Active Balancing Development

OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

Active Balancing Developments For Power Generation Andrew J. Winzenz, Product Manager, Lord/BalaDyne Corporation, 1665 Highland Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48108, USA.

Author Profile: Mr. Andrew Winzenz is a Product Manager with Lord/BalaDyne Corporation. He has been with Lord/BalaDyne for seven years. He is currently working on projects to provide solutions for vibration related outages and failures in rotating machinery in the power generation industry. He has previously been involved in similar projects for the iron/steel, cement, waste treatment, chemical, and paper industries.

Abstract Vibration related outages due to an unbalance in rotating equipment have been an historic problem in the power generation industry. Until recently, the only means for solving these vibration problems was to perform manual balancing on the rotating equipment. Active balancing technology has been used in other industrial processing applications on ID/FD fans, compressors, and turbines for many years. Developments in active balancing capabilities have positioned the technology to cover a broad range of applications in the power generation industry.

What is Unbalance? There are four types of unbalance that are experienced on pieces of rotating machinery. The use of active balancing technology can compensate for each of these types of unbalance. The four types of unbalance are as follows: 1. Static Unbalance Mass offset from the center of rotation

U = (m) x (r)
Centrifugal Force m Centrifugal Force m

r Center of Rotation r

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OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

2. Couple Unbalance Principle mass axis offset from centerline of rotation

Centrifugal c.g. Force

Centrifugal Force

Shaft Axis Principal Axis Centrifugal Force

c.g. Centrifugal Force

3. Dynamic Unbalance Any combination of static and couple unbalance

Shaft

4. Flexible Rotor Unbalance Effect and correction varies with speed above critical Unbalance Rigid Rotor Correction Weights 1st 2nd Critical

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OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

How do you measure unbalance? Unbalance is measured indirectly by factoring in machine sensitivity and vibration What is Active Balancing? Active balancing uses a device that is permanently installed on a piece of rotating equipment. The balancing system continuously monitors machine vibration levels and makes balance corrections automatically while at operating speed. The vibration controlled is at 1X (shaft-synchronous) speed. The basic scheme for active balancing is shown below.

Bearing and Shaft Vibration Sensor(s)

Rotating shaft with residual unbalance

Real-Time Active Control System

Balance Mass Actuator(s)

Types of Active Balancing Systems ID/FD Fan Balancing System: The Automatic Fan Balancing System is an innovative technology that is capable of making ultra-precise balance corrections. It is primarily used on fans that experience particulate build-up, high temperature deformation, corrosion, or any combination of the three. The system uses a non-contacting power transfer mechanism and there are no moving parts inside. A control system continuously monitors fan vibration levels using a velocity pickup mounted to the bearing cap. Customer defined high and low trip points are set. When vibration exceeds the pre-set high trip point, a balance cycle is started. Once the vibration level is brought back down to below the pre-set low trip point, the system returns to a monitoring mode. Most applications are in the following industries: Cement, Steel, Paper, Fiberglass, Waste Treatment, Chemical, and Power/Utility. The basic components and operation of the system is shown below.

Active Balancing Development

OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

Balance Ring Secondary Coil

Primary Coil

Why use an Automatic Fan Balancing System? Eliminate vibration related emergency shutdowns Extend equipment life (bearings, motor, fan) Reduce maintenance costs INCREASE production REDUCE start-up time

Turbine, Compressor, & Pump Balancer: The Electro-Mechanical (EM) Balancing system can be used for a broad range of applications. The system operates on machines rotating up to 40,000 rpm. It has the capability to reposition balance weights in tenths of a second and also uses a noncontact power mechanism to transfer power and data across an air gap. The balance ring uses two counterweighted rotors that are positioned to create a net correction vector that will offset the unbalance in the machinery (see Figure below).
Net Resultant Balance Correction Vector Unbalanced Heavy Spots

Machine Axis of Rotation

Counterweight Rotors 1 & 2

Individual Counterweight Unbalances

Balancer Stationary

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OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

The counterweighted rotors are held in place using permanent magnets that are fixed to the rotors. These magnets create a holding torque, which prevents the rotors from slipping during normal operation, ramp-up, or coast down. The system will also maintain position in an un-powered state for fail-safe operation. The magnetic circuit is depicted in the figures below.

Passive magnetic circuit

Powered magnetic circuit

S N

N S

S N

N S

Torque

Air gap

Actuator coil

N S

Stationary coil housing Rotating portion The balancing device, as well as an accelerometer and tach sensors are fed into an Adaptive Influence Coefficient Control System. This Smart controller learns about the dynamics of the equipment on which it is installed as it minimizes vibration. The adaptive influence control model is depicted below

d
z-1

c
w
k

Balancer

Machine Adaptive Model

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OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

EPRI Funded Split-Balancer Development Project BalaDyne has been in the process of developing a split-balancer assembly for use by the power/utility industry. Funding for the project has been provided by EPRI since January 2001. The development program is currently in the middle of the second year of funding and is on the following time-line: Development Task 1 (Year 1) Side mounted (split) Actuator Coil Assembly Completed successful demonstration at LEMUG Conference in January 2002. Development Task 2 (Year 2) Bearing Development Currently in the process of investigating alternative concepts to a continuous ring bearing. Expected completion by end of year. Development Task 3 (Year 3) Clam Shell Housing Integrate split coil and bearings into a design that is easy to install.

System Development Objectives Produce in standard sizes Minor or no equipment modification required for installation No major equipment disassembly required for installation Installs in hours

Summary and Conclusions Manual balancing on start-up is indeterminate in time requirements and can produce inconsistent results. Active balancing allows you to continuously monitor and correct for unbalance in rotating equipment. Active balancing systems balance in seconds at operating speed and can control multiple axis or planes. Windows based software allows for detailed vibration analysis for use as a preventive maintenance tool and for scheduling outages. In the long run, active balancing allows for increased up-town and reduced wear on bearings, motors, and seals.

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OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

Appendix A Case Studies

GCC Dacotah Cement Rapid City, SD

Background: A severe vibration problem was being experience in an ID fan that draws hot gas and cement particulate off the rotary kiln before sending it to the bag house for particulate removal. Since the fan is in the process airflow, some of the particulate would stick to the fan and cause a hard coating up to an inch thick. As temperatures and process conditions changed, large chunks would break off and cause the fan to go out of balance. Every two months it was necessary to shutdown to sand blast the fan. The cleaning time alone was six hours and by the time everything was ready to go back into service 12 hours of production had been lost. Solution: A fan balancing system was installed on the Kiln ID Fan. Vibration levels that regularly reached levels of up to 20 Mils are now kept to between 0.5-1.0 Mils. Scheduled outages now take place every 6 months at which time cleaning is performed. Emergency outages, which regularly took place, have been eliminated.

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OMMI (Vol. 1, Issue 2) August 2002

BP Chemical Lima, OH Background: The High Pressure Compressor had a history of slowly increasing 1X vibration levels. It also experienced extreme vibration levels while passing through the 2nd critical speed on start-up. Inspection of the turbine blades revealed a scale build-up. This excessive vibration would lead to premature failure of bearings and seals in the compressor train. The plant is scheduled to run for four years continuously. Periodic field balancing was required in between the four year cycle, which lead to 2-5 days of unscheduled downtime per occurance. Cost was estimated at 1500 tons of output per day times the 2-5 days for field balancing the rotor. This equals out to about $250K per day during the shut down. Solution: An active balancing system was installed on the inboard and outboard side of the highpressure case. After installing the balancing system they were able to make balance corrections during startup and while the compressor was running. What once required a minimum of two days of downtime is now accomplished in a matter of minutes. (Harry Kim, BP Chemical) Active Balancer Planes
Dresser-Rand 4M8-5 L.P. Compressor

Dresser-Rand 2M8-6 H.P. Compressor

Gear Box

Gear Box

G.E. Frame 5 Gas Turbine

G.E. Steam Turbine

Air Compressor Line

Dual Plane Active Balancing System Installed September, 1998

Drive End

Outboard

2.5 Vibration Amplitude (mils p-p)

Drive End Outboard

2 1.5 1 0.5

Initial Balance Correction

Optimal Balance at 8,280 rpm

0 0 2000 4000 6000 8000

Active Balancing Performed

10000

Speed (rpm)