GE Power

POWER SERVICES ENGINEERING TIL 2076-R1

PRODUCT SERVICE Date Printed:26-JULY-2019
Publish Date:26-JULY-2019
Compliance Category - C
Timing Code - 2

TECHNICAL INFORMATION LETTER

INLET SYSTEM EXPANSION JOINT WATER RESISTANCE
APPLICATION
This TIL is applicable to a select number of 6B, 6F, 9B, 9E and 9HA units with self-cleaning filter houses, that have
expansion belt material from Donaldson.

PURPOSE
The purpose of this TIL is to ensure the inlet system expansion joint material is inspected to confirm it is coated in order
to mitigate water leakage. If the material is determined to be uncoated, short term and long term corrective actions are
provided.

REASON FOR REVISION

To update the affected unit list, by including some older units that were not included in the previous version.

COMPLIANCE CATEGORY
M - Maintenance Identifies maintenance guidelines or best practices for reliable equipment operation.

C - Compliance Required Identifies the need for action to correct a condition that, if left uncorrected, may result in reduced
equipment reliability or efficiency. Compliance may be required within a specific operating time.
A - Alert Failure to comply with the TIL could result in equipment damage or facility damage. Compliance is
mandated within a specific operating time.
S - Safety Failure to comply with this TIL could result in personal injury. Compliance is mandated within a
specific operating time.
TIMING CODE
1 Prior to Unit Startup / Prior to Continued Operation (forced outage condition)
2 At First Opportunity (next shutdown)
3 Prior to Operation of Affected System
4 At First Exposure of Component
5 At Scheduled Component Part Repair or Replacement.
6 Next Scheduled Outage

© 2019 General Electric Company

The proprietary information published in this Technical Information Letter is offered to you by GE in consideration of its ongoing sales and service relationship
with your organization. However, since the operation of your plant involves many factors not within our knowledge, and since operation of the plant is in your
control and ultimate responsibility for its continuing successful operation rests with you, GE specifically disclaims any responsibility for liability based on claims
for damage of any type, i.e. direct, consequential or special that may be alleged to have been incurred as result of applying this information regardless of
whether it is claimed that GE is strictly liable, in breach of contract, in breach of warranty, negligent, or is in other respects responsible for any alleged injury or
damage sustained by your organization as a result of applying this information. This Technical Information Letter contains proprietary information of General
Electric Company and is furnished to its customer solely to assist that customer in the installation, testing, operation and/or maintenance of the equipment
described. This document shall not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part nor shall its contents be disclosed to any third party without the written
approval of GE Power Services Engineering. All rights reserved.
BACKGROUND DISCUSSION
The inlet duct system is configured to reduce airborne contaminants that could cause erosion and corrosion of gas
turbine components. The function of the inlet duct system is to direct airflow from the inlet filter house to the compressor
bellmouth. It is critical that the inlet duct system be installed and maintained properly and free from any potential entry of
contaminants into the clean air path. A typical configuration of the inlet duct system arrangement is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1: A typical inlet system assembly  

In some configurations, there are also unlined expansion joints. These typically connect the silencer duct (or unlined
horizontal duct upstream of the silencer duct, if applicable) to the filter house transition piece; or connect the transition
piece to the horizontal duct downstream. The purpose of these expansion joints is to isolate the environmental forces
(wind and seismic loads) of the larger filter house structure from the smaller ducting assemblies. They typically consist
of a single belt configuration of reinforced ethylene propylene (EPDM) or Neoprene material. They may also be
manufactured from glass filament texturized yarns, woven into a fabric and then coated with Neoprene rubber. An
example picture of this expansion joint material is shown in Figure 2.

© 2019 General Electric Company

The proprietary information published in this Technical Information Letter is offered to you by GE in consideration of its ongoing sales and service relationship
with your organization. However, since the operation of your plant involves many factors not within our knowledge, and since operation of the plant is in your
control and ultimate responsibility for its continuing successful operation rests with you, GE specifically disclaims any responsibility for liability based on claims
for damage of any type, i.e. direct, consequential or special that may be alleged to have been incurred as result of applying this information regardless of
whether it is claimed that GE is strictly liable, in breach of contract, in breach of warranty, negligent, or is in other respects responsible for any alleged injury or
damage sustained by your organization as a result of applying this information. This Technical Information Letter contains proprietary information of General
Electric Company and is furnished to its customer solely to assist that customer in the installation, testing, operation and/or maintenance of the equipment
described. This document shall not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part nor shall its contents be disclosed to any third party without the written
approval of GE Power Services Engineering. All rights reserved.
 Figure 2: An example picture of an uncoated expansion joint material 

During a recent site installation, site performed a water spray test, to inspect for leak paths into the inlet duct system.
During this test, it was noticed that the expansion joint was allowing water to seep through. See Figure 3 for a picture
representing this condition.

It was found that the material shipped to this site, did not have the Neoprene coating. For more details on the water
spray test, please refer to latest revision of GEK111332.

Figure 3: An example picture of the water leakage past the expansion joint 

RECOMMENDATIONS

At the first opportunity, inspect the expansion joint to determine if the neoprene coating exists. The pictures in Figure 4
can be used to make the comparison between coated and uncoated material. The coated material will have a glossy
finish on the outside, after wiping clean with water and drying; while the uncoated material will have a matte finish.

© 2019 General Electric Company

The proprietary information published in this Technical Information Letter is offered to you by GE in consideration of its ongoing sales and service relationship
with your organization. However, since the operation of your plant involves many factors not within our knowledge, and since operation of the plant is in your
control and ultimate responsibility for its continuing successful operation rests with you, GE specifically disclaims any responsibility for liability based on claims
for damage of any type, i.e. direct, consequential or special that may be alleged to have been incurred as result of applying this information regardless of
whether it is claimed that GE is strictly liable, in breach of contract, in breach of warranty, negligent, or is in other respects responsible for any alleged injury or
damage sustained by your organization as a result of applying this information. This Technical Information Letter contains proprietary information of General
Electric Company and is furnished to its customer solely to assist that customer in the installation, testing, operation and/or maintenance of the equipment
described. This document shall not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part nor shall its contents be disclosed to any third party without the written
approval of GE Power Services Engineering. All rights reserved.
 Figure 4: Example pictures of a coated compared to an uncoated expansion joint 

Also inspect the entire belt (exterior and interior) for cuts, worn sections, or cracks. If such visible damages are
observed, then replace the belt as part of normal maintenance practice. If there are no visible damages, and it is not
possible to determine the existence of the coating visually, then perform a water spray test as per the latest revision of
GEK111332 and GEK111330, to test for water leakage through the joint material. If the water is leaking through the joint
material in this condition, then it can be concluded that it is most likely uncoated.

If an uncoated expansion belt is found, inspect the clean air path, Inlet Guide Vane (IGV) and first stage compressor
visually. If signs of deposits or pitting are found, contact your local GE Service representative for further review.

Uncoated flexible joints shall be replaced with a new flexible joint from the manufacturer. New parts ordered will have a
separate neoprene layer. If the arrival of a new part would cause a delay to the planned unit restart and therefore an
unplanned outage, then a temporary solution can be applied as outlined below. The temporary solution can be used for
1 year, or the next planned outage; whichever occurs earlier. Note that this belt is typically listed as a spare part in the
inlet system spare part list. New Donaldson supplied belts shall also be inspected to ensure presence of the coating.
Finally, the spare belt shall also be inspected to confirm it is coated.

The temporary solution consists of the application of liquid neoprene coating on the outer surface of the flexible joint;
and not to the inner side of the belt, which is in the inlet air flow path. The coating is to be applied with a brush, in 2
layers. There shall be 3 hours drying time allowed between the application of each layer; and after the application of the
second layer. The liquid coating consumption for the application of each layer shall be between 1 to 1.5 liters per square
meter.

The following coating products are approved for this application:

• Henkel Rubson Liquid Rubber
• Henkel Rubson LR2000
• Teroson WX 970
• Teroson WT R2000 AQUA
• Teroson SBS3000
• Teroson SB 3120

Please pay attention to the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the material, for safety purposes; and follow the
manufacturer’s recommendations for application. After the application and proper curing, perform another water spray
test to confirm there is no water leakage past the joint material.

The TIL can be considered complete once the inspections are done and a new flexible joint is acquired from the
manufacturer and installed on the unit, if required.

© 2019 General Electric Company

The proprietary information published in this Technical Information Letter is offered to you by GE in consideration of its ongoing sales and service relationship
with your organization. However, since the operation of your plant involves many factors not within our knowledge, and since operation of the plant is in your
control and ultimate responsibility for its continuing successful operation rests with you, GE specifically disclaims any responsibility for liability based on claims
for damage of any type, i.e. direct, consequential or special that may be alleged to have been incurred as result of applying this information regardless of
whether it is claimed that GE is strictly liable, in breach of contract, in breach of warranty, negligent, or is in other respects responsible for any alleged injury or
damage sustained by your organization as a result of applying this information. This Technical Information Letter contains proprietary information of General
Electric Company and is furnished to its customer solely to assist that customer in the installation, testing, operation and/or maintenance of the equipment
described. This document shall not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part nor shall its contents be disclosed to any third party without the written
approval of GE Power Services Engineering. All rights reserved.
PLANNING INFORMATION

Compliance
• Compliance Category: C
• Timing Code: 2

Manpower Skills
Site technicians would be required, as per the details outlined under the "Scope of work" section.

Parts
The parts are to be supplied by the inlet filter house manufacturer, Donaldson. There is no GE part number for this
component; as it is part of the inlet filter house part number.

Consumables such as nuts, bolts, washers and Sikaflex 221 may be required. Please refer to the inlet filter house
manufacturer's documentation.

Reference Documents
Refer to the vendor’s manual for more information on installation and maintenance procedures.

For more details on the hose test, please refer to latest revision of GEK111332.

Scope of Work
For the initial inspection scaffolding erection is not required; access to the lower side of the belt can be achieved from
inside the inlet duct. Scaffolding erection is required only if it is determined that the expansion belt needs to be replaced
or repaired. It may require up to 1 full day (2 shifts) to erect the scaffolding for an outdoor unit. In the case of an indoor
unit, it would likely take 1 day (1 shift). After this, the following scope of work would apply.

For inspection: One (1) site technician for one hour. Inspect the belt from inside the inlet duct. As the expansion joint is
one continuous piece, it is sufficient to inspect the portion of the material that is on the floor level. The water
hose/seepage test can also be limited to this area. To check if water is seeping to the outer side of the belt, a visual
inspection from the outside is sufficient.

For expansion joint replacement: Four (4) site technicians to uninstall the existing expansion joint and install the new
one. It may require up to 3 days in 2 shifts, with two technicians in each shift.

For liquid neoprene application: Two (2) site technicians for the work, with 2 shifts to account for the application and
drying time.

For post-work hose test: Two (2) site technician in one shift.

© 2019 General Electric Company

The proprietary information published in this Technical Information Letter is offered to you by GE in consideration of its ongoing sales and service relationship
with your organization. However, since the operation of your plant involves many factors not within our knowledge, and since operation of the plant is in your
control and ultimate responsibility for its continuing successful operation rests with you, GE specifically disclaims any responsibility for liability based on claims
for damage of any type, i.e. direct, consequential or special that may be alleged to have been incurred as result of applying this information regardless of
whether it is claimed that GE is strictly liable, in breach of contract, in breach of warranty, negligent, or is in other respects responsible for any alleged injury or
damage sustained by your organization as a result of applying this information. This Technical Information Letter contains proprietary information of General
Electric Company and is furnished to its customer solely to assist that customer in the installation, testing, operation and/or maintenance of the equipment
described. This document shall not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part nor shall its contents be disclosed to any third party without the written
approval of GE Power Services Engineering. All rights reserved.
TIL DISPOSITION

Disposition of TILs should be entered in local records and also in GE Power ServiceNow. Follow the below instructions for entering
the disposition record;

• Log into the Power ServiceNow at https://gepowerpac.service-now.com/til_new/ using your GE SSO number and password.

• Select "TIL Disposition".

• Click on the TIL for the serial number you want to update.

• Choose the most appropriate "Disposition Status" and enter "Disposition Notes".

• Click "Save".

Contact your local GE Services representative for assistance or for additional information

© 2019 General Electric Company

The proprietary information published in this Technical Information Letter is offered to you by GE in consideration of its ongoing sales and service relationship
with your organization. However, since the operation of your plant involves many factors not within our knowledge, and since operation of the plant is in your
control and ultimate responsibility for its continuing successful operation rests with you, GE specifically disclaims any responsibility for liability based on claims
for damage of any type, i.e. direct, consequential or special that may be alleged to have been incurred as result of applying this information regardless of
whether it is claimed that GE is strictly liable, in breach of contract, in breach of warranty, negligent, or is in other respects responsible for any alleged injury or
damage sustained by your organization as a result of applying this information. This Technical Information Letter contains proprietary information of General
Electric Company and is furnished to its customer solely to assist that customer in the installation, testing, operation and/or maintenance of the equipment
described. This document shall not be reproduced or distributed in whole or in part nor shall its contents be disclosed to any third party without the written
approval of GE Power Services Engineering. All rights reserved.