GE Energy

Shorted Turn Monitoring System (STMS)

fact sheet

Shorted Turns in Rotor Field

Windings
By some estimates, more than half of all rotors
in service have shorted turns. One short may not
cause noticeable damage, but as a generator
and its field windings age, more shorts can
occur and cause balance problems in the rotor,
and may lead to uneven heating and vibration.
These problems can be detected early by
monitoring characteristic flux changes in the
generator. This can be monitored using GEs
Flux Probe.
The amplitude of each cycle in the flux probe
signal is proportional to both the active turns in
the slot and the magnitude of the air-gap flux
density. The number of shorted turns on a given
coil can be identified by comparing the
corresponding coil amplitudes between poles.
In the past this has been done using GEs
proprietary software package, but this requires
a field engineer to be on-site during a scheduled
load swing and only provides a one-time
snapshot of the generators health.

Product Features

STMS
STMS is the newest addition to GEs flux probe
monitoring line-up. STMS is a stand-alone
device that has been built upon the core
functionality and algorithms of Flux Probe
software. It is designed to continuously monitor
flux probe data, track shorts, and alert the user
as they occur. Once installed, it will
automatically detect the time to analyze each
coil without the need for specially scheduled,
stepped load swings.

On site stand-alone device continuously

monitors flux probe data
Detects, stores, and sends shorted turn data
Provides both on-screen and control room
alarms when a short is detected
Publishes shorted turned data to Ethernet
and USB connections
User-friendly interface
Color coded display to indicate severity
(number, location and date of shorted turn)
Compatible with any 2 or 4 pole generator
with flux probe installed

Benefits

Increased predictive maintenance capability

Early short detection
No load schedule impact
Reduced analysis cost

Applicable

Hydrogen Cooled
Liquid Cooled
Air cooled

Magnetic wedges may interfere with the flux

probe signal.
1/rev hook-up required for proper pole
identification with 4-Pole generators