Abstract: Both a system and method are provided for detecting and locating a leak in the housing of the steam turbine components of an electric generator of the type that are connected to a vacuum pump that generates a negative pressure to remove air from the steam system, comprising a source of tracer gas for releasing a quantity of gas at potential leak locations on the exterior of the housings, a saturatable tracer gas detector having an inlet port in fluid communication with an outlet of the vacuum pump for detecting a flow of tracer gas associated with a selected minimum leak condition and for generating an electrical signal corresponding to this condition, an electrically controllable butterfly valve located upstream of the inlet port of the tracer gas detector for regulating the amount of tracer gas that flows into the detector, and a control assembly including a microprocessor that is electrically connected to both the tracer gas detector and to the valve for preventing a saturating flow of tracer gas from ente

Abstract: An improved tracer gas leak detection system and method for air inleakage testing of a turbine-condenser system quantified leak testing with two new elements: one, by providing discharge of a fixed, reproducible amount of tracer gas at a possible leak site, which is accomplished by controlling the flow rate, pressure and time interval of the discharge. Secondly, the total amount of tracer gas subsequently detected within the turbine-condenser is determined by integrating the detector response.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for continually obtaining accurate opacity monitor readings of an exhaust gas stream (15) is disclosed. A conventional opacity monitor having a transmitter (10) and a receiver (13) is shielded from an exhaust stack (16) environment by two scratch-resistant windows (19, 20). The windows (19, 20) are periodically kept clean by spraying a volatile nonflammable cleaning solvent (28) onto each of the windows (19, 20), and a reciprocating resilient wiper arm (22) is used to remove the solvent (28) and any particulate matter (14) from the windows (19, 20). This cleaning is performed for a period of about twenty seconds. The next step is to then obtain an accurate opacity monitor by directing a light beam (34) across the stack (16) from the transmitter (10) via first window (19) through the exhaust gas stream (15) to the receiver (13) via second window (20). The reading is obtained during about the next ten seconds.