Robot Repairs Giant Wind Power Shafts Using 3D Printing

In Rentaria, Spain, Peter Zelinski got to see a major, successful system for large-scale component repair via additive manufacturing. A maker of wind power equipment needed a more effective way to repair its systems’ main shafts. Cold spray sometimes works to repair worn bearing areas on the shafts, but not reliably so. Scrapping a shaft and replacing it represents an expense of 140,000 euro - the company sought to avoid this expense. The successful solution seen in this video was developed by companies in Spain’s INZU Group including Ikergune, Izadi and Talens. A robot delivers precise directed energy deposition of Inconel 625 to repair the steel shaft. The video describes process elements beyond the material deposition needed for the success of this system, including a high-volume hopper to assure continuous powder flow over long production time, cooling of key system components, and a solution for heating the shaft ahead of deposition to optimize the interface zone between the two metals.
RELATED
Ikergune (R&D): www.ikergune.com/
Izadi (machine building): izadi-group.com/
Talens (laser metal deposition): www.talenssys.com/en
Robot 3D printing to make (not repair) a large-scale metal part: www.additivemanufacturing.med...
More on directed energy deposition: www.additivemanufacturing.med...
More on 3D printing for repair: www.additivemanufacturing.med...
More on large-format additive manufacturing: www.additivemanufacturing.med...
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#3dprinting #manufacturing #engineering

[@frikkied2638]

That’s a big shaft. Would have been nice to see what the bearing surfaces looked like before the repair. Maybe I missed it.

[@AdditiveManufacturing]

From Igor Ortiz at Ikergune: "Normally the bearings and the shafts are disassembled after full operation. A new bearing is assembled and the shaft is repaired by laser cladding." Photos of the bearing surfaces can be seen here on our site: www.additivemanufacturing.media/articles/video-am-for-repair-of-large-shafts#Bearing Thank you for watching!

[@edz44]

This is good old flame-spray welding - used for shaft repair for over a century - but performed with a robotic arm rather than by hand. Whilst it is an additive process, it will then be followed by a subtractive manufacturing step to cut the shift diameter down to its final OD and leave the required surface finish (which the additive portion of the process cannot achieve). Other than the robot arm, this shaft rework process could have been seen even back in the 1920s, let alone the 2020.

[@carlr.ribaudo5159]

Flame-spraying does not melt any of the substrate so a metallurgical bond is not created between the cladment and the base layer. Directed energy deposition using a laser or e-beam melts some of the substrate so that a metallurgical bond is established.

[@raulkaap]

Does the shaft rest on babbit bearings or something similar?

[@Darkralos]

04:12 you can see a rolling support.

[@raulkaap]

Oh, sorry. I meant in the wind turbine not during the repair.

[@Darkralos]

​I think you would like this video. SKF testing facility for huge wind turbine bearings. kzbin.info/www/bejne/j3m1eHhsf8eAe6Msi=XQxLroNpdWEsSrjh For sure, roller bearings are used for the main shaft in wind turbines. I doubt that they use bushings (no rolling contact), but I cannot confirm. Anyone? .

[@AdditiveManufacturing]

From Igor Ortiz at Ikergune: "The Babbitt bearings are common in steelmaker industry. The Babbitt is a “white metal” not with high hardness that is mainly for the contact with the heated parts in the rolling mill. In wind power industry uses Timken, JTEK or SKF bearings with a hardness between 60-65HRC for the contact with the shaft and to support axial and radial forces."

[@aryaman05]

This job could be easily accomplished with welding, what value-add does AM bring to such repair work ?

[@TRONTC]

Nope you cant use welding here on account of the heat distortion - for large shafts this needs to be done with ahem aheam laser cladding which has been used by the marine and oil and gas industry for 20 odd years

[@slevinshafel9395]

i was here and there. Aqui y alla....xD

[@sankalp3513]

Error at 3:13. The speaker says 25 mg/min powder flow rate, and not 25 g/min. like the on-screen text says. Most likely, 25 g/min is more reasonable. Also, wire DED repair of large components to do inconel 625 inlays has been implemented in industry since at least 2007. It's unclear what is novel here besides applying the technology to repair wind power shafts specifically.

[@igorberri23]

The issue in repairing wind power main shaft apart from the dimensions is to achieve a HAZ lower than 400HV. Also a 12 hour continuous process. The Inconel 625 can be implemented in the industry but this process and workflow has been certified by the wind power OEM.

[@TRONTC]

Is this 3D printing / Additive Manufacturing ? Meh not so - this is laser cladding plain and simple. Yes it is part of DED but the build height here is too small to consider it 3D printnig. There isnt a definate height for this but take it from me who's been working in the industry for a few years that anything above 4 inches is well in the printing realm.

[@igorberri23]

The defined height is done with the wind power OEM. The goals are to repair existing wear shafts and achieve the best quality during 12 hours non stop process with a previous 8 hours preheating process. For near net shape geometries we hope to have some public samples in near future.