ANALISIS KEGAGALAN PADA IMPELLER POMPA ASH DISPOSAL DI PLTU JABAR 2 MENGGUNAKAN METODE ROOT CAUSE ANALYSIS (RCA)

This study aims to analyze the failure of the Ash Disposal pump impeller at PLTU Jabar 2 using the Root cause analysis (RCA) method. The failure occurred due to the reassignment of the Ash Disposal pump to transfer concentrate water from the Continuous Blow Down (CBD) system, which was originally handled by a dedicated pump. This change caused the pump to operate in an abrasive and corrosive fluid environment. RCA was applied to identify the root causes of the failure through field observations, interviews with technicians, material testing, and analysis using the Fishbone Diagram and 5-Why method. The results indicate that the main cause of the impeller damage was a combination of erosion-corrosion caused by exposure to solid particles and aggressive chemical compounds in the fluid. Supporting factors include the mismatch of impeller material with the operating environment, the absence of a filtration system, and weak maintenance and inspection procedures. The analysis identified five main contributing factors to the failure: human, material, method, machine, and environment. This study recommends the implementation of pretreatment and filtration systems, revision of inspection SOPs, and selection of more corrosion- and erosion-resistant impeller materials. By using RCA, the fundamental causes can be identified systematically, enabling the application of corrective actions to improve pump system reliability.
Keywords: Impeller, Root cause analysis (RCA), erosion-corrosion, Fishbone Diagram, Ash Disposal pump.