CASE HISTORY – CRACKED FAN/BLOWER IMPELLER

I worked at a processing plant in Western NSW during my second year as a Vibration Analyst (2000). This
fluid bed dryer had a fan/ blower around 130Kw, two pole motor 2850 RPM. This was located in a fan
room with seven other fans/ blowers.

The vibration at the plumber block bearings was starting to rise at 10mm/sec RMS, and there was a
concern. So dynamic balancing was scheduled. There was the only access to the fan impeller through a
small side hatch. The fan could not be fully isolated from other fans, so you had moist hot air coming
through, which made it hard to see and work. It was impossible to inspect and assess the impeller
condition.

The inlet ducting could not be removed easily as it was welded, a poor design.

The balancing instrument was IRD, but I also made calculations with polar plots and vectors, but the
unbalance could not be improved. The vibration amplitude climbed to 15mm/sec RMS over the next
week, and another attempt was made to balance the impeller, and still no success.

The vibration a few weeks later was at 20mm/ sec RMS. A balancing expert was brought in. He checked
my vectors and calculations and all were ok. He also attempted to dynamic balance with no success. The
balancing expert recommended changing out the complete rotor assembly.

The next shutdown was three weeks away. A few days later, the vibration climbed suddenly to
30mm/sec RMS, and the concern was at a critical level.

I taped the entrances to the fan room with danger tape and a no-entry sign. The Maintenance Manager
took notice, the fan shut down, and the inlet ducting was removed but had to be cut by oxy acetylene.

I was not very experienced at this stage in my VA career and did not know what to expect when
inspecting the impeller. I thought there might be distorted or worn blades, obstructions etc. What was
found was not expected. The hub was cracked in an oval shape with only 50 mm in that radius fully
intact. The impeller was approximately one meter in diameter, with the RPM at 2850. The potential for a
catastrophic failure, injury to workers or even worse was genuine.

Conclusion

From this moment on when vibration is high on a fan and unbalance is suspected, I think of other
possibilities and request a full impeller inspection

Vibration analysis is essential for plant reliability, but the most important is, that it can reduce the
chance of a dangerous situation in the workplace. Safety is always number one.