Field experience indicates that up to 15% of capacity losses in steam turbines are caused by the buildup of deposits on their sections' blades. A recent two-year study spearheaded by EPRI draws two major conclusions pertinent to steam-turbine efficiency. One is that smoother blade surfaces are less prone to deposition, and the other is that condensation processes can reduce the efficiency of a low-pressure turbine by as much as 8% due to thermodynamic and mechanical losses.