EN
Benefits for Industrial Steam Turbines
The ability to efficiently produce mechanical power or electricity from thermal power makes industrial steam turbines one of the main components of all large scale industries. Turbines maintain thermal efficiency through advanced designs and engineering. The components of the turbines are designed to extract maximum energy from steam to keep thermal energy losses at a minimum. Modern industrial steam turbines have very high thermal to mechanical energy conversion rates beyond other prime movers such as gas turbines or internal combustion engines. The high conversion rates of thermal energy to mechanical energy keep fuel consumption and the operational costs down for large scale industrial processes. The reductions in operational costs can amount to millions of dollars in savings for the industries. Significant energy savings are noted when steam turbines are integrated with a combined heat and power (CHP) systems. The CHP system reuses the waste heat from the turbine for other heating or industrial processes. A chemical plant with steam turbines and CHP systems can use 30 % less fuel than a plant with separate heating and power systems.
Flexible Operation and Load Adaptability
Steam turbines can handle a variety of loads, making them ideal for types of industrial facilities that have changing power demand. When energy demand is low, they still function at partial loads, and they can optimally function at all loads. With modern control systems, turbines can stabilize output and function at certain speeds, even with changing process needs that can happen in a dynamic production environment. Most steam turbines can function optimally, and they have the ability to quickly load change. Manufacturing plants, chemical facilities, and district heating systems can have balanced average demand of power, but demand can quickly change high and low. An example is a district heating system that employs a steam turbine that provides heat based on outside temperature in winter and reduces output in summer to avoid providing excess heat.
Durability and Long Service Life
Industrial steam turbines are designed for heavy, continuous duty. The construction, materials, and manufacturing give the turbines reliability and a long lifetime. With good maintenance, turbines need few repairs for decades. A long term investment, industrial facilities see fewer replacements and a reduced need for maintenance. The lifecycle costs of steam turbines are better than most rotating machines. The turbines reliable performance are due to construction. The design allows for use in the most demanding environments. The construction allows steam turbines to function in and endure high temperatures, high pressures, and extend beyond designed lifetime. With good maintenance, industrial steam turbines in power plants last over 30 years. The corrosion, vibration, and other industrial hazard resistant materials make the industrial steam turbines last beyond designed lifetime.
Compatibility with Various Fuel Sources
Steam turbine systems have a unique benefit of operating with many heat sources, adding to their overall flexibility for industrial facilities with varying fuel. They work efficiently with steam produced from natural gas, coal, biomass, as well as waste heat/ industrial byproducts. This means that a facility can select a fuel source that is the most economically viable or environmentally preferable. This flexibility enables a facility to use less expensive fuels that would otherwise be a waste, lowering their overall energy costs and the environmental impact associated with fuel consumption. Industries that have excess process heat can also recover that heat energy and convert it to useful work power steam turbines. This improves energy efficiency and reduces energy waste overall. A steel mill is a good example of this. A steel mill can use the waste heat from its furnaces to generate steam and then use that steam to power a steam turbine. This reduces the external fuel source requirement and the operating cost. This multi-fuel capability makes steam turbines an environmentally friendly technology for industrial operations.
Benefits to Environment and Economy
Steam turbines manufacture decarbonized products while actually minimizing their operational footprint utilizing less fuel and generation of less greenhouse gases versus other less efficient power systems in the marketplace. Many of these systems have emission controls built in to provide additional peace of mind for the owner that they will comply with both US (EPA) and European (CE) environmental regulations, as they will meet the strictest of worldwide environmental regulations. In addition, their waste heat recovery systems improve their sustainability profile even further by utilizing energy that would otherwise be lost. The combination of reduced fuel consumption, reduced emissions, and increased service life result in tremendous economic and environmental benefits to the industrial end user. For example, an industrial facility utilizing a steam turbine will provide in excess of 20% to the overall carbon footprint of the facility as compared to using less efficient power sources. Additionally, the operational costs will decrease due to savings in fuel costs. For a business looking to reduce costs and their environmental footprint, steam turbines provide the best value.
Engineering Excellence and Dependable Production
TorchPower steam turbines are manufactured with reliability in mind. The state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities and rigorous quality control processes unique to the company ensure that each steam turbine produced is built to withstand the demands of the heavy industrial applications. With fifteen turbine production facilities located around the world, and Global Service Support active 24/7, customers are guaranteed the service and support they need no matter where they are in the world. With service and support located in every corner of the world and all service and support connected directly to factory service and support, customers are guaranteed the best service and support available. With the vast network and service and support, customers are assured the best service and support are available. The value of these turbines is clear with the cost savings they bring to industrial clients and the improvements to sustainability and operational stability they are able to achieve. The decades of experience held by TorchPower in the area of power equipment has earned them the trust to provide the best, and along with it, the value needed by the client.