1. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007

2. Vibro-Meter / Radatec Products & Capabilities Overview Date:15th May 2007 Presented by Pavol Rybarik, Vibro-Meter SA

3. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Contents Product Overview Technology Overview

4. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 New Technology High Temperature Sensing of Blade Tips with Microwaves Long-Life Capability at High Temperature New sensing platform beyond conventional laser, eddy current, or capacitance based gauges.

5. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Microwave Displacement Sensor Overview Key Technology Features Environment Ability to withstand high temperatures for measurements in 1 st stage turbine See through carbon, flaming natural gas, steam, etc. Magnetic field immunity Large bandwidths (limited only by sampling)

6. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Phase-based Microwave Technique Electrical Performance High signal to noise ratios (active system) Very High Frequency Response Measurement Resolution less than 1 mil Large displacement ranges Self-calibration to eliminate effects of thermal growth.

7. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Sensor Overview Non-contact displacement sensor Phase-based microwave technique Measures displacement smaller than the transmitted wavelength

8. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Why Measure Blade Tips? In the HPT for every 10 mil improvement in clearance 1 Fuel Efficiency increases 1% 1% change in HPT clearance reduces NOx 10%,CO2 13% (GE) Newer engines use compressor bleed air and a model to close clearances open loop Measuring clearances and closing the control loop can add additional efficiencies Tip clearance control has been identified as a key technology for future engines Additional benefits in prognostics, NSMS, and condition-based maintenance Dimensional measurements from every blade provide indicators of health

9. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Blade Tip Sensing Important Measurements Tip Clearance Time-of-Arrival Blade Vibration

10. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Hardware High Speed Data Processing High Temperature Probe Software Average & Minimum Clearance for multiple sensor locations Modular, flexible data outputs T2000 Product Overview System Solution: Turbine Blade Tip Clearance

11. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 System Components Tachometer Signal Conditioning Microwave Cable Bulkhead Electronics Chassis (Compact PCI) Sensor Card(s) Ethernet switch Data Server - 1U rack mount computer Microwave cabling Probe Client / User Interface Computer(s)

12. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 System Overview

13. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Electronics Front Panel Auxiliary analog inputs (currently not used) Probe Connector (SMA) Radatec High Speed Test Output Tachometer (1/rev) Input Voltage Proportional to Average Clearance Voltage Proportional to Minimum Clearance System OK Light Measure Light Communication Light RS-232 Serial Debug RJ-45 Ethernet

14. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 System Monitor Main Screen

15. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Alternative Clearance Plot

16. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Probe Calibration Probes are calibrated to produce direct measurement. Designed to radiate at a narrow frequency band only-otherwise bounce off the back of the probe Measuring – (in freq band) Calibrating – (out of band) Electronics box target Eliminates the thermal effects internal to the system.

17. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Sensor Diagnostics Sense changes in the cable Breaks in signal chain are localized very precisely manifest as a parasitic signal return at a particular phase. Can be used to troubleshoot connections in the probe. Understand if changes are in the probe vs. in the reading.

18. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 System Specifications Sensor Bandwidth- up to 9 MHz (18 MHz sampling) Same waveforms from near zero RPM to full speed Resolution- +/-0.5 mils Range- 0.500 max typical, >1 inch available upon request Linearity- ~1% of full scale range, target dependent Sample Rate- 100 Hz-20 MHz, speed dependent Onboard Memory- 18 Megasamples Probe Temperature- 1st stage turbine operation Microwave Cabling- 0.142 cable up to 30 feet typical Digital Data Outputs- Displacement waveforms Analog Outputs- Voltage proportional to clearance 0-5 VDC Sensor to PC Communications- 10/100 Ethernet, UDP/IP

19. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Metrology Considerations Tipped Blades Tapered blade tips with tip grinding cuts a conic section for the blade tip. Surfaces are not flat Axial Shifts Axial shifts in engine operation can change cross section presented underneath the sensor Asymmetric Clearance Changes Important to consider that sensors only measure clearance in one location 4 Probes per stage recommended to assess case ovalization and shaft centerline changes. Rotation Direction

20. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Linearization of Sensor with Actual Blades Two linear stages Recently upgraded Y- stage to move blade by probe < 2 seconds Relative radial motion accurate to < 0.25 mils

21. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Typical Linearization

22. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Competing Sensors Probe Construction (Reliability) Why do Capacitance gauges fail? Microwave Capacitance (BICC) Electrical Resistance of alumina drops from exposure to temperature 100 V DC Bias typical Insulation Resistance drops and probe shorts out. Needs high resistance Probe slowly loses signal as it shorts out Hastelloy X SiO2 cable Transparent TBC Al2O3 Electrical Resistance not important. Design is 50 Ohm Impedence Micro-amps at microwave frequencies TBCs, thinner ceramic, more metal increases heat conduction path

23. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 23 Large Power Systems Test Parameters Compressor 315-380°C gas path Turbine 1010°C gas path Hot Restart Application.

24. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Compressor Data in Land Based Turbine Shutdown pinch point Engine shutdown

25. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 25 Clearance Close-up

26. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Turbine

27. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 Other Possible Measurements Tip Clearance / Tip Track Blade Bending/Cracking Disk Cracking (Two Axes) Blade Vibration Torsional Deflection Shaft Bending/Rotordynamics Inside turbine/combustion area Shaft Monitoring Blade Monitoring

28. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 FAQs Q: Can Squealer tip geometry be measured? A: Yes, but only to the extend that the slow-speed linear stage resolves it. Every blade can be different. Q: What legwork is required to install in my turbine? A: A sample blade or cad model of the blade is used to generate an error map to provide a correct calibration for the blade as it is installed in the engine. The probe holder is also designed to provide a minimal, but sufficient amount of cooling air to the probe to ensure long life operation. Q: When can I get one? A: Please Contact your Meggitt Vibro-Meter sales contacts for further information

29. NATO RTO AVT128 Meeting, Florence May 16, 2007 FAQs Q: Does the probe require cooling air. A: To assure long term operation, purge cooling around the probe is typical. Only small volumes of air (<6 SCFM) are typically required. Q: What is the maximum probe temperature? A: The face of the probe is made of material with a rated temperature of 1700C. However, the rear of the probe is made of conventional nickel alloys with long term ratings of 800C. The steep thermal gradient from the interior of the turbine through the wall is considered on a case-by-case basis to ensure long-term, reliable operation of the entire system.