Analyzing the Change in the Acid Number of Fire-Resistant Fluids during Their Operation in Automatic Closed Loop Control Systems of Steam Turbines at Thermal Power Plants.

Fire-resistant fluids and lubricants are products that are used in various industry branches for ensuring reliability and safety of equipment operating under conditions of high temperatures and pressures and flame impact. For the last 30–50 years, industry-grade fire-resistant fluids, which feature high thermal stability and do not ignite when coming in contact with flame, have become commercially available in the world market. The article presents the results obtained from long-term studies of such fluids during their operation in the automatic closed loop control systems of steam turbines (STs) of condensing and cogeneration units of thermal power plants (TPPs) located in different regions of Russia and abroad (more than 50 life cycles of these fluids have been analyzed). The reasons for using synthetic compounds in the power industry are described along with the properties in which they differ from petroleum oils, and trends and prospects of applying noncombustible liquids in Europe and Russia are formulated. The aims of the study were to determine the most essential reasons why the standard operation times of fire-resistant fluids were shortened and to develop a procedure for determining the product quality and predicting the life cycle of such fluids (the procedure itself will be addressed in our next publication). Intermediate study objectives were to substantiate the approximation of the input data obtained as a result of their collection and to divide the facilities at which these fluids are used into certain categories. The change in the performance characteristics of fire-resistant fluids during their operation in the control systems of steam turbines of various types at different thermal power plants is analyzed. The most significant factors influencing the extension of fire-resistant fluids' service life are reviewed, and measures aimed at preventing degradation of their quality have been analyzed (regeneration, use of oil purification plants, replenishing, etc.). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]