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UNBALANCE IS THE MOST COMMON CAUSE OF SERIOUS VIBRATION in high-speed
gear units. When present the vibration results in bearing, tooth, and seal damage.
Unfortunately there is no practical way to relate the balance of the gears with the
vibration. Even a perfectly machined solid disc can have an unbalanced rotation
due to the non-homogeneity of the material or eccentricity because of clearances
between the shaft and gear. The material problem causes a shift from the geometric
center. The shaft clearance moves the geometric center away from the rotational
axis. Many of these state of the art drives are used for power generation, and a
series of tests in the 1990s proved conclusively that unbalance and the resulting
vibration could result in significant energy losses. Losses from 15-25 percent were
recorded. When there are heavy spots at opposite ends of the gear, and the mass
centerline intersects the rotating centerline, the unbalance can only be detected by
spinning the gear and measuring the resultant unbalance forces or the vibration.
All gears and shafts should be balanced when used for high-speed operation.
Balancing involves both high and low speed. Low-speed balancing ensures that
neither the machine nor the gears are affected by vibration during the high-speed
balancing process. Typically, low-speed balancing takes place between 100 and
1,000 rpm. The stiffness of the high-speed balancing machine may differ from the
field installation, and in turn affect the critical speeds that were observed. High-
speed balancing gives superior results and is a requirement for many drives, but it
is time consuming and expensive.
Several standards have been produced on the subject of balancing. Principally,
in the gear field, the use of API standards had been predominant, such as API
CRE Subcommittee of Mechanical Equipment (Rev. 22 Nov. 1999, API-613 and
617). API 613-Feb. 2003 requires all gear wheels to be multi-plane dynamically
balanced. When there is a single keyway it is to be filled with a fully crowned half-
key. The weight of all half-keys used is recorded. The half-key convention is fully
described in ISO 8821. API 617 results in a residual unbalance of < 10 percent
of the rotor weight. The maximum residual unbalance is calculated from four
times the journal static loading in pounds times the maximum continuous rpm.
API-684 is a Tutorial on the API Standard Paragraphs Containing Rotor Dynamics
and Balancing. For the most part these standards are based on practical field
William P. Crosher is former director of the National Conference on Power
Transmission, as well as former chairman of the AGMAs Marketing Council and
Enclosed Drive Committee. He was resident engineer-North America for Thyssen
Gear Works, and later at Flender Graffenstaden. He is author of the book Design
and Application of the Worm Gear.
experience. ISO-1940-1 defines balance quality and
determination of residual unbalance, and ISO 13691
is for High-Speed Special Purpose Gear Units. Both
standards are less conservative than API. ISO 11342
second editions includes methods and criteria for the
mechanical balancing of flexible rotors. The U.S. Navy
MIL-STD-167 was developed to make it more difficult
for sonar operators to detect machinery vibrations,
and thereby track naval vessels. The calculations are
based on rotors operating above 1,000 rpm. Lloyds
Register for the Classification of Ships similarly
requires balancing for all gears running in excess of
1,000 rpm with minor exceptions. AGMA standard
6011-1/03 for high speed helical gear units with one
stage at speeds > 4,000 rpm requires all gear rotating
elements to be multi-plane dynamically balanced and
does not deviate from similar standard requirements.
Three separate unbalanced tolerance charts have
been established for commercial gear sets, military
gear drives, and precision drive systems.
The balancing machine must have been recently
calibrated within the accuracy tolerances set by its
manufacturer. Typically the balancing machines are
classified as soft or hard bearing. In the soft bearing
machine the rotor is mounted on a flexible support
system. The natural frequency when combined with
the rotor is below the balancing speed. The machine
must also be sensitive enough to provide reliable and
repeatable unbalance data. Vibration amplitude or
velocity is measured at the bearing supports. The hard
bearing machines generally take larger and heavier
rotors. Because the support system is rigid, strain
gage transducers are used to measure the unbalance
force. ISO 2953 is a standard for the calibration and
performance of balancing machines.
Even a perfectly machined
solid disc can have an
unbalanced rotation due
to the non-homogeneity of
the material or eccentric-
ity because of clearances
between the shaft and
gear.
TOOTHTIPS
Proper balance is one of the critical keys in
designing and manufacturing high-speed gear units.
This installment discusses how this can be achieved.
williamCROSHER
Author, engineer, and former director of the
National Conference on Power Transmission
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