Are there air compression units in air separation plants with a capacity of over 60,000 units that use backpressure turbines? How is it performing? Experts in the industry are welcome...

This belongs to large-scale plant units, right? Most of them use a turbine driving two units, and it operates on an internal compression process. It is mostly used in the coal chemical industry. For reference.

Yes, it is indeed an internal compression process. Since condensing steam turbines are used in most cases, I’m wondering which companies use back-pressure steam turbines?

The best solution to this problem is to consult with several equipment manufacturers; the key is to take into account both the steam source and the downstream steam users.

I’ve never seen it; I’ll just share my thoughts briefly. Generally, from an energy-saving perspective, the thermal energy contained in the steam at the back pressure of a back-pressure turbine can be fully utilized. However, in practice, the configuration of steam turbines must take into account the overall steam balance within the plant as well as the stability and reliability of unit operation. For chemical and air separation plants, large-sized units predominantly employ extraction-condensing or pure condensing turbines, while smaller units may sometimes be equipped with back-pressure turbines. For air separation units with a capacity exceeding 60,000, the estimated power requirement for the compressor set—comprising the compressor and booster compressor—is over 40,000 kW. If extraction-backpressure or backpressure-type units are selected, both the steam extraction volume and the backpressure will be quite substantial; particularly under conditions where no steam is extracted, the backpressure becomes even higher. On one hand, this makes it difficult to maintain steam balance; on the other hand, fluctuations in the downstream steam network can adversely affect the operation of the units ； Industrial steam turbines differ from power generation steam turbines; in the case of power generation steam turbines, changes in steam parameters affect the power generation load, making it easier to control ； Changes in the steam parameters of industrial steam turbines affect the rotational speed of the turbine unit, which in turn influences the operating conditions of the compressor. This can easily lead to instability in the unit’s operating conditions; therefore, back-pressure turbines are rarely used in large-scale units ； It’s unclear why the OP chose a back-pressure turbine unit; unless both steam balance and the stable operation of the unit pose no problems, it might be worth considering.