Generator fan blades

Do generator rotor fan vanes & blower blades fail?

The potential failure of generator rotor fan vanes and blower blades has been identified as an area for detailed risk assessment in the electric power generation industry. Liberation of fan component has caused catastrophic damage to both the rotor and stator components on a number of units.

What is the failure analysis of a generator rotor fan blade?

The failure analysis of a generator rotor fan blade was investigated by mechanical analysis and metallurgical examination of fracture surface. Fracture took place at the airfoil root, surface examination showed that the blade had cracked by a high cycle fatigue mechanism. However, there was no evidence of material defect.

Do rotor fan blades fail?

In general rotor fan blades are designed to run for a long time and premature failure of these blades are unusual, therefore its necessary to do an exact failure analysis. It this paper, a mechanical analysis was performed with the metallurgical examinations for competent analysis of blade failure.

Can a cooling fan blade be fractured?

Since fracture in cooling fan blades has been occurred five times in our case study, in this research, the emphasis has been placed on failure analysis and preventing methods from the fracture in this generator’s fan blades.

How long did a generator rotor fan last?

The failed fan consisting of 11 blades was mounted on the generator-rotor at the turbine end, and had a total service life of about 41000 hours prior to the failure. The fan rotational speed was 3000 revolutions per minute (rpm) and the maximum operating temperature of the blades was 90°C. Figure 1.

How many fan blades are in a cooling tower?

The analyst visited the cooling tower. He communicated with the staff and collected information regarding the use and maintenance of the fan blades. The cooling tower is comprising of twenty centrifugal fans. Seven large blades (of 10 m in length) are concentrically attached to the center of the rotor hub.