February 2003

Subject: Troubleshooting Hydraulic Ratchet Problems

The hydraulic ratchet is a rotor-turning device. It has been used on GE gas turbines (MS5001 and
6001 primarily) since the 1950s for the following purposes:

Rotor cooldown after turbine operation (periodic)

Turbine start-up to assist the diesel or cranking motor (strokes continuously prior to
breakaway)
Shaft alignment (turbine to reduction gear) during maintenance outages
Borescope inspections (viewing of all buckets on a stage)

When the rotor is at rest during cooldown, the job of the ratchet is to partially turn the rotor in 3minute stroking intervals. Approximately every 1/2 hour, the rotor completes one revolution. This
precludes rotor sag (or bowing), which can lead to high vibrations as the turbine passes through
resonant frequencies during start-up.
During start-up, the ratchet strokes continuously to provide additional torque to augment the power
delivered through the torque converter by the starting means (diesel or electric motor). A rotor at rest
has high inertia; also, there has not yet been an opportunity to build up an oil wedge between the
rotor and the bearing liner. Thus, the demand on the ratchet is significant as it assists in overcoming
the breakaway torque demand of the turbine rotor.

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Typical Hydraulic Ratchet System for MS5001P or MS6001B Gas Turbines

Troubleshooting the Ratchet:

When checking out the Hydraulic Ratchet system for problems, pressures should be checked at
the cylinders rather than at the hydraulic ratchet pump discharge.

A forward stroke of the ratchet advances the starting clutch about 470 during the approximately
10-second stroke duration. The reset stroke duration is about 4.5 seconds. The pause is
typically 3 minutes. Thus, in the cooldown mode, it takes about 30 minutes for one revolution
of the turbine shaft.

Upon completion of a normal ratchet cycle, the ratchet should shutdown in a forward stroke.
This operation keeps the jaw clutch engaged. If the ratchet is not shutting down in a forward
stroke, it is entirely possible that the problem lies with the operation or adjustment of the
33HR limit switch.

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Hydraulic Ratchet, view looking upstream, opposing cylinders shown on right

Hydraulic Ratchet, right-side view, ratchet pump shown on lower right

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If you are experiencing nagging problems with your Hydraulic Ratchet System, contact Pond And
Lucier, LLC and let us help you to achieve the reliability you deserve.

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