Modernization of the Rotor Hydraulic Lift Pump of the K-1200-6.8/50 Steam Turbine Unit

In the recent past, equipment manufactured by foreign companies was widely used in Russian industry. At present, however, under sanctions imposed against Russia and systemic restrictions, technical support for the operation of such complex equipment is significantly impeded or absent. The Novovoronezh NPP team is successfully responding to these challenges by developing technical solutions that enable the continued efficient operation of imported equipment under the new reality. This article presents one of the many examples of the Novovoronezh NPP team’s efforts aimed at ensuring Russia’s economic security and technological sovereignty. During operation of power units with VVER-1200 reactors, failures were identified in the operation of the turbine unit rotor hydraulic lift pumps manufactured by Allweiler GmbH (Germany). As part of the program for import substitution and improving equipment reliability, on the basis of the available documentation and a comparative analysis of the operating modes of rotor hydraulic lift pumps (RHLP) at the Novovoronezh and Leningrad NPPs, a technology was developed for repairing the RHLP with modernization of internal casing components by installing a bronze bushing and maintaining precise clearances of the pump’s internal casing assemblies. Improved circuit solutions have been proposed for the turbine unit rotor hydrostatic lift system that exclude RHLP damage during power unit operation at load and during planned preventive maintenance (PPM). The modernization of equipment manufactured in Germany and its successful operation at the Novovoronezh NPP is a vivid example of a scientifically grounded technical response to sanctions pressure from foreign countries and can be disseminated to other Russian enterprises as a positive practice.