HOW TO AVOID TURBINE FAILURES IN LNG PROCESSING PLANTS
The demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) across the globe is soaring to 300 million tons per annum (MTPA). Over the next decade, demand for LNG is expected to overpower supply, making it more crucial than ever for LNG production processes to be as efficient and reliable as possible.
During LNG processing, gas turbines are often used as a mechanical drive to compress refrigerants. Unexpected downtime or turbine failure during the liquefaction process can result in huge financial losses for LNG plant owners. To capitalize on the severity, a single unscheduled turbine shutdown could result in an entire LNG train to be taken offline, requiring lengthy shutdown and start-up procedures.
To avoid massive losses due to turbine failure, it’s important to take preventative measures to protect your equipment from hazardous elements. In a recent blog post, Parker reveals that inlet filtration systems are one of the best solutions to solving unexpected turbine shutdowns.
Inlet filtration has proven to protect LNG processing turbines from corrosion, erosion, fouling, high levels of small particulate and outside contaminates. These filtration systems typically incorporate multiple stages into their protection work, including:
- Prefilter stages: removes large particles and protects the higher efficiency filtration stages
- Coalescers: removes liquid contaminates
- Final filter stage: removes fine particulate and ensures the air entering the turbine is clean
Inlet filtration is crucial to ensure the reliable operation of gas turbines. With proper preventative measures in place, LNG processing plants will no longer have to risk the financial destruction that follows turbine failure.