Evaluation of the Performance of Infrared Thermography for On-Line Condition Monitoring of Rotating Machines

Abstract

This study evaluated the possibility of infrared thermography to measure accurately the temperature of elements of a rotating device, within the scope of condition monitoring. The tested machine was a blower coupled to a 500 kW electric motor, that operated in multiples regimes. The thermograms were acquired by a fixed thermographic camera and were processed and recorded every 15 minutes. Because the normal temperature variations could easily mask a drift caused by a failure, a corrected temperature was computed using autorecursive models. It was shown that an efficient temperature correction should compensate for the variations of the process, and for the ambient temperatures variations, either daily or seasonal. The standard deviation of the corrected temperature was of a few tenth of degree, making possible the detection of a drift of less than one degree and the prediction of potential failure.

Reliability of Infrared Thermography Images in the Analysis of the Plantar Surface Temperature in Diabetes Mellitus

“…[32][33][34] Further requirements include the presence of a thermally controlled environment, the proper preparation and orientation of the person who will undergo analysis, and the standardization of the technique with respect to the intervals of analysis, and completion of independent instruments by investigators. 13,17,20…”

“…The testing environment was thermally controlled at a constant temperature of 23°C. 17,20 To obtain stable interpretations of plantar temperature and to prevent that the temperature of other parts of the body interfering on the photographic record, the feet were thermally insulated by a uniform backdrop. 18 This uniform backdrop consisted in a box with 2 openings for the feet.…”

A Comparative Analysis of Detecting Bearing Fault, Using Infrared Thermography, Vibration Analysis and Air-Borne Sound

“…Problems with bearings are usually found by comparing the surface temperatures of similar bearings working under similar conditions. Overheating conditions appear as ''hot spots'', within an infrared image as usually found by comparing similar equipment [4].…”

An Approach to Fault Diagnosis of Rotating Machinery Using the Second-Order Statistical Features of Thermal Images and Simplified Fuzzy ARTMAP

“…The result of this study showed that thermography could assist in detecting the abnormal operation of various components at an early stage of impending failure. Leemans et al [10] evaluated the possibility of IRT to online monitor the element temperatures of an industrial blower, which included a 500 kW electric motor, a drive motor bearing, and two bearings supporting the blower, to detect wear or other defects. In fault diagnosis, thermogram was used by Younus et al [11].…”