Worlds First Oil-free Steam Turbine with Levitating

Rotor

A 10-megawatt prototype of a steam turbine with magnetic bearings is being tested at Vattenfalls
coal-fired Jnschwalde Power Plant south of Berlin.
Enlarge image

Siemens has introduced the worlds first oil-free

steam turbine. At the heart of the new
technology are bearings that use magnetic forces
to suspend a rotor weighing several tons. It is an
attractive option for industries that have to take
special safety precautions.
Todays turbine rotors use oil to keep their bearings from overheating. But because of the high
temperatures involved, that oil must be continually pumped through the bearings. With this in mind,
Siemens has introduced the worlds first oil-free steam turbine. At the heart of the new technology are
bearings that use magnetic forces to suspend a rotor weighing several tons. Instead of requiring
hundreds of liters of oil for the bearings, the oil-free steam turbine needs only about three liters of oil
for the valve actuators that control the steam supply. It is therefore an attractive option for industries
that have to take special safety precautions. Examples include the oil and gas industry, which is
subject to stringent fire safety regulations, as well as facilities that are near conservation areas and
have to meet special environmental-protection criteria. A 10-megawatt prototype of a steam turbine
with magnetic bearings is currently being tested at Vattenfalls coal-fired Jnschwalde Power Plant on
the German-Polish border south of Berlin.
The main advantage of an oil-free steam turbine becomes evident when the machinery powered by it
(e.g., a generator or compressor) also uses magnetic bearings. The new technology requires no

system to manage oil and thus eliminates the need for oil tanks, lines, pumps, disposal systems, and
safety precautions against fires and environmental damage. Oil-free steam turbines also operate
more efficiently, because the rotor has no contact with the bearings, meaning that there are almost no
frictional forces. Depending on the design of the turbine, efficiency gains of up to one percent are
realistic.

Patented Air Cooling

Active magnetic bearings that generate their force through controlled electromagnets are currently
used in machines such as compressors and electric motors. Until now, however, this technology has
not been realized in steam turbines. One reason for this is that high temperatures are a major hurdle.
The steam that flows into a turbine often exceeds 500 degrees Celsius. Siemens engineers have
overcome this challenge with a special cooling system that has now been patented. The quantity of oil
needed by the valve actuators has also been reduced through the use of a compact hydraulic system.
In active magnetic bearings, the position of the rotor is registered by sensors and controlled by means
of a high-performance system that adjusts the magnetic field. Here, a SIMOTICS system
compensates for all the weights and process forces acting on the rotor. Because of this technology,
active magnetic bearings also open up the possibility of monitoring rotors online.
Siemens implemented the magnetic bearing system in its SST-600 industrial steam turbine in
cooperation with the University of Zittau/Grlitz, which is just south of the Jnschwalde Power Station.
A test bay was set up at the university to develop and refine the bearings. The Power Station is
operating the prototype as one of twelve drive turbines for its feedwater pumps. The other turbines are
of the same type, but are equipped with conventional oil-lubricated bearings. Each of the turbines has
an output of approximately ten megawatts and operates at speeds of up to 5,700 rpm. In general, the
magnetic bearing technology is appropriate for Siemens steam turbines with rotor weights of up to ten
tons, which corresponds to an output of between 45 kW and 40 MW.
Norbert