Advances in Desuperheating Technology for Reliable Performance of Combined Cycle Power Plants (CCPP)

This paper focuses on the advances in desuperheating technology, their application in reliable control of steam temperature in power stations and their implication as far as the overall reliability of cycling units. Typical problems with attemperators/ desuperheaters and the current approach to desuperheater selection are reviewed. Fundamental principles that govern the overall performance in attemperation/ desuperheating are described in conjunction with the analysis and experimental work behind it. Quantifiable, and verifiable, performance criteria for selecting desuperheaters based on the application of these fundamentals are provided. A prediction tool, which is based on the fundamentals approach and shows good agreement with field experience, is described.