Condition Monitoring for Pumps

Abstract

The OM Code contains a check valve condition monitoring (Reference Code Appendix II) that has been utilized by Owners at numerous nuclear power plants to improve testing of check valves. Use of this similar approach for pumps is expected to also improve testing of pumps. Comprehensive Pump Testing was originally intended to address not just the pump, but the use of the pump drivers and associate pump electrical system components to monitor pump health as is currently done for motor actuated valves. The draft comprehensive test requirements included taking motor current pump electrical components, as well as an oil sample, but those requirements were not allowed to go into the final Code language, e.g., motor current signature requirements. The reason was that this was considered including the motor in IST and was not in the OM scope. However, the motor, in that case, was used to verify acceptable pump operation only. Also, enhanced vibration techniques, such as spectral analysis were also considered. This paper will present the use of Pump Condition monitoring as a method to enhance IST and, in some cases replace traditional pump IST intervals, similar to what is done for check valve condition monitoring. The proposed Pump condition monitoring program will rely on the revised OM-14.