Low loss gas turbine bearing upgrade for efficiency

GE Power’s low loss gas turbine bearing upgrade can help reduce turbine shaft losses from reduced mechanical friction. Bearing replacement can lower power loss by 35 – 40% over traditional flooded bearings by using a non-flooded, direct-lubrication hybrid bearing to replace the flooded 4-pad tilt pad bearing. The new low loss bearing consists of a fixed arc top half and a tilting pad bottom.

How the low loss type bearing upgrade can help efficiency

Improved efficiency can contribute to reduced fuel and operating costs. Validated results* show the upgrade of two GT bearings can typically save 300 kW on a 9F unit

Combined cycle heat rate can improve from -0.12% to -0.24% on single shaft configurations, with an improvement range of -0.10% to-0.20% on multi-shaft configurations. The upgrade helps deliver simple cycle heat rate improvement ranging from -0.08% to -0.16%.

^{* From validated field installations since 2015}