Turbine engine oil maintenance is essential to prolong your turbine’s lifespan and avoid costly repairs. And there are several tips and tricks that you can use to maintain your turbine and improve its functioning.
- Cleanliness Is Key
Cleanliness is key for affordable turbine engine oil maintenance. It ensures that your equipment lasts longer and your lubricant has a prolonged lifespan. Unclean and contaminated turbine oil may form varnish and deposits. These significantly reduce the life of bearings and gears, promote system foaming, and affect the servo valve operation. Make sure that your filtration system is running effectively at all times.
- Avoid Water Contamination
Free water in oil creates an emulsion that interferes with the oil film supporting the load carried by gears and bearings. Water also increases the speed of oil oxidation, promotes corrosion, and causes degradation by hydrolysis. Water levels should be checked regularly. For a gas turbine, the level should be below 500 ppm. For a steam turbine, it shouldn’t be more than 1000 ppm.
- Maintain Accurate Records
To be able to detect sudden changes and do quick inspections, you should maintain an accurate record of different parts and operations of the turbine.
- Note the amount and temperature of water and oil to and from the coolers
- Check the heat level of oil in the reservoir, purification equipment, and the main bearings
- Record the turbine operating hours, as well as start and shut-off time
- Note the duration between filter changes
- Check the amount of make-up oil added to the turbine system
- Note down any repairs or replacements done as well along with the dates
- Schedule Turbine Oil Maintenance
Turbine engine oil should be checked regularly. Get in touch with turbine oil maintenance companies in your area and schedule routine oil checkups. Any breakdown in the lubricant or overheating may lead to total engine failure. Have your filtration system inspected as well. Make sure that there are no leaks that can lead to contamination.