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Is Turbine Flush Justified?
Brian Wagner, Tri-County Petroleum
A flush of the turbine fluid would be warranted for several reasons.
1. The age of the fluid itself is an indication alone that it
should at least be sampled if not flushed and replaced.
2. Since there was a fire the heat from the fire could have oxidized
the oil past its' level of protection and broken it down to a
point of complete degradation.
The fact that there is also babbit material in the fluid and
that it is contaminated with so many other contaminants is another
reason to flush the fluid. It is much cheaper to flush while you
are in a maintenance shut down than it is to HAVE to flush during
production and lose many dollars of production because the turbine
is failing for one reason or another, but primarily from a lubrication
failure.
Although the article states that the babbit material most likely
is a result of the fire how can one be sure? Was the babbit material
in there before the fire and they are just noticing it now because
they checked AFTER the fire? In my opinion given all the events
that have taken place and not knowing when certain materials (rust,
oxide, and babbit material) starting showing up in the fluid,
it is time to flush.
Also there may be other suspended particles in the fluid that
have not reared their ugly heads at this point and could cause
serious problems in the future. Given the tight tolerances that
turbines run under and what is expected of the turbine fluid to
do (ISO cleanliness specs) again, it is time to replace.
The production people would be wise to listen to the maintenance
department in this case, production only worries about production,
they are not seeing in the future of the catastrophes they could
be facing is they forego the opportunity to flush the fluid during
a shut down rather than having to do it later and lose production.
See other responses
to this Readers Challenge.
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