Case study: Improved compressor wash efficiency with full system upgrade

ECT was contracted to perform a full upgrade on two Frame 7EA units. The design goals were to use the existing crank wash nozzles provided by General Electric, design new online wash hardware and engineer the upgraded online/off-line wash skids.

Our engineers first task was to confirm the operating pressure parameters of the crank wash hardware. The next step was to design mounting bosses for the new nozzles that would fit cleanly into the existing ports that were machined into the unit by GE. The final step was designing and building the complete wash skids.

The retrofit bosses for the online nozzles allowed the new hardware to be mounted in less than two hours per engine. ECT also provided a modified plate to transition from the manifolds to the accessory compartment.

The wash skid was designed to improve the cleaning programs performance as well as the plants efficiency when performing each wash. The new skids were designed to integrate into the plants existing water and electric supply. The heaters on the skids were sized to allow water to be heated to 180° F in under two hours. This minimizes the likelihood of operators waiting for wash liquid to heat and lowers the risk of washing a compressor with cold fluid. The new systems will extend time between crank washing by 50% to 100%.

Let ECT show you how we can improve your watch program to achieve maximum power from your gas turbine.