PROJECT REPORT

ON NTPC
AND ITS CONTROL
MECHANISM

SUBMITTED BY—
SOURABH SWAMI
ECE (SEVENTH SEM)
BHARATI VIDYAPEETH
COLLEGE OF ENGG.
NEW DELHI
 INDEX

1. Acknowledgements
2. About the company
a. Evolution of NTPC
b. NTPC group
c. NTPC Strategies
d. NTPC Faridabad
e. International Cell
f. NTPC Operations

2.Raw materials and various processes in the plant

3. Gas to Electricity Conversion

4. Automation and Control

a. Control and Monitoring Mechanisms

b. Pressure Control

c. Temperature Control

d. Flow Control

e. Control Valves

5.Instruments used in control and instrumentation

lab.
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would like to thank Mr. ……………………………. for

allowing me to undergo summer training at NTPC
Faridabad, all of the HR team of the Institute for their
continued guidance. I would also wish to convey my warm
regards to all the respected teachers for providing me
with all the knowledge database
that I needed for this report.
I again like to thank all those people who helped me train
here and for providing me this wonderful opportunity to
work with the NTPC family
 ABOUT THE COMPANY

Corporate Vision:
“A world class integrated power major, powering India’s growth,
with increasing global presence”

Core Values:
B-Business Ethics
C-Customer Focus
O-Organizational & Professional pride
M-Mutual Respect and Trust
I- Innovation & Speed
T-Total quality for Excellence

NTPC Limited is the largest thermal power generating

company of India. A public sector company, it was incorporated in
the year 1975 to accelerate power development in the country as a
wholly owned company of the Government of India. At present,
Government of India holds 89.5% of the total equity shares of the
company and the balance 10.5% is held by FIIs, Domestic Banks,
Public and others. Within a span of 31 years, NTPC has emerged as
a truly national power company, with power generating facilities in
all the major regions of the country.
NTPC’s core business is engineering, construction and operation of
power generating plants. It also provides consultancy in the area of
power plant constructions and power generation to companies in
India and abroad. As on date the installed capacity of NTPC is
27,904 MW through
its 15 coal based (22,895 MW), 7 gas based (3,955 MW) and 4 Joint
Venture Projects (1,054 MW). NTPC acquired 50% equity of the SAIL
Power Supply Corporation LtD. This JV company operates the
captive power plants of Durgapur (120 MW), Rourkela (120 MW) and
Bhilai (74 MW). NTPC also has 28.33% stake in Ratnagiri Gas &
Power Private Limited (RGPPL) a joint venture company between
NTPC, GAIL, Indian Financial Institutions and Maharashtra SEB
Holding Co. Ltd. NTPC’s share on 31 Mar 2007 in the total installed
capacity of the country was 20.18% and it contributed 28.50% of
the total power generation of the country during 2006-07.
NTPC was set up in 1975 with 100% ownership by the Government
of
India. In the last 30 years, NTPC has grown into the largest power
utility in India.
In 1997, Government of India granted NTPC status of “Navratna’
being
one of the nine jewels of India, enhancing the powers to the Board
of
Directors. NTPC became a listed company with majority Government
ownership of 89.5%. NTPC becomes third largest by Market
Capitalisation of listed companies The company rechristened as
NTPC Limited in line with its changing business portfolio and
transform itself from a thermal power utility to
an integrated power utility.

NTPC INTERNATIONAL CELL

Keeping its proactive tradition, NTPC launched a separate
International Cell to meet the varied needs of IPPs ( Independent
Power Producers) and other International clients who are looking for
a world class service in power sector. The Cell is especially tuned to
meet the requirements of International clients in terms of quick
response, flexible service options and to deliver value for
money.
Pursuing Business Opportunities in:

• Sri Lanka
• Saudi Arabia
• UAE
• Iran
• Jordan
• Bahrain
• Egypt
• Malaysia
• Indonesia
• Vietnam
• Thailand
• Sudan
• Nigeria
• Yemen

NTPC OPERATIONS

The operating performance of NTPC has been considerably above

the national average. The availability factor for coal stations has
increased
from 85.03 % in 1997-98 to 90.09 % in 2006-07, which compares
favourably with international standards. The PLF has increased from
75.2% in
1997-98 to 89.4% during the year 2006-07 which is the highest
since the inception of NTPC. It may be seen from the table below
that while the installed capacity has increased by 56.40% in the last
nine years, the employee strength went up by only 3.34%

ECOLOGICAL MONITORING
PROGRAMME--

NTPC has undertaken a comprehensive Ecological

Monitoring Programme through Satellite Imagery Studies
covering an area of about 25 Kms radius around some of
its major plants. The studies have been conducted through
National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA), Hyderabad at its
power stations at Ramagundam, Farakka, Korba,
Vindhyachal, Rihand and Singrauli. These
studies have revealed significant environmental gains in
the vicinity areas of the project as a result of pursuing
sound environment management practices. Some of these
important gains which have been noticed are increase in
dense forest area, increase in agriculture area, increase in
average rainfall, decrease in waste land etc. In general,
the studies, as such, have revealed that there is no
significant adverse impact on the ecology due to the
project activities in any of these stations. Such studies
conducted from time to time around a power project have
established comprehensive environment status at various
post operational stages of the project.

MANUFACTURING PROCESS, WITH DETAILS

OF RAW MATERIALS,
INTERMEDIATE AND FINISHED PRODUCTS
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF PLANT PROCESS--

--Salient Features

1. Project : Faridabad Gas Power Project

2. Location : Village Mujedi, P. O. Neemka, Faridabad.

State Hariyana

3. Plant Capacity : 432 MW

4. Plant Configuration : Gas Turbine 1 - 138 MW

Gas Turbine 2 - 138 MW
Steam Turbine - 156 MW

5. Mode of Operation : Base Load

6. Fuel : Natural Gas

7. Alternate Fuel : Naphtha

8. Average Gas : 2 million cubic meters per day

requirement

9. Fuel Source : HBJ pipe line ( through GAIL )

10. Cooling water : Rampur Distributory

source

11. Naphtha Storage : 2 tanks of 8000 Kl. Capacity each.

12. Power Evacuation :

2X220 KV Double circuit lines to220 KV BBMB
sub-station at Samaipur ( Ballabgarh )

2X220 KV Double Circuit lines to 220 KV HVPN

sub-station at Palla ( Faridabad )

MAIN PLANT:

NTPC-Faridabad is a Gas based Combined Cycle Power Plant. It has

two gas
turbines of 138 MW each. Natural Gas, when fired in combustion
chamber, runs gas turbine. Exhaust gases from gas turbines go to
two Heat Recovery Steam Generator of 277 t/hr each. Superheated
steam generated in these generators is used to run steam turbine
coupled with Power Generator to get 156 MW. In addition to these,
we have various other auxiliaries; mentioned hereunder.

DM PLANT:

DM Plant has been installed to provide de-mineralized water for

steam
generation & equipment cooling. It has two streams of 100 m3/hr
each. Effluents generated are neutralized in the neutralization pit
before discharging to Central Monitoring Basin.

COOLING TOWER:

Induced Draft Cooling Tower of 29000-m3/hr capacity has been built

to cool the hot water coming out of condenser of steam turbine. It is
capable to reduce water temperature by 110C.

STORAGE RESERVOIR:
Raw water drawn from Rampur Distributory of Gurgaon Canal is
stored in two
reservoirs of 45000 m3 each.

C.W. SOFTENING PLANT:

Raw Water Softening Plant of capacity 630 m3/hr has been provided.
The raw
water received is treated in clarifier, then passed through sand filter
and stilling chamber. The pH value of soft water is maintained
throughout. The water from cooling water-softening system is fed
into basin of cooling tower.

FIRE WATER PUMP HOUSE:

As a part of integrated fire fighting system, firewater pump house

has also been built which houses following equipment:

A] Hydrant System:

Motor driven pumps = 03 Nos.

Diesel driven pumps = 02 Nos.

B] Spray System:

Motor driven pumps = 02 Nos.

Diesel driven pumps = 02 Nos.

C] Jockey pumps: Motor driven = 02 Nos. (common for Hydrant

& Spray system)

D] Compressors: Motor driven = 02 Nos. (for hydro-pneumatic

tank) This pump house remains operational round-the-clock.

EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT:

To handle and treat all effluents, an Effluent Treatment Plant has

been designed to treat following liquid effluents.

Regeneration waste water from DM Plant;

• Waste water from Raw Water Pre-treatment Plant;

• Sludge generated from Cooling Water Softening Plant;

• Boiler blow down

• Cooling Tower blow down

• Dirty water from various sources

After treatment water is taken to the Central Monitoring Basin. The

treated
effluents meet the parameters of Water (Prevention and Control of
Pollution) Act 1974. Then they are discharged to the canal.

C.W. CHLORINATION PLANT:

NTPC-Faridabad has a Chlorination Plant involving state-of-art

technology for
on-line Chlorination of circulating water. It protects the water of
cooling tower
against bacteriological contamination. It has also in-built chlorine
leak detection system. To control and contain leakage of chlorine, a
Chlorine absorption tower has been provided.

NAPHTHA STORAGE SYSTEM:

This system has two tanks of 8000 m3 each. This system involves
unloading
from tankers and then transportation to storage tanks. It has all in-
built system
for transfer of naphtha from tanks to gas turbines, also leak
detection system
and protection against fire.

FIRE FIGHTING SYSTEM:

NTPC-Faridabad has full-fledged Fire Fighting System to safeguard

against any kind of eventuality. It has fire fighting hydrant system,
which remains operational round-the-clock. It has fully automatic
system involving state-of-art technology to fight against any kind of
fire arising due to gas/naphtha leak. Also, there is Natural Gas Leak
Detection System, Naphtha Leak Detection System.

MAJOR LEGAL SANCTIONS/CONSENTS:

NTPC-Faridabad has been granted following legal sanctions/

consents:

• Clearance by Ministry of Environment & Forest for setting up the

plant;

• No Objection Certificate from Hariyana State Pollution Control

Board
(HSPCB);
• Consent Order for Water and Air, issued by HSPCB with time-to-
time
renewal.

• Clearance for the Boilers operation from Chief Inspector of Boilers,

Hariyana

• License for Naphtha/ Diesel storage from Chief Controller of

Explosives,
Hariyana

• Grant for discharge of effluents from Hariyana State Pollution

Control
Board

• Grant for emission of air pollutants from Hariyana State Pollution

Control
Board

• Factory Licence issued by Chief Inspector of Factories , Hariyana

SAFETY:

NTPC-Faridabad has also full-fledged safety department to ensure

compliance of safety norms inside and outside the plant. Safety
trainings/workshops are conducted from time-to-time to increase
awareness among persons.

FIRE FIGHTING:

Fire Fighting activities are being controlled by Central Industrial

Security Force (CISF). They have trained manpower for this job.
They conduct mock drills from time-to-time to test soundness of
their system in coordination with NTPC operation & safety
Department
.
HUMAN RESOURCE:

Human Resource is the main strength of this medium industry.

General Manager is the head of the Unit. Predominantly; executives
manning Operation, Maintenance, Erection, and other technical
sections are engineers. Executives looking after Human Resource,
Finance is professionals. Supervisors and workmen are qualified
personnel. Skill is further sharpened through training from time-to-
time.

CONTRACTS & MATERIALS:

This department is responsible for arranging/ storing all raw
materials, spares
and consumables required for generation of electricity.

MEDICAL CENTRE:

There is a Medical Centre located inside NTPC- Township where the

injured and sick persons are treated. It is under the charge of Chief
Medical Officer (CMO). Also one Asst. Chief Medical Officer is
available on General duty. Also one nurse is available during the day
time and one compo under is on duty during night. Further, an
ambulance with driver is kept ready all the time. All other Medical
facilities are out sourced to Escorts- Faridabad.

Raw Materials Used

Water : From Rampur distributory canal

Natural gas : HBJ pipe line of GAIL (2mcm / day)
Alternate fuel : Naphtha (two tanks of 8000kl capacity)
to be used in emergency.
We also use small quantity of Chlorine, Acid and Alkali for treating
the water and
water purification purposes.
There is no intermediate product and by product in the
process

DETAILS OF CHEMICALS STORED IN THE FACTORY

Sl. No Description Storage Capacity

1 Hydrochloric Acid 100 KL

2 Alkali (NaOH) 100 KL

3 Sulphuric Acid 40 Kl

4 Naphtha 16000 KL (2Tanks 8000KL each)

5 Chlorine 10 Tonners connected 02 in service

6 Natural Gas No Storage

7 HSD 500KL
LINE DIAGRAM SHOWING GAS TO
ELECTRICITY
CONVERSION AT FARIDABAD GAS POWER
PLANT

NTPC Faridabad has Two Gas Turbines manufactured by

Seimens and One Steam Turbine from BHEL

AUTOMATION AND CONTROL

SYSTEM

AUTOMATION: THE DEFINITION

The word automation is widely used today in relation to various
types of applications, such as office automation, plant or process
automation.
This subsection presents the application of a control system for the
automation of a process / plant, such as a power station. In this last
application, the automation actively controls the plant during the
three main phases of operation: plant start-up, power generation in
stable or put
During plant start-up and shut-down, sequence controllers as well as
long range modulating controllers in or out of operation every piece
of the plant, at the correct time and in coordinated modes, taking
into account safety as well as overstressing limits.
During stable generation of power, the modulating
portion of the automation system keeps the actual generated power
value within the limits of the desired load demand. During major
load changes, the automation system automatically redefines new
set points and switches ON or OFF process pieces, to automatically
bring the individual processes in an optimally coordinated way to
the new desired load demand. This load transfer is executed
according to pre- programmed adaptively controlled load gradients
and in a safe way.

AUTOMATION: THE BENEFITS

The main benefits of plant automation are to increase overall plant
availability and efficiency.
The increase of these two factors is achieved through a series of
features summarized as follows:

Optimisation of house load consumption during

plant start- up, shut-down
and operation, via:
Faster plant start-up through elimination of control errors creating
delays.

 Faster sequence of control actions compared to manual ones.

Figures 1 shows the sequence of a rapid restart using automation
for a typical coal-fired station. Even a well- trained operator crew
would probably not be able to bring the plant to full load in the
same time without considerable risks.

 Co-ordination of house load to the generated power output.

 Ensure and maintain plant operation, even in case

of disturbances in the control system, via:
 Coordinated ON / OFF and modulating control switchover
capability from a sub process to a redundant one.
 Prevent sub-process and process tripping chain reaction following
a process component trip.

 Reduce plant / process shutdown time for repair

and maintenance as well\ as repair costs, via:
 Protection of individual process components against overstress
(in a stable or unstable\ plant operation).

Bringing processes in a safe stage of operation, where process

components are protected against overstress

PROCESS STRUCTURE
Analysis of processes in Power Stations and Industry advocates the
advisability of dividing the complex overall process into individual
sub-processes having distinctly defined functions. This division of
the process in clearly defined groups, termed as FUNCTIONAL
GROUPS, results in
a hierarchical process structure. While the hierarchical structure is
governed in the horizontal direction by the number of drives
(motorised valves, fans, dampers, pumps, etc.) in other words the
size of the process; in the vertical direction, there is a distinction
made between three fundamental levels, these being the: -
 Drive Level

 Function Group Level

 Unit Level.
To the Drive Level, the lowest level, belong the individual process
equipment and associated electrical drives. The Function Group is
that part of the process that fulfils a particular defined task e.g.,
Induced Draft Control, Feed Water Control, Blooming Mill Control,
etc. Thus at the time of planning it is
necessary to identify each function group in a clear manner by
assigning it to a particular process activity. Each function group
contains a combination of its associated individual equipment
drives. The drive levels are subordinate to this level. The function
groups are combined to obtain the overall process control function
at the Unit Level.
The above three levels are defined with regard to the process and
not from the control point of view.
CONTROL SYSTEM STRUCTURE

The primary requirement to be fulfilled by any control system

architecture is that it be capable of being organized and
implemented on true process-oriented lines. In other words, the
control system structure should map on to the hierarchy process
structure. BHEL’s PROCONTROL P®, a microprocessor based
intelligent remote multiplexing system, meets this requirement
completely.

SYSTEM OVERVIEW
The control and automation system used here is a micro based
intelligent multiplexing system
This system, designed on a modular basis, allows to tighten the
scope of control hardware to the particular control strategy and
operating requirements of the process
Regardless of the type and extent of process to control provides
system uniformity and integrity
for:
 Signal conditioning and transmission

 Modulating controls

CONTROL AND MONITORING

MECHANISMS
There are basically two types of Problems faced in a Power
Plant

 Metallurgical

 Mechanical
Mechanical Problem can be related to Turbines that is the max
speed permissible for a turbine is 3000 rpm , so speed should be
monitored and maintained at that level Metallurgical Problem can be
view as the max Inlet Temperature for Turbile is 1060 oC so
temperature should be below the limit.
Monitoring of all the parameters is necessary for the safety of both:
 Employees
 Machines
So the Parameters to be monitored are :
 Speed

 Temperature

 Current

 Voltage

 Pressure

 Eccentricity
 Flow of Gases

 Vacuum Pressure

 Valves

 Level

 Vibration

PRESSURE MONITORING—

Pressure can be monitored by three types of basic mechanisms

 Switches
 Gauges
 Transmitter type
For gauges we use Bourden tubes : The Bourdon Tube is a non
liquid pressure measurement device. It is widely used in
applications where inexpensive static pressure measurements are
needed.
A typical Bourdon tube contains a curved tube that is open to
external pressure input on one end and is coupled mechanically to
an indicating needle on the other end, as shown schematically
below.
Typical Bourdon Tube Pressure Gages
Transmitter types use transducers (electrical to electrical normally)
they are used where continuous monitoring is required Normally
capacitive transducers are used

For Switches pressure switches are used and they can be used for
digital means of monitoring as switch being ON is referred as high
and being OFF is as low.
All the monitored data is converted to either Current or Voltage
parameter.
The Plant standard for current and voltage are as under

 Voltage : 0 – 10 Volts range

 Current : 4 – 20 milliAmperes

We use 4mA as the lower value so as to check for disturbances and

wire breaks. Accuracy of such systems is very high .
ACCURACY : + - 0.1 %
The whole system used is SCADA based
ANALOG INPUT MODULE MICRO PROCESSOR.
we use DDCMIC control for this process.
Programmable Logic Circuits ( PLCs) are used in the process as they
are the heart of Instrumentation

TEMPERATURE MONITORING
We can use Thermocouples or RTDs for temperature monitoring
HL switch ,LL switch
Normally RTDs are used for low temperatures.
Thermocouple selection depends upon two factors:

 Temperature Range

 Accuracy Required
Normally used Thermocouple is K Type Thermocouple:
Chromel (Nickel-Chromium Alloy) / Alumel (Nickel-Aluminium Alloy)
This is the most commonly used general purpose thermocouple. It is
inexpensive and, owing to its popularity, available in a wide variety
of probes. They are available in the −200 °C to +1200 °C range.
Sensitivity is approximately 41 μV/°C.
RTDs are also used but not in protection systems due to vibrational
errors.
We pass a constant curre t through the RTD. So that if R changes
then the Voltage also changes
RTDs used in Industries are Pt100 and Pt1000
Pt100 : 0 0C – 100 Ω ( 1 Ω = 2.5 0C )
Pt1000 : 0 0C - 1000Ω
Pt1000 is used for higher accuracy
The gauges used for Temperature measurements are mercury filled
Temperature gauges.
For Analog medium thermocouples are used and for Digital medium
Switches are used which are basically mercury switches

.
FLOW MEASUREMENT

Flow measurement does not signify much and is measured just for
metering purposes and for monitoring the processes
ROTAMETERS:

A Rotameter is a device that measures the flow rate of liquid or gas

in a closed tube. It is occasionally misspelled as 'rotometer'. It
belongs to a class of meters called variable area meters, which
measure flow rate by allowing
the cross sectional area the fluid travels through to vary, causing
some measurable effect.
A rotameter consists of a tapered tube, typically made of glass, with
a float inside that is pushed up by flow and pulled down by gravity.
At a higher flow rate more area (between the float and the tube) is
needed to accommodate the flow, so the float rises. Floats are made
in many different shapes, with spheres and spherical ellipses being
the most common. The float is shaped so that it rotates axially as
the fluid passes. This allows you to tell if the float is stuck since it
will only rotate if it is not.
For Digital measurements Flap system is used.
For Analog measurements we can use the following methods :

 Flowmeters

 Venurimeters / Orifice meters

 Turbines

 Massflow meters ( oil level )

 Ultrasonic Flow meters

 Magnetic Flowmeter ( water level )

Selection of flow meter depends upon the purpose , accuracy and

liquid to be measured so different types of meters used.

Turbine type are the simplest of all.

They work on the principle that on each rotation of the turbine a
pulse is generated and that pulse is counted to get the flow rate.

VENTURIMETERS :
Referring to the diagram, using Bernoulli's equation in the special
case of incompressible fluids (such as the approximation of a water
jet), the theoretical pressure drop at the constriction would
be given by (ρ/2)(v22 - v12).
And we know that rate of flow is given by:
Flow = k √ (D.P)
Where DP is Differential Pressure or the Pressure Drop.

CONTROL VALVES

A valve is a device that regulates the flow of substances (either

gases, fluidized solids, slurries, or liquids) by opening, closing, or
partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically
pipe fittings, but usually are discussed separately. Valves are used
in a variety of applications including industrial, military, commercial,
residential, transportation. Plumbing valves are the most obvious in
everyday life, but many more are used.
Some valves are driven by pressure only, they are mainly used for
safety purposes in steam engines and domestic heating or cooking
appliances. Others are used in a controlled way, like in Otto cycle
engines driven by a camshaft, where they play a major role in
engine cycle control.
Many valves are controlled manually with a handle attached to the
valve stem. If the handle is turned a quarter of a full turn (90°)
between operating positions, the valve is called a quarter-turn valve
Butterfly valves, ball valves, and plug valves are often quarter-turn
valves. Valves can also be controlled by devices called actuators
attached to the stem. They can be electromechanical
actuators such as an electric motor or solenoid, pneumatic
actuators which are controlled by air pressure, or hydraulic
actuators which are controlled by the pressure of a liquid such as
oil or water.
So there are basically three types of valves that are used in power
industries besides the handle valves. They are :

 Pneumatic Valves – they are air or gas controlled which is

compressed to turn or move them

 Hydraulic valves – they utilize oil in place of Air as oil has better
compression

 Motorised valves – these valves are controlled by electric

motors

INSTRUMENTS USED IN C&I LAB IN NTPC

DEAD WEIGHT TESTER

 TEMPERATURE BATH

IC TESTER

DEAD WEIGHT TESTER--

Pressure is defined as Force per Unit

Area. Dead-Weight Pressure Testers
use the measurements of force and
area to produce pressure which is
used to
calibrate other instruments with great
accuracy. The force is derived from
the weights and the area used is that of the piston in a
cylinder. Dead-Weight
Pressure Tester is the fundamental standard of pressure
measurement of
pressure higher than those for which a liquid column can
conveniently be
used.
It is important that all pressure gauges and other pressure
sensitive
instruments are periodically calibrated using a dead
weight tester (being a
fundamental method of pressure measurement) for safety,
efficiency and
quality.

TEMPERATURE BATH

A calibration bath is a uniform temperature enclosure with a

constant
temperature setting that can be adjusted manually or with
automation.
These calibration baths use a mixed fluid to provide excellent
thermal
contact for temperature calibration. They offer high stability, a large
working volume, and flexibility for calibrating a variety of
temperature
sensors. A world-class temperature controller and 30 plus years of
experience make these the choice of National Metrology Institutes
and
calibration laboratories around the world.
Precision thermometer testing and calibration require the
highest standards of stability and uniformity. For almost
two
decades, Hart Scientific temperature calibration baths
have
been the world's best-performing temperature baths. With
their proven heating/cooling designs and hybrid
analogdigital
controller, Hart Scientific temperature calibration
baths apply the most effective technologies that are
commercially feasible. These four compact Hart Scientific
temperature calibration baths are no exception.

STATIC CHARGE GUARD

The wrist strap consists of a wrist band, a coil cord, and a
banana plug or an
alligator clip. The wrist band is made of knitted polyester
with spandex and
a silver plated nylon thread. The wrist band has a
plastic/metal snap for
attachment to the cord. The metal base of the snap lies
flat on the wearer's
wrist. A 1-megohm resistor is molded into the snap. The
cord is made of a
single bundle of tinsel conductor laced into high strength,
synthetic fibers.
The snap fastener is on one end of the cord. The other end
of the cord has a
banana plug or alligator clip that attaches to a conductive
table or floor mat
to "ground" any static charge flowing through the cord
and strap.
The Wrist Strap is used for safety purposes to protect the
wearer from
inadvertently coming into contact with up to 240 volts.
However, typically
the Wrist Strap is used by repair technicians to protect
printed circuit boards
and static sensitive electronic devices from static charges.
The Wrist Strap
"grounds" the technician

IC TESTER

An Integrated Circuit tester (IC tester) is used to test

Integrated
Circuits (ICs). We can easily test any digital IC using this
kind of an
IC tester. For testing an IC, we need to use different
hardware
circuits for different ICs; like we need a particular kind of
tester for
testing a logic gate and another for testing flip flops or
shift registers
which involves more complication and time involved will
also be
more. So here’s an IC tester to overcome this problem.
Unlike other
IC testers, this is more reliable and easier since we don’t
need to rig
up different kind of circuits for different kind of ICs, each
time we
need to test them.
Unlike the IC testers available in the market today which
are usually
expensive, this IC tester is affordable and user-friendly.
This IC tester
is constructed using 8951 microcontroller along with a
keyboard and
a display unit. It can test digital ICs having a maximum of
24 pins.
Since it is programmable, any number of ICs can be tested
within the
constraint of the memory available. This IC tester can be
used to test
a wide variety of ICs which includes simple logic gates and
also
sequential and combinational ICs like flip-flops, counters,
shift
registers etc. It is portable and easy to use.
The block diagram of the programmable digital IC tester is
as shown
in below. It consists of two 8951 microcontroller ICs, a 24-
pin IC
socket, a keyboard unit, a display unit and indicators.
To test a particular digital IC, one needs to insert the IC
into the IC
socket and enter the IC number using the keyboard and
then press
the “ENTER” key. The IC number gets displayed in the 7-
segment
display unit.
Four LEDs are provided as indicators. If the IC being tested
is a logic
gate, then each of the 4 indicator LEDs correspond to the
4 gates of
the IC. In any other case wherein the inserted IC is not a
logic gate,
all the 4 LEDs work as a single indicator.