Study of Wash Fluid Cleaning Effectiveness on Industrial Gas Turbine Compressor Foulants

Online compressor washing is an advanced method of mitigating the effects of fouling as well as to increase the interval between offline washes. The major concern with online compressor washing has been its cleaning effectiveness, since it is carried out when the engine is running at full or near full speed. Hence, injecting wash fluid into the compressor to achieve an efficient cleaning is a challenge. This work investigates the most appropriate wash fluid for cleaning a particular type of foulant. Contaminants found on the surface of the compressor blades are of different composition; if the correct wash fluid is not selected, efficient cleaning cannot be achieved. In this study, wash fluids are applied to different compositions of foulants in a wind tunnel compressor cascade to ascertain their effectiveness in removing foulants. The research demonstrates that aqueous surfactant wash fluid is more effective for removing foulants composed of crude oil and carborundum particles.© 2013 ASME