Development of a Software System for Estimating the Steam Turbine Condenser Performance

A software system for estimating the performance of a steam turbine condenser has been developed on the basis of its mathematical model, which takes into account the condenser interaction with the main ejector. The software system performs a number of key functions for diagnostics of condensing installations; in particular, it ranks the factors causing a growth of pressure in the condenser in comparison with its standard value in their significance and determines the decrease of electric power output resulting from deviation of each of the factors from their standard values. A distinctive feature of the developed software system is that it takes into account the interaction between the condensers and main ejectors in a wide range of steam loads and air in-leakages in the vacuum system, and the effect of this interaction on the turbine unit technical and economic indicators. It has been determined that, according to the results of the accomplished comparison between the predicted and standard data (i.e., verification), the accuracy of computation according to the mathematical models is more than sufficient for settling matters concerned with operational diagnostics of the condensing installation considered. By using the software system, one can analyze the steam turbine unit condenser performance, reveal the main factors causing degradation of its performance indicators, and make provisions for the measures on removing the revealed drawbacks and adjusting the most efficient condenser operation modes. By using the software system, it is also possible to construct the condenser standard and actual characteristics in the entire really permissible range of influencing parameters, diagnose the condenser heat transfer surface condition for any steam turbine units at combined heat and power plants (CHPPs) when specifying the necessary and sufficient input data on the design parameters of condensers and ejectors, and after carrying out the verification.