Results of weldability studies on new generation materials being carried out by Welding Research Institute (WRI) will be transferred to shop floor effectively for fabrication of ultra-super critical boilers, A.V. Krishnan, Executive Director, BHEL Tiruchi, said on Monday.
Mr. Krishnan inaugurating a workshop on Welding & Consumables for advanced materials for power plant applications in association with Kobe Steel Limited, Japan at the WRI, said, "Correction of high alloy steel used in supercritical and ultra-advanced supercritical boilers is a tough task, and it becomes very critical to develop correct welding process, sequence for distortion control and consumables for welding advanced materials for power plant applications."
BHEL has embarked to build Advanced Ultra super-critical boilers along with Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) and NTPC under the ninth National Mission on Clean Coal Technologies in keeping with the National Action Plan for Climate Change. While BHEL will design, manufacture, and commission the equipment, IGCAR will develop the materials, and NTPC will put-up the advanced ultra super-critical boilers, Mr.Krishnan said.
Presiding over the inaugural session, R. Kumar, General Manager In-charge, Engineering and R&D, BHEL, Tiruchi, said: “After mastering the sub-critical, conventional drum-type boilers by supplying over 950 units, BHEL is now offering Once-Through Supercritical Boilers backed up by hugely experienced Alstom. BHEL has already contracted 18 supercritical sets totalling to the tune of about 13,000 MW to various customers across the country.” The performance cycle efficiency goes up to 46 per cent (up from 38% to 40%) of the conventional drum type boilers.
R. Easwaran, General Manager, WRI & Labs, and A. Raja, AGM (WRI), also addressed the participants.
The delegates from Japan: Otsu Minoru, Suzki Reitchi, Sato Yasuhiro, and Ushijima Akihisa delivered lectures on ‘Effect of PWHT Temperature on mechanical properties of High-Cr Ferritic heat-resistant steel weld metals’, ‘New MIG welding process’, MX-MIG” combined (Ar only shield gas) with special flux cored wires’, ‘Development of a covered electrode for Nickel base alloys (ENiCrCoMo-1)’ and ‘Introduction of welding material for Sumitomo SUPER304H.’
