on load and off load brush gear maintenance 1

[tinashe8]

hie, we have two turbo-alternators installed in the 50's and every time when we want to do brush gear maintenance it is always off load. we have realized the disadvantage of doing this and we are thinking of modifying this excitation system to a system were we can do on load brush gear maintenance.the question is we what kind of system can be installed which allow us to do on load brush gear maintenance and a system which eliminates all other problems related to off load brush gear.

 

[waross]

Safety concerns, particularly arc flash issues, may make on-load maintenance virtually impossible in North America.
Consider also that a dropped tool or a non-issue event when off-load may be catastrophic on load, both for the workers and for the machinery.
That said, several generations ago we did running maintenance on running DC motors and generators up to about 200 HP (in the plant where I worked).
We used rubber based dressing bars and would remove surface glaze from commutators with the machines running. You may be able to automate something like that, operated remotely, if that will serve your purpose. That avoids arc flash issues and slips and drops. In some jurisdictions management and or your insurers may require an approved device from an outside source rather than something fabricated in-house.

Bill
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"Why not the best?"
Jimmy Carter