Implementation of Hydraulic Oil Flushing Mitigates Compressor Failures Effectively

Synopsis

The plant boasting a daily urea production capacity of 3,850 tons based in Dhanbad, had its existing infrastructure under a complete shutdown for 15-20 years leading to a meticulous ground-up renovation and redesign process. The commissioning of the two newly set-up primary compressors required a meticulous hydraulic line flush to ensure optimal performance and to avoid them entering into an early maintenance period

Initial Findings

Newly installed hydraulic oil pipelines for compressors often undergo on-site fabrication, introducing unwanted deposits and contaminants. Without thorough flushing, these deposits pose a risk of severe damage to the compressor turbine, potentially causing erosion and complete failure. Such premature failures force the compressor into maintenance, disrupting regular operations. The primary cause of initial failure and operational downtime in hydraulic systems is typically particles and contaminants

Problems

Pre-commissioning flushing was vital to eliminate contaminants like grime, metal debris, and sealant, to prevent sudden failures in pumps, motors, valves, and other components. Hydraulic Flushing was a necessary step to avoid clogs, leaks, and malfunctions, ensuring seamless equipment commissioning and averting costly maintenance and disruptions.

Client’s Requirement

• Aligning pipeline standards set by the compressor OEM
• Hydraulic pipe cleaning to meet standards where particles above 150 microns are impermissible. The 100-mesh should show no particles after a minimum 12-hour flushing period.
• Equipment: Two compressors - Process Air Compressor (PAC) and Carbon Dioxide Compressor (CO2).
• The flushing oil should attain NAS<=6/ ISO 4406: 17/15/12 standards.
• Customized Solution.

Solutions

Utilizing Minimac's tailor-made equipment on-site, accompanied by a team of proficient and trained engineers.

• Minimac Systems provided a simple yet effective method for all the piping for both of the compressors.


• Offered Solution : Flushing system having capacity of 2000 LPM : FS-2000-2S-H-V.


• Our Service Engineer installed the equipment and provided training on its operation and effective handling to the client's team.


• Job executed within a limited time-span on the running unit without hindering the client’s operations and oil tanks.

Value Type	PAC Compressor		CO2 Compressor
	Before	After	Before	After
NAS	12	5	12	5
Time Taken For Work Completion	16 Days		35 Days

Cost Saving

This plant managed to save:

• Cost of Oil Replacement: ₹25 Lakhs. Approx.
• Cost of Downtime: ₹1 Cr. Approx

CO2 e Saving

2,88,000 kg of CO2 e / 0.288 gigagrams of CO2 e

Benefits

1. Prevented the environment from harm by averting the emission of 2,88,000 kg of CO2 e
2. 24 kL of Oil Saved.
3. Extended Equipment Life.
4. Reduced NAS Levels.
5. Elimination of Oil Replacement/Compressor Maintenance Costs.
6. Task Successfully performed without any shutdowns and in a limited amount of time.
7. No Accidents/ Spillage.
8. HSE Norms Fulfilled Diligently.

Abbreviations Used

• kL : kilolitre
• kg : kilogram
• NAS : National Aerospace Standard
• LPM : Litres Per Minute
• OEM : Original Equipment Manufacturer
• ISO : International Organization for Standardization
• Cr : Crore

Subscribe to our YouTube Channel and be a part of our Journey - Click Here