CHALLENGE CONVENTION

CASE STUDY

Assessment of Hydro-Turbine
Generator Shaft
Overview

Hydro Tasmania Power Station operates six horizontal Machined groove 1

shaft hydro- turbine generators each with two Pelton
wheel runners installed. Three of the turbine shafts
have shrunk-on runners while the remaining three
have bolted runners. Historically, cracking occurred in
the shafts under the runner hubs. During overhauls
the cracks were removed by grinding and this left
circumferential machine grooves on the shafts. NDT
inspections have indicated that the extent of the
cracking in the shrunk-on runners was significantly
Machined groove 2
more severe than in the bolted runners. Quest
Reliability LLC was hired to perform a stress analysis, Figure 1 FEA model of the shaft
critical crack size computations and a vibration analysis
on a shaft at the Tarraleah Power Station.

The project consisted of several parts. The first part

included a three dimensional finite element analysis
(FEA) including the worst of the identified grooves.
The model included the loading due to the shrink fit,
the centrifugal load applied by the spinning runners,
the torque applied on the shaft due to the runners,
and the total assembly self weight. The stresses from
this analysis were extracted and used as primary
stress input in a critical crack size computation and
fatigue life estimates. Finally, a natural frequency
analysis was performed using the FEA model to
provide guidance regarding safe operational speeds
of the shaft. Figure 2 Applied loads on the model

www.QuestIntegrity.com Quest Integrity Rev.06-15

Results

The assessment was carried out using guidelines

given in BS7910:2005 and the conclusions reached
were as follows:

The fracture mechanics assessment showed that

the shaft assembly could withstand a significant
crack depth around the shaft before failure.

However, a fatigue crack growth analysis based on

mean fatigue crack growth properties found that a Figure 3 Axial stress due to combined loads,
6mm deep crack would likely put the shaft near the stress scale -75MPa to 75MPa.
end of life in about 12 years.

Assuming lower bound (worst case) fatigue crack

growth properties, the remaining life was calculated
as 6 years.

The stress analysis also included a natural

frequency evaluation to ensure that the rotation of
the assembly would not interfere with the natural
frequency. The 40.69Hz natural frequency of the
structure, much higher than the 13.92Hz maximum
rotational speed, implies that there should be
limited excitation at the natural frequency under
normal operation. Figure 4 First mode or natural frequency of assembly.
Non-deformed shape in grey.

www.QuestIntegrity.com CHALLENGE CONVENTION