Advanced modeling for monitoring centrifugal compressor operation

M. Di Febo and P. Paganini, IPC Industrial Plants Consultants, Bari, Italy Ensuring safe and optimal operative conditions for compressors is a primary goal for process plants. The approach to plant machinery maintenance has changed considerably in the past several decades, moving from an initial approach with repair intervention after failures (i.e., corrective maintenance) to a preventive approach with parts replacement at fixed work hours. More recent developments have led to a predictive approach based on the observation of mechanical parameters. Recent machinery maintenance developments. Predictive techniques commonly implemented are connected to the reading of vibrational parameters a