Shaft Failure Sea Water Pumps At the Steam Power Plant Units

Abstract

The water pump used to suck and drain seawater to the heat exchanger unit at a Steam Power Plant (PLTU), is damaged. To find out the causal factors of this damaging phenomenon, the fractured shaft is tested which includes visual observation, fractography testing, metallography, hardness testing and chemical composition analysis on a fractured shaft. By knowing the type and cause of damage to the water pump shaft, steps of prevention or prevention can be formulated so that the same damage can be avoided. From the test results, it was found that the average carbon content was lower than the AISI 316 standard. While the average hardness was lower than the standard hardness. The damage that occurs to the CWP water pump shaft is basically caused by fatigue fracture due to excessive workload in the form of dynamic loading.