501F ROTOR OVERHAUL
Rotor disassembly basics,
repair case histories
R
otors have become a top dis- Turbine blades,
cussion topic at user-group LP stub and disks, Compressor through Turbine disks (4), IN738 (Class C TPC
ASTM A471 Class 6 bolts (12), Inconel 718 ASTM A471 Class 6 first-stage only)
meetings as gas turbines
rapidly add hours and starts
in these days of must-take renewables
and low-price gas, stoking end-of-life
concerns for critical rotating parts.
Relatively few plant personnel have
first-hand experience in rotor over-
hauls. Most have not had the oppor-
tunity to participate in unstacking, Torque tube
inspection, repair, restacking, and Compressor blades Compressor blades Air separator
balancing activities. It is important (Rows 1-6), 17-4 PH (Rows 7-16), ASTM sleeve Curvic Turbine through bolts
stainless steel A422 stainless steel adapter (12), Inconel 718
to have perspective on these matters
before you get involved with rotor work 1. Materials map cross section of the 501FD2 rotor is a valuable training aid
in a meaningful way.
Sulzer Turbo Services’ Engineer-
ing Advisor Fernando Romero offered
owner/operators attending the 2012
meeting of the 501F Users Group 100-ton hoist
last February an instructive look at
the dismantling of an 501FD2 rotor,
inspection of its component parts,
appropriate rotor repair methods, and 48 ft
reassembly. He told an audience of under
hook
nearly 200 users at the Saddlebrook
Resort in Tampa that his company
had done work on a dozen such rotors,
dismantled six, and found failed com-
ponents on two of the six.
The first part of Romero’s 7FA 501F
presentation was a valuable primer
on the general design and configu-
ration of the FD2 rotor, the domi- 12-ft pit
nant 501F-series model in service Scissor lift
501F Users Group – Tampa 2012 | Rotor Un-Stacking and Compressor Rotor Repair | slide 5
today. Important to note is that this
machine differs dramatically from 2. F-class rotors demand top-notch facilities for a proper overhaul. The 100-
the 501FD4, Siemens Energy Inc’s ton balance machine required is not shown in the sketch
latest F-class production engine.
The FD4 has three fewer compres- tons. The machine is equipped with by uneven tension or a cracked bolt. The
sor stages than the FD2 and variable 1193 compressor blades and 334 tur- R4, R3, R2, R1 wheels are then lifted
guide vanes on three stages rather bine blades. off one at a time (Fig 4). Note that the
than one as on the FD2. Unstacking begins after the rotor is Siemens turbine wheels do not have
A cross section of the 501FD2 moved to the pit by the bridge crane. rabbet fits like the GE frames.
rotor is presented in Fig 1. As the Fig First step is to relax the 10 turbine The component you see after remov-
2 shows, it is a few feet longer than through bolts. This is done by stretch- ing the first-stage turbine wheel is the
the competing 7FA engine from GE ing the bolts to (1) release the contact curvic clutch adapter. It sits on top
Energy. The FD2 is 32 ft long overall, forces between adjacent disks and (2) of the torque tube. The air-separator
divided among the compressor (18 ft), to remove the nuts (Fig 3). However, sleeve slides over both and bolts to the
torque tube connecting compressor and before removing the nuts, technicians flange on the torque tube. After the
turbine (4 ft), and the turbine (10 ft). “mike” the bolts and record stretch data air-separator sleeve is removed (Fig
Total weight of the bladed rotor is 54 to determine if there’s a problem caused 5), the compressor through bolts are
COMBINED CYCLE JOURNAL, Second Quarter 2012 83
501F ROTOR OVERHAUL
3. Turbine through bolts are relaxed using a five-step process 4. Turbine wheels are removed individually
16
15
14
13
12
11
10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
5. Air-separator sleeve is removed to access compres- 6. Dry ice is used to shrink the suction side of compressor
sor through bolts wheels to prevent galling of rabbet surfaces
Cut was made
here to analyze
crack
7. Pilot incorporated into the 8. Crack encircles the pilot and is 9. Pilot was machined off the wheel
Stage 3 wheel on the LP stub has an approximately 1 in. deep to analyze the crack
internal thread, used for lifting
10. Fracture surfaces showed evidence of 11. Insert was designed to take the place of the pilot, which is used only
heating, rubbing, and beach marks indica- during the rotor assembly process, and installed in the wheel
tive of fatigue
relaxed, the torque tube is picked by wheels, to free up the interference fit.
the crane, and compressor disks are This allows removal of each wheel in
Repair case histories
unstacked. turn without galling rabbet surfaces. The first case history Romero dis-
For compressor stages 5 through Stage 4 differs in that it has female fit- cussed was a rotor that had been
16, dry ice is used to shrink the ups on both sides of the wheel and heat removed from operation because of
suction (male) sides of the wheels may be needed to remove it. The first high vibration resulting from a turbine
(Fig 6), which mesh with the dis- three compressor stages are integral blade failure. The aft end of the third
charge (female) sides of adjacent with the stub shaft. compressor stage had high run-out
84 COMBINED CYCLE JOURNAL, Second Quarter 2012
The rotor showed no signs of intrin-
sic material defects that could have
contributed to this failure, Romero
ORIGINAL said. However, corrosion pitting was
linked to the dozens of initiation sites
found at the OD of the part. An insert
was designed to take the place of the
pilot, which is only used for assem-
bling the machine (Fig 11). The design REPRIN
TED FRO
M
REDESIGN
was qualified by using finite element ate
restimring
12. OEM design was evaluated to analysis (Fig 12). unde
Don’t ands of stoipment
dem lant equ
determine a baseline of stresses for Second case history. The rotor, rp
powe long-term
the original hub at 3600 rpm (top). taken out of service because of a lube-
Stresses were calculated for various oil-system failure, did not exhibit
insert geometries until the best distri- abnormal vibration or run-outs. How-
bution was attained ever, both the compressor and turbine
4.
, 200
dia Inc
PSI Me
yright
4. Cop
l 200
l, Fal
Journa
CLE
D CY
MBINE
the CO
n from
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13. Compressor shaft end had deep rubs at the plant level and
in oil seal areas. Repairs were made using headquarters locations.
the submerged-arc welding process, which Call Susie Carahalios for an estimate
deposited material automatically. Shaft was 303-697-5009
spun during the process to avoid distortion
[email protected]14. Induction heating after repairs and a continuous rotation of the shaft help
mitigate rotor distortion
and a 360-deg, 1-in.-deep crack was shaft ends suffered heavy rubs in the
found at the third-stage pilot location oil-seal area. Plus, the pilot had failed
(Figs 7, 8). The pilot, designed with an completely and was hanging from the
internal thread to facilitate lifting, was fourth-stage disc. Journal surfaces
machined off to conduct a metallurgical were repaired by submerged arc weld-
analysis of the crack (Fig 9). ing (Fig 13), then the shaft was stress- The authoritative
There were initiation points and relieved and finish-machined (Fig 14).
beach marks all around the circum- Romero pointed out that the pilot information resource for
ference. Fracture surfaces showed “wasn’t going anywhere” and had the owner/operators of
evidence of heating, rubbing, and rotor not been unstacked to facilitate gas-turbine-based
beach marks indicative of fatigue (Fig the rub repair no one would have been
10). Corrosion pits were easy to see on the wiser. However, he said, you don’t
peaking, cogen, and
the OD of the rabbet fit under an opti- want to leave an untreated scar even if combined-cycle plants.
cal microscope. A scanning electron it’s not an imminent threat. The same Subscribe via the Internet, access:
microscope revealed corrosion pits at solution used in the first case history www.ccj-online.com/subscribe
the crack initiation sites. was applied in the second. ccj
COMBINED CYCLE JOURNAL, Second Quarter 2012 85
