TY - GEN
T1 - RBI application in a CHP plant
AU - Auerkari, Pertti
AU - McNiven, Ulla
AU - Husta, Stefan
PY - 2016
Y1 - 2016
N2 - Risk-based inspection (RBI) has become common approach to
support asset management in e.g. refineries, chemical
industry in general and a few other industrial sectors.
Although there are regionally established traditions to
use RBI also in power plants, recently the interest has
been spreading to include a widening base of common power
plants. This is partly due to increasingly established
standard practices, tools and availability of the
techniques also for smaller scale users, and partly due
to the generally established benefits and needs for
safety and optimization of resources. In this paper we
show how RBI was applied in a small scale for the main
steam line of a CHP (combined heat and power) plant in
Finland. The experience showed some typical features of
initiating RBI, for example how important and beneficial
(although at first somewhat tedious) it is to
systematically gather and handle the required background
information of design, fabrication, inspections,
maintenance and operational history for RBI of an ageing
plant. In the case of the example plant, the steam system
had been significantly modified because of process
changes, and the level of documentation was not equally
thorough everywhere. Existing conventional guidelines and
experience were found to be useful to support relatively
lean RBI by suggesting typical areas of elevated
probability of failure and therefore recommended areas to
be inspected, for example at welds of large branches,
locations of high strains in thermal system displacement
or deviations in the function of the piping supports.
Observed indications in the inspections were largely
consistent with expectations and only resulted in repairs
within the planned outage period. The resulting
risk-based (or -informed) inspection and action plans are
the main outcomes of the RBI exercise, aiming to produce
the best justification and return on the maintenance
investment, and to support safe operation and long-term
lifecycle performance of the plant.
AB - Risk-based inspection (RBI) has become common approach to
support asset management in e.g. refineries, chemical
industry in general and a few other industrial sectors.
Although there are regionally established traditions to
use RBI also in power plants, recently the interest has
been spreading to include a widening base of common power
plants. This is partly due to increasingly established
standard practices, tools and availability of the
techniques also for smaller scale users, and partly due
to the generally established benefits and needs for
safety and optimization of resources. In this paper we
show how RBI was applied in a small scale for the main
steam line of a CHP (combined heat and power) plant in
Finland. The experience showed some typical features of
initiating RBI, for example how important and beneficial
(although at first somewhat tedious) it is to
systematically gather and handle the required background
information of design, fabrication, inspections,
maintenance and operational history for RBI of an ageing
plant. In the case of the example plant, the steam system
had been significantly modified because of process
changes, and the level of documentation was not equally
thorough everywhere. Existing conventional guidelines and
experience were found to be useful to support relatively
lean RBI by suggesting typical areas of elevated
probability of failure and therefore recommended areas to
be inspected, for example at welds of large branches,
locations of high strains in thermal system displacement
or deviations in the function of the piping supports.
Observed indications in the inspections were largely
consistent with expectations and only resulted in repairs
within the planned outage period. The resulting
risk-based (or -informed) inspection and action plans are
the main outcomes of the RBI exercise, aiming to produce
the best justification and return on the maintenance
investment, and to support safe operation and long-term
lifecycle performance of the plant.
M3 - Conference article in proceedings
T3 - VTT Technology
BT - Baltica X
A2 - Auerkari, Pertti
PB - VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland
CY - Espoo
T2 - BALTICA X - International Conference on Life Management and Maintenance for Power Plants
Y2 - 7 June 2016 through 9 June 2016
ER -