Industrial condition monitoring applications in demanding environments require robust and reliable transducer systems, with devices such as accelerometers, velocity sensors, and proximity probes needing to meet significant operational challenges. SENSONICS, leveraging 50 years of experience in designing and manufacturing essential monitoring sensors and systems, offers specialised condition monitoring products alongside vital engineering and technical capabilities to deliver custom-designed sensors when standard solutions fall short.
Bespoke Design Services for Specialized Requirements
While SENSONICS maintains a wide range of LVDT (Linear Variable Differential Transformer) displacement transducers, the company recognises that standard products do not always meet specific application requirements. The company’s established bespoke design services address this gap, providing solutions for new applications, obsolete product replacements, or situations where existing suppliers cannot meet customer needs.
The technical expertise at SENSONICS enables the delivery of cost-effective solutions through multiple approaches: guiding customers through standard range options with customisation for form, fit, and function matching, or developing entirely new designs from scratch.
Steam Turbine Monitoring Applications
One of the most common applications involves taking linear measurements using LVDT displacement transducers on large steam turbines to measure the movement of turbine pedestals on cylinder sole plates. This measurement process requires an LVDT mounted on the turbine with an extension rod fixed or sprung onto the slides.
During turbine warm-up, thermal expansion can cause operational issues when one side of the sliders sticks while the other side continues moving. When this occurs, the difference in displacement output from LVDTs mounted on either side of the machine increases to the point of triggering control room alarms. This condition, known as turbine “crabbing,” requires engineer deployment to free the sticking pedestal from its slider plate, ensuring more efficient and effective maintenance protocols.
Diverse Industrial Applications
Beyond thermal expansion monitoring, LVDTs serve numerous other industrial applications. These include movement monitoring of structures such as bridges, tunnels, buildings, and dams to detect deformation or crack development. Additionally, LVDTs function as valve or actuator position feedback transducers, sending signal feedback to turbine control systems to indicate valve positioning status.
These transducers can be retrofitted using bracketry across fixed and moving parts of steam valves or integrated with original equipment manufacturers as high-pressure resistant designs installed internally within actuators.
Robust Design Configurations
The operational principles of LVDTs allow configuration in various housings depending on required mechanical protection levels. The incorporation of rod end bearings, linear rolling element bearings, and flexible conduit enables these devices to withstand severe environmental conditions commonly found in industrial applications.
Signal Conditioning Solutions
SENSONICS offers comprehensive signal conditioning units for their LVDTs, providing oscillator and demodulator functionality. Available options include the DN8032 DIN rail mount signal conditioning unit, the DC8042 die cast enclosure conditioning unit, and the Sentry G3 API 670 standard compliant ultimate machine protection system.
Technical Expertise and Industry Experience
The company’s five decades of experience in sensor design and manufacturing positions SENSONICS as a reliable partner for organisations requiring specialised monitoring solutions. Their ability to combine standard product offerings with custom engineering capabilities ensures that even the most challenging industrial monitoring requirements can be addressed effectively.
The combination of established product lines, bespoke design services, and comprehensive technical support makes SENSONICS a valuable resource for industries requiring precise displacement measurement and condition monitoring solutions in demanding operational environments.
For more information visit www.sensonics.co.uk
