| Early diagnosis, and even prognosis of a crack in a rotating beam for the safe and economic operation of rotating machinery has been a field of challenging ongoing research. The objective of this study is to develop an embedded modeling methodology that would be able to estimate the crack size of the rotating beam by predicting the vibration of the cracked beam. The model will embed a non-linear switching function in an FEM beam model to characterize the effect on local stiffness by crack breathing. Solving such a model will enable the prediction of vibration of a cracked beam. Once the model is validated and refined as appropriate, it will be used to estimate the crack size and the results will be compared with the actual crack size. The predicted crack size will be then used to predict the rotating beam's remaining lifetime and the results can be compared with the actual life. |
