VIBRATION MONITORING

Vibration is a "back and forth" movement of a structure. It can also be referred to as a "cyclical"
movement. All rotating machines produce vibrations that are a function of the machine dynamics,
such as the alignment and balance of the rotating parts. Measuring the amplitude of vibration at
certain frequencies can provide valuable information about the accuracy of shaft alignment and
balance, the condition of bearings or gears, and the effect on the machine due to resonance from the
housings, piping and other structures. Vibration analysis is one of the best method to determine the
operating and mechanical condition of the equipment. It is widely used in pumps, turbines, engines,
rolling mills, etc. It is mainly used in predictive maintenance to predict the incoming failure in
advance, so that a breakdown can be eliminated. This can be achieved by conducting regular
monitoring of machine vibrations either on continuous basis or at scheduled intervals. Regular
vibration monitoring can detect deteriorating or defective bearings, mechanical looseness and worn or
broken gears. Vibration analysis can also detect misalignment and unbalance before these conditions
result in bearing or shaft deterioration. Trending vibration levels can identify poor maintenance
practices, such as improper bearing installation and replacement, inaccurate shaft alignment or
imprecise rotor balancing.
Some of the common problems that can be avoided by vibration monitoring are as follows,
• Severe machine damage.
• High power consumption
• Frequent failure
• Unnecessary maintenance
• Quality and accuracy problem

VIBRATIONS FUNDAMENTALS

Modern vibration monitoring has its genesis in the mid-1950s with the development and
application of basic vibration sensors, which are the heart of modern computerized condition
monitoring systems. Trending a machine’s vibration levels over an extended period of time can
potentially provide early warning of impending excessive vibration levels and/or other problems
and thus provide plant operators with valuable information for critical decision making to schedule
a timely shutdown of a problem machine for corrective action, e.g., rebalancing the rotor. Machine
vibration is very complex. Sometimes overall level of the vibration is only indication of operating
condition of a machine. Since the amplitude is not occurring at just one frequency, it is very
difficult to locate any specific fault in this. Therefore it is essential to determine the individual
amplitudes and frequencies for the identification of fault. A plot of amplitudes and frequencies of all
the vibrating components of the machine is known as vibration signature and these signatures are
the characteristics of a machine. Any change in such signature indicates impending failure and its
location.

Causes of vibration are

1. Misalignment 2. Unbalance 3. Worn belts & pulleys 4. Bearing Defects 5. Hydraulic
Forces 6. Aerodynamic Forces 7. Reaction Forces 8. Reciprocating Forces 9. Bent Shafts
10.Rubbing 11.Gear Problems 12.Housing Distortion 13.Certain Electrical Problems 14.Frictional
Forces
VIBRATION ANALYSIS
Vibration analysis consists in listening inside the machine. Each component vibrates differently and
generates a characteristic noise that leaves a typical fingerprint in the spectrum in the form of a
linear pattern. If damage is present, the pattern stands out from the noise floor. This allows the
specialist to recognize. The maintenance person can identify where the problem comes from, from
unbalance, misalignment or bearing damage. In addition to an accurate diagnosis it is generally also
possible to determine whether urgent action is necessary or whether it can wait until the next
scheduled servicing. Vibration analysis gives following benefits.
• Enables the identification of machine faults

• Provides information on root causes

• Localizes the affected components

 • Optimizes spare parts logistics. Allows early planning of maintenance measures

Vibration analysis uses any one of the parameters to characterise the vibration
Amplitude, Frequency and Phase changes of the vibration
The following are the different techniques of vibration analysis
• Order analysis: Variant of FFT analysis used for machines with variable RPM;
instead of the frequency, the multiple of the rotational speed (order) is analyzed
in the spectrum;
• FFT analysis: often used for detecting the most common machine
faults, such as misalignment or unbalance.
• Envelope analysis: used for diagnosis of damaged gear toothing and roller bearings.
• Phase measurement: used together with the FFT analysis to differentiate
machine faults, such as unbalance, misalignment or loose parts.
• Resonance analyses: for identification of natural frequencies and natural
vibrations in a machine or structure. Methods include impact tests, recording of the
run-up and coast-down curve and measurement of the shaft bending lines.

VIBRATION TRANSDUCERS

Device that accepts an input energy in one form and produces output energy in some other
form with a known relationship between the input and output, is known as Transducer. The
output of a transducer may be either in the same form as input or in some other form.
Vibration Transducers takes vibration of a machine or equipment as input energy and
convert it into electrical signal output in various forms. Some of the vibration transducers
are described briefly as follows:

1. Displacement Probe:

Displacement, or eddy-current, probes are designed to measure the actual movement, or

displacement, of a machine’s shaft relative to the probe. Data are normally recorded as
peak-to-peak in mils, or thousandths of an inch. This value represents the maximum
deflection or displacement from the true centerline of a machine’s shaft. Such a device must
be rigidly mounted to a stationary structure to obtain accurate, repeatable data.
Permanently mounted displacement probes provide the most accurate data on
machines with a rotor weight that is low relative to the casing and support structure.
Turbines, large compressors, and other types of plant equipment should have displacement
transducers permanently mounted at key measurement locations. The useful frequency
range for displacement probes is from 10 to 1,000 Hz, or 600 to 60,000 rpm. Frequency
components above or below this range are distorted and, therefore, unreliable for
determining machine condition.

The displacement transducer, in its most elementary form, consists of a fixed part and
a mobile part. The mobile part is attached to the mobile contact of the breaker under test,
and moves with the contacts, while the fixed part acts as a reference as shown in Fig. 9.6.
The internal types of rotating elements have number of annular small radial clearances
between stator and rotor. Therefore, one obvious potential consequence of excessive rotor
vibration is rotor-stator rubbing contact or, worse, impacting. Both accelerometers and
velocity transducers measure vibration of non-minting parts of a machine and thus cannot
provide any direct information on rotor motion relative to the stator. Two types of non-
contacting transducers that emerged in the 1950s are the capacitance type and the
inductance type. The capacitance-type displacement transducer works on the principle of
measuring the electrical capacitance of the gap between transducer lip and the target whose
position is measured. The capacitance method is well suited for highly precise laboratory
measurements, but its high sensitivity to material (e.g., oil) variations or contaminants
within the clearance gap would make it a calibration "nightmare" for industrial applications.
In contrast, inductance-type displacement transducer sysWms have proved to be the
optimum rotor-to-stator position measurement method and are now installed on nearly all
major rotating machines in power plants, petrochemical and process plants, naval vessel
propulsion drive systems, and many others.

2. Velocity Transducers:

The velocity pickup is a very popular transducer or sensor for monitoring the
vibration of rotating machinery. This type of vibration transducer installs easily on machines,
and generally costs less than other sensors. For these two reasons, this type of transducer is
ideal for general purpose machine applications. Velocity pickups have been used as vibration
transducers on rotating machines for a very long time, and they am still utilized for a variety
of applications today. Velocity pickups are available in many different physical
configurations and output sensitivities. When a coil of was is moved through a magnetic
field, a voltage is induced across the end wires of the coil. The induced voltage is caused by
the transferring of energy from the flux field of the magnet to the wire coil. As the coil is
forced through the magnetic field by vibratory motion, a voltage signal representing the
vthration is produced.
The velocity pickup is a self-generating sensor requiring no external devices to produce a
vibration signal as shown in Fig. 3. This type of sensor is made up of three components: a
permanent magnet, a coil of wire, and spring supports for the coil of wire. The pickup is
filled with an oil to dampen the spring action.
Due to gravity forces, velocity transducers are manufactured differently for
horizontal or vertical axis mounting. With this in mind, the velocity censor will have a
sensitive axis that must be considered when applying these sensors to rotating machinery.
Velocity sensors are also susceptible to cross axis vibration, which if great enough may
damage a velocity sensor. The higher output sensitivity is useful in situations where
 induced electrical noise is a problem. The larger signal for a given vibration level will be
less influenced by the noise level. Velocity pickups will have differing frequency responses
depending on the manufacturer. However, most pickups have a frequency response range
in the order of 10 to 1000 Hz. This is an important consideration when selecting a velocity
pickup for a rotating machine application. The pickup's frequency response must be within
the expected vibration frequencies of the machine. A velocity transducer has internal
moving parts, its use is less popular in hostile environments whom relatively higher
ruggedness is demanded, as mom inherent with an accelerometer.

Fig 3. Velocity Transducer

3. Accelerometer:

Acceleration is perhaps the best method of determining the force resulting from
machine vibration. Accelerometers use piezoelectric crystals or films to convert mechanical
energy into electrical signals. Data acquired with this type of transducer are relative
acceleration expressed in terms of the gravitational constant, g, in inches/second/second.
The effective range of general-purpose accelerometers is from about 1 Hz to 10,000
Hz. Ultrasonic accelerometers are available for frequencies up to 1 MHz. In general,
vibration data above 1,000 Hz, or 60,000 cpm, should be taken and analyzed in
acceleration or g’s. A benefit of the use of accelerometers is that they do not require a
calibration program to ensure accuracy; however, they are susceptible to thermal damage.
If sufficient heat radiates into the piezoelectric crystal, it can be damaged or destroyed, but
thermal damage is rare because data acquisition time is relatively short (less than 30
seconds) using temporary mounting techniques. The accelerometer load cell is usually a
piezoelectric crystal and thus registers only compressive loads, necessitating a preload
spring to keep it in compression. However, the piezoelectric crystal is inherently quite stiff
in comparison to the preload spring. Therefore, the load cell essentially registers "all" the
dynamic force required to accelerate the internal mass.
 • operation and these are not to be worried about. These type of vibrations are called
as "Normal vibration" or "Benign".
• The presence of normal vibration indicates that the machine is running properly
without any fault.
Some of the abnormal vibrations for which we should worry about are:
• Large shaking motions.
• Abnormal noise.
• Vibrations above the normal vibration.
• Vibrations that do not change corresponding to load change.
Causes of Vibration

Understanding the causes of vibration is one of the important steps of trouble shooting.
Most of the causes can be grouped as follows:

1. Mechanical Causes
Some of the mechanical causes of vibrations are as follows
1) Loose hold down bolts.
2) Some parts robbing other parts.
3) Product attaching to a rotating component.
4) Operation at very low capacity.
5) Gears that are not meshing properly.
6) Pump and driver misalignment
7) A bent or warped shaft.
8) Improper design of base.
9) The mass of the ease is too small. etc.

2. Hydralic cause of vibration

Some of the hydraulic causes of vibrations ate as follows:
1. Impeller vane running too close to the pump cutwater.
2. Pumps or hydraulic motors etc. Not operating at rated (or) best efficiency point.
3. Vaporization of the product
4. Turbulence in the system.
5. Internal recirculation.
6. Water hammer etc.
3. Other causes of vibration
1. Electrical troubles.
2. Harmonic vibration from nearby equipment.
3. Dynamic loading of mechanical components.
4. Seal "slip-stick" at the seal faces. etc.

VIBRATION SEVERITY CHART

• For conventional vibration overall measurement, they, exist a number of general

 machinery vibration severity charts developed through the year.
• Developing a universal overall level Spike Energy severity chart for general
machinery applications is almost impossible because too many variables such as
different machine types, operating conditions, accelerometers, mounting methods
and ambient conditions are involved.
• On the other hand, it is possible to develop an overall Spike Energy severity chart
based on empirical data for certain type of machines.
• For setting alarm level at different points of machine, general machinery vibration
severity chart is used by vibration analyst.