Five Minute Facts  

Gear Box Failure on Cooling Tower Induction Motor Fan

Noah Bethel | Vice President-Product Development, PdMA Corporation

The large motors in this power plant are attached to a gear box, which is attached to a cooling fan inside the cooling tower. All components are enclosed inside a shroud, making a visual inspection difficult and costly. A knocking noise, possibly coming from inside the shroud, was detected. But was it the motor or the gear box? Watch the video to learn how the problem was analyzed without disassembling the shroud.

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About the Author

Noah Bethel Vice President-Product Development, PdMA Corporation

Noah has over twenty-five years of broad operations and electrical systems maintenance experience in industrial, commercial, and military settings ranging from nuclear submarines to world class amusement parks. His experience includes high and low voltage, AC and DC, power generation, power distribution, motors, and motor controllers. Noah is currently in charge of product development for new and existing PdM technology at PdMA Corporation.

Noah is a graduate of the University of the State of New York and the Naval Nuclear Power School and Training Unit. He is a Certified Maintenance Reliability Professional, with field experience in motor circuit analysis, current signature, power analysis, thermography, vibration analysis, oil analysis and ultrasonic testing.