Shaft Crack Analysis and Diagnosis for the 600MW Steam Turbine Generator

In order to find the cause of the shaft crack appeared in a 600MW steam turbine generator, several measurements are taken. The shaft assembly consists of three parts: shrink-fitted coupling, shaft and key which are used to transfer torque between coupling and shaft. First, the natural frequency of the shaft system is calculated. The result shows that the vibration signal contains the frequency nears the second natural frequency of the steam turbine shaft system. Second, stress field near the damaged coupling and shaft is analyzed using finite element method. The torque under different operation condition is calculated before stress analysis and applied to the shaft assembly, then. And, local stress concentrations position calculated is proved to be coincident with the place crack initiation. Finally, the cause of the fault is analyzed: at least three causes have found to be having something to do with the crack fault.