Internship Report

June 2014

Duration
2nd

June 2014- 27th June 2014

Plant Supervisor
Mr Saleem Sajid (DGM Learning)

Imaaduddin Motan
BE Mechatronics Engineering
Shaeed Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Institute of Science and Technology

Contents
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 3
Scope of Internship ................................................................................................................................. 3
Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 4
About BQPS 1 .......................................................................................................................................... 4
Mechanical Maintenance Department..................................................................................................... 5
Observation of Mechanical Maintenance ................................................................................................ 6
Visit to Workshop .................................................................................................................................... 7
Conclusion............................................................................................................................................... 8

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Allah for providing me with an opportunity to intern at K-Electric. I would
also like to thank the K-Electric Management and Staff for making the duration of the internship
a truly amazing learning experience. And finally I am thankful to my parents and family who
supported me throughout the duration of this internship.

Scope of Internship
During this internship we hope to learn about the practical usage and implementation of
theories and concepts learnt during classes such as Thermodynamics, Fluid mechanics, Electro
Mechanical Systems etc. And to build on these concepts and have a deeper understanding.

Introduction
K-Electric Limited formerly known as Karachi Electric Supply Company Limited (KESC) is at present
the only vertically-integrated power utility in Pakistan that manages the generation, transmission
and distribution of electricity to the city. It produces electricity from its own generation units with
an installed capacity of 2341 MW. It also has power purchase agreements for 1021 MW from
various IPPs such as WAPDA, KANUPP etc. and through imports.
The Company covers a vast area of over 6,500 square kilometers and supplies electricity to all
the industrial, commercial, agricultural and residential areas that come under its network,
comprising over 2.2 million customers in Karachi and in the nearby towns of Dhabeji and Gharo
in Sindh and Hub, Uthal, Vindar and Bela in Balochistan.

About BQPS 1
The Bin Qasim Power Station is located 40Km east of Karachi. It has an area of 173 acres.
BQPS 1 is a thermal power plant which uses steam to produce electricity.
A thermal power station is a power plant in which the prime mover is steam driven. Water is
heated, turns into steam and spins a steam turbine which drives an electrical generator. After it
passes through the turbine, the steam is condensed in a condenser and recycled to where it was
heated; this is known as a Rankine cycle. The greatest variation in the design of thermal power
stations is due to the different fossil fuel resources generally used to heat the water.
It consists of 6 electricity generating units rated at 210 Mega Watts each for a total installed
capacity of 1260 Mega Watts.
The efficiency of each unit is between 37-39% with the first unit being commissioned in 1983 and
the last unit in 1998

Mechanical Maintenance Department

The mechanical maintenance department is responsible for the timely maintenance of all
mechanical equipment in the plant i.e. Turbine, Boiler, Condenser, Pumps etc. to keep the power
station running in proper conditions at full load.
There are 3 types of maintenances done at BQPS 1
1. Corrective Maintenance
It can be defined as the maintenance which is required when an item has failed or worn
out, to bring it back to working order.
2. Preventive Maintenance
Preventive maintenance is maintenance performed in an attempt to avoid failures,
unnecessary production loss and safety violations.
3. Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM)
It is a process to ensure that assets continue to do what their users require in their present operating
context.

There are 2 main divisions of the mechanical maintenance department with different General
Managers
1. Turbo set & Workshop
GM- Mr Muzzafar Iqbal
This department is responsible for turbo set cycle which includes:
a. Condeser
b. Condenser Pumps
c. Heaters (High and Low pressure)
d. Boiler Feed Pumps
e. Turbine
2. Boiler &BOP (Balance of Plant)
GM- Mr Abroo Ashraf
This Department is responsible for the Boiler Cycle and other auxiliaries such as:
a. Cooling Water Pumps
b. Dredger
c. Air Compressors
d. Hydrogen Plant etc.

Observation of Mechanical Maintenance

During the 2 weeks at Turbine dept. 2 types of Maintenances were observed both related to the
condenser.
1. Condenser Water Shooting
Over time seawater used to cool and condense the steam causes siltation and deposits
unwanted debris in the condenser tubes. Due to this the amount of water flowing through
decreases and causes the efficiency to drop.
Water jets are used to clean these tubes. The water sprayed is highly pressurized through
the nozzles. It enters from ones side of the tubes and exits from the other. The high
pressure causes the unwanted debris to move out along with the water.
This form of maintenance is normally done under predicted/preventive maintenance.
2. Condenser Tube leakage detection
This form comes under corrective maintenance. The condensate in the hotwell is
continuously monitored by conducting lab tests to check for chlorine content etc. If this
value increases above normal levels then it is a sign that the seawater is mixing with the
condensate. And that there is a tube leakage.
To detect the leaking tube a vacuum is created in the shell of the condenser. And thin
polythene sheets are used to cover the mouths of the tubes. The suction caused by the
vacuum draws out any air in the condenser. If a tube has a leakage then air is also drawn
out from it. This causes the polythene sheet to rip from the position of the particular tube.

Visit to Workshop
The Mechanical workshop also comes under the turbine department. It contains of various
machines and equipment used to repair and fabricate parts of the machinery in the plant.
Some of the machines in the workshop are
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Lathe Machine
Milling Machine
Shaper
Electric Oven
Welding Torches

There are 2 types of welding procedures

1. Oxy-fuel welding (oxyacetylene welding)
Uses fuel gases and oxygen to weld metals. This is an old procedure in welding metal
results when two pieces are heated to a temperature that produces a shared pool of
molten metal. The molten pool is generally supplied with additional metal called filler.
Filler material depends upon the metals to be welded. This procedure is less common as
there are safety issues such as:
a. Acetylene is dangerous above 1 atm. It is unstable and explosively decomposes.
b. Flashback is the condition of the flame propagating down the hoses of an oxy-fuel
welding system. The flame burns backwards into the hose, causing a popping or
squealing noise. It can cause an explosion in the hose with the potential to injure
or kill the operator. Using a lower pressure than recommended can cause a
flashback.
2. Argon Welding
In this process Argon is used to shield the weld area from outside gases and contaminants
such as O2. This is safer as Argon is inert and does not react thereby reducing the risk of
an explosion

Conclusion
The duration of the internship was very good and I learnt and experienced a lot about practical
implementations of the theories learnt during class. The people at BQPS 1 are very helpful and
always ready to give an explanation about the procedures and technologies being employed.
This was a truly unforgettable and inspiring experience that will help me make a decision for my
future career path