POWER GENERATION
Electric valve actuators in the
modern power generation industry
In recent years electric valve
actuators have grown in
importance in modern power
plants. Now they are
recognised as major
contributors to efficiency,
economy and safety as well as
facilitating the quick start-ups
demanded by today’s working
practices and the emission
reductions dictated by
environmental legislation.
Electric actuators may be
required for an extensive
range of duties encompassing
isolation, regulation,
modulation and failsafe
operation of valves and
dampers. This article looks at
the selection and specification
of the actuator and control
system for each duty.
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I
n the past it was recognised that the
isolation and control of high pressure
superheated steam, cooling water,
condensed water, hot and cold gases,
induced and forced draft air and other
elements in the power generating process
could be a major headache. Simple on/off
electric actuators provided a basic level of
control whilst the regulating and modulating
elements such as boiler fans were usually
controlled by hydraulic and pneumatic
actuators with instrumentation comprising
electro-pneumatic converters and 4-20mA
transducers. It was always recognised
however that the simplified control systems
associated with electric actuators were
advantageous, especially with the increasing
emphasis on automation and remote
control.
Developments in electric actuator design
have improved the situation, particularly
with the introduction of secure, “non-
intrusive” water and dust tight enclosures.
Standardised electronic actuator controls
and a wider range of torque outputs also
helped the design engineers, whilst
improved motor controls and the
introduction of thyristors rather than
traditional reversing starter controls have
increased the “starts per hour” performance
of the electric actuator.This has enabled it
to be used for many regulating and
modulating duties.
Changing actuation requirements
In the past ten years these developments
have dramatically accelerated with the
introduction of high temperature
modulating duty actuators.This is a major
leap forward, enabling electric actuators to
be installed in more environments where
only hydraulic and pneumatic actuators used
to be specified.This has been a welcome
improvement, since hydraulic systems
incorporating traditional power packs have
become unpopular due to high maintenance
costs and other operational issues.
Instrument air for pneumatic actuators is
also expensive to produce and look after,
with leakage, water ingress and vulnerability
to freezing all threatening reliability and
requiring special attention.
October 2008 35
POWER GENERATION
Fig. 1: Alstom is utilising Rotork IQT and IQTM
intelligent electric actuators for damper operation on
new BOFA ducting at the Ratcliffe Power Station.
Problems with aging pneumatic equipment
are aggravated by the non-availability of
spares, leading many power plant operators
to introduce programmes of replacement.
The advancing technology of electric
actuation has persuaded many of these
operators to standardise on a single
manufacturer for all their actuator
requirements to minimise spares and stock
holdings.This policy also reduces training
requirements for maintenance staff. Electric
actuators, suitable for isolating or
modulating duties, provide a simple, reliable
solution and eliminate the need for
secondary compressor or hydraulic systems
with complex control and instrumentation.
During the 1990’s the privatisation of UK
power plants heralded dramatic changes to
valve and damper actuation requirements.
The introduction to two-shifting, whereby a
station is brought on-line twice a day,
exposed old actuation equipment to
increased operation which was sometimes
beyond its performance parameters, leading
to increased maintenance and eventually
the implementation of replacement and
upgrading projects.
Control system upgrades go hand-in-hand
with equipment replacement to facilitate
communication with advanced plant
management systems (APMS). Modern PLC
systems utilise a range of control and
indication signals such as digital, analogue
and pulse, the choice of which can be easily
specified with modern electric actuators.
The quick start-up demand of two-shifting
has further accelerated the advance of
automation, leading to the motorisation of
many valves that were previously hand
operated.
Mandates
The implementation of mandatory
directives for the improvement of the
36 October 2008
environment has also been a major catalyst
to actuation upgrade programmes in UK
and European power stations.The LCPD
(large combustion plant directive) demands
accurate control of final operating elements
including secondary air dampers, burner
shroud and fan vane controls. BOFA, SOFA
and OFA (boosted over fire, separated
over fire, over fire air) schemes are other
major areas of investment in coal fired
power stations.
The modulation of dampers and valves in
these high temperature areas to achieve
accurate control has always been a
problem for station operators. Actuators
can often be exposed to ambient
temperatures in excess of 90°C and are
expected to modulate continuously in
order to achieve clean and efficient
combustion. BOFA induced draft and
forced draft inlet guide valves must respond
quickly and accurately to changes in plant
demand to ensure that the correct boiler
control and performance is met, in
compliance with emission control
directives.
High speed electric actuators for
continuously modulating duties are now
able to meet the arduous operating
requirements of these duties, where
traditionally hydraulic power packs were
always specified.The advantages of electric
actuation in these areas include reduced
capital, operating and maintenance costs,
improved control and increased reliability.
Case histories
Alstom is installing BOFA NOx reduction
technology at Ratcliffe Power Station,
utilising Rotork IQT and IQTM intelligent
electric actuators for damper operation on
new BOFA ducting (see Figure 1). Accurate
BOFA fan control is critical to the success
of the system and here Rotork Process
Fig. 3: Installation of a Skilmatic SI electro-hydraulic
modulating linear actuator at the RWE nPower Aberthaw
power station.
Fig. 2: Rotork Process Control LA2000 electric linear
actuators have been selected for some particularly harsh
applications at the EdF West Burton power station.
Control SM6000 electric actuators have
been specified due to their high speed,
continuous modulating duty capability with
precise positioning within 0.1% of span.
At the EdF West Burton power station
(Figure 2) NOx emissions have been
reduced ahead of LCPD legislation by
installing SOFA systems and improving
boiler draft by replacing on/off actuators
on secondary air dampers with modulating
electric actuators. Rotork Process Control
LA2000 electric linear actuators were
selected for these particularly harsh
applications, controlled by a 4-20mA signal
fed to a remotely mounted digital amplifier,
enabling actuators to operate in ambient
temperatures up to 107°C (225°F).
Doug Gauld of GE Energy, the main
contractor at West Burton comments: “The
retrofitting of actuators equates to over
50% reduction in NOx emissions.”
Meanwhile, the RWE nPower Aberthaw
power station is undergoing a series of
environmental improvement projects
including the introduction of flue gas
desulphurising technology in line with the
latest European regulations. Rotork’s
Skilmatic SI electro-hydraulic actuator with
its integral failsafe design has provided an
ideal engineering solution on mill isolation
dampers where the previously fitted
customised electro-hydraulic actuators had
become increasingly expensive to maintain
due to obsolescence.
In another area, existing feed water
regulation valves with pneumatic actuators
were causing operational problems and
proving uneconomical to maintain.They
have been replaced with new valves
operated by Skilmatic SI electro-hydraulic
modulating linear actuators (Figure 3)
which matched the technical requirements
for fast acting, high thrust and accurate
valve positioning.
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