Power Generation
Metal Improvement Company’s (MIC) processes are used extensively in the power generation industry to improve the performance of steam and gas turbine engines, auxiliary parts and equipment and also to reduce the effects of failure modes such as erosion, fretting, fretting fatigue, fatigue and stress corrosion cracking (SCC), particularly in hostile and corrosive environments.
Shot Peening is usually performed on components following original manufacture but can also be used to increase the time between maintenance intervals for equipment in use. It can also be applied to welded joints to reduce or eliminate SCC replacing the tensile stress on the surface with beneficial compressive stress.
The power generation industry has now begun using Metal Improvement’s Laser Peening technology to improve the fatigue strength of blades on advanced steam turbines. Although Laser Peening technology has been utilized for several years to strengthen critical titanium components in commercial and military turbine engines, this application represents its first production use in power generation steam turbines. However, many more applications in this industry are developing.
Transmission components, gears and shafts are common applications to prevent component failures but more recently to enable greater loads to be applied on critical design features.
MIC provides a range of engineered coatings which provide corrosion resistance and wear protection such as:
- Expoxies
- Phenolics
- Fluoropolymers (PVDF/ECTFE)
- Nylon
- Ceramometallic Hybrid Coatings
MIC also offers on-site processing worldwide which is ideally suited to needs of the power generation industry.
Applications
- Turbine blades
- Turbine blade roots
- Dovetail slots in discs
- Wind turbine shafts and gears
- Steam generators
- Piping and process vessels
