Modeling and experimental evaluation of torque loss in turbine test rig for accurate turbine performance evaluation

The performance of a turbine is evaluated through a turbine rig test by measuring the torque or power generated from the test turbine using a dynamometer or torque sensor installed in the test rig. Highly precise assessment requires accurate measurement of the torque or power. However, an intrinsic difficulty exists such that not all power generated by the turbine is measured by the dynamometer or torque sensor. A small portion of power generated from the test turbine is dissipated between the test turbine and torque sensor as bearing and windage losses. The dissipated energy is called mechanical loss of test rig. Therefore, measuring the mechanical loss of the test rig is necessary for the accurate evaluation of the turbine performance. The present paper classifies mechanical loss into bearing, disk windage, and extra windage losses. Spin-down tests are performed in a 1-stage axial turbine test rig to evaluate each loss. The total mechanical loss amounts to 0.78% to 1.4% of energy generated at the turbine. Bearing loss is dominant. Mechanical loss is dependent on and increases with decreasing bearing temperature.