Modernisation of steam turbine construction at regenerative steam extraction point

The paper presents a methodology which has led to improvement of the turbine stage performance in the regenerative steam extraction chamber area by introducing a ring which collects the leakage flow from the gaps over unshrouded rotor blade tips and directs it to the extraction chamber. A comparison is made between the results obtained for the initial design (without a ring) and the design with the ring mounted. The results obtained for the construction were calibrated using the data measured on a real turbine in a Polish power plant.