Reaching into the depths of steam turbines

摘要

Detailed diagnostics and condition assessments on large steam turbines are often performed using remote visual inspection equipment. Figure 1 shows a common videoscope used for a variety of plant inspections. These products are designed as one-size-fits-all tools which can be used to inspect everything from turbines to piping to piston engines. While these products perform well in many cases, their main drawback is their inability to access all areas of a steam turbine that might be required to evaluate a particular probllem. In particular, their extreme flexibility becomes a liability when a problem is in the mid-span stages of the turbine, or in areas requiring the crossing of large, unsupported gaps from the access point to the inspection target area.