Chapter Four

Determination of state
of damage
 Introduction
The state of damage of a machinery or one
of its elements is the undesired deviation
from the required state fixed in the design
procedures.
- Knowledge of the state of damage in connection
with the determination of the survival probability is
essential for setting the date and kind of
maintenance measures to be taken.
- Knowledge of the state of damage provides a
collection of data or information about the state
of machinery, which in turn can be used for
setting meaningful maintenance routines.
 Introduction
The state of damage of an equipment
depends on
- kind and conditions of damage, and
- duration of operation of equipment.

- Determination of the state of damage is

part of technical diagnostics and
maintenance technique.
 Introduction
Technical diagnostics is the determination of the technical
state or state of damage of an equipment, evaluation
of the state and collection of information for
deciding the date and kind of maintenance . This is
normally done without disassembling while the
equipment is in operation.

- Conclusions arrived at about the state of damage of an

equipment are probabilistic, and the accuracy of results
obtained depends on the accuracy of the method of
investigation used, sampling techniques and measuring
techniques.
Introduction
Measuring Values for the State of
Damage
Direct measured quantities
The direct measuring technique determines
the difference between the initial state and
the state after wear process.
The measurements taken can be direct
linear, volumetric or mass quantities.
These measured quantities can be
absolute or related to duration of operation.
 Measuring Values for the
State of Damage
- Absolute measurement gives the amount wear as
an average worn out thickness.
- Related measurement gives amount
of wear per unit time of operation.
• Direct measurement gives dimensions of parts.
If the wear is not constant over a surface, the
measurement should be done in different planes
with different orientations.
• Direct measurement is usually done after
disassembly. But it can also be made without
disassembling provided there is easy access to
the measured quantities
 Measuring Values for the
State of Damage
- Indirect measuring quantities
During the operation of a machine or parts of it,
certain signals are produced which are related to
the state of operation of the machine.
These signals, which are known as the diagnostic
parameters, if properly analyzed provide some
information regarding the state of the machine.
It should be noted that influence from the
environment introduces errors in the measured
results
 Condition monitoring techniques
Depending on how the monitoring is done, the
techniques can be classified as:
a. On-load monitoring techniques:
mostly carried out without interruption of
operation
- visual, aural, tactile inspection of
accessible components
- temperature monitoring
- lubricant monitoring
- leak detection
- vibration/sound monitoring
- corrosion monitoring
Condition monitoring techniques
Off-load monitoring Techniques:
Off-load monitoring techniques require
shutdown of the unit. These include:
- visual, aural and tactile inspection of
normally inaccessible or moving parts;
- crack detection;
- leak detection;
- vibration testing ;
- corrosion monitoring.
 Condition monitoring techniques
- Most failures give some warning before they occur. This
warning is called potential failure.
- Potential failure is defined as an identifiable physical condition
which indicates that a functional failure is either about to occur
or it
is in the process of occurring.
- A functional failure is defined as the inability of
an equipment in meeting a specified standard.
– Techniques of detecting potential failures are known as on-condition
maintenance tasks. This is so because equipment is left in service on
the condition that they meet specified performance standards
Potential Failures and On-condition
Maintenance:
- If evidence can be found that some
component/equipment is in the final stage of failure, it
may be possible to take action to prevent complete
failure and/or its consequences.
- The P-F curve is employed to show what happens in the
final stages of failures. The P-F curve shows:
- where failure in the equipment starts to occurs;
- where equipment condition deteriorates to the point at
which the failure can be detected; and
finally,
- where the equipment has failed indicating functional
failure.
- P point at which it is possible to detect whether failure
is or is about to occur is known as potential failure.
- F point where failure has taken place – functional
Potential Failures and On-condition
Maintenance:
- On-condition tasks entail
checking for potential failures so
that action can be taken to
prevent functional failure or to
avoid the consequences of the
functional failure. This is known
as predictive maintenance or
condition-based maintenance.
- On-condition tasks are carried
out at intervals less than the P-F
interval, where the P-F interval is
the interval between the
occurrence of a potential failure
and its deterioration into
functional failure.
- The P-F interval is the interval between the
occurrence of a potential failure and its
deterioration into functional failure
 Categories of Condition
Monitoring Techniques
• Condition monitoring techniques are
designed to detect specific symptoms
which are related to the state of damage of
the equipment.
Categories of Condition Monitoring Techniques

Dynamic Monitoring Physical Effects Monitoring

Particle Monitoring Temperature Monitoring

Chemical Monitoring Electrical Effects Monitoring

1. Dynamic Monitoring
Dynamic monitoring detects potential failures which
cause emission of abnormal energy in the form of
waves such as vibration and noise.
Equipment which contain moving parts that vibrate
are monitored dynamically.
This is done by measuring how much the system
vibrates.
Techniques employed
- broad band vibration analysis
- constant bandwidth analysis
- real time analysis
- ultrasonic analysis
2. Particle Monitoring

Particle monitoring detects potential failures

which cause particles of different sizes and
shapes to be released into the environment in
which the component is operating.
These include wear particles and corrosion
particles. Techniques employed in particle
monitoring
- Ferrography
- Real time ferromagnetic sensors
- Graded filtration
- Sedimentation
3. Chemical Monitoring
Chemical monitoring detects potential failures which
cause traceable quantities of chemical elements to
be released in to the environment.
This technique is used to detect elements in the
lubricating oil
They are employed to detect wear, corrosion, leakage.
Some of the techniques are :
- Atomic emission spectroscopy
- X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy
- Infrared spectroscopy
- Electro-chemical corrosion monitoring
- Exhaust emission analyzers
- Colour indicator
Physical Effects Monitoring
Physical effects monitoring includes changes in the
physical appearance or structure of equipment which
can be detected directly.
The monitoring techniques involved detect potential
failures in the form of cracks, wear, corrosion, etc.
Some of the techniques employed are:
- Liquid dye penetrants
- Magnetic particle inspection
- Ultrasonic techniques
- X-ray radiography
- Light probes
- Deep-probe endoscope
- Oil odor
- Strain gauge
- Viscosity monitoring
5. Temperature Monitoring
These techniques look for potential failures which
cause rise in temperature of an equipment itself.
Monitoring techniques included in here, among
others, are:
- Infrared scanning
- Temperature indicating painting

6. Electrical Effects Monitoring

These techniques look for changes in resistance,
conductivity, etc. The techniques includes the
following.
- Electrical resistance monitoring
- Potential monitoring
- Power factor testing
- Breaker timing testing
General Purpose monitoring
techniques
Thermal, lubricant and vibration monitoring techniques
are considered to be general purpose monitoring
techniques.
1. Lubricant monitoring
- The oil which circulates through a machine carries
with it evidence of the condition of parts encountered.
- Examination of the oil and any particles it has carried
with it allows monitoring of the machine on-load
or at shut-down.
Lubricant examination covers
- debris deposited,
- debris in suspension, and
- condition of oil.
a. Examination of debris collected
Debris deposited are the larger particles carried
along by the lubricant which can be collected by
filters or magnetic collectors.
- Examination of the debris under the
microscope to establish size and shape
provides a good information regarding
the state of damage of the machine.
- Examination of the debris in suspension
gives the earliest warning of component

damage.
b. Condition of oil used
Condition of used oil itself can be examined for
indication of other malfunctions .
- foaming of oil: cause is excessive churning or
passage under pressure through restricti
- darkened colour of oil: caused by oxidation of
oil, excess temperature, combustion or other
chemical products reacting with the oil used.
Malfunctions that can be detected by lub monitoring
- damages of transmission components like
gears, shafts, bearings, etc.
- blockage of ducts, pipes, etc.
2. Thermal monitoring
Monitoring the temperature of a component in
a machine is undertaken for one of three
purposes:
i. To enable temperature control of a process
ii. To detect increase in heat generation due to
some malfunction such as damage of
bearings
iii. To detect changes in the heat transmitted
through and out of the body of the machine
caused by a change in some component
such as failed coolant circulation or ash
build-up in boilers, etc.
Temperature monitoring can be carried out
- at a point within the body of the plant (eg.
measurement of water temperature in
a
boiler),
- or at the surface of a component (eg.
bearing housing).
Temperature monitoring devices are diverse
and can be classified as:
- contact sensors, and
- non-contact sensors (pyrometers)
3. Vibration/noise monitoring

Changes in vibration characteristics are indicative of

trouble.
- The causes of vibration are
- unbalanced rotating and reciprocating parts,
- looseness in the fit between components,
- deflection of load carrying members,
- misalignment,
- damages in transmission components, etc.

The equipment employed for vibration monitoring

are vibrometers and accelerometers of wide
variety.
Possible faults that can be detected by vibration
monitoring include:
- wear or failure of bearings;
- presence of unbalance in moving parts;
- changes in clearances;
- cracks in shafts and other moving
components subjected to cyclic loads.