Industrial Gas Turbines Operations, Principles and Maintenance
Course Overview
Course Title: Gas Turbines Operations, Principles and Maintenance
Course Level: Beginner → Intermediate → Advanced
Delivery Mode: Online / Self-Paced / Instructor-Led
Recommended Duration: 12 Modules
Target Audience: Gas turbine operators, mechanical technicians, maintenance technicians, engineers, control room operators, instrumentation and electrical personnel, production personnel, and technical supervisors.
Course Description
This professional online course provides comprehensive knowledge of gas turbine operating principles, major components, starting and shutdown procedures, control systems, fuel systems, lubrication, cooling, combustion, performance monitoring, inspection, preventive maintenance, troubleshooting, and condition monitoring.
The course is designed for personnel working with gas turbines in oil & gas facilities, power generation plants, industrial plants, compressor stations, FPSOs, LNG facilities, and other process industries.
Course Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, participants should be able to:
- Explain the operating principles of gas turbines.
- Identify major gas turbine components and their functions.
- Explain the Brayton/Joule cycle.
- Understand compressor, combustor, and turbine operation.
- Explain gas turbine starting and shutdown sequences.
- Understand fuel gas and liquid-fuel systems.
- Explain lubrication, sealing, cooling, and air systems.
- Interpret basic gas turbine control and protection systems.
- Monitor operating parameters and recognize abnormal conditions.
- Perform routine operator inspections.
- Develop preventive and predictive maintenance activities.
- Troubleshoot common gas turbine faults.
- Understand vibration, temperature, pressure, and performance monitoring.
- Apply safe isolation and maintenance practices.
- Interpret basic gas turbine performance data.
- Understand major inspection and overhaul activities.
Course Fee
- Online Training fee: N250,000
- Offline Training Fee: Request a quote
Module 1 — Introduction to Gas Turbines
Lessons
- Introduction to gas turbine technology
- Applications of gas turbines
- Types of gas turbines
- Industrial vs. aero-derivative gas turbines
- Single-shaft and two-shaft gas turbines
- Open-cycle and combined-cycle systems
- Gas turbine terminology
- Major gas turbine manufacturers and technologies
- Advantages and limitations of gas turbines
- Gas turbine plant safety fundamentals
Practical Activity
Identify the major sections of a typical industrial gas turbine from a schematic.
Module 2 — Gas Turbine Thermodynamics and Operating Principles
Lessons
- Fundamentals of thermodynamics
- Energy conversion in gas turbines
- Brayton/Joule cycle
- Compression process
- Combustion process
- Expansion through the turbine
- Pressure ratio
- Temperature ratio
- Thermal efficiency
- Turbine power output
- Heat rate
- Effects of ambient conditions on performance
Practical Exercise
Calculate basic turbine pressure ratio, efficiency and power relationships.
Module 3 — Gas Turbine Major Components
Lessons
- Gas turbine construction
- Air inlet system
- Compressor section
- Compressor blades and vanes
- Combustion chamber
- Fuel nozzles
- Ignition system
- Turbine section
- Turbine blades and vanes
- Exhaust system
- Bearings and rotor assembly
- Accessory gearbox and auxiliary systems
Practical Activity
Component identification using a gas turbine sectional drawing.
Module 4 — Gas Turbine Compressor Operations
Lessons
- Axial compressor operating principles
- Compressor stages
- Compressor pressure ratio
- Compressor blade aerodynamics
- Variable inlet guide vanes
- Variable stator vanes
- Compressor fouling
- Compressor erosion
- Compressor corrosion
- Compressor surge
- Compressor stall
- Compressor performance monitoring
Case Study
Gas turbine power loss caused by compressor fouling.
Module 5 — Combustion and Fuel Systems
Lessons
- Gas turbine combustion principles
- Combustion chamber designs
- Fuel gas systems
- Liquid-fuel systems
- Fuel control valves
- Fuel gas pressure regulation
- Fuel nozzles
- Ignition systems
- Flame detection
- Combustion dynamics
- Lean blowout
- High-temperature combustion problems
- Dual-fuel operation
- Fuel quality considerations
Practical Exercise
Trace fuel flow from the fuel supply system to the combustion chamber.
Module 6 — Turbine Section and Exhaust Systems
Lessons
- Turbine expansion principles
- Turbine stages
- Turbine blades
- Nozzle guide vanes
- Blade cooling
- Thermal stresses
- Turbine creep
- Blade erosion
- Blade corrosion
- Exhaust gas temperature
- Exhaust diffuser
- Exhaust systems and silencers
- Heat recovery systems
Case Study
High exhaust temperature caused by combustion imbalance.
Module 7 — Gas Turbine Auxiliary Systems
Lessons
- Lubrication oil system
- Hydraulic oil system
- Cooling air system
- Seal air system
- Starting system
- Turning gear system
- Fuel gas conditioning
- Air filtration system
- Ventilation system
- Fire and gas protection
- Drain and vent systems
- Auxiliary electrical systems
Practical Assignment
Develop a simplified auxiliary-system operating checklist.
Module 8 — Gas Turbine Starting, Loading and Shutdown Operations
Lessons
- Pre-start inspection
- Gas turbine permissives
- Starting sequence
- Cranking system
- Purging
- Ignition
- Flame establishment
- Acceleration
- Synchronization
- Generator loading
- Load control
- Normal shutdown
- Emergency shutdown
- Cool-down procedure
- Turning gear operation
Practical Exercise
Create a gas turbine start-up and shutdown sequence flowchart.
Case Study
Failure to start due to an incorrect permissive/interlock condition.
Module 9 — Gas Turbine Control, Instrumentation and Protection
Lessons
- Gas turbine control systems
- Speed control
- Load control
- Temperature control
- Fuel control
- Pressure measurement
- Temperature measurement
- Vibration monitoring
- Speed measurement
- Flame detection
- Overspeed protection
- High-temperature protection
- Low-lubrication-pressure protection
- Emergency shutdown system
- Alarm and trip systems
- PLC/DCS/SCADA interface
Practical Assignment
Interpret a simplified gas turbine control and protection schematic.
Module 10 — Gas Turbine Maintenance Principles
Lessons
- Gas turbine maintenance philosophy
- Preventive maintenance
- Predictive maintenance
- Corrective maintenance
- Condition-based maintenance
- Operator maintenance inspections
- Lubrication maintenance
- Air filter maintenance
- Fuel system maintenance
- Compressor inspection
- Combustion inspection
- Turbine inspection
- Bearing inspection
- Coupling inspection
- Exhaust-system inspection
Maintenance Planning
Participants learn to develop:
- Daily inspection checklists
- Weekly maintenance schedules
- Monthly inspection schedules
- Annual maintenance plans
- Shutdown maintenance plans
- Spare-parts lists
- Maintenance work orders
Module 11 — Gas Turbine Troubleshooting and Condition Monitoring
Lessons
- Gas turbine troubleshooting methodology
- Low power output
- High exhaust temperature
- Excessive vibration
- High bearing temperature
- Low lubrication oil pressure
- High lubrication oil temperature
- Compressor surge
- Compressor fouling
- Flame failure
- Failure to accelerate
- Failure to start
- Excessive fuel consumption
- High exhaust temperature spread
- Generator load problems
- Unexpected trips
Condition Monitoring
- Vibration analysis
- Oil analysis
- Exhaust temperature monitoring
- Compressor performance monitoring
- Bearing temperature monitoring
- Fuel consumption monitoring
- Trend analysis
- Performance degradation analysis
Major Case Study
Gas turbine trips repeatedly on high exhaust temperature — diagnose the fault using operating trends and alarm information.
Module 12 — Gas Turbine Inspection, Overhaul and Advanced Maintenance
Lessons
- Gas turbine inspection philosophy
- Borescope inspection
- Combustion inspection
- Hot-gas-path inspection
- Major inspection
- Rotor inspection
- Compressor blade inspection
- Turbine blade inspection
- Bearing inspection
- Alignment
- Rotor balancing
- Non-destructive testing
- Blade crack detection
- Dimensional inspection
- Reassembly
- Post-maintenance testing
- Commissioning after overhaul
- Maintenance documentation
Final Practical Project
Develop a complete Gas Turbine Operations and Maintenance Plan covering:
- Operating procedures
- Start-up/shutdown
- Routine inspections
- Preventive maintenance
- Predictive maintenance
- Troubleshooting
- Safety
- Spare parts
- Maintenance records
- Performance monitoring
Course Assessment Structure
Quizzes
Each lesson should include a 10–15 question online quiz covering:
- Multiple choice
- True/false
- Matching
- Equipment identification
- Scenario-based questions
Practical Assignments
Recommended assignments include:
- Gas turbine component identification
- Brayton cycle calculation
- Gas turbine performance calculation
- Compressor troubleshooting
- Fuel-system flow tracing
- Start-up sequence development
- Shutdown procedure development
- Control-system interpretation
- Preventive maintenance planning
- Gas turbine troubleshooting case study
- Condition-monitoring trend analysis
- Complete gas turbine maintenance plan
Downloadable Course Resources
The online course can provide downloadable:
- Gas Turbine Fundamentals PDF
- Gas Turbine Components Handbook
- Brayton Cycle Calculation Workbook
- Gas Turbine Operator’s Checklist
- Start-Up Checklist
- Shutdown Checklist
- Emergency Shutdown Checklist
- Gas Turbine Maintenance Checklist
- Lubrication System Checklist
- Compressor Inspection Checklist
- Combustion Inspection Checklist
- Turbine Inspection Checklist
- Troubleshooting Guide
- Alarm and Trip Reference Sheet
- Preventive Maintenance Schedule
- Gas Turbine Performance Monitoring Spreadsheet
- Maintenance Logbook
- Practical Assignment Workbook
Recommended Video Content
The course should include instructor-produced or appropriately licensed videos covering:
- Gas turbine operating principle
- Brayton cycle animation
- Gas turbine sectional view
- Compressor operation
- Combustion process
- Turbine expansion
- Fuel gas system
- Lubrication system
- Starting sequence
- Normal shutdown
- Emergency shutdown
- Control and protection systems
- Borescope inspection
- Compressor washing
- Vibration monitoring
- Gas turbine troubleshooting
- Major inspection and overhaul
For third-party videos, links should be checked for current availability, technical accuracy, and licensing/usage suitability before inclusion in the course.
Recommended Image/Diagram Requirements
Each module should contain professionally prepared technical illustrations such as:
- Gas turbine block diagram
- Brayton cycle diagram
- Gas turbine sectional drawing
- Axial compressor diagram
- Combustion chamber diagram
- Turbine-stage diagram
- Fuel gas system P&ID
- Lubrication system P&ID
- Starting system diagram
- Cooling-air system diagram
- Gas turbine control-loop diagram
- Protection/interlock diagram
- Start-up sequence flowchart
- Shutdown sequence flowchart
- Maintenance inspection diagram
- Troubleshooting decision tree
Certification Examination
At the end of the course, participants should complete a 100-question final certification examination.
Suggested Exam Distribution
|
Area |
Questions |
|
Gas Turbine Fundamentals |
10 |
|
Thermodynamics & Brayton Cycle |
10 |
|
Components |
10 |
|
Compressor |
10 |
|
Combustion & Fuel Systems |
10 |
|
Turbine & Exhaust |
10 |
|
Auxiliary Systems |
10 |
|
Operations & Control |
10 |
|
Maintenance |
10 |
|
Troubleshooting & Condition Monitoring |
10 |
|
Total |
100 |
Recommended pass mark: 70%
Participants who successfully complete the quizzes, practical assignments and final examination can receive a:
Certificate in Gas Turbine Operations, Principles and Maintenance
Suggested Course Progression
Foundation → Gas Turbine Principles → Components → Operations → Control & Protection → Maintenance → Troubleshooting → Inspection & Overhaul → Certification