The 20th International Symposium on High Voltage Engineering, Buenos Aires, Argentina, August 27 – September 01, 2017

DETECTION OF FAULTS IN ROTOR-WINDINGS OF

TURBOGENERATORS USING SWEEP FREQUENCY RESPONSE
ANALYSIS (SFRA) METHOD
1* 1 1 2
C. Staubach , S. Krane , K. Desinger and A. Staubach
1
Siemens AG, Rheinstr. 100, 45478 Muelheim/Ruhr, Germany
2
Universität Duisburg-Essen, Bismarckstr. 81, 47057 Duisburg, Germany
*Email: christian.staubach@siemens.com

Abstract: A new approach for fault detections within rotor windings is the “Sweep
Frequency Response Analysis” (SFRA) method that is also widely used in diagnosis of
power transformers. This paper gives an overview about the possible use of this
measurement method and explains the principal functionality in detail. Comprehensive
measurement results from standstill as well as during rotation in a spin pit are shown and
discussed. Advantages and disadvantages of the measurement technique are
summarized and compared to other well-established diagnostic methods. To determine
the effectiveness of the SFRA for rotors of turbo-generators multiple measurements with
artificial faults are carried out. It has been shown by measurement in standstill and in a
spin-pit that permanent and speed-dependent winding shorts change the signal response.
Especially the value of the first resonance frequency shows promising evaluation results
for assessment of inter-turn, coil-to-coil or winding-to-ground shorts.

1 INTRODUCTION During operation these shorts between turns in the

For full and safe operation rotor-windings of turbo-
generators have to be insulated towards ground
and between each neighbouring turns. During
manufacturing, revisions and operation several
methods for fault-detecting exist to validate the
functionality of the insulation. Some of these
methods not only detect faults but also allow for
positioning these faults within the winding.
A ground fault, i.e. a short between the winding
and the (grounded) rotor body, can be easily
detected with an insulation resistance
measurement or a high voltage test. Much harder
to detect is a short (mainly ohmic transition
contacts) between two neighbouring turns or two
neighbouring coils.
2 CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF SHORTS
Possible causes of faults in rotor windings are
ageing of the insulation due to relative movement
of the coils within the slot (figure 1a),
contamination that cause an ohmic contact
between individual turns (figure 1b) or loosening of
blocking within the end-winding area that may lead
to plastic deformation of the windings and the coils
(figure 1c).
Figure 1: Electrical faults in rotor windings: (a)
damaged insulation, (b) contaminated winding, (c)
deformed end-winding coils [1]
rotor winding may reduce the amplitude of the
generated magnetic field as well as generate an
asymmetry in field distribution. The quantity of this
decrease is strongly depending on the conductivity
of the short and compensated by an increased
current, which will result in an asymmetrical
temperature distribution. The magnetic field
distortion will result in asymmetrical forces and
increased vibration level of rotor of a turbo-
generator.
3 STATE OF THE ART TEST METHODS
This paper only covers standardized tests that are
performed during manufacturing, revisions and
operations to detect faults in windings. The test
methods can be modified to position an already
detected fault within the winding that particularly
work well if individual coils and turns can be
contacted e.g. with a measurement tip.
In principle, methods can be divided into online
diagnosis (performed during operation) and offline
diagnosis (performed during standstill). For online
diagnosis the evaluation of magnetic flux within the
air gap between rotor and stator is commonly used
(also commonly called flux probe measurement).
The flux is evaluated with the help of an induced
voltage in a small coil (“flux probe sensor”) [2-4].
Reliable offline test methods include the winding
resistance measurement, the impedance
measurement (at power or elevated frequency),
the voltage surge measurement (“Recurrent Surge
Oscillography”), the voltage drop measurement
and the “C-Core”-measurement. Impedance and
pole balance tests that depend on rotational
frequency can only be performed under specific
conditions, e.g. when a spin-pit is available [5].
4 MOTIVATION FOR A NEW ONLINE
DIAGNOSIS TECHNOLOGY
The only possibility to identify potential short
between turns in rotor windings during operation is
the flux probe measurement, when the rotor is
excited. Due to the turning of the excited rotor
during operation a sinusoidal alternating voltage is
applied to the air-core coil that is permanently
attached to a stator tooth as shown in figure 2.
Figure 2: Installation of an air-gap flux probe to the
stator tooth [3-4]
When analyzing the signal from the air-core coil
shortened turns in the rotor winding can be
detected when superposition the signals for each
pole winding due to their symmetrical structure. For
evaluation the measurement signal is divided into
sections of defined time periods that can be used
for further calculations. Figure 3 shows a
calculation of the total current through the slot/nut
and radial flux signal when no short is present and
figure 4 shows results when a short is present.
Figure 3: Calculated measurement signals of flux
probe when no short is present (top) and with a
short in coil C of pole 1 [1]
The advantage of the flux probe measurement is
that it can be performed during operation and
allows positioning of the fault within the winding.
Drawback of this technique is that the sensitivity of
the measurements depends on the load (MVA and
cosφ) and determining a boundary value is very
complex and depending on the fault location.
Therefore a new online diagnosis technology
based on SFRA is proposed that addresses the
disadvantages of the flux probe measurement.
5 SWEEP FREQUENCY RESPONSE
ANALYSIS METHOD FOR ROTOR WINDINGS
The principle measurement setup for the SFRA on
a rotor winding is shown in figure 4.
Figure 4: Measurement setup for SFRA on a rotor
winding between pole A and B (top) or between
pole A or B and ground (bottom)
The impedance is measured over a defined
frequency range via an impedance analyser. This
can be done between pole A and B (top view) or
between pole A or B and ground (bottom view). For
the last-mentioned setup the opposite pole can
either be grounded or remain opened.
6 MEASUREMENT RESULTS
In the following chapter results of comprehensive
measurements are presented. These
measurements are taken in standstill as well under
rotation in the spin pit.
STANDSTILL MEASUREMENTS
In a first step measurements are performed in
standstill. These measurements are conducted on
2 pole rotor with an indirect cooled winding. The
winding consists of 7 coils per pole; each coil has
10 turns in a slot. Due to the absence of the
retaining rings it is possible to simulate different
types of shorts within the winding.
The following figure 5 shows the principle setup for
the sweep frequency response analysis method
(SFRA) by means of the impedance analyser.

Figure 5: Measurement setup for SFRA on a
healthy rotor winding
In a first step the impedance of the healthy winding
between pole A or B against grounded rotor body
is determined, compare to figure 4 (bottom).
The following graph in figure 6 summarizes the
results for frequency depending winding
impedance separated in absolute value (top) and
phase (bottom). For further evaluation the first
resonance frequency, where the phase angle
becomes 0 degree, is of important. In this
particular case this value is about 5.2 kHz. For
frequencies below this value the rotor winding has
mainly inductive behaviour.
Figure 6: SFRA results for a healthy rotor winding
measured between pole A and ground
In a next step different types of rotor winding faults
are introduced. The pictures in figure 7 show
simulation of ground faults, coil and inter-turn
shorts in the end-winding region of the rotor.
Although, detection of ground faults is not directly
the motivation for this testing method, we are able
to identify these faults, too.
Figure 7: Simulation of different kind of rotor
winding shorts
Figure 8 summarizes the results for frequency
depending winding impedance separated in
absolute value (top) and phase (bottom) for ground
faults located at various coils. Coil A is the smallest
one, coil G the largest one close to the pole
crossover. In addition the reference curves for a
healthy winding (“Fehlerfrei”) is shown.
Figure 8: SFRA results for a rotor winding with
simulated ground faults measured between pole A
and ground
Table 1 summarizes the measured first resonance
frequencies depending on the fault location. If you
compare the first resonance frequency, where the
phase angle becomes 0 degree, obtained for the
different fault location, two main results can be
derived. There is a shift in the resonance
frequency to higher values in case of a ground
fault. The amount of shift depends on the failure
location and is higher at the smaller coils.
Table 1: Comparison of determined resonance
frequencies for different ground fault location
The next figures 9 and 10 show the measurement
results for SFRA with simulated coil shorts or inter-
turn shorts at different positions. In these cases the
impedance is determined between pole A and B,
see figure 4 (top). In comparison to figure 6 only
the frequency range close to the resonance
frequency is presented. As mentioned before, the
resonance frequency is characterised by the value
where the phase angle becomes 0 degree.
Figure 9: Detailed view on SFRA results for a rotor
winding with simulated coil shorts measured
between pole A and B

Figure 10: Detailed view on SFRA results for a
rotor winding with simulated inter-turn shorts
measured between pole A and B
In both cases shifting of the resonance frequencies
is clear visible. Although, the effect is smaller
compared to the simulated ground fault in figure 8,
the affected coil is still detectable.
Table 2 gives an overview of the determined
resonance frequencies depending on failure
location of the coil or inter-turn short, respectively.
Table 2: Overview on determined resonance
frequencies for different coil (top) and inter-turn
short location (bottom)
The shift of the resonance frequency related to a
healthy winding without shorts increases with the
size of the coil (coil A is the smallest, coil G the
largest one).
ROTATION MEASUREMENTS
In a second step measurements are performed
under rotation in a spin pit. These measurements
are also conducted on 2 pole rotor with an indirect
cooled winding. The winding consists of 7 coils per
pole; each coil has 7 turns in a slot.
Figure 11: Rotor in the spin pit ready for SFRA
measurement
Figure 11 shows the rotor in the spin pit. SFRA
measurements are taken during standstill and
3000 rpm without shorts for references. In addition
inter-turn shorts are simulated at two different
locations within the winding (in coil E and G). The
measurements are taken between pole A and B,
compare to figure 4.
The following picture gives the measurement result
of SFRA for the healthy rotor winding impedances
absolute value (red) and phase (blue). This
measurement is taken under rotation with 3000
rpm. The first resonance frequency, at which the
absolute value reaches its maximum and the
phase angle equals 0 degree, is clear visible.
Figure 12: SFRA results for a healthy rotor
winding measured between pole A and B at 3000
rpm
For further assessment the resonance frequencies
are determined for the different cases an
summarized in the table 3 below. Due to the
special configuration the inter-turn shorts are only
present under centrifugal forces, i.e. rotation.
Table 3: Overview on determined resonance
frequencies for different coil inter-turn short
location at standstill and 3000 rpm
For the healthy winding there is a small change in
the resonance frequency, which can be explained
by settling effects of the rotor winding exposed to
centrifugal forces under rotation. If a inter-turn
short is present under rotation there is a clear shift
of the resonance frequency detectable. Like also
observed during the standstill measurements the
amount of frequency shift depends on the failure
location.
7 ONLINE MONITORING CONCEPT
A possible and promising concept for online
monitoring of the rotor winding is a trend analysis
of the first resonance frequency over time.
Therefore, the SFRA is conducted continuously.
The impedance analyser can be coupled with the
rotor winding by means of a capacitance to enable
inserting the frequency signal. Similar technique is
already used for ground fault detection.
The first resonance frequency is then determined
and evaluated by a special algorithm. If a failure is
present a sudden shift of the resonance frequency
can be easily detected by the software
automatically. The sketch in figure 13 illustrates
this trending analysis.
REFERENCES
[1] C. Staubach, R. Merte; Windungsschluss-
analyse an Rotoren von Turbogeneratoren, 7.
Essener Tagung: Turbogeneratoren in
Kraftwerken, Essen, Germany, 2014.
[2] D. R. Albright; Inter-turn short circuit detector
for turbine-generator rotor winding, 1970.
[3] Generatortech Inc.; Generator Field Winding
Shorted Turn Detection Technology, 2006.
[4] M. Sasic, B. Lloyd, A. Elez; Finite Element
Analysis of Turbine Generator Rotor Winding
Shorted Turns, IEEE Transactions on Energy
Conversion, 2012.
[5] C. Staubach, S. Krane; Detection of Faults in
Rotor-Windings of Turbogenerators,
Conference on Diagnostics in Electrical
Engineering CDEE, 2016

Figure 13: Illustration of the online monitoring

concept by means of SFRA

The advantage of this principle is that the

measurement technique is quite robust and
provides reliable results. Potential slow shifting of
the resonance frequency caused by thermal or
settling effects will not be detected. In addition this
concept allows not only monitoring of the rotor
winding itself but also of the residual excitation
system, like rotor brushes.

8 CONCLUSIONS

This paper shows the possibility of detecting

failures in the rotor winding in standstill and under
rotation by means of sweep frequency response
analysis (SFRA).
Compared to conventional technique (flux probe)
the advantages are the following:

 Assessment of winding and brushes

 Easy to evaluate by trend analysis,

definition of alarm levels possible

 Robustness of measurement technique, no

influence of load condition

 Easy to install, no access to the stator

necessary, no cabling through laminated
core, no risk of damaging during rotor
pulling

A principle concept how to use the SFRA-

technique for online monitoring of rotor windings is
also presented and explained.