I. The Goal of O&M
A waste heat recovery system has high efficiency at commissioning but may drop by 20% after half a year. The goal of O&M is to keep the "design efficiency" as long as possible—the core levers are three things: clean, measure, adjust.
II. Daily Inspection Checklist
| Item | Frequency | Concern |
|---|---|---|
| Inlet/outlet temperature | Daily | Whether heat transfer temperature difference decays |
| System pressure drop | Daily | Whether abnormally rising |
| Flow | Daily | Deviation from design value |
| Seal/leakage | Weekly | Any fluid-mixing traces |
| Insulation shell | Monthly | Damage, overheating |
III. Key Monitoring Parameters
- Temperature: Hot-side inlet/outlet, cold-side inlet/outlet, compute real-time Q and efficiency;
- Pressure drop: The most sensitive "health indicator," set threshold alarm;
- Flow: Deviation directly affects h and Q, instruments need calibration.
IV. From "Reading the Gauge" to "Reading the Trend"
Plotting the above parameters by week/month as trend lines is far more useful than single-point readings:
- Efficiency slowly drops + pressure drop slowly rises → early ash accumulation, schedule cleaning;
- Sudden temperature change → possibly valve misoperation or medium switch;
- A simple dashboard (even Excel charts) suffices; no need to jump to a big platform at once.
For multiple units, rank by "energy saved per unit heat" to naturally see which one is lagging and should be prioritized for maintenance.
A good system is not bought, but maintained. One trend chart beats ten after-the-fact repairs.