Turbine Repair and Maintenance Services Information
Turbine repair and maintenance services provide maintenance, overhauls, and repairs to wind, gas, steam, and water turbines. Turbines are typically constructed of a rotor assembly with attached blades that turn when they are in contact with fluid or air flow. Turbines convert the energy from the fluid or air flow to useful work, such as generating electricity. Gas, water, and steam turbines usually have a casing that surrounds the blades, controlling the passage and speed of the fluid or air that moves past the blades. Wind turbines are freestanding machines that have blades that turn as the wind blows around them, converting kinetic energy into electricity. Turbine repair services overhaul turbines that are typically used in power generation, heavy industry boiler applications, or aircraft propulsion.
Turbine repair and maintenance services may include troubleshooting, testing, inspection, disassembly and reassembly, maintenance, field or shop repair, and complete machine overhauls. Companies that offer turbine repair services have technicians who are millwrights, a job which involves the removal and installation of the turbine; welders; machinists; and electrical engineers. Technicians typically work on turbine components including blades, nozzles, governers, control valves, bearings, and carbon seals. Turbine repair services require the work of highly-skilled technicians and engineers, since the machinery only functions efficiently within very close tolerances.
Some of the specific turbine repair and maintenance services offered include machining, mechanical or electrical work, welding, and valve repairs. Machining involves rotor repairs such as grinding and facing; replacing nozzles, housings, or steam seals; and repairing cases and shells. Lathes, boring bars, flange facers, and milling machines are common machining equipment. Mechanical repairs involve disassembly of generators and laser alignment of reassembled rotating components. Electrical turbine repair services include testing electrical apparatus such as relays and switches, conducting failure analysis, and upgrading controls. Welding may involve working on both ferrous and non-ferrous metals, high pressure pipe welding, replacing heaters, modifying heat exchangers and condensers, and installing structural components such as platforms and rails.
Turbine repair and maintenance services are essential for the operation of hydro or water turbines, which are used almost exclusively for generating electric power that is transmitted through high-voltage power lines to cities and large population centers. Water turbines have submerged components that require specific maintenance and repairs, such as mitigating erosion or corrosion and providing the proper underwater alignment of nozzles and jets. Other industries that use turbine repair services include heavy duty boiler applications and aviation. Aircraft turbine repair services ensure reliable and safe operation of engines and other components such as gearboxes and compressors. Aircraft turbines are subject to unique stresses, including bird strikes and lightning and also require preventative maintenance such as vibration analysis, fuel nozzle repair, and spectrum oil analysis.