REVAMPING OF THE FANS TO INCREASE THE PLANT

PERFORMANCE A RETROFITTING TOOL TO

CONTROL POWER PLANTS EMISSIONS
Paolo Saccenti - BOLDROCCHI S.r.l. Milano ( Italy)

Synopsis :

It is frequently the case that power plants are retrofitted with additional gas cleaning
system and/or the existing de-dusting equipments are replaced with new and more
efficient components. The modification and/or substitution of some plant components,
would require the upgrading of the fans to meet the new operating conditions. The
possibility of increasing the fan capacity and pressure, while minimizing the
modifications to layout and ductwork, is an important parameter that may help to make
the decision to proceed with the modification of the plant. In this paper the entire
process of fan upgrading, starting from the field performance test, up to the final
acceptance test is described and the limits of any single modification, from simple
blade tipping of the wheel through the complete substitution of the rotor and bearings
with or without some casing modifications, is discussed. Some successful examples
carried out by Boldrocchi S.r.l., who this year is completing one century of activity in
the fans business, are also reported.

1. Introduction

What is a “revamping” of a fan ?

It is the modification of the fan in order to increase the performances, i.e. capacity and
pressure, that are the parameters related to meet the operating conditions of a new plant
arrangement. The modifications on the fan must not involve the lay-out of the plant, in
other words the following components must remain the same:

- Foundations
- Inlet/outlet ducts
- fan casing (only minor modifications)

The fan components that could be involved in the revamping are :

-Impeller - inlet bell - Shaft - Bearings

-Coupling - E-motor - Casing (eventual modifications)

A modification of the fan in order to improve the mechanical reliability, as the change
of the bearings; or the operational life of the fan, as a change of the rotor material; or the
improvement of the erosion/corrosion resistance performance, as a change of the wear
plates of the impeller, is not considered in this paper.

1
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
 2. Revamping solutions

The methods used to revamp are :

 Speed increase
 Impeller blades tipping
 Impeller change

The qualitative result of all the three fan modification methods may be seen in the
figure 1. The curve A it is the fan not modified, while the curve B is the result of the
modification. Note that the system resistance, indicated by the two parabolas, may or
may not change. The system resistance does not change when no additional
components are provided or the existing components , except the fan, are not modified.
The increase of capacity and pressure in case of no system modifications, curve “C” are
∆Q and ∆P, while ∆Q1 and ∆P1 are relevant to a system modification, curve “D”. The
new absorbed power is W1r in case of no system modification while it is W2r in case of
system modification.

Fig. 1 flow rate-static pressure-shaft power

2
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
 3. Speed increase

It is the easiest way but the most uncommon way to increase the performance of big
fans. The fan performance changes according to the fan laws:
Qr= Q * RPMr/RPM capacity
2
Psr= Ps * (RPMr/RPM) pressure
Wr= W * (RPMr/RPM)3 shaft power
Eff.r=Eff. efficiency

Where the suffix “r” is relevant to the modified fan.

The effect on the performance curves is shown in the figure 2.

FLOW RATE - SHAFT POWER

800

700
0
1480
600

500
Power [kW]

1300
400

300

200

100

000
0
0 50000 100000 150000 200000 250000 300000 350000 400000 450000
Flow Rate [m^3/h]

Figure 2

3.1 Checks

The following checks have to be done on the fan in the new operating conditions

• Stress verification of the impeller for the new speed

• The shaft critical speed margin
• The bearings life
• The existing motor installed power
• The coupling max torque
• The foundation stability
• The ducting / components stability for the new working pressure.

3.2 Advantages / Disadvantages

The following advantages and disadvantages are characteristic of this solution.

3
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
Advantages:
• No changes on the rotor for small velocity increases
• No static parts modifications
• No efficiency decrease
• Suitable for variable frequency driven fans

Disadvantages:
• Motor change for direct driven applications
• Increase of erosion in the impeller if the dust load in the gas is high.

The increase in operational speed due to the change of E- motor polarity often implies
mechanical modifications to the rotor, bearings and coupling

4. Impeller blade tipping

This is a very easy mechanical solution but it provides limited possibility for
performance increase.
The principle of the modification is to increase the diameter of the impeller by adding
“extensions” to the trailing edge of each fan blade. The blade tips protrude outside of
the back plate (centreplate for double suction wheels) and side cones of the impeller.
The tip may follow the blade angle, as shown in the second sketch of fig. 3 (a) or
increase the blade angle as shown if the first sketch of the same figure.
The performance curve of the fan varies like a virtual increase of the rotational speed,
but with a correction factor.

Qr= Q * Dr/D * K Psr= Ps * (Dr/D*K)2 Wr= W * (Dr/D*K)3 * K1

Where: D = impeller diameter , K, K1 = coefficients > 1

The coefficients K and K1 depend on the diameter increase and the tip angle.
The effect on the fan performance curves is qualitative the same shown in fig. 1:

4.1 Manufacturing solutions

The manufacturing solutions for the blade tipping are shown in fig. 3 (a, b and c) .
The fig. 4 shows an application on an induced gas fan of a 600 MW coal fired
power station.

Fig. 3a Clean air fan Fig. 3b Fan with dust load

4
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
 Fig. 3c Airfoil blade

Fig. 4 a ID fan with blade tips Fig. 4 b Blade detail

4.2 Checks to be done

The following checks have to be done on the fan in the new operating conditions:

• The tip blades mechanical integrity

• The existing motor installed power
• The coupling max torque
• The impeller – cut off distance

The tip blades are welded on the blades and cones/ centre/back plate as shown in figure
3a. In case of clean gas (figure 3a) the tip is simply fillet welded on the blade, while on
wheels provided with wear plates the discontinuity of the fillet weld may be badly
eroded. In such a case the butt weld is mandatory (figure 3b) and the tip must be
reinforced with the half-discs welded to the side cone and back plate. In the airfoil
blades, where usually no dust load is present, the tips may be fillet welded or screwed
as shown in the fig. 3 c.
The distance between the scroll cut-off and the outside diameter of the impeller is
important, as well. Usually the minimum distance is around 5% of the impeller new
diameter.
5
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
 4.3 Advantages / Disadvantages

The following advantages and disadvantages are characteristic of this solution.

Advantages:
• Easy execution: at site from the inspection door, no fan disassembly
• Short time necessary for the operation: two days including re-balancing
• Static part modification rarely necessary
• Motor change rarely necessary.

Disadvantages:
• Max increase of capacity 8-10% , Pressure 16-20 %
• Decrease in fan efficiency, up to 3-4 percentage points
• Noise increase

5. Rotor change

This solution is applicable when the requested increase of performance exceeds the
limits of the previous solutions. Usually by changing the rotor a 20-25% increase in
capacity at the same rotational speed, may be achieved. The performance curve is the
one of the new impeller but the “original” curve shape is slightly modified. The increase
of velocities inside the casing means higher pressure losses, but the effect is negligible
at the design point. The efficiency is also affected.

The effect on the fan performance curves is shown in fig. 5:

FLOW RATE - TOTAL PRESSURE

1600

1400

1200
Pressure [mmH2O]

1000

800

600

400

200

0
0 20000 40000 60000 80000 100000 120000 140000 160000 180000 200000
Flow Rate [m^3/h]

Fig. 5

6
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
 5.1 Manufacturing solutions and examples

The arrangement of the new rotor in the actual casing must be carefully studied. The
limit of this solution usually are the inner dimensions of the casing, i.e. the width and
the cut off distance to the rotational axis. In figure 6 the important dimensions to be
checked are reported

Fig. 6 Important dimensions for rotor change

When the diameter of the new wheel is too close to the actual cut-off a modification of
that part of the casing must be made. In fig. 7 A,B a study of the cut-off modification
and an application are shown.

Fig. 7 A Casing modification for a bigger wheel

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Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
Fig. 7 B Casing modification with prefabricated piece

A study of a rotor substitution in a fan is shown in fig. 8. The left side is the actual inlet
bell configuration and the right side shows the modification. Note the spacers to let the
inlet bell shifted axially due to the increased width of the new wheel.

Fig. 8 Vane controls adjustment with a wider wheel

8
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
 5.2 Checks

The following checks have to be done on the fan in the new operating conditions:

• The inner casing dimensions for the new rotor (width, cut-off distance, new inlet
bell)
• The new motor arrangement on the base plate
• The possibility to recover the actual shaft
• The existing bearings
• The foundations, if the rotational speed changes
• The ducting / components stability for the new working pressure

5.3 Advantages / Disadvantages

Advantages:
• Performance increase higher than the other solutions.
• Negligible effects on the new rotor efficiency.

Disadvantages:
• The fan will not be operational for some time and a process shutdown may need
to be scheduled.

6. The revamping process

The revamping of a fan is the application of one of the three above mentioned methods,
or a combination of them. The work requires a complete analysis of the actual operating
conditions of the fan at site and a technical / commercial discussion with the customer
to understand what fan performance is necessary to meet the new operating targets of
the plant. The steps necessary to complete the project are the following:

1. Data acquisition from the customer : actual operating parameters and

revamping target, available drawings
2. Preliminary study of the revamping
3. Technical proposal to the customer
4. Site performance test and fan inspection: to get the real actual operating
parameters and “as installed” casing and rotor: “ important dimensions”
5. Final technical / commercial proposal /order
6. Manufacturing - delivery – erection - commissioning – field balancing
7. Site performance test to check the operating parameter

The performance test of the fan in the actual conditions is very important because very
rarely the fan is operating in the original design condition, as per the installation data
sheets. The success in the target is greatly affected by the accuracy of the starting point.

9
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09
The tests mentioned at point 4 and 7 are done by our field engineers according to the
AMCA 203 standard.

7. Conclusions

The performance of the fans may be increased by modifying some of their parts, but
without affecting the “outline” dimensions of the plant area.

• The capacity increase may vary from a minimum of 5% up to 30%.

• The pressure and power follow accordingly
• The modifications have a minor impact on the fan efficiency
• The site activity for the modification may vary from a immediate shut down of
the fan, necessary for the blade tipping, up to a scheduled plant shut down
necessary for the complete rotor change with casing modification.
• The three methods of revamping may be combined together.
• The fan reliability is not affected.

Boldrocchi S.r.l. has the capability to supply all the services listed at par. 6, starting
from the feasibility study up to the supply of the components, the erection and the
commissioning, including the field balancing. The revamping activity may be done
either on fans supplied by Boldrocchi and by any other fan Manufacturer.

8. Some applications

10
Revamping of the fans to increase the plant performance . A retrofitting tool to control power
plants emissions.
Paolo Saccenti, Boldrocchi S.r.l. March-09