INFORMATION SHEET

MODULE 2: VIBRATION MONITORING AND ANALYSIS

VIBRATION MONITORING AND ANALYSIS

When we think of Condition Monitoring, we usually think of vibration analysis. The technology
and techniques have been developing for over 30 years. Majority of manufacturing or processing
plants use vibration analysis. Vibration analysis of rotating machines such as motors, pumps,
fans, and gears is widely accepted as a viable technique to identify changing conditions. Reduced
costs of test equipment and data management (primarily computers), availability of training, and
development of computer-based expert systems are all contributing to this acceptance.

Vibration can be defined as the to and fro motion of a body around its mean position caused by
the influence of variable force vector. In its simplest from vibration can be explained by a
pendulum set system figure 1.
Machine vibration is simply the back-and-forth movement of machines or machine components

Figure 1 Pendulum Vibration Motion

Vibration in mechanical equipment is caused by a variety of sources:

1. Imperfections in the Machine
1. Design
2. Assembly
3. Manufacture
4. Operation
5. Installation
6. Maintenance

2. Some Common Machine Problems that Generate Mechanical Vibration:

1. Misalignment
2. Unbalance
3. Worn (belts & pulleys, Bearing, Gear)
4. Forces (Hydraulic, Aerodynamic, Reciprocating, Reaction and Frictional )
5. Certain Electrical Problems

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3. Some Common Machine Problems that Amplify Mechanical Vibration ( But Don't
Cause It ):
1. Resonance
2. Looseness

The two indicative numerical values, which describe the vibration motion, are amplitude and
frequency.

VIBRATION AMPLITUDE
The vibration amplitude describes the severity of vibration motion and can be expressed in three
different units, Figure 2
(a) Displacement
(b) Velocity and
(c) Acceleration.

Figure 2 Wave Characteristics of vibration

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(a) VIBRATION DISPLACEMENT

It is the distance covered by the vibrating body between its two extreme positions i.e. upper limit
and lower limit. It is measured as peak-to-peak displacement and expressed normally in microns
(1x10-6 meter) or mils (1/1000 inch).

(b) VIBRATION VELOCITY

It is indicative of how fast the body moves. The rate at which vibrating body is moving between
its peak values is not constant but gradually become zero and its peak position, changes its
direction and increase towards its mean position. Velocity is indicative of these changes and is
measured as peak velocity or RMS velocity (RMS = Root Mean Square). It is expressed in
mm/s or inch/sec. (either peak or RMS).

(c) VIBRATION ACCELERATION

Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity. As the velocity of a vibrating body changes, it
experiences acceleration, which can be used as a measurement characteristic. With increase in
velocity of vibrating body, acceleration reduces & vice versa. Hence acceleration is maximum
where the velocity is zero (i.e. max. displacement). Acceleration is normally measured in gs
peak units where g is the acceleration produced by the force of gravity at the surface of the
earth and is equal to 980.665 cm/sec/sec.

FREQUENCY:
A wave, as represented in fig.3 when it comes to its original position is said to have
completed 1 revolution. The time interval of that revolution is known as period of that wave
and the reciprocal of period of wave is called the frequency of the wave and is measured in
cycles per minute (CPM) or Hertz.

The rate at which a machine component vibrates vibrates is represented by the frequency.
Where 1 Hertz = 1 Cycle/sec.
= 60 Cycle/minute.

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Figure 3 Frequency of Vibration Signal

Applications of Vibration Monitoring and Analysis:

Diagnose imbalance, misalignment and looseness
Determine structural resonances
Discover bearing and gear faults
Periodic or Contract Monitoring
Baseline Data Acquisition & Analysis
Troubleshooting recurring problems with root cause analysis
Identify belt and related faults
Applicable on any rotating equipment

OTHER USES OF VIBRATION ANALYSIS

The use of vibration analysis should not be restricted to predictive maintenance. The diagnostic
capability of this analysis technique has an abundance of useful applications. Some of its other
areas of use are as follows:
Acceptance Testing
Vibration analysis is a proven means of verifying the actual performance versus design
parameters of new mechanical, process and manufacturing equipment.
Quality Control
Vibration checks on a production line are an effective method of ensuring product
quality.

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VIBRATION MONITORING & ANALYSIS

I. Vibration Measurements
The first step is selecting parameter for monitoring vibration severity level,
The next important step is to carry out actual vibration measurement in terms of that
parameter.

For collection of vibration severity data, selection of correct transducer or pickup plays very
crucial role. The transducers, which are used for this data collection, have been described below.

1. Velocity Transducer:
1. Accelerometer Transducer:

These are the most widely used transducers for data collection, because of their rugged design
and relatively high output signal Figure 4

Figure 4 Construction of a Velocity Pickup

This type of transducer works on the property of piezoelectric materials to generate an electric
charge when an external force is applied on them. These material produce electric charge which
is proportional to the force applied. Since the applied force is a function of acceleration, the
output charge can be directly calibrated in terms of acceleration amplitude. Introduction of
integrating circuit helps us to translate this to velocity reading. . Figure 5

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Figure 5 Schematic of Accelerometer

3. Non-Contact Type Transducer

The pickups discussed above were of contact type i.e. in order to measure vibration amplitude;
actual contact of this transducer with the vibrating part was necessary. Non-contact pickups
utilize principle of eddy currents to view the vibrating part and record the signal proportional to
displacement of vibrating part. Hence actual contact of the transducer with vibrating body does
not take place.

These types of pickups are generally used in machinery where the casing is rigid as compared
with the rotor and the vibrations of rotor might not reflect on the casing. Hence in such cases
displacement or velocity cannot be measured and use of non-contact type transducer becomes a
necessity. These transducers are fitted on rigid housing/bearing casings and view the rotor
surface. . Figure 6

Figure 6 Non-contact displacement pickup system

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VIBRATION MONITORING

After selecting proper instrumentation and personnel for condition monitoring setup, vibration
monitoring must be religiously carried out.

Figure 7 shows the process of vibration monitoring involves:

1. Collecting overall vibration data for a machine

2. Recording this data in suitable format
3. Data reduction for preparation of reports
Vibration analysis, if vibration severity is beyond acceptable range.

Figure 7 points of Vibration Measurements

In a manual data collection system, a person takes readings on various equipments using suitable
vibration meter and records this data in his field book. He then comes to his monitoring cell and
rewrites this data to carded files.

Computer Aided Monitoring

Computer aided vibration monitoring involves a data collector which can be connected to
computer for direct offloading of data. For computer aided data acquisition and analysis system,
following line has to be followed.

1. Configuring The Route

Data collector comes with a software for storage and analysis of data. For initializing the
data collector, route of data collection must be configured i.e. the order of taking reading on a
machine and the order of points on that machine must be predefined.

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2. Offloading The Route To Data Collector

3. Data Acquisition
The instrument is then taken to field and vibration data/spectrums are captured using suitable
pickups. This data gets stored onto the data collector. It should be noted that the route of data
collection offloaded to the data collector must be strictly followed.

4. Offloading Data To Computer

The data, thus acquired by the data collector is then offloaded onto the computer .

5. Data Reduction and Analysis

This part is taken care of by the computer software. Various report formats can be generated
as per individual requirements as shown in figure 8.

CONCLUSION

All machines vibrates

Vibration changes as the condition changes
The overall value of vibration is only a part of the story
Vibration analysis can help detecting a wide variety of fault conditions.

LOOK FOR PATTERNS AND CHANGES

The vibration pattern is important

How the pattern changes is equally important
A single reading can provide useful information.

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Figure 8 Vibration Trend

VIBRATION SEVERITY

The vibration severity measurement is a very efficient monitoring method for detecting common
machine faults as imbalance, structural weakness, loose parts etc. Few input data are needed and
it is easy to apply. The evaluation is based on international industrial standard ISO-10816 as
shown in figure9. The measurement returns the RMS value of vibration velocity in mm/s or
inch/s industrial.

Figure 9 Vibration Severity and Machine Class according to ISO 18016

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VIBRATION ANALYSIS

The vibration data is usually collected with a portable device for periodic monitoring, or a
continuous monitoring system may be installed for costly or critical systems.
One display is commonly used in vibration analysis which is the wave form. A waveform is a
graphical representation of how vibration motion changes with time. Figure10 shows an
example.

Figure 10 Vibration waveform (Time Domain)

Another kind of display is the spectrum. A spectrum is a graphical representation of the

frequencies at which a machine component is vibrating versus the amplitude of vibration. Figure
11 shows an example

Figure 11 Vibration Spectrum Collection (Frequency Domain)

Analysis of the vibration data requires a detailed understanding of machinery operations and of
vibration analysis techniques.
Vibration analysis can measure many aspects of the vibration wave
Look at where the vibration is strongest (usually converted into RPM).
Vibration analysis relies on interpretation of the vibration spectrum.
The interpreter can then determine the vibration origin.
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HOW IS SPECTRUM ANALYZED

Analysis is performed by asking one seemingly simple question:

"Are any of the amplitude values higher than desired?"

If the answer is "No", move on. Remember, this includes all areas of the spectrum from
1x rpm through harmonics out to high frequency, bearing related frequencies while
keeping in mind the amplitudes in these ranges should be judged by different standards.
For instance, you should become alarmed at much lower amplitudes when analysing
bearing-related vibrations than when analysing 1x rpm amplitudes.

Figure 12

Sample Spectrum: Q1 - Are Any Amplitude Values Higher Than Desired?

If, however, the answer is "Yes", you must move on to a second question:
"Where are they coming from?" More technically, what is the source of the "excessive"
amplitudes that you are concerned with?
The source of the vibration is judged by the frequency(s) of the amplitude peak(s) being
examined. Spectrum resolution must be kept in mind during this process. The better the
resolution, the better your judgment is.
Spectrum resolution goes to the heart of a very important question - how accurate is the data
(frequencies) you are using for your analysis?
Without fully understanding the implications spectrum resolution has for the data
you are analysing, you will never be a good analyst.

Spectrum Interpretation

Examples of these figures 13 are designed to provide typical examples of the vibration spectrums
that will result from different problems a machine might experience. They are probability based

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and field testing should always be performed regardless of how "sure" you are of the diagnosis.
Remember:

Housing Distortion: Soft Foot,

Unbalance Misalignment
Piping Stress, etc.

Structural Looseness Bearing Looseness Structural Resonance

Belt Problems: Pulley

Belt Problems: Wear,
Critical Speeds Alignment
Resonance, etc.

Belt Problems: Eccentric Pulley Sleeve Bearings

Oil Whirl
/ Bent Shaft (Looseness/Rubs)
Figure 13
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Pump Cavitation / Flow Rolling Element Bearings Hydraulic / Aerodynamic

Turbulence

AC Motor Problems: Broken / AC Motor Problems: Uneven AC Motor Problems: Loose

Cracked Rotor Bars Air Gap Rotor Bars / Windings

DC Motor Problems: Drive DC Motor Problems: Speed

Fluctuations Gear Problems: Misalignment
Problems

Gear Problems: Wear, Eccentricity, Backlash

Figure 13 (Cont)

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