Evaluating the condition & remaining life of older power plants

Eyckmans Marc - Product Manager

Laire Charles- Product Manager
D'ambros Laurent - Engineer
LABORELEC - BELGIUM - Failure analysis & Material assessment in plants
(http://www.ndt.net/article/wcndt00/papers/idn022/idn022.htm)

SUMMARY
Run/repair/replace or refurbishment decision making is the day of today in an open
market a more strategical approach than the last decade. The best technical solution
for higher assets is a must which can only be achieved by applying a mixed
methodology of Remaining Life Time (RLT), Risk Based Inspection (RBI) &
Reliability Engineering (RE). This paper gives an overview of the RLT & RBI
methodology applied by Laborelec for the Belgian Power generator Electrabel.
As further explained in the paper the Laborelec Remaining Life Time (RLT)
methodology; mainly based on corrosion, creep and thermal fatigue principals, is
structured in a multi-level approach where the final scientific approach is a mix of
design, operation & maintenance history in combination with quantified material
characteristics.
The scientific approach results in a theoretical creep & thermal fatigue remaining life
estimation extended with recommendations of future predictive inspection intervals or
run/repair/replace decisions. These recommendations are determinated by the
complementary Risk Based Inspection (RBI) & Reliability Engineering (RE) home
developed methodologies. Some practical examples will show the benefit of this
"three dimensional" approach.

1. BACKGROUND
The current situation regarding the assessment, testing and inspection of power plants
frequently results in the formulation of the following question : How long can power
plants be operated safely and cost-effectively while satisfying increased requirements
pertaining to operational availability and reduced pollutant emissions after having
served their originally intended service life ?
This question is of growing importance when the fact is considered that the
percentage of plants currently in operation that are more than 30 years old is rising. In
order to answer this question the operational capability of the existing plant must first
be investigated.
The availability of a power plant depends on the availability of its non-redundant
component. Assurance of a proper operation of these components, so called Key
Components, should be, therefore, the main task of a plant Remaining Life Time
(RLT) program. The condition of these components can be assessed only by way of a

RLT methodology. Based on the RLT results a proper decision can be made as to
plant safety and availability :

maintain in operation as it is
repair
replace

Taking into account the economic implications of these three alternatives as well as
the economic, social and environmental implications of unscheduled outages due to
sudden failures the selection of a proper RLT methodology gain in importance. This
methodology should provide the best technical solution to ensure a safe operation of
the plant.

2. REMAINING LIFE METHODOLOGY

The art in determining a plant's actual status and how much of its entire service life
has expired lies in combining analytic considerations, calculation methods, the
relevant non-destructive tests, including strain measurements and the correct selection
of those components, in which the respective damage is to be reckoned with.
Unexpected damage may be caused by exceeding thermal, static, and/or dynamic
parameters which are used as the basis for calculations.
An important basis for the results is the analysis of the actual operational data (e.g.
temperature, pressure, throughput), operational experience and operational tenders.
A systematic integral approach which allows assessment of the plants current
operational capability and safety is only possible by correctly drawing a correlation
between the operational load and the actual status of the plant or its components,
which has been obtained from tests and inspections.
Based on these results, the right measures for future procedures can then be initiated
in a reasonable manner.

3. THE LABORELEC RLT METHODOLOGY

The Laborelec RLT methodology is structured in a "Three Level Approach" with
following sections :

Level 1 : Design Data Collection & operation history

Level 2 : Operating / Maintenance / Inpsection history
Level 3 : Scientific Approach based on level 1 & 2 data in combination with
quantified material properties

In accordance with the "Three Level Approach" concept, each section contains a
specific program for the condition assessment of the equipment.
The Laborelec 3 level RLT methodology, schematicly presented in underlaying
figure, can be applied on the following power plant components :

pipe lines
boiler tubes

boiler large components

4. LEVEL 1 : DESIGN DATA COLLECTION

The question posed during an initial approach is what kind of damage? malfunctions?
material failures ? can occur.
A first quick scan will separate the possible & non-critical items in the proces and this
based on temperature & wall thickness design data. The establishment of the list of
possible critical parts is based on our 30 years field experience for similar equipment.
For the final list we can go on with level 2 & 3.
Following table gives a quick overview of possible failure mechanisms for boiler
components.
C R
TF
F
E
Er
Co
- evaporator
X
H
X
X
- drum
X
X
- superheater / reheater tubes
X
X
- superheater headers
X
X
- reheater headers,
X
X
- desuperheater nozzles
X
X
- steam lines
X
X
- feedwater lines
X
X
Table 1:

C = creep R = relaxation TF = thermal fatigue F = fatigue

E = embrittlement Er = Erosion Co = Corrosion

5. LEVEL 2 : OPERATING / MAINTENANCE & INSPECTION HISTORY

Level 2 gives a specific plant history input so we complete design data with operating
& maintenance events which are :

For the operating part :

o The operating parameters like pressure & temperature
o Incidents, events of failure & repair statistics
o Condition of the plant facility by n of starts/stops & service hours
For the maintenance part :
o Review of component replacement & repair
o Review of component geometry
For the inspection part :
o Non destructive testing results where the most important are :
o Wall & internal oxide thickness measurement by ultrasonics
o Metallographic examionation by replication
o Stress measurements by strain gages
o Destructive material testing like failure analysis, isostress creep testing

The results of the NDE & DE provide one essential input for the component integrity
evaluation and life assessment.
5.1. NON DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
Non destructive examinations (NDE) are essential constituents of any residual life
assessment programme. The objective of such assessment is to compare the current
condition of the material of a given component with its original condition to define
the amount of deterioration of the component.
Three major questions have to be answered before starting NDE :

When ?
Where ?
How ?

The used inspection techniques depend on the given component, the location on the
component, the damage modes to be looked at and the material used. Some of the
regularly used methods to establish the material condition provide data which can be
quantified in analyses whereas others can only indicate whether a defect is present or
not. Following table correlates the examination methods with various components of
fossil fired power stations.
In underlaying short overview we see the NDE-techniques used on the different boiler
components.
Components
DC
- economiser headers
X
- waterwalls
X
- boilers drums
X
- lower waterwalls and headers
- junction headers
X
- waterwall risers

TM

ME

HT

PT/MT
X

X
X

ET

UT
X
X
X
X
X

RT

- waterwall headers
- superheater headers (welds)
- reheater headers (welds)
- desuperheaters :
liners
nozzles
- HT superheater tubing
- steam piping
- feedwater piping

X
X

X
X

X
X
X

X
X

X
X
X

X
X
X

X
X
X

X
X

X
X

X
X
X

X
X

X
X

Table 2:

DC Dimension checks

TM Thickness measurement
ME Microscopic
examination
HT Hardness testing
PT Liquid penetrant examination
MT Magnetic particle
examination
ET Eddy current examination
UT Ultrasonic examination
RT Radiographic
examination
5.2. Destructive testing
The scatter band of material properties (creep strength) is an important source of
uncertainty for the calculation of the life expenditure. It may therefore be necessary to
determine mechanical property values from specimens of material taken from the
actual components. Sampling may however not in any way degrade the integrity of
the component. Various sampling methods are used : boot samples, trepanned, core
samples, through wall trepanning, ....
For some of them subsequent weld repair may be required. Destructive testing can
have following objectives

verification of non-destructive examinations results (if no defects are found)

direct (quantitative) assessment of the degree of damage (structural &
mechanical)
determination of component material mechanical properties (to reduce the
scatter band) : creep testing, fatigue testing, fracture toughness, crack growth
rate evaluation, ...
post failure search for the damage mechanisms and propagation depth.

5.3. Isostress creep testing

Quantitative residual life assessments are performed using the isostress testing
technique. Acceleration is obtained by testing at enhanced temperatures, applying the
representative service stress.
The decision to choose for increased temperature testing instead of increased stress, is
based on the fact that creep is a thermally activated process. For ferritic materials
however the maximum temperature is limited to about 720C (by approaching the
AC1 temperature). Test specimens are loaded under tension to a stress equal to the
service stress of the component under investigation. Usually 5 to 6 specimens are
exposed to mutually different temperatures, chosen such that creep rupture times are
invoked in the range of 100 to 1000 hours. The secondary creeprate is deduced from
the recorded strain-time evolution. Time to failure and total elongation after failures

are determined also. Finally the test results are extrapolated in the co-ordinate system
ln (rupture time) versus temperature (C).

6. Level 3 : Scientific Approach

Based on the information of level 1 & 2, Laborelec finally calculates the theoretical
remaining life of the component. This can be done by 2 different scientific approaches
:

theoretical life time consumption calculations mainly based on the TRD 508
recommendations
qualitative life time assessment based on metallographic investigations

For each of these apporaches we use several home made soft tools like

recalculation of stresses from internal pressure under static loading &

ultrasonic measured wall thickness by our soft programme called "LILCA"
calculation of metaltemperature by oxide thickness measurement also done by
the soft "LILCA"
recalculation of the stress range under cyclic loads by a home made soft
programme called "THERMSTRESS"
calculate or estimate creep damage level based on metallographic examination
results of critical locations by our soft programme "CREEPMAP"
recommendation of predictive inspection intervals by the Laborelec soft
"INTERVAL"

7. Theoretical life assessment based on TRD 508

The aging of the boiler & piping components is mainly manifested by 2 mechanisms :

creep
thermal fatigue

Degradation mechanisms other than creep and fatigue are less accessible to useful life
prediction by calculation
7.1. Creep
Static load creep degradation can only appear under certain conditions of stress &
temperature which has to be superior of 450C. For each period of time "ti", under a
certain stress & temperature, the relative creep life consumption "e" is calculated as
follows :

with t "Ri" = time to rupture for that stress & temperature during period "ti"
The time to rupture is calculated based on the creep rupture data curves for the
different boiler materials. These curves (lower, mean & maximum material resistance)
are specified are specified in following standards :

NBN 837
Din 17735

Static load creep life consumptions are calculated by the home made soft programme
called "LILCA"; which also allows you eventually to estimate the mean
metaltemperature in service.
7.2. High temperature tube life prediction with "LILCA"
To perform assessments and determine the remaining life of high temperature boiler
tubing, it is necessary to accurately measure critical tube dimensions and predict the
time dependent response of the tube material.
Laborelec measures wall and internal oxide scale thickness to predict remaining tube
life with "LILCA" software. Thickness measurements are made using focused UT
transducers. Steamside oxide layer thickness measurements allow the evaluation of
the average metal temperature of components by using the material oxidation kinetics.
"LILCA", with the possibility for input of external wall loss due to erosion or high
temperature corrosion, contains algorithms that allows the user to make deterministic
estimates of tube remaining life.
7.3. Fatigue calculations with "Thermstress"
Fatigue only take place under alternating load conditions. During this load alternation
3 types of alternating stresses can be registrated :

mechanical stresses due to change in pressure

thermal stresses due to temperature differences through the component wall
thickness, these stresses become only significant for wall thiknesses lager than
45 mm
stratification due to temperature differences on 2 opposite spots on the
component

There exist "Whler"-fatigue curves for these 3 types of stress and the different
materials. These curves predict the total acceptable number of stress cycles. The
relative life consumption "fi" for one cycle with a constant stress amplitude is
calculated as follows :

"Ni" (with "Ni" = maximum allowed number of that typical cycli)

7.1.E. Linear Damage Summation
Creep-fatigue analysis places an important role in the life assessment activity of
power plant equipment. In the U.S.A. an approach to the creep-fatigue design and
remaining life calculation was develop in the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel
Code, Section III, Code Case N-47 which is essentially based on the linear damage
summation method given by underlaying equation. This method combines the damage
summation for creep and for fatigue as follows :

where

N/Nf - cycling load portion of the life fraction;

N - number of cycles at a given strain range;
Nf - fatigue life (number of cycles to failure without creep damage) at that
strain range
t/tf - time-dependent creep life fraction
t - time at a given stress;
tr - time to rupture at that stress;
D' - the cumulative damage index

The damage summation method is very popular because it is easy to use and requires
only standard S-N (Whler) and creep stress rupture curves.

8. Remaining Life Assessment and Inspection Interval

Recommendations Based on Material Microstructure Investigations
8.1. Background
One of the main damage mechanisms affecting power plant components is the creep
damage. such damage may occur in different forms : localized or bulk damage.
Localized damage creep may become manifest in the form of cracks. The cracking
process is characterized by a time-dependent growth under an approximately constant
load. As in the case of fatigue cracking, creep cracking may be characterized by some
fracture mechanics parameters.
Bulk damage it can manifest itself in two forms (fig1):

intergranular creep cavitation and

microstructural degradation
Fig 1: (a) Ferrite - Pearlitic structure;
(b) Carbides Precipitation at the grain boundaries
(c) Spheroidization of carbides from pearlite has begun
(d) Spheroidization of carbides from pearlite is finished.
(e) dispersed carbides (no ferritic - pearlite structure);
(f) carbide coalesence;

8.2. Scope of Application

The assessment of microstructural

damage under creep conditions is of
special interest for the component life
assessment. The levels of
microstructural degradation or creep
cavitation may be evaluated in terms of
remaining life or required inspection
intervals.
Life assessment techniques based on
metallographic methods may be
performed destructively by means of
sample extraction, preparation and
microscopy investigation.
Alternatively, metallographic
investigations may be done nondestructively by way of replication.

Fig 2: Description of the replication principle

There are two major applications of the replication technique :

Study of the microstructure (creep cavitation, precipitate spacing, grain size,

etc.) using an optical or electron microscope;
Examination and identification of second-phase particles by extraction
technique.

At present, the plastic replication technique is used principally for reproducing surface
features such as creep cavities, cracks and gross microstructural features. Field
application of carbide extraction replica method will require further development
work. Fig. 2 illustrates replication principle. In order to obtain accurate results, a very
high surface quality is mandatory.
Surface oxides as well as decarburized zones must be removed prior to replication of
the component surface.
8.3. Remaining Life Assessment and Recommended
Inspection
Neubauer and Webel have published the first attempt
to correlate the creep life consumption of plant
components to cavitation. They collected data on
steam pipes from numerous German power plants.
According to their theory, the creep damage level can
be classified in accordance with the number of
cavities and their orientation.
Thus, they separated four classes of degradation (see
fig. 3) :
Class A - Isolated cavities;
Class B - Oriented cavities;
Class C - microcracks;
Class D - macrocracks;

Fig 3:

They suggested also corresponding actions for each damage stage :

Class A - No remedial actions required;

Class B - Replica tests at specified intervals;
Class C - Limited service until repair;
Class D - Immediate repair.

Because of the high conservatism included into this theory, it is actually used as a
monitoring technique, rather than a life prediciton method. Nevertheless, worldwide
acceptance with power plant operators because of its simplicity.
Laborelec also suggested a mixted method of assessment where creep degradation and
aging proces are taken into account in combination with there repercussions on the
component remaining life. Creep damage process is not the only one affecting power
plant components operated at elevated temperatures and high pressures. There are
many other damage mechanisms that result in an increase of the damage rate of these
components and consequently in a decrease remaining life.
The author proposes a parameter to define a correlation between the following
variables :

Creep damage state evaluated by means of microstructural investigations

Component expended life;
Recurrent inspection intervals

It is accomplished based on a logarithmic correlation between the recurrent inspection

intervals and component expended life, for each damage level.

9. Risk assessment & Trending analysis

Several methodologies in the last 2 decades have promised to allow obtaining "risk
knowledge from data". Virtually all of them were able to prove that they can do it "in
principle", but many failed to assure their place in daily practice. The reasons for this
are not the methodologies themselves but the high investment price, the very
consuming implementation time, the poor measurable benefit and the late break even
point of the investment into the "risk knowledge management" (fig 4). Laborelec
developed a risk based inspection concept avoiding the above pitfalls and resulting in
measurable benefits (fig 5).

Fig 4:

Fig 5:

9.1. The Laborelec RBI methdology

As for each existing RBI-methodology, Laborelec
also started from the basic definition of risk as a
produkt of probability & consequence of failure.
This probability and consequence for each procesitem are schematicly presented in a 5x5 risk matrix
allowing us to identify on a clear manner the high,
medium & low risk items. The aim of this Laborelec
Risk matrix is a reducing the non-availability of the
high risk items and enlargement of the inspection
intervals of the low risk items (fig 6).

Fig 6:

9.2. Identification of probability and consequence

Laborelec uses a quick scan tool in first instance for the item probability ranking. This
quick scan is based on a mix of design & proces parameters and operation &
maintenance history. Fine tuning is afterwards possible by the implementation of a
integrity factor.
The consequence factor is build of 4 subdiaries. These are the costs of security,
environment, maintenance and productionloss due to stop time. Only the highest
value is taken into account for the consequence ranking
9.3. Trend analysing & inspection intervall modelling
Trend analysing & inspection intervall modelling is only possible fro trending
degradation mechanism like uniform corrosion, erosion, creep & fatigue. For each of
these degradation mechanisms, the inspection intervall is defined as the remaining
lifetime devide by a security factor. At this time Laborelec proceeds for a statistical
approach for the erosion & corrosion degradation mechanism. For creep evaluation
we prefer a deterministic approach such as a sudden death risk analysis method.

Concluding comments
None of the worldwide Remaining lifetime methodologies takes into account all
uncertainties like scatter in material properties and additional system stresses. This

paper demonstrates that the Laborelec 3 dimensional remaining life time

methodology; based on creep, thermal fatigue & erosion or corrosion; allows to take
into account a maximum of these uncertainties. Some practical examples for use of
our home made RLT soft tools are shown.
This RLT-methodology in combination with our RBI-methodology, a risk ranking
approach also discussed in this paper, allows the client to identify the optimum
inspection interval for all proces items that are sensible for trending degradation
mechanisms. The proces equipment affected by non trending degradation mechanisms
can only be optimised by changes in design, maintenance or operation conditions.
As a mix of trending & non trending degradation mechanisms will always be present
in the entire proces, the author is of the opinion that the most effective manner to
manage "trending & non-trending" is to implement a progressive but flexible
inspection plan worked out by a team build of material- & NDT-specialists +
maintenance & operation people of the plant. This plan must be continuously adjusted
according to new information and evolving technological + economical factors.
Name:
Eyekmans M.
Company: LABORELEC
Address: Rodestraat 125
B- 1630
Linkebeek
Country: Belgium
Phone:
0032 2 382 02 11
Fax:
0032 2 382 06 49
Email:
marc.eyekmans@laborelec.be