The POWER Podcast

Hans Maghon, Siemens' program director for HL-class gas turbine development, explains some of the unique features of the HL design and how the company built on proven technology during the development phase.

Earlier this year, GE’s Power Services achieved a significant milestone with its 9EMax gas turbine upgrade solution. The 9EMax completed initial validation testing and was offered commercially to gas turbine customers around the globe. The first 9EMax unit was installed at a customer’s site in Asia. “First fire is a critical test where the gas turbine is switched on and runs on fuel at the site. We completed the ‘first fire’ milestone with the unit successfully reaching full speed at no load, and it proved to deliver significantly more power and efficiency compared to current 9E gas turbine operations,” Eric Gray, general manager of Gas Plant Solutions for GE’s Power Services, said in a press release announcing the occasion. During the tests, over 1,000 pieces of instrumentation were used to collect data and improve the performance of the machine. The sensors collected over 14 terabytes of data. The validation test monitored and mapped the unit’s behavior at typical operating parameters. Some of the conclusions included: • The turbine’s output was increased to 145 MW in simple cycle operation and to 210 MW in a combined cycle configuration. • It achieved up to 37% efficiency in simple cycle and up to 53.5% efficiency in combined cycle opertion. • It delivered maintenance intervals of up to 32,000 hours or 900 starts—equivalent to approximately four years of typical plant operation. • It offset as much as 2% to 3% of normal performance degradation between maintenance intervals in extreme ambient operating conditions. 9EMax can operate at partial loads, making it ideal for power producers looking to add renewables to their energy mix. It also includes an array of digital solutions to boost operational reliability, improve combustion operations, and manage emissions. In this episode of The POWER Podcast, Executive Editor Aaron Larson spoke with Gray about innovations incorporated into the 9EMax gas turbine.

The Connected Plant Conference will be held in Charlotte, N.C., February 26–28, 2018. The forum is designed for professionals in the power generation and chemical process industries who are leading digital adoption at all stages. Sessions are tailored to offer actionable information and strategies to maximize the use of data, analytics, and related technology to drive efficiency improvements, preventive and predictive maintenance programs, and staff safety. Jon Towslee, director of marketing and business development with ABB Inc., is scheduled to give a presentation during the event. He spoke with POWER Executive Editor Aaron Larson on December 6 during a power-industry conference in Las Vegas, Nevada. You can listen to the interview in the following POWER Podcast extra.

In December 2016, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems (MHPS) announced the introduction of its JAC gas turbine—a new air-cooled J-series model. The JAC has flexible ramping capabilities, an impressive 64% efficiency, 99.5% reliability, and a combined cycle output of 575 MW. Furthermore, the design has been thoroughly tested, with more than 14,000 operating hours at T-Point, MHPS’s validation facility. The combination of those factors led customers in Asia, the U.S., Mexico, and South America to technically select the M501JAC for projects 26 times in the past year, representing more than 14 GW of new power generation. In addition to the JAC technical selections, MHPS has 25 J-series gas turbines already in operation and 31 more units have been ordered. The platform has more operating hours than advanced turbine models offered by MHPS's two largest competitors combined. “The success of the JAC is no coincidence,” said Paul Browning, president and CEO of Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems America (MHPSA). “The company started on a journey in 2004 by setting a goal of 65% efficiency and has methodically pursued that goal." Browning gave a keynote presentation during a recent power-industry conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, and he spoke to POWER shortly after the session. During the interview, Browning provided highlights from his keynote address and touched on several other topics. Despite restructuring at GE and Siemens, Browning expressed optimism about the future of MHPS.

Exelon has been an early adopter of digital technology throughout its operations. Among the solutions implemented is GE's Predix platform. A group of Exelon leaders spoke in depth about the company's digital transformation.

Two experts from the law offices of Mayer Brown discuss how deregulation has affected the Mexican electricity sector. They explain how the power generation mix is evolving, risks that potential investors should be aware of and tips to mitigate those risks, and they touch on financing.

Eric Gebhardt, vice president of systems and innovation for GE Power, is interviewed about the television special "Droneweek." which will air on the Viceland network beginning Monday, Oct 9, and continuing throughout the week. In the series, drones will be used to produce video footage of several large and interesting power projects.

Most large power plants have continuous vibration monitoring systems installed on turbine generators and other critical equipment. The systems have evolved greatly since the 1970s. In this episode of The POWER Podcast, Steve Sabin, SETPOINT product manager for Brüel & Kjær Vibro, offers some tips to get the most out of these systems. He talks about an important vibration monitoring standard—API 670—and discusses how training has improved with new technology. Sabin gives a little background on consolidation within the industry, including the recent acquisition of SETPOINT by Brüel & Kjær Vibro. He explains how systems can be incorporated into existing power plant software, such as OSI Soft's PI system, and how purpose built vibration data repositories are used.

The UK Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of E.ON in a long-running dispute over foundation problems identified at the 174-MW Robin Rigg offshore wind farm located between Scotland and England. The judges said Danish contractor MT Højgaard must bear the approximate €26 million cost of remedying failed grouted connections between monopiles and transition pieces at Robin Rigg. Rebecca Williams, partner with Watson Farley and Williams LLP, spoke to POWER Executive Editor Aaron Larson, providing background on the case and detailing implications of the decision. Listen to their conversation in the first episode of The POWER Podcast.