Lower Maintenance Cost With DBR Off-Line Fuel Treatment System
The Veja Mate Offshore Wind Substation is currently under construction at Cofely Fabricom, a reputable yard in Belgium. This high-end topside, certified by DNV-GL, is equipped with a dedicated off-line fuel treatment system manufactured by DBR Generatorsets based in Sliedrecht, the Netherlands. This containerised system is located between two storage tanks of 75 m3 each, and the day tanks of three grid diesel generator sets and the emergency diesel generator.
The off-line fuel treatment system, which is engineered, produced and tested by DBR Generatorsets, is completely independent and operates fully separate from the main power system. Actuated valves and pumps take care of the correct flow and direction of the gas oil. The entire system has been designed to operate seven days a week, 24 hours a day. This is possible even when the main system is shut down or when filter inserts need to be changed.
Generators cannot work without fuel supply and a fuel treatment system cannot work without fuel consumers. “Both systems have a lot of interfaces – piping, electrical ones and functional ones. In order to minimize these kinds of interfaces, we have opted for our preferred offshore supplier DBR to engineer and to build both systems,” said Mr Vercauteren from Cofely Fabricom. To minimise failure, the control and monitoring of all applicable actuated valves both inside and outside the DBR fuel treatment package are monitored and controlled from one single point inside the container. Control is programmed inside a DNV-GL Marine-certified open PLC with a front touch panel. The transmitters from the fuel storage tanks are connected to the control panel in order to receive real-time information about the available gas oil.
Lower temperatures cause condensation water in the fuel tanks. Water in diesel causes bacteria, which deteriorates the quality of the fuel. Poor diesel fuel causes wear and tear inside the engine and is even no longer allowed to be used the generator sets. The result is that the fuel needs to be changed on a regular basis. Changing gas oil is an expensive option. “With this dedicated designed fuel treatment system the growth of bacteria can be prevented, the lifetime of the gas oil extended, and the maintenance costs of the equipment reduced,” according to Henri Hafkamp, Sales Manager of DBR Generatorsets. DBR further delivered three 1,250kVA containerised grid generator sets of the DTL1250R2S type, and one 400kVA emergency diesel package, type DML400R2S, all in accordance with the applicable DNV-GL classification rules.
Based in Sliedrecht, the Netherlands, DBR provides customised solutions in the field of power supply for offshore substations and platforms, all types of seagoing and dredging vessels, and onshore applications.