Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Vavra, M. H..
Simple, inexpensive apparatus has been devised for testing dynamic balance of turbine rotors. No elaborate instrumentation is required and rotor is spun by directing jet of air against blades. Basic principle involved is that of the vibration of a mass on a spring. Apparatus can be used where conventional, expensive, balance facilities are not readily available.
Experimental data are presented for the tangential and radial stresses in the disks of the 36,000 horsepower, 4000 rpm turbine for the M-1 engine oxidizer turbopump. The two-stage Curtis turbine is a special light-weight design utilizing thin conical disks with hollow sheet metal blades attached by electron-beam welding techniques. The turbine was fabricated from Inconel 718, a nickel-chromium alloy. The stresses were obtained by strain-gage measurements using a slip-ring assembly to transmit the electrical signals. Measurements were made at different rotative speeds and different thermal loads. In addition to presenting test data, the report describes test equipment, design of associated hardware, test procedures, instrumentation, and tests for the selection and calibration of strain gages.