Germany, Head of Complex Claims
Telephone: +49 (0)89 3800 13229
Email: martin.eckel@allianz.com

Dr. Rdiger Beauvais

Risk Consultants Engineering Germany, Senior Risk Engineer
Telephone: +49 (0)89 3800 4385
Email: ruediger.beauvais@allianz.com

Stefan Thumm
Allianz Risk Consulting GmbH Allianz Zentrum fr Techink, Operational Manager
Telephone: +49 (0)89 3800 6643
Email: stefan.thumm@allianz.com

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG 2013. All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is provided without liability for
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Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty AG, 08.11.2013 58