Metaheuristic algorithms are extensively utilized to find solutions and optimize complex industrial systems’ performance. In this paper, metaheuristic algorithms are utilized to predict the optimum value of the operational availability of a cooling tower in a steam turbine power plant. These techniques have some flaws like poor convergence speed, being stuck in local optima, and premature convergence. For this purpose, a novel efficient stochastic model is proposed for a cooling tower that is configured with six subsystems. The Markovian birth-death process is utilized to develop the Chapman-Kolmogorov differential-difference equations. All the random variables are statically independent, and repairs are perfect. Failure rates are exponentially distributed, while repair rates follow the arbitrary distribution. Steady-state availability (SSA) of the system is derived concerning various failure and repair rates. The sensitivity analysis of SSA is also performed to identify the most critical component. Further, system availability is optimized using genetic algorithm (GA) and particle swarm optimization (PSO) because they are found to be more suitable for such types of problems. It is revealed that the PSO outperforms GA in predicting the availability of cooling towers used in steam turbine power plants. 

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Efficient Stochastic Model for Operational Availability Optimization of Cooling Tower Using Metaheuristic Algorithms

Generator is key unit of steam turbine power plant which is used to convert mechanical energy into electrical energy. This energy is further used for completing the requirement generated by various sectors of country. Generator is one of the most important component of steam turbine power plant configured with seven subsystems in series configuration. So, it is necessary to ensure its smooth functioning which is attain by the proper functioning of its subcomponents. It is important to increase operational availability of subsystem. Hence, present study is proposed to investigate various reliability measures of generator used in STP through RAMD approach at component level. For this purpose, mathematical models using Markovian birth death process have been developed for all subsystems of generator. These models are very helpful in reliability, maintainability, and availability analysis of generators. RAMD analysis will play significant role in this direction. This will help to find critical component of system so that proper maintenance strategies can be proposed. It is assumed that all failure and repair rates associated with each component followed exponential distribution and adequate repair facility always remains available with system. Various system performance measures like reliability function, maintainability function, dependability function and steady state availability for different components as well as system have been evaluated. The numerical results have been derived to highlight the importance of study.

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1742-6596/1714/1/012009/pdf

Reliability and Maintainability Investigation of Generator in Steam Turbine Power Plant using RAMD analysis

The purpose of this paper is to provide results for reliability, availability and maintainability (RAM) measures to improve the operational performance of a soft water treatment and supply plant (SWTS-Plant) through the illustrative case study. RAM analysis of SWTS plant installed in a high-rise society ABC, Jaipur was performed. The descriptive analysis of time to failure and repair has been made along with trend analysis and goodness-of-fit test. The best fitted distributed and parameters have been identified from the existing theoretical distributions using the maintenance data of ABC plant. Reliability and maintainability measures also calculated for the entire plant. It is observed that (i) the plant availability decline from 97.96% to 92.67% (ii) failures of five subsystems dominant with 81.5 % failures and (iii) average failure rate is 937.4 minutes. This study will be supportive to identify the occurring complications in the plant.

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Reliability, Availability and Maintainability Analysis to Improve the Operational Performance of Soft Water Treatment and Supply Plant

In this manuscript, reliability measures of a milk plant under certain conditions have been analyzed using regenerative point graphical techniques. The milk plant has two non-identical units A and B. Unit ‘A’ gives milk and another unit ‘B’ gives cream independently. It is assumed that the system is functioning with full capacity when both units are perfectly operating; otherwise, the system works with a reduced capacity. The system may fail only when both units are failed. There is a single server, who gives priority to repairing unit A. For analysis of the reliability measures of the milk plant system numerically as well as graphically, some particular values of parameters have been taken arbitrarily.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s41872-020-00163-8.pdf

Reliability measures analysis of a milk plant using RPGT

Stochastic modeling and performance optimization of sludge digestion processing system using genetic algorithm

The main aim of this study is to explore the availability and profitability of generators, which are key units of steam turbine power plants, considering exponential failure and arbitrary repair time distributions. A Markov birth–death process and supplementary variable technique are used to evaluate system effectiveness measures. Such a generator mainly consists of seven repairable components arranged in a series configuration. A stochastic model of the generator is developed, and the Chapman–Kolmogorov differential difference equation of the system derived. Finally, the results for the steady-state availability and profitability of the system are obtained for a particular case that will be helpful to system designers to enhance the performance of plants to some extent.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s42452-020-2520-y.pdf

Operational availability analysis of generators in steam turbine power plants

/pdf/behavioral-analysis-of-cooling-tower-in-steam-turbine-power-4ocrmfut8g.pdf

Nivedita Gupta

Papers

Operational availability analysis of generators in steam turbine power plants

Reliability and Maintainability Investigation of Generator in Steam Turbine Power Plant using RAMD analysis

Behavioral Analysis of Cooling Tower in Steam Turbine Power Plant using Reliability, Availability, Maintainability and Dependability Investigation