if you didn't already know...

i'm a turbine engineer. now a lot of people might not know what that is. i didn't really think about it until i got the job. turbines are what power plants use to make the power that goes to your house. you know those tall towers holding up the big sagging powerlines? follow those lines long enough, and you'll run into a turbine. i work only on gas turbines, though i'd like to get steam training. this is a video i was given on my current site showing the process.


technically and briefly, it goes like this:

1. air is sucked in the inlet and compressed (blue)
2. this compressed air is mixed with natural gas and ignited (orange)
3. the explosive force (red) is directed at blades on the turbine rotor which then spins turning the generator (not shown) to make electricity -- this is where my part ends
4. the hot exhaust is sent through a heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) which boils water to make steam (white)
5. the steam goes to the steam turbine, spins it, and in turn, spins the steam turbine generator making more electricity

that's it in a nutshell. my part takes place between about -1:55 and -1:15 on the video. currently, i'm taking one of these apart fixing it, and putting it back together. in egypt, i'll be building one from the ground up.

hope you like the description. after all this time, this is the best explanation i have.