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Many nuclear power plants are operating below their licensed power rating because of inaccurate feed water flow measurements. Fouled venturi nozzles lead to high flow readings and force plants to reduce thermal output. Conditions for fouling exist in all plants. Fouling is dynamic and unstable and does not produce a bias that is consistent or easy to quantify and is the single most frequent cause for reacto derating.
Installing LEFM® CheckPlus® or LEFM 2000FE systems to measure feed water flow more accurately allows utilities to quantify the extent of venturi fouling and correct their calorimetric calculations accordingly. Cameron also offers a special program (Feed water Assessment Program) to assist nuclear power plants that are uncertain of the presence of venturi fouling .
Feed water Assessment Program
- LEFM System Installation
- Flow measurement confirmed in-situ
- Steam flow, venturi flow, LEFM flow and other parameters tracked
- Preliminary fouling report provided
- Continuous flow measurement
- Final report with recommendations to recover lost megawatts
Installation of LEFM Systems alloweds power plants the ability to increase their overall efficency and recover lost megawatts for substantial increases in revenue. In a typical example, 14 megawatts recovered in a plant with venturi fouling of 1.2% yielded an estimated revenue increase of $2M per year
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