Fluid–structure interaction analysis of a high-pressure regulating valve of a 600-MW ultra-supercritical steam turbine

Abstract

A high-pressure regulating valve is one of the most critical components in ultra-supercritical steam power plants and constantly works under the condition of high temperature and high pressure. In order to control the flow of steam into the turbine, the high-pressure regulating valve normally operates at small openings. Therefore, the phenomena such as whistling noise and turbulence can be caused by the throttling effect of the regulating valve. In addition, the flow-induced vibration due to coupling between the fluid flow and the moving parts like valve stem will also occur. In this paper, the pressure loss across the high-pressure regulating valve of a 600-MW ultra-supercritical steam turbine was assessed with the aid of computational fluid dynamics studies. Furthermore, the dynamic characteristics and vibration amplitude of the valve stem were also analyzed by using fluid–structure interaction method.