GEK 27191C Revised, February 1993 Reformatted, January 1995

GE Power Systems
Generator

System Purging and Charging

(Automatic Purge)
I. PURGING CONTROL SYSTEM It is necessary to avoid an undesirable hydrogen-air mixture when initially charging the casing with hydrogen, or after removing the hydrogen from the casing before opening it to atmosphere. An inert gas is used to purge the casing of air before admitting hydrogen, and also to purge the casing of hydrogen before admitting air. Carbon dioxide is used for this purpose and is admitted into the casing through a perforated distribution pipe extending the length of the bottom of the casing. When removing either air or hydrogen from the casing, carbon dioxide is admitted to the bottom of the casing through the carbon dioxide feed pipe and the air or hydrogen in the casing is discharged to atmosphere through the hydrogen feed pipe. Carbon dioxide is admitted until a mixture of 30% air in carbon dioxide is obtained in the gas discharge to atmosphere. Hydrogen is then admitted to the casing through the hydrogen feed pipe and the carbon dioxide in the casing is discharged to atmosphere through the carbon dioxide feed pipe. When a mixture of 95% hydrogen in carbon dioxide is obtained in the gas discharge from the casing, the generator may be placed in operation. For removal of hydrogen from the casing with carbon dioxide before opening the casing to atmosphere, carbon dioxide is admitted until a mixture of 5% hydrogen in carbon dioxide is obtained in the discharge gas. The carbon dioxide in the casing may then be removed by admitting air to the bottom of the casing and discharging the carbon dioxide to atmosphere through the carbon dioxide feed pipe. The valves in the hydrogen and carbon dioxide feed piping for control of the purging operation are located under the gas manifold. II. GAS PRESSURE SWITCH Components most likely to require replacement are the bellows, diaphragm or piston sensor, or the switches. Replace as follows: CAUTION Always disconnect supply circuits before removing explosion-proof enclosure cover.

These instructions do not purport to cover all details or variations in equipment nor to provide for every possible contingency to be met in connection with installation, operation or maintenance. Should further information be desired or should particular problems arise which are not covered sufficiently for the purchasers purposes the matter should be referred to the GE Company. 1993 GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY

GEK 27191C
A. Replacement Of Switches 1. Remove cover and disconnect 3 wires at switch terminals.

System Purging and Charging

2. Remove 2 switch mounting screws, the switch and the insulator. 3. Install insulator with new switch, and mount in control. 4. Connect wires at switch terminals and adjust pressure setting per Alarm and Set Point information found in the Generator Design Data and Curves Tab. B. Replacement Of Piston Or Bellows Assembly 1. Remove cover and 7/8-inch (22.225 mm) hex nut from inner end of pressure assembly housing. 2. Unscrew pressure assembly housing from the enclosure. Retain the plunger. 3. Screw in new pressure assembly housing (after inserting plunger). 4. Check switch setpoint(s) and recalibrate if required. Adjust pressure setting per Alarm and Set Point information found in the Generator Design Data and Curves Tab. C. Diaphragm Replacement 1. Remove the 6 pressure cap screws. 2. Insert new diaphragm. 3. Replace pressure cap and screws. Make sure they are tight. 4. Check switch setpoint(s) and recalibrate if required. See Alarm and Set Point information found in the Generator Design Data and Curves Tab. III. PURGING AIR FROM THE SYSTEM (See the Reference Drawing on Valving Operation For Purging with CO2) A. Place the MAINT/AUTO switch, located on the hydrogen cabinet, in the MAINT position. B. Make sure the hydrogen gas is shut off at its source. This is done, for safety reasons, to prevent hydrogen from entering the unit if the valves are operated improperly. C. Make sure all hydrogen piping drain valves are closed. These valves are numbered 61 through 67. D. On the hydrogen control cabinet, close valves 5, 6 and 9. Valves 5 and 6 are test connections inside the hydrogen cabinet and are only used to check the generator fan differential. All other hydrogen cabinet valves should be opened to allow CO2 to purge the air from the lines. E. Close valves 50, 51, 20HS-2, 52, 53, 20PV and 60. If hydrogen shutoff solenoid valve, 20HS-2, is not in the tripped (closed) position, it may be closed manually by pushing the solenoid plunger up to release the latch and trip the valve closed. Solenoid valve, 20PV, is closed by manually lifting the reset lever until the mechanism latches. F. Calibrate the portable gas analyzer to measure the percentage of air in carbon dioxide as outlined in the publication Thermal Conductivity Gas Analyzer.

System Purging and Charging

GEK 27191C

G. Connect the sensing tube of the portable gas analyzer to the GSS test connection located above valve 57 on the purging control manifold. See Reference Drawing on Purging. H. On the purging control manifold, rotate three-way plug valve RV-1 to the position shown in the Reference Drawing on Purging. This will allow carbon dioxide to enter the generator casing when the supply is turned on.I. J. Open valves 55, 56, 58 and 69 through 74. K. Manually open CO2 supply at source. L. Throttle valve 60 to limit the flow of CO2 to approximately 50 cubic feet (1.415 m3) per minute. This is done to minimize the waste of CO2. M. Place the portable gas analyzer into operation by throttling valve 57 to pass sufficient gas to read the purity of the gas being purged. N. Discharge carbon dioxide into the generator casing until the purity of the gas being discharged is less than 30 percent air in carbon dioxide. The amount of carbon dioxde required to produce a 70% concentration will be about 1.25 times the gas volume of the generator casing.O. P. After purging is complete, open all gas piping drain valves for a few seconds to purge the air from them. Q. Close valves 55, 56, 57, 58 and 60. R. During the purging operation, the hydrogen bottles should be made ready for charging the generator casing, since this operation immediately follows the purging of the casing. IV. PURGING HYDROGEN FROM THE SYSTEM (See the Reference Drawing on Valving Operation for Purging with CO2) When purging hydrogen from the casing, the previous procedure shall be followed except: A. Calibrate the portable gas analyzer to measure the percentage of hydrogen in carbon dioxide. See the publication Thermal Conductivity Gas Analyzer. B. Discharge the carbon dioxide into the generator casing until the purity of the gas being removed is less than 5% hydrogen in carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide required to provide a 95% concentration will be about 2.0 times the gas volume of the generator casing. V. CHARGING THE CASING WITH HYDROGEN (See the Reference Drawing on Valving Operation for Charging with Hydrogen) A. Adjust the hydrogen gas supply source to provide approximately 75 psig (5.2725 kg/cm2) to the hydrogen control manifold. B. Calibrate the portable gas analyzer to measure the percentage of hydrogen in carbon dioxide. Refer to text on Thermal Conductivity Gas Analyzer for calibration procedure. Hydrogen gas for the calibration may be obtained from the calibration test connection on the hydrogen gas control manifold. Make sure valves 1, 2, 7, 9, 50 and 51 are closed. Open valve 52; adjust pressure regulator to pass a small flow of gas, and throttle valve 53 to permit a small amount of pure hydrogen to enter the portable gas analyzer for calibration purposes. After calibration is complete, close valves 52 and 53.

GEK 27191C

System Purging and Charging

C. Connect the sensing tube of the analyzer to the GSS connection located on the purging control manifold. See Reference Drawing on Charging. D. Close valves 54 and 55. E. Rotate three-way plug valve, RV-1, as shown in the Reference Drawing on Charging. Open valves 56 and 58. This allows the carbon dioxide from the generator casing to be vented to atmosphere. F. Open valve 51, and reset hydrogen shutoff solenoid 20 HS-2. hydrogen gas is admitted to the generator casing while holding the pressure between 2 and 5 psi (0.1406 and 0.3515 kg/cm2) by adjustment of the manifold pressure regulator. Toward the end of the filling operation, it may be necessary to throttle vent valve 56 to maintain the required pressure in the generator, due to the reduced pressure loss in the discharge line with increasing hydrogen content of the discharge gas. G. While the hydrogen gas is being admitted to the generator casing, place the portable gas analyzer in operation by opening valve 57 and adjusting the proper flows through the analyzer. H. Discharge the hydrogen into the casing until the gas analyzer shows a mixture of 90% hydrogen in carbon dioxide being forced from the generator. The amount of hydrogen required to produce a 90% concentration in the generator casing is approximately 1.75 times the casing volume at 0.5 psig (0.03515 kg/cm2) casing gas pressure.I. J. After casing is completely charged, close valve 56 to close off the vent. Adjust hydrogen manifold pressure regulator for machine operating pressure. Normally, this is 30 psig (2.109 kg/cm2). K. See the Reference Drawing on Valving Operation During Normal Operation. This illustration shows three-way plug valve, RV-1, rotated to allow CO2 gas to enter the generator casing through the CO2 distribution piping. Open valves 54, 58 and 60. CAUTION Make sure supply of carbon dioxide is adequate to completely purge the generator.

GE Power Systems
General Electric Company One River Road, Schenectady, NY 12345 518 385 2211 TX: 145354