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Report - - Aylesford Print Power station and surrounding buildings – September 2016 | Industrial Sites | 28DaysLater.co.uk

Report - Aylesford Print Power station and surrounding buildings – September 2016

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mockney reject

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator


The history


Well I’ve pretty much covered the history in my other report about this place, but after much conversation on here about there being a power station on site, well I had to head back.


The Explore


This was an afterthought on the way to Surrey with a non-forum exploring friend. We were chatting power stations and I remembered this place……

So we parked up in the same spot as I had before and headed in the same way, avoided security in the same way, yeah you get it did it all the same. But this time I was on a mission.

We headed to where I believed the power station to be, well from what I had looked at on google earth.

This is where it got a little odd and hopefully someone with a lot more power station knowledge than I have can help.

We found the Gas turbine buildings, labelled 1 and 2.

Awesome here we go

We opened the door of Building 1 not really sure what to be expecting, just hoping to see something looking turbineish, but were greeted with what appeared to be a Twin-turbocharged V12 diesel engine. Albeit pretty funky it was not what I was expecting.

Now this monster V12 engine had the legend Detroit Diesel cast into its rocker covers, not your normal Big Diesel Cummins you might have expected but a General Motors Monster, with a small dog eating Turbocharger mounted on either side.

This one was pretty oily and looked like it had seen a lot of action, although according to the oil filter had last been serviced in 2014.

From what I could work out, and if someone can correct me please do, this huge engine drove an offset torque convertor, which they in turn drove what looked like an alternator/generator via a flexible coupling. Thus generating power for the site, I guess?

After having a quick google these engines where fitted into pretty much anything GM could cram then into, Lorries, fire trucks, boats and buildings it seems. Being the V12 this engine was typical just over 18 litres in cubic capacity, chuck 2 turbochargers at it and you have some serious BHP

Moving onto the next gas turbine and already a little confused we found almost an identical set up but with a baby version of the engine, This one was just a mere V8 twin turbo Detroit diesel engine, although in much much nicer condition.


On leaving the turbine housing we knew there must be some kind of control room somewhere

We what we did find where a couple of control rooms and the one bigger main control room, this was pretty much left as it should have been.


After the control rooms we decided to have a look at the other buildings around the power station and the control rooms before we made a sharp exit for some lunch lol

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drhowser

Bespectacled & irrelevant
Regular User
These two, look a lot like the the firing section of a GT setup, most likely the actual turbine would have been inside an unremarkable box structure. Possibly the diesel engines are for starting up the turbines.

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Here's a couple more of what I think is the same part from a couple of other GT stations.

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pirate

Rum Swigger
28DL Full Member
Yer I guess the detroits get the gas turbines upto spool speed before fuel is introduced

Most aircraft have an apu in the tail which directs air over the main engines to achieve the same thing......if I remember on a 747 you you get it upto approx 18% spool before you introduce fuel
 

Speed

Got Epic?
Regular User
Hmm, it clearly says steam turbine on the panel but im not seeing a steam turbine! Well done for having a look tho.
 

mockney reject

Moderator
Staff member
Moderator
Well
Hmm, it clearly says steam turbine on the panel but im not seeing a steam turbine! Well done for having a look tho.

Well god knows where the bloody thing is, or was lol

I was hoping you may have been able to shed some light on the subject :)
 

Maniac

rebmeM LD82
Regular User
Well if they're part of the turbine plant, they will have been sold with them I assume. I should get my arse back here really as it is a big site and I'm sure there'e more to discover tucked away in the dark corners of the place.
 

Speed

Got Epic?
Regular User
Mmm yeah, the big blue thing is the generator with the steam turbine behind it. Looks pretty modern as you would expect!
 
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