WELDING JOURNAL

S O M ADVANTAGm OF T&TLD!mG
TURBIAE ROTORS

ACKNOWLEDCMENT
This article by Adolph Liithy, reprinted from June 1968 Welding Journal, was presented at the American Welding Societys 49th Annuul
Meeting held in Chicago, Illinois, during April 1-5, 1968.

THE

CONTINUOUS ADVANCES that have taken place

in the field of power generation, the increasing demand for larger units and the constant search for
greater economy compel designers to make the best
use of every means that engineering places at their
disposal. In steam and gas turbines, and also in
axial-flow compressors, Sotors are the components
subjected to the greatest stresses. Therefore, they
demand the greatest care and attention during
manufacture.
Since turbines were first built, two distinct systems have been employed with roughly equal success for the construction of the rotors. On the one
hand, there are the one-piece rotors, made from a
single forging; on the other, there are the rotors
consisting of a long, thin shaft, on to which the
wheels carrying the blading are either shrunk or

keyed.

In the 1930s,when welding techniques had made

sufficient progress, their advantages were naturally
eb:ploited in this field of engineering, too. A suggestion made by Dr. Adolf Meyer [l] in 1930 led to
tl e first welded turbine rotor. l b o years later the
fi st steam turbine with a welded rotor and an outp i t of 14 Mw was commissioned in the steam power
p ant at St. Gilles in Belgium.

CONSTRUCTION OF ROTORS

In the construction of low-pressure rotors for

high-output turbines, the design with a long, thin
shaft is indeed feasible. However, on account of the
enormous centrifugal forces to which such rotors
are exposed, especially in the very large machines,
it is fraught with constructional problems. Hence,
for such units preference is given either t o onepiece rotors or to the welded design.
As a result of the enormous rise in unit outputs
that has taken place in recent years and the accompanying tendency to design such units for 1500 and
1800 rev/&,
their rotors have become so large
that it is almost impossible to construct them in
one piece.
One-Piece Rotors
The W e d weight (without blading) of a onepiece rotor is 35.15 tons, which means that the
blank from which they are made must weigh at
least 100-120 tons. The xnanufacture of such large
forgings demands the provision of correspondingly
large presses, with the associated lifting and manip
ulatirlg gear. Very few steelworks possess such
equipment.
For slow-running turbines (1500 and 1800 rev/
Naval Englmn Journal, kbruaw ITM

69

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

min) the unit weights of the f i s h e d rotors may be
considerably higher (200-300 tons) so that, with the
machinery and facilities available in the steel industry today, it is quite impossible to even consider
the manufacture of such one-piece rotors. Furthermore, 'it must also be borne in mind that the stipulations laid down regarding the quality of the
material for such rotors are very strict. It is also a
well-known fact that metallurgical segregation
tends to increase, the larger such forgings become,
a phenomenon which can only be counteracted by
improved core forging. Of course, this results in the
f i s h e d product becoming more expensive.
In relation to the inclusions in such large forgings
it may be said that vacuum melting or vacuum degassing, although it may reduce or even eliminate
the risk of gaseous inclusions and their unpleasant
repercussions, cannot get rid of nonmetallic inclusions.
To attain the necessary mechanical strength the
forging must be of a suitable material and subjected
to heat treatment. It is particularly important for
the properties in the core of the forging to be
exactly the same as those at the surface.
Although by suitably selecting the composition of
the steel it is possible to influence the subsequent
heat treatment to some extent, one can never be
absolutely certain that the properties predicted by
calculation will be obtained.
Tempering does not in fact depend on the composition of the steel, on quenching and the succeeding annealing process. Instead, it depends to a large
extent on the shape and size of the workpiece to be
heat treated.
Nondestructive testing of such large forgings is
done solely by ultrasonic methods. These very sensitive methods can only provide information regarding the presence of inhomogeneities inside the
object, as it is unable to say much about the shape,
nature and position of flaws. In order to obtain information regarding the mechanical strength of the
material in the interior, it is impossible to consider
using nondestructive methods as things are at present. Admittedly it is possible to bore single-piece
rotors with a hollow drill parallel to their a x i s
(trepanning) and so obtain small specimens of rnaterial. These specimens are by nature very small
(microspecimens) ; therefore, they can provide very
little information regarding the true strength of the
material since they can only be extracted from quite
close to the axis of the workpiece. Thus we finally
find that the decision regarding the reliability of
such single-piece rotors can at best be made in the
light of rather doubtful data on the true quality of
the material. Acceptance then becomes a matter at
the discretion of those responsible. Such a decision
is very difficult to reach. This is because, on the one
hand, there is the question of reliability in service,
the only indication of which is the flaws that appear

WELDING JOURNAL
on the screen of the ultrasonic detector and which
cannot be evaluated with complete accuracy. On the
other hand, there are the high costs and long delivery time for replacing such heavy forgings.

Welded Rotors
The manufacture of rotors for turbines and compressors from single, smaller forgine which are
then welded together (Figure 1) overcomes the
difficulties mentioned for single-piece rotors. It is
much easier to forge small pieces and it can be done
in smaller equipment which is more likely to be
available in steelworks. The small pieces, usually
in the form of thick disks, can be well forged in a
short space of time; they therefore exhibit less
tendency toward segregation, while tempering by
quenching and annealing is much easier on account
of the smaller dimensions. The resultant temper is
very uniform all round the object.

Figure 1. seetion through tha intermedm

* te pressure rotor
of a W-mw stSam turbine. Tbe rotor consists of two ends
and three intermediate sectiom, joined togedher by fonr
wdda The shaft is about 6 m long, and weighs 23 tons Note
the individual cavitks and the holar for introduction of the
shielding gas and inspectiom facilitks, shown adjacent to the
welds in this section. Length-19 ft. 6.050 in.; diametex-3
ft. 7.m7 ia
-- -

Ultrasonic testing of smaller forgings, disks and

shaft ends is a simple matter. It is also possible to
use gamma rays, betatrons or linear accelerators
for testing. The disks can be examined right into
the core and, where necessary, specimens of material can be taken from the blank, for testing in
the laboratory. Finally, should there be anything
wrong with the material of a piece, this piece can
be replaced in a relatively short time and at low
cost, without any attempt being made to effect a
repair, the success of which is uncertain.
In Figure 2 individual forged sections can be
seen, as well as five welds. The finished rotor is a

Figun 2. Section through the low pressure rotor of a 320mw steam turbine for Karlshnu power station, Sweden.
Weight on completion of welding-approx. 48 tons. It consists of six forgings welded together. Length-18 &; diameter-5 ft. 10.082 in.
-

WELDING JOURNAL
multicell hollow body, the axis of symmetry of
which coincides with the axis of the rotor.
A not insignificant advantage of the welded turbine rotor is that, in view of its smaller mass, it
absorbs heat uniformly in service. Since it consists
of disks welded together, the thermal balance is
effected without internal stresses in the axial direction. A two-dimensional state of stress is produced
instead of the dangerous three-drm
ensional state.
Moreover, the position of the disks relative to one
another in the rotor is determined quite by chance,
so that there is little likelihood of any stress asymmetry, resulting from forging or tempering, being
located in the same plane. Hence there will not be
any bending due to heat when running. This risk
is naturally far greater for the solid rotor, where it
represents the bogey of all turbine builders and
acceptance engineers. A rotor made of several
pieces welded together is inherently less sensitive
from the aspect of distortion due to heat.
Individual sections of the rotor (i.e., the disks,
possibly drums and shaft ends) are joined together
by welding. Since these are parts which rotate in
service and are therefore subjected to dynamic
stresses, the welds must be of very high quality.
They must not contain any weak spots and their
strength should match that of the base metal as
closely as possible-Figure 3.

Figure 3. Geetion through the high pressure rotor of a

1100-mw steam turbine for 1800 rev/min, which is being
built for a nuelear power plant in the U6A. his rotor
weighs 75 tons and collsisds of flve forgings joined torabsr
by four welds. hngth-29 ft. 6 in., diao1du-5 ft. 10.082 in.

In the early days of welded rotors these welds

were executed by hand. The electrodes, in accordance with the state of technical progress reached at
that time, were mostly acid-coated and produced by
immersion. The alloy of the weld metal could be no
more than approximated to that of the base metal,
and the strength values were mostly below those
prescribed for the base metal.
From the point of execution there were also
diffihlties to be overcome because then available
sources of current and electrodes exhibited various
shortcomings. Control of the current sources was
usually poor, and their current/voltage characteristic tended to vary. The electrodes produced by
immersion were deposited from one side only, and
their melting properties were irregular.
Preheating the relatively thick rotor sections
pior to welding was once done with gas burners.
Velding was carried out on a three-shift basis,

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

round the clock, but testing of the finished seams
could only be performed visually (i.e., with a magnifying glass) as there were no other suitable
methods. Sometimes a rather primitive penetration
test was applied, using parafEn oil as the penetrant
liquid and powdered chalk as the indicating layer.
In order to keep at least some check on the
execution of the welds it was necessary to employ
a second man whose job, in addition to turning the
shaft, was to remove as much slag as possible and
to keep an eye on craters at the start and finish.
Guiding the electrode, keeping the molton pool
liquid and ensuring that penetration was uniform
on both sides was the responsibility of the welder
himself.
When new alloyed electrodes appeared on the
market4or example, those containing nickel,
chromium and molybdenum in the weld metalthey were immediately tested. If the results were
good, these new electrodes were employed in the
construction of turbine rotors. Many such rotors
manufactured during the 1930s are still operating
and apparently running quite satisfactorily.
Shortly after the end of World War 11, the first
really usable mechanized welding systems were
marketed and they naturally made their contribution to technical development, including the construction of turbines.
A modern turbine rotor must meet stringent demands with regard to precision, strength and freedom from distortion. This means that all factors
which have the least effect during manufacture
must be carefully checked and selected. As far as
materials are concerned for the rotor, it is essential
to remember that it must be suitable for welding
and that its mechanical properties are appropriate
for the task visualized. Various different types of
alloy are therefore used, depending on the particular type of rotor, e.g., high or low-pressure rotor,
fast or slow-running, compressor or gas-turbine rotor. As a rule they are mostly low-alloy, temperable
Cr-Mo-V or Cr-Ni-Mo steels. In special cases highalloy steels may be used, such as 17Cr-13Ni-W or
steel containing 12 per cent Cr with Mo, W and V
added.
Since the examination of the peculiarities of the
numerous kinds of steel used in the construction of
turbine rotors is outside the scope of this paper, reference is made to the abundant literature on this
subject.
Figure 4 shows a high-pressure turbine rotor of
corrosion-resistant steel. The impulse blading, made
of the same steel, is also attached to the body of the
rotor by welding. The depth of the seam at the foot
of the blades is about 120 mm (4% in.).
The composition of the weld metal is very similar
to that of the base metal, the welding W i g performed by a mechanized submerged-arc process.
For reasons connected with vibration, the impulse
blades are welded together in groups of four. When
Naval b g i w Journal. February 110

71

WELDING

TURBINE ROTORS

WELDING JOURNAL

F&um 4. High-prsssure rotor of a t a r b h for Beznau

nuclau power plant in Switzerland, constructed from 12%
Cr-Mo-V alloy stsel.

such steels are used, the welded design allows parts

such as a shaft end to be made of a different steel if
doubts arise regarding the ability of the high-alloy
shaft to run freely in the bearing shells.
Figure 5 shows a disk of a turbine rotor, ready for
welding in the workshop. In Figure 6 appear the
various stages in preparation of the seam, as practiced in the course of development of welded turbine rotor construction. Grooves 1 and 2, as
illustrated in Figure 6, were solely employed for
manually welded seams. Since these welds are typical peripheral seams on hollow bodies, the problem
of welding the seam right through correctly was
quite properly of major importance. The standard
of welding techniques at that time was not sufficiently advanced to solve this problem The execution of a good, uniform root pass, as well as the
execution of the entire seam, was in the hands of
the welder, himself, and was therefore subject to all
human weaknesses.
In groove 1 the weakness was in the root pass as
it had a sharp radial notch. With groove 2 an attempt was made to reduce this notch by utilizing a
freely exposed backing which, for reasons connected
with execution, consisted of a tube slit open. This
replaced the radial notch by two tangential ones
which, from the aspect of guiding into the seam,
were estimated to be less harmful (deflection
through 90 deg.).
As the outputs of the turbines increased, the dimensions of their rotors also grew, and their weight
too. The welds became deeper in order to stand up
to the mechanical stresses. In this way the seam
profiles or grooves 3, 4 and 5 were devised. This
was at a time when the first mechanized welding
processes were introduced, which in turn gave rise
to a marked change in the form of the welds. In
order to make the best possible use of the numerous advantages of mechanized welding for the construction of turbine rotors, it was not only necessary
72

Naval Enpinoen Journal. kbruary 1969

F m 5. In the foreground a disk of an intermdate

pressure rotor, showing the projection used for centering.
to change certain features of the rotor design, but
to some extent the welding equipment too.
The requirements imposed were as follows: production of a root pass completely free from notch,
and a seam of high quality with a weld metal whose
composition corresponds as nearly as possible to
that of the base metal. The width of the seams had
to be as narrow as possible as it usually had to be
located between two grooves in which the blade

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

WELDING JOURNAL

'+-

Figure 6. Profile of welding grooves for turbm and compressors, showing the progress that has been made over the

Y-.

roots are held. Moreover, the rotor axis had to be

as nearly straight as possible after welding, because
the finished rotor had finally to be statically and
dynamically balanced.
Weld profiles or grooves 6 and 7 can be used for
seams 250.300 mm (10-12 in.) deep.
WELDING PROCEDURE

The Root Pass

The parts of the rotor-shaft ends, disks and possibly drums-when they have been prepared exactly as per drawing, have to be carefully cleaned to
remove dirt and grease before they can be put together and welded. These parts are placed in the
requisite order on the horizontal turntable-Figure
7. It is very important to ensure that the first part
to be placed on the table is exactly centered; in
most cases this part is a shaft end. The second piece,
a disk, is then placed on it, care being taken to insert the centering lug exactly in the recess provided
for the purpose in the first piece. In this way the
first groove is created for the horizontal welding of
a vertical wall. The remaining parts can be put in
position in much the same way. When the rotor has
been assembled, it is checked for true running and
any irregularities are corrected.
Each rotor section has three inspection holes (15
mm or 4/8 in. dim) which pass into the hollow
interior and are directed at the opposite butt joint.
The shielding-gas supply pipes are inserted in these
holes so that, during preheating and the subsequent
welding, the rear of the root pass can be shielded
to prevent oxidation. From the aspect of the shieldir:g gas, the hollow spaces are in series.
The assembled rotor is preheated by induction.
Usually alternating current with an audio frequency is employed. The temperature of each disk is
measured by means of a thermocouple and rece rded. The preheating temperature is about 50 C
h'gher than the martensite temperature of the steeL

Figure 7. Assuubly d an i.pA.p. shaft prior to welding

the root psss undm ahidding gfs. The part hanging from
the crane hati already been welded, tbem b e i i still four
welds to execute on the lower seelion.

Since the parts concerned are relatively solid, it is

necessary for the two parts to be joined by welding
to be at the same temperature. The maximum
difference that can be tolerated is +50 C, if unpleasant surprises (cracks) during cooling are to be
avoided.
Figure 8 illustrates a gas-shielded-arc welding
system specially developed for the gas tungsten-arc
process, augmented by feeding in a nonconducting
filler metal to produce the thick root pass on round
hollow objects. This system has three heads at intervals of 120 deg for simultaneous welding; they
are connected in such a way that they can be
started up singly, two at a time or all three at the
same time, as required. In addition, each set is
capable of moving to and fro at righhngles to the
welding direction, so that the full width of the root
pass comes under the intluence of the arc. In order
to avoid any inadmissible overheating of the head
in the deep, narrow groove, the whole electrode
holder system, including the filler metal feed, is
water-cooled. The filler metal consists of a low-alloy
material and has the task of augmenting the volume
of the molten disk projections so that the shape of

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

WELDING JOURNAL

Figure 9. Set of gee tungsten-arc welding eleebode holders, seen from the side, specially designed for the root welds
in deep, narrow grooves. Tbe filler metal f a d and tbs tungsten electrode hdder are both water-cooled. The drive motor and control of the oscillating device can also be seen.

Figure 8. The LpJLp. shatt ot the 2SO-mw turbine for

s%snaes power station,Denmark; total weight 53 tons. It is
seen ready for execution of the mot pass on tbe gas tungsten-arc welding mrrhina Note the supporihg p r o w o n at
the bottom, bawssn the shaft end and the turntable, which
provides a steedy seat for the shaft, despite the end. Also
visible arc the inductor cables for heating. In the forwound
is the instrument for recording the preheating temperature.

the root pass is correct, i.e., that it becomes slightly

convex over the entire periphery. This patented
method of carrying out the root pass ensures that
the joint is properly welded through-Figure 9.
To shield the underside of the root pass, any of
the usual gases or mixtures of gases may be used.
The flow of gas into the cavities must be present
during preheating, so as to prevent any oxidation,
which could hamper the flow of the molten weld
metal. The rate of flow of the shielding gas is very
small and ranges from 4 to 10 liters/at a pressure of 1 to 2 cm of water column.
The shielding gas surrounding the tungsten arc is
usually argon, the pressure and rate of flow of
which are in line with the values commonly used
for this process. The welding data vary with the
thickness of the root pass, which itself depends
largely on the size and weight of the rotor. For each
welding head the source of current is a finely regulated rectifier with drooping current/voltage char74

Naval Englrmn Journal. kbruary

lw)

acteristic, giving as soft an arc as possible. Since

the voltage used with pure argon has to be 12 to
13 v, the welding current may vary between 150
and 250 amp, according to the thickness of the weld,
the degree of preheating and the speed of welding.
The latter is quite low and does not normally exceed 60 mm/min.
For simultaneous ignition of the three welding
heads a central control i s required, which operates
with a superposed high-frequency current. For very
large rotors, the root pass is reinforced by two or
three additional passes, until the root seam is 12-15
mm thick. This is necessary to enable the rotor to
be laid over from its vertical to the horizontal position, without its straightness being affected.
When the root passes have been carried out, the
supply of gas to the cavity is interrupted SO that,
when the seams have cooled down, a light and an
endoscope can be introduced to examine the inside
of the seams for flaws, around the whole periphery.
If necessary, a radioactive source such as iridium
192 can be introduced to obtain a gamma radiograph
on a narrow film.The fully mechanized method of
welding ensures uniform and flawless root welds,
the thickness of which is 7 to 9 mm (9/32-3/8 in.)
per pass.
The rotor, thus held together by the root welds,
is now carefully lifted out of the root-welding machine and kept in its vertical position so that further nondestructive tests can be performed on the
root welds, depending on the circumstances or the
acceptance requirements. The inductors attached to
the rotor for preheating are left in place as they are
needed later for preheating prior to the final welding up of the rotor.

Final Welding
The rotor is finally welded up in the horizontal
position by submerged-arc welding, using a nonstop
method. The rotor, preheated in the vertical position, must now be laid over into the welding position on the turning device for the submerged-arc
welding machine and fixed. Since the root welds
are relatively weak, this change of position demands

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

WELDING JOURNAL
great care, especially if the rotor is quite long compared with its diameter. It must also be borne in
mind that the rotor is laid over in its preheated
state, i.e., at 400-4500 C; at this temperature the
mechanical strength of the root welds is bound to
be somewhat reduced, depending on the type of
steel used.
Final Welcling of the Deep Seam
"he welding machine is in essence a modified
lathe, on which the available speeds of the faceplate have additionally been adapted to suit the
welding speed for the particular diameter of the
turbine rotor. Under these circumstances it is possible to machine out a faulty spot in the seam,
caused by a disturbance during welding, and then
to continue welding as before, without any great
loss of time. Moreover, the various facilities for adjustment on a lathe, the precision and regularity of
the rotary movement, as well as the rigidity of the
slide on which the welding head is mounted, have
proved indispensable for welding deep, narrow
grooves.
The fact that, on turbine and compressor rotors,
the weldseare nearly always between two rows of
blades (or at least in the vicinity of one) has made
it necessary for these grooves to be as narrow as
possible, regardless of their depth. This need to keep
the grooves narrow also has other reasons which
must not be ignored. For constructional and material reasons, the transition zones between weld
metal and base metal, which are doubtless weaker
than the body, should not have slots for the blade
roots milled in them, as the full strength of the tempered steel is essential at these points. A further
reason, based on economics, is that a narrow groove
requires f a r less weld metal than a conventional
groove. For instance, a groove 250 mm deep and 22
mm wide requires only 30-40 per cent as much weld
metal as a groove of the same depth but of normal
width. The effective welding times are also shortened accordingly. Very often it is possible for rotors
having at least two seams with roughly the same
diameter to be welded at both points simultaneously
with two automatic welding units, this thereby
making the process more economical. Of course,
welding in two grooves at the same time means that
the corresponding fixtures and welding equipment
must be a v a i l a b l d i g u r e 10.
The actual welding head is an ordinary head used
for submerged-arc welding, with high-frequency
ignition and employing alternating current. It is
very important that its attachment to the welding
machine be very stable and the feed of filler metal
and flux into the deep, narrow groove be extremely
accurate.
The source of welding current used in this case
i:. a normal welding transfomer having a current/
vdtage characteristic appropriate to submerged-arc
v"e1ding.

Figure 10. In order to improve tbe emnomien

et welding

welding
machines m a y be cmployed simultaneody on separate
grooves.
-provided

the

&~IU&M

are roughly equal-two

Various advantages are gained by using alternating current; among them are the avoidance of the
very unpleasant magnetic "blow" on the arc and
the ability to obtain better and more regular mechanical properties in the weld metal. Submergedarc welding in a deep, narrow groove imposes certain requirements on the fdler metal and flux feed
to the welding head. In this respect, the filler metal
feed device (Figure 11) must be so designed that
it guides the filler metal reliably and accurately
into the molten pool. The welding current should be
applied, if possible, just before the filler metal
emerges from the guide nozzle. Before the filler
metal enters the nozzle it should be straightened,
the current being applied to it by sprung contacts.
To prevent inadmissible overheating due to radiation from the sides of the groove, remembering that
the rotor disks are preheated to 300-450 C (depending on the tyhe of steel used) and due to the
flow of welding current itself, the contacts feeding
the current to the filler metal are water-cooled.
Unless current contacts are prevented from

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

touching the sides of the groove while welding is in
progress, a short circuit may result and cause a g
preciable damage to the rotor disk. To prevent this,
all parts are coated with a layer of insulating, heatresistant material (Al,08, SOz, or the like).
It is extremely important for the flux to possess
certain definite properties which are essential in
deep, narrow grooves. The most important of these
is that the molten slag should break away of its
o w n accord after solidifying, so that it simply falls
down as the rotor revolves during welding and does
not have to be chipped off. This property of selfdetachment, or rather, loosening from the surface
of the weld, must be complete; no splinters or
crumbs must be allowed to remain adhering to the
seam. It is quite impossible to remove such traces
of slag during welding, especially when they are
firmly lodged, without disturbing the smooth execution of the welding operation and hazarding the
success of the process. The latter also applies to
the removal of any other irregularities in the seam,
such as pipes, cracks on the surface, incompletely
fused spots, inclusions and craters at the start or
end of the seam, but also residue and traces of fused
current contacts, and the like. The lack of access to
the flaw (especially when the groove is still deep),
the heat radiated by the adjoining disks, and the
narrowness of the groove make it extremely difficult to intervene, so that local rectification of
such flaws is practically impossible. Such flaws can
only be eliminated by machining on a lathe.
The flux feed does not present any great difficulties. The feed pipe should, of course, be insulated
from the welding current, and the rate of feed
should be continuous and regular. "his task is best
left to a flux recovery and treatment system.
The composition of the filler metal is chosen so
that it matches the alloy of the rotor disks, the loss
or gain of certain elements being made good as far
as possible by the flux. The flux may be of the molten or agglomerated type and should be intended
for use with alternating current. It is most important that the molten slag should be self-detaching, but that it should nevertheless protect the bead
while still hot. As f a r as the grain size of the flux
is concerned, this should be chosen so that under
set welding conditions (Le., at the set current,
voltage and welding speed) degassing is assured,
although a sficiently thick protective coat of slag
is produced.
The welding conditions are determined by prior
tests, being mainly governed by the type of steel,
the shape of the weld groove, the height of the preheating temperature, the diameter of the filler wire
and its composition, and the welding speed.
When starting to weld at the bottom of the
groove, mall diameter filler metal is chosen to p m
vent penetration through the root weld. When this
danger has ceased to exist, the rest of the seam is
76

NdVdl

Enginmom Journal, February I96T

WELDING JOURNAL
welded with larger diameter filler metal. The values
of current and voltage used for welding are much
the same as used for general submerged-arc welding of such diameter. Admittedly, it may be that
one or the other welding parameter has to be
slightly adjusted to suit the prevailing conditions,
but experience has shown that this adjustment is
rarely more than 210 percent of the preset values.
In Figure 12, welding is carried out without interruption, except when some disturbance occurs. The
various passes are positioned so that a complete
pass round the whole circumference of the groove
is placed alternately on the left and the right. In
the case of rotors of small diameter, the bead is
transferred to the opposite side of the groove after
a quarter or third of a revolution. This is necessary
to maintain the axis of the rotor in a perfectly
straight line, when the shaft is long and thin. It is
also important to make sure that the molten slag
is always made to form toward one side of the
groove and is not trapped. Unless this is done, its

Figure It. Fhrrrl weldiug of a deep groove on a low-pnsmare tmMne mbr. Note the thermal inSntptiOn on both sides
of the seam. Beneath it are the inductor cables for preheat-

ine.

'#ELDING JOURNAL
removal will prove rather difficult and there is a
risk of the regularity of welding being seriously
disturbed.
It is a matter of experience with the welding
equipment to know what are the best settings of
the welding parameters. Such information cannot
be found in any book or obtained during any
course of instruction.
Referring to Figure 13 and as already mentioned,
the welded turbine or compressor rotor is a hollow,
multicell body which is rotated and therefore has
to be balanced very accurately. This means that
when the individual disks are being put together,
and later when they are being welded, great care
must be taken to keep the axis of the whole in a
perfectly straight line.

Figure 13. Macrograph of a weld 180 m m deep, showbig

and the side penetration.

the build-up of the various

The dimensional accuracy of the finished rotor,

especially its length, depends on the number of
welds and is affected by the shrinkage that occurs
during welding, this being already taken into account in the preparation of the individual parts.
Since this shrinkage is affected by a variety of
factors, it has to be determined by prior tests on an
exact replica. Having once determined it, it remains
practically unchanged for all similar welds, provided the parameters specified for them are strictly
adhered to.
In general, it may be stated that when the necessary care is applied to the welding of turbine and
compressor rotors, distortion of the axis, even of
the largest objects, can be kept within tolerable
llmits.
"he distortion in the axis of the i.p. rotor, seen in
Figure 14 on the lathe, was less than 0.3 mm, although the rotor contained seven seams and is
considerably longer than the 1.p. rotor in Figure 15,
the weight of the two being roughly the same.
When welding is finished .and before stress relieving is carried out, the welds must be very carefdly tested. Regarding these tests, it may be said

WELDING TURBINE ROTORS

F h m 14. An 4A.p. rotor on the latha Aftex atresa refiwand p m c h i d n g the rotor is checked for true runh.w m t 45 tons, length 7.83 m, 7 welda This rotor is
for a 140-mw turbine supplied to Narcre, Spain,

Figure 15. Low-pressure rotor of a 320-mw turbine for

Karlshamn, Sweden.weight 48 toae, 5 welds, depth 250 mm.
During premachining after stress relieving and check for
true running.

that the nondestructive methods of testing available

nowadays (especially ultrasonic testing) are capable of providing sutEcient information about flaws
that occur during welding, so that the decision as
to whether a weld is sound or not can be reached
with a good conscience. In the most unfavorable
case, i.e., when there is any doubt about how a flaw
indication is to be interpreted, the flaw can be 10cated with ultrqsonic testing quite accurately.
The flaw is cut out of the weld and the hole is
welded up again. In this way flaws can be located,
their nature determined and, what is usually more
important, their cause can be established.
CONCLUSION

The use of welding in the construction of turbine

and compressor rotors permits increasingly large
units to be built, regardless of their size and weight.
The sole condition is that the material from which
they are made must possess the requisite strength
and be easy to weld.

WELDINGTURBIIWROTORS

WELDING JOURNAL

Welding is the modern, progressive and econamical method of producing rotors for compressors
and
It improves their s d e and refithe time for manufacture and deEvery, and can be employed almost without regard
to the size and weight of the rotor.

*At that time Dr. Meyer was Technical Director of Brown

Boveri dc Cie in Baden, Switzerland. In 1935 he was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the Stevens Institute of Technology, Hobuken, NJ.,and in 1965 he was honored by the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers, which presented
him with a golden gas turbine wheel.

EELPING HAND-Quincy division shipyard for

initiai sea trials, nuclear attack submarine U S Sunfish
(SSN-649) gets helping hand from Navy tug.

SMOOTH SUDE-Gracefully entering water for tirst h e

March 16 was US. Navy replenishment fleet oilcr USS
Wichita (AOR-I), built on Quincy divisions Slipways 11.

DESIGNERS

MOTNOTE

PLANNERS, INC.

NAVAL ARCHITECTS - MARINE ENGINEERS

New Yo&:

I14

FIFTH AVENUE

NEW YORK, N. Y. 1001 I

2 12-69 1-7770

78

Naval Engineers Journal, February I9b9

Galveston:

P.O. BOX 1080

GALVESTON, TEXAS 77550
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