Numerical Study Analysis of The Effect of Trailing Edge Thickness of Low-Pressure Steam Turbine Stator on Steam Condensation

Steam turbines work in complex operating conditions that sometimes involve two-phase flow, especially in the final stage region where the turbine works in saturation conditions which are characterized by the appearance of water droplet condensation in the steam flow. The condensation that occurs in the steam turbine affects the overall performance decrease compared to when working in dry steam conditions, this loss is called moisture loss. In this research, flow modeling on a low pressure steam turbine stator will be carried out using a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) numerical study approach. In addition, variations were made to the thickness of the trailing edge of the stator with values of T=2.72 mm, T=2.02 mm, T=1.32 mm, and T=0.62 mm. Condensation that occurs in the stator blade is known through the parameters of static pressure, nucleation rate, droplet radius, droplet distribution per unit volume. Based on the results obtained, it can be seen that the thickness of the trailing edge of the stator influences the vapor condensation process. Furthermore, the highest efficiency value is 99.17% at the trailing edge thickness variation T=0.62 mm, and the lowest efficiency is 98.34% at the trailing edge thickness variation T=2.72 mm, which indicates with the smaller the thickness of the trailing edge stator, the greater the efficiency of the stator.