Accepted Manuscript

VibronRotor, an opensource rotordynamic code: Development and benchmark-

ing

Kazi Sher Ahmed, Sarvat Mushtaq Ahmad

PII: S0263-2241(18)30783-8
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.measurement.2018.08.044
Reference: MEASUR 5823

To appear in: Measurement

Received Date: 2 April 2018

Revised Date: 22 June 2018
Accepted Date: 22 August 2018

Please cite this article as: K. Sher Ahmed, S. Mushtaq Ahmad, VibronRotor, an opensource rotordynamic code:
Development and benchmarking, Measurement (2018), doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.measurement.2018.08.044

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VibronRotor, an opensource rotordynamic
code: Development and benchmarking
Kazi Sher Ahmed, Sarvat Mushtaq Ahmad*

Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute, Pakistan

*Corresponding Author:
Sarvat Mushtaq Ahmad, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute,
Topi-23640, Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Email: smahmad@giki.edu.pk

Abstract

Precise prediction of dynamic response is an important first step in the design and

troubleshooting of rotating machinery. Utility of the finite element (FE) method in

rotordynamics is well entrenched and has translated into many specialized codes for rotor

response prediction. Most specialized codes are propriety software with expensive

subscriptions which restrict the access for small-scale rotating machinery manufacturers

and researchers to these codes and employed algorithms. In contrast, this paper presents the

detailed algorithm and benchmarking of an open-source FE code VibronRotor for

rotordynamic analysis. FE formulation in code is based on the work of Nelson and

McVaugh1. Functionalities of the code include Campbell diagram, critical speed map, mode

shapes, imbalance response, orbit plots, and instability threshold analysis. An important

Page 1 of 40
capability to analyze the stability of closed-loop electromechanical levitation systems is

also explained. These analysis tools are described with design insights to enable selection

of rotor design parameters for stable operation and failure prevention. VibronRotor is

verified with results from an established rotordynamic software and validated with an

inhouse-developed rotor test-rig. Open-source development is primarily aimed to support

rotating machinery manufacturers and start-ups to design and troubleshoot rotors without

expensive reliance on commercial software. VibronRotor is written to run on a free

scientific programming language GNU Octave.

Keywords

Finite element method; Rotordynamic code; Open-source development; Critical speed;

VibronRotor.

Declaration of Interest

None.

1. Introduction

Design of flexible rotors is an involved process and requires an in-depth understanding of rotor static and

dynamic response. In particular, prediction of critical speeds, imbalance response analysis, and instability

threshold calculations are crucial to the design process. Additionally, demands of increased power output and

reduced weights translate into increasingly higher speed rotors. Vibration issues are amplified in high-speed

rotors2 and require a precise prediction of rotordynamic behavior at the design phase 3. Due to limitations in

analytical solutions of partial differential equations to investigate dynamics of complex flexible rotors, finite

Page 2 of 40
element (FE) discretization technique has been extensively employed in rotordynamics to successfully predict

rotor response4. Predicted dynamics guide modifications in rotor design for a stable function within operating

regimes. Employment of FE method in rotordynamics enabled development of specialized rotor codes which

are not only limited to response prediction but also aid in testing and troubleshooting of rotating machinery.5

Although general-purpose commercial FE software are also used in rotordynamic analysis,

specialized rotor codes allow greater design flexibility and customization. Proper integration of gyroscopic

effects in rotor models is another advantage of rotordynamic specific codes.3 A few examples of popular

commercially available rotordynamic codes include Dyrobes® which is based on FE analysis with detailed

bearing performance calculations 6. XLRotorTM is another widely used rotordynamics software developed by

Brian T. Murphy 7 with its evaluation version limited to five stations but contains full examples. Further,

MADYN 2000 is a commercial rotordynamic program for rotor-gear-bearing systems for lateral, torsional,

and coupled analysis incorporating a wide range of bearings.8 Another popular software is XLTRC2 from

Texas A&M University; it utilizes Excel-based graphical user interface to run rotordynamic codes for lateral

and torsional analysis.9 Moreover, DYNROT is a MATLAB-based code for rotordynamic computations based

on FE method. Its simplified version with basic elements and one-dimensional approach is available for open

download.3

Most of the specialized rotordynamic codes are propriety commercial software with expensive

subscriptions. This limits the access to industries and startups in stages of infancy which cannot afford

recurring costly subscriptions. In contrast, this paper presents the development and benchmarking of

VibronRotor which is an open-source rotordynamics FE code based on the work of Nelson and McVaugh1.

Finite elements based on standard Euler beam formulation have been employed to study rotor lateral

dynamics while considering the effects of distributed rotary inertia and gyroscopic coupling. VibronRotor

provides an engineering insight at design phase of rotor-bearing systems which leads to appropriate selection

of the design parameters for a safe operation. Functionalities of the developed code include Campbell

diagram, critical speed map, mode shapes, imbalance response amplitude and phase plots, orbit plot, and

Page 3 of 40
instability threshold analysis. The capability to analyze the stability of closed-loop electromechanical

levitations systems is also described. Code is benchmarked against an established rotordynamic software

XLRotorTM and results from an inhouse-built rotor test-rig.

One of the two motivations for open-source development is to support the local industry with design

and troubleshooting of rotating machinery as well as local micro-hydro turbine manufacturers with turbine

rotor design. The other motivation is to provide an extendable platform to interested students and researchers

to gain an in-depth understanding of rotordynamics and extend the capabilities of the code. This invites

incremental progress as latest advances in modeling techniques can be integrated and tested in the code and

results shared in the public domain. An opensource code can also be readily linked to other custom

rotordynamic, active magnetic bearing, bearing performance, and design optimization codes. Release of

source code is licensed under the terms of GNU General Public License v3.0 and is available for download on

GitHub10. Code is written to run on GNU Octave which is a free scientific programming language. Due to the

bidirectional syntactic compatibility of GNU Octave with MATLAB, code can also be run on MATLAB.

This paper is organized as follows: Section 2 delineates the algorithm of developed code including

the meshing approach and global matrices formation, leading to eigenanalysis, imbalance response, instability

threshold analysis, and active vibration control analysis. Section 3 presents the functionalities and

benchmarking studies along with design insights. The paper is concluded with potential future directions in

Section 4.

2. VibronRotor algorithm

In FE rotordynamic analysis, the formation of global matrices based on elemental matrices is important.

These global matrices define the complete rotor system and are utilized in eigenanalysis, steady-state

imbalance response analysis, and active vibration control. Global matrices are assembled based on the user

inputs and meshing approach. The flow of the code is summarized in Figure 1.

Page 4 of 40
 Figure 1 Flowchart of the code

2.1 Finite element formulation

Each ith finite element, shown in Figure 2, consists of two nodes, i and i+1. Each node has two translational

degree of freedoms (DOF)
and , and two rotational DOF  and  about
and , respectively. Since this

study is limited to lateral dynamics of rotors, axial and torsional DOFs have been ignored.

Page 5 of 40
 xi xi+1

θxi θxi+1
θyi

yi

yi+1 θyi+1

Figure 2 Two-node ith beam element with two translational and two rotational displacements
at each node.

Nodal displacements can be packed in a generalized ith elemental displacement vector  in

Equation 1.

 =

   
     
(1)

where  = ,  =
 
 
, and z is the axial displacement. While employing the shape functions

given in Equation 1A, Nelson and McVaugh 1 derived the elemental matrices given in Equations 2-5 for the

ith element.

   
S = 1 − 3   + 2  
 
  
S = 
1 − 2   +   
 
   
S = 3   − 2  
(1A)

 
   
S = 
−   +   
 

Page 6 of 40
where l is the length of the shaft element and s is the axial position along the length
of the element.

156
' .
0 156 **.
& -
& 0 −22" 4" -
(2)
μ"
 = & 22" 0 0 4" -
420 & 54 0 0 13" 156 -
& 0 54 −13" 0 0 156 -
& 0 13" −3" 0 0 22" 4" 0 -
% −13" 0 0 −3" −22" 0 0 4" ,

36
' .
0 36 **.
& -
& 0 −3" 4" -
μ0 
/ = & 3" 0 0 4" -
120" & −36 0 0 −3" 36 -
& 0 −36 3" 0 0 36 -
(3)

& 0 −3" −" 0 0 3" 4" -

% 3" 0 0 −" −3"

0 0 4",

12
' .
0 12 **.
& -
& 0 −6" 4" -
2 3
1 =  & 6" 0 0 4" -
" & −12 0 0 −6" 12 -
& 0 −12 6" 0 0 12 -
(4)

& 0 −6" 2" 0 0 6" 4" -

% 6" 0 0 2" −6"

0 0 4",

0
' .
36 0 567 −
& -
−3" 0 0 **.
 & -
μ0
& 0 −3" 4" 0 -

4 =
60" & 0 36 −3" 0 0 -
& −36 0 0 −3" 36 0 -
(5)

& −3" 0 0 " 3" 0 0 -

% 0 −3" −" 0 0 3" 4" 0 ,


Page 7 of 40
where   , / , 1 , and 4 are the elemental translational mass, rotational mass, stiffness, and gyroscopic

matrices respectively. μ is the mass per unit length of element, 0 is the radius of element, and " is the element

length, 2 is the elastic modulus, and 3 is the element cross-sectional area moment of inertia. Subscript i refers

to the ith element. The mass and the stiffness matrices are symmetric while the gyroscopic matrix is skew-

symmetric. The element mass matrix  is the sum of   and / .

VibronRotor assembles the elemental matrices into the global system matrices as per the user-

provided rotor parameters. Equation 6 is the governing equation of motion for the rotor system.

8 9: + ;<= + Ω?@ 9A + ;B = + B C @ 9 = D
(6)

where M is the global real symmetric mass matrix due to the kinetic energy, G is the skew-symmetric

gyroscopic matrix due to a part of rotational kinetic energy, KS is the structural stiffness matrix due to strain

energy, and Ω is the rotational speed. KB and CB are non-symmetric linearized bearing stiffness and damping

matrices. Q is the generalized displacement vector containing nodal displacements of all the elements. F is the

force vector which accounts for unbalance masses, bow of the rotor, and skewed rotor components.

2.2 User inputs

User sets up the input function core file with all the required parameters. Lengths and diameters of shaft

segments are written in vectors l_segments and d_segments, respectively. At the user’s end, only change in

shaft diameter justifies a new segment. Using the left-most end of the rotor as a reference, distances of bearing

supports and discs are entered in dist_bearings and dist_discs vectors. Lengths and diameters of discs are

stored in l_discs and d_discs vectors. With the geometrical properties defined, rotor density, elastic modulus,

and maximum element length to diameter (L/D) ratio are entered. Next inputs include speed-dependent

bearing coefficients which are stored in row vectors. For mass matrix formulation, either consistent mass or

Page 8 of 40
lumped mass approach can be selected.. Ultimately, a rotor schematic based on geometrical data is displayed

as a secondary check which prompts the user for permission to proceed with the analysis.

2.3 Mesh approach

An important aspect of FE modeling accuracy is the number of elements in rotordynamic model. While

insufficient number of elements can result in erroneous response predictions, unjustifiably large number of

elements can be computationally expensive. Standard practice is to keep L/D ratio below 1. VibronRotor

allows users to modify number of elements to locate the convergence of results.

Adopted mesh approach in the code redefines the segments to enforce a segment change at bearing

and disc axial locations in addition to the shaft diameter change. To achieve this, cumulative sum of

l_segments is taken to define a new vector dist_segments containing the axial locations of segment start points

referenced to the left-most end of rotor. Afterwards, vectors dist_bearings and dist_discs are merged with

dist_segments and the results are sorted in ascending order in vector dist_all_segments. This completes the

new segment definition where bearing and disc axial locations, along with the shaft diameter, result in

segment change. Next step is to maintain L/D ratio in each of the segments. To achieve this, a segment-wise

loop is initiated where axial location of each segment from dist_all_segments is located within elements of

dist_segments to fetch the corresponding shaft diameter from d_segments. Mesh approach maintains L/D ratio

of all the elements within the user-provided limit and ensures exact placement of element nodes at component

axial locations. Each segment is divided into several elements based on L/D ratio. Figure 3 shows a shaft with

three segments which are divided into several elements. Taking example of an arbitrary segment, diameter of

segment is multiplied with L/D ratio to get an initial element length for that segment. Subsequently, segment

length is divided by initial element length to determine initial number of elements for the segment. The

number of elements obtained at this stage may not be a whole number and therefore is rounded towards

positive infinity. Finally, segment length is divided by rounded number of elements to find the final element

Page 9 of 40
length. All the remaining segments of rotor undergo the same procedure. For all the segments, the number of

elements and final element lengths are stored in vectors num_elements and f_l_oneelement.

Figure 3 An example variable-diameter shaft with three numbered-segments and twenty-

eight elements represented by dotted lines.

2.4 Global matrices formation

Elemental mass, stiffness, and gyroscopic matrices, given in Equations 2-5, are assembled into global

matrices based on the mesh formation. This is achieved by an element-wise loop containing eight variables,

dof1-8, corresponding to eight nodal displacements given in Equation 1. For the first element and loop run,

these variables attain integer values 1-8, respectively. For the second element and loop run, variables dof1-8

attain integer values 5-12, respectively. Integer values 5-8 repeat since second node is shared by both

elements. For example, to incorporate the first column non-zero elements of elemental stiffness matrix of

Equation 4 into the global structural stiffness matrix Ks, the following relations are utilized:

12 E I
B E ;dof1, dof1@ = B E ;dof1, dof1@ +
L
6 E I
B E ;dof4, dof1@ = B E ;dof4, dof1@ +
L
12 E I
(7A)
B E ;dof5, dof1@ = B E ;dof5, dof1@ − 
L
6 E I
B E ;dof8, dof1@ = B E ;dof8, dof1@ +
L

Page 10 of 40
 Similar relations are used for the remaining columns. Figure 4 demonstrates the assembly of a global

structural stiffness matrix from n elemental stiffness matrices shown by the dashed squares. For the first run

of loop, all columns of K1 are defined in Ks. For the second run, K2 is defined. The next runs of loop continue

to define the remaining elemental matrices. Overlap is elements is seen due to the fact that a node is shared by

two adjacent elements in the employed FE formulation. Based on the element number, rotor parameters are

extracted from segment vectors for insertion into the global matrices.

K1

K2

KS =
Kn-1

Kn

Figure 4 Global structural stiffness matrix assembly combining n number of elemental stiffness
matrices.

Stiffness and consistent mass matrices are symmetric and gyroscopic matrix is skew-symmetric,

therefore, only lower triangular parts of the global matrices are constructed, and other parts are simply

developed from the lower triangular parts. If lumped mass matrix formulation is selected at input stage, mass

matrix is diagonal. As per the standard formulation, disc properties and interpolated bearing coefficients are

inserted in global matrices at corresponding nodal locations. With the global assembly completed, matrices

are utilized for eigenanalysis, imbalance response analysis, and instability threshold calculations.

2.5 Eigenanalysis

Page 11 of 40
The governing equation of motion, Equation 6, for the rotor system is solved by utilizing the state-space

formulation of eigenvalue problem. N number of second-order differential equations are converted into 2N

first-order differential equations. Eigenvalue analysis is performed while considering the force vector to be

zero. The state matrix is given by:

P R
N = O S
− 8 Q ;B = + B C @ − 8Q ;<= + Ω?@ (7)

where O and I are null and identity matrices respectively. Complex eigenvalues and associated complex

eigenvectors are obtained from the state matrix by using an in-built eigenvalue function. Complex eigenvalues

can be represented as T ± VW X, where T is damping exponent and VW is damped natural frequency. Sorting of

eigenvalues and corresponding eigenvectors is done based on the magnitude of complex eigenvalues.

Campbell diagram (CD) and Critical Speed Map (CSM) are two important rotordynamic maps. In

CD, state matrix is evaluated repeatedly for a user-provided range of rotational speeds and corresponding

eigenvalues are extracted. Afterwards, damped natural frequencies are plotted against rotational speeds. A CD

also contains synchronous excitation line of slope of one. It allows working out the synchronous critical

speeds by marking the rotor speed at the intersection of damped natural frequencies and the synchronous

excitation line. For CSM, CD is constructed repeatedly based on user-provided range of bearing stiffness

values. For each CD, critical speeds are determined and afterwards plotted against bearing stiffness values in

CSM.

Complex eigenvectors contain the mode shapes as complex amplitudes. For plotting, only the

eigenvectors corresponding to the translational DOFs for all nodes are extracted from original matrix of

eigenvectors. Complex amplitudes only represent the shape of the rotor during operation at a single mode and

can be scaled arbitrarily 11. A complex mode exhibits a travelling wave in the rotor structure since different

points along the axial direction of rotor reach their maximum or minimum positions at different times due to

phase differences. VibronRotor scales each eigenvector to have 1 as the maximum amplitude. Adopting the

Page 12 of 40
standard way, the code plots the real and imaginary parts of each translational DOF for all nodes. Number of

mode shapes to plot are user selectable.

2.6 Steady-state imbalance response analysis

A more general way of writing Equation 6 is:

8 9: + < 9A + B 9 = D
(8)

Externally applied forces are assumed to be harmonic and can be applied to various DOFs at once. Horizontal

and vertical components of imbalance force as functions of time (t) are in the form:

Y, ;t@ = [ cos;V^ + _@

= ;[ cos γ@ cos V^ − ;[ sin γ@ sin V^

Y, ;t@ = [ sin;V^ + _@
(9)

= ;[ cos γ@ sin V^ + ;[ sin γ@ cos V^

where [ is the imbalance force, V is the frequency of applied force, and _ is the leading phase angle of force

which is specified separately for each imbalance force. Subscript i with force terms refers to imbalance. Each

imbalance force attains the form12:

Y [ cos;V^ + _@
' , .
Y,
& - = e [ sin;V^ + _@ f
& c, - 0
% c,d , 0
(10)

Page 13 of 40
 [ cos;_@ − [ sin;_@
= e [ sin;_@ f cos;V^@ + e [ cos;_@ f sin;V^@
0 0
0 0

VibronRotor ignores the disc skew and shaft bow as sources of imbalance, therefore, c, and c,d

are zero. Equation 10 can be re-written in generalized form as:

D = D< gh;V^@ + DE Xi;V^@

(11)

For steady-state imbalance response analysis, the solution to Equation 8 will be the harmonic motion

as assumed in eigenanalysis with the exception that exponential decay factor is 1. Assumed solution to

harmonic excitation shares the same frequency of initial excitation with a different phase angle. Generalized

form of solution is:

X ;t@ = x gh;V^ − l@

= ;x gh l@ gh V^ + ;x Xi l@ Xi V^

(12)

where X ;t@ is the displacement of DOF as a function of time, x is the real-valued amplitude and l is the

lagging phase angle of motion relative to the excitation vector. In generalized form, response can be presented

as:

9 = 9< gh;V^@ + 9E Xi;V^@

(13)

where 9< = x gh l and 9m = x Xi l. The steady-state response given in Equation 13 is differentiated and

substituted along with Equation 11 into Equation 8. A comparison of sine and cosine terms gives the

following matrix equation:

Page 14 of 40
 n B − 8V

<V o O 9< S = O D< S
− <V B − 8V 9E DE (14)

User is prompted for imbalance weights, phase differences, locations of input force and output

response, and analysis speed range. Equation 14 is iteratively solved for user-specified speed range and

increments. For a single solution run, the forcing vector on right hand side of Equation 14 is populated with

speed-dependent forces at nodes of imbalance locations. Bearing stiffness and damping values are speed-

dependent13, especially in the case of journal bearings. A cubic spline interpolation is utilized to approximate

bearing dynamic coefficients for the complete range of speed in analysis. Global matrices K and C are

updated based on the value of V for the specific run with dynamic stiffness and damping coefficients obtained

from cubic spline interpolation. The same procedure is repeated for the complete speed range. Displacement

amplitude and phase angles are extracted from response vector in Equation 14 which are further used to

develop the Bode plots. Further, Orbits plots are constructed by substituting elements of response vector for

relevant DOFs into Equation 13 and using discrete time values.

2.7 Instability threshold analysis

Instability threshold analysis can be performed by plotting the real parts of the complex eigenvalues, also

called damping exponents, obtained from state matrix in Equation 7 against rotor spin speeds. Eigenvalues

from the state matrix are iteratively obtained by updating the global matrices K and C with speed-dependent

bearing coefficients. Instability threshold speed is noted when the real parts of eigenvalues transition from

negative to positive. While the user provides the speed-dependent bearing coefficients corresponding to

specific speeds, the analysis usually requires interpolation to determine bearing coefficients at intermediate

Page 15 of 40
speeds. Therefore, cubic splines are employed. Equation 15 presents separate n-1 cubic polynomials for n-1

intervals between n data points ;
,  @, … , ;
q , q @.14

r ;
@ =  + s ;
−
@ + t ;
−
@ + g ;
−
@ for
∈

,
 
r ;
@ =  + s ;
−
 @ + t ;
−
 @ + g ;
−
 @ for
∈

 ,
 
⋮ ⋮
(15)

rqQ ;
@ = qQ + sqQ ;
−
qQ @ + tqQ ;
−
qQ @ + gqQ ;
−
qQ @ for
∈

qQ ,
q 

where s , … , sq ; t , … , tq ; and g , … , gq are coefficients for interpolation and smoothness constraints.

Together, these polynomials make the cubic spline r;
@.

2.8 Active vibration control

Along with the rotordynamic functionalities, the code is also able to incorporate modelling and closed-loop

control features of electro-magnetic levitation (EML) systems. One such system is Active Magnetic Bearing

(AMB) which provides frictionless supports to high-speed flexible rotors 15, 16 as well as deployed in

numerous other applications 17-19. General purpose FE codes, as delineated in the Introduction section,

generally do not have the flexibility to integrate rotor behavior with feedback control design. As evident,

many modern electro-mechanical systems utilize active vibration control of flexible structures and high-speed

rotors. Wherein combining rotordynamics or structural dynamics, sensors dynamics, and controller dynamics

seamlessly and analyzing interplay between them is paramount. In here, utility of the VibronRotor is

demonstrated via a 1 DOF EML of a pivoted beam 20, which is also on-going work of authors on AMB

system.

Consider a 1 DOF cantilever beam supported by a pair of two opposing electromagnets. The

equation of motion of such a system is given by:

*
: − z
;^@ = z X{ ;^@ (16)

Page 16 of 40
 Equation 16 is a simplified version of Equation 6, where * is the mass of beam, and z and z are

the force-current and force-displacement factors, respectively. Displacement of the pivoted beam from its

normal operating position is represented by
. Using Laplace transform, the above equation becomes:

*  
;@ − z
;@ = z 3{ ;@

(17)

The open-loop transfer function is

;@ z /*
= 
3{ ;@  − z/} (18)

Since Equation 18 is open-loop unstable, a stabilizing proportional-derivative (PD) control is

considered. The PD controller is of the form:

~{ = 5 + 5W . 
(19)

Combining Equations 18 and 19, the overall closed-loop transfer function from reference position r

to beam displacement x is given by:

5W z 5 z

   + € 
* *
=
0 5 z 5 z − z
  +  W*    + € * 
(20)

Equation 20 can be rendered in state-space form if the two state variables for position
and velocity


‚ =
A are combined in the state vector ƒ = n o. Or in the more general control canonical form as:
‚

5W z 5 z − z


A − − 1
O S=„ * … n
o + n o †


A  * 0
1 0
 (21a)

Page 17 of 40
 5W z 5 z


  = O S n o +
0†
* *
 (21b)

Where
and
are position and velocity variables, respectively. The closed-loop eigenvalues are

obtained via system state matrix as:

5W z 5 z − z
‡ { = „− * −
* …
1 0
(22)

Which is akin to Equation 7 and can be solved using similar approach. With appropriately designed PD

controller, the open-loop system is thus stabilized20. Through Equations 16-22, albeit for a 1 DOF case,

important additional capability of VibronRotor code in analyzing the stability of closed-loop system is

demonstrated.

3. VibronRotor functionalities and benchmarking studies

Each functionality of VibronRotor is discussed here with design and analysis insights followed by the

benchmark results. A thorough benchmarking of the code is necessary to justify reliance on its predicted

rotordynamic performance. Therefore, the validation with experimental results from inhouse-developed rotor

test-rig and verification with reliable results from the rotordynamics software XLRotorTM 7, 11 are presented

utilizing two different rotor configurations.

3.1 Rotor configurations for benchmarking

Page 18 of 40
 Two rotor configurations are utilized for benchmarking; one is mounted on test-rig and the other is a

modelled example in XLRotorTM. For experimental validation, the rotor shown in Figure 5 is modelled in

VibronRotor and predicted results are compared with experimentation. A three-phase AC motor is used to

drive the rotor and Mitsubishi variable frequency drive is utilized to control speed and ramp rate of the motor.

A flexible jaw coupling connects rotor to the motor. Rotor consists of a stainless-steel shaft supporting an

imbalance mass disc, mild-steel solid disc, and two mild-steel collar discs connecting the shaft to self-aligning

ball bearings. Imbalance mass disc is perforated to provide three concentric circles of slots to attach

imbalance masses. Rotor is instrumented with an Analog Devices ADXL335 accelerometer and two OMEGA

LD701 inductive displacement sensors mounted orthogonally towards solid disc. Sensors are interfaced with

PC through National Instruments PCI-e 6321 data acquisition card. Rotor geometrical and mechanical

properties are tabulated in Table 1. Rotor geometrical model produced by VibronRotor is shown in Figure 6.

Ball bearings typically have an isotropic radial stiffness in the range of 2e7-2e8 N/m 6. Hence, a value of 2e7

N/m is taken in the rotor FE model. Radial compensation stiffness of jaw coupling is approximated to be

202842 N/m 21 based on nitrile rubber spider used in the test-rig.

Figure 5 Experimental rotor configuration: (A) motor, (B) VFD, (C) flexible jaw coupling,

(D1) perforated imbalance mass disc, (D2) solid disc, (E) shaft, (F1) ADXL335

accelerometer, (F2) LD701 displacement sensor, (G) NI connector block to PCI-e 6321

DAQ card, (H) self-aligning ball bearing with collar disc.

Page 19 of 40
Figure 6 Experimental rotor geometrical model illustrating shaft s1, two collar discs 1 and

4, and two load discs 2 and 3.

Table 1 Experimental rotor parameters

Properties Values Units

Rotor diameter 0.01 m

Rotor length 0.876 m

Diameter of load disc 2 and 3 0.098 m

Disc 2 axial thickness 0.003 m

Disc 3 axial thickness 0.0318 m

Collar 1 and 4 axial thickness 0.015 m

Collar 1 and 4 diameter 0.0199 m

Bearing radial stiffness 2e7 N/m

Coupling radial stiffness 202842 N/m

Sling horizontal stiffness 29.76 N/m

The other rotor configuration, shown in Figure 7, is an example rotor in the evaluation version of

XLRotorTM. It consists of a variable-diameter flexible shaft divided into seven segments. Three rigid discs are

mounted on to the shaft which is supported by two isotropic bearings. The rotor is modelled in XLRotorTM

with the mass matrix formulation of standard Euler beam and results are compared with predicted results of

Page 20 of 40
VibronRotor. Element length to diameter ratio is kept below 0.4 for overall comparison. Geometrical and

mechanical properties of rotor are tabulated in Table 2.

Figure 7 Geometrical model of XLRotorTM example with seven shaft segments 1-7 and

three discs 1-3. Two vertical dash-dotted lines indicate the bearing locations.

Table 2 Parameters for an example rotor in XLRotorTM

Segment No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Diameter (m) 0.0254 0.0508 0.0762 0.0508 0.0381 0.0444 0.0508

Length (m) 0.1016 0.1524 0.2540 0.0508 0.1016 0.0508 0.1016

Disc No. 1 2 3

Diameter (m) 0.5588 0.2794 0.2540

Length (m) 0.0508 0.0508 0.0508

Properties Values Units

Page 21 of 40
 Bearing radial stiffness 5.534e+06 N/m

Bearing damping coefficient 1.7513e+03 Ns/m

Elastic modulus of shaft and disc

206.84e+9 N/m2
material

Density of shaft and disc material 7833.41 Kg/m3

Code functionalities, design insights, and benchmarking results are described next.

3.2 Damped natural frequencies and Campbell diagram

Placement of synchronous critical speeds relative to the rotor operating speed is of critical importance. Rotors

exhibit unsafe vibration levels during operation close to critical speeds. Additionally, rotors may experience

high sub-synchronous vibrations while operating significantly above the critical speeds and may be sensitive

to operating environments while operating significantly below the rigid body critical speeds 12. Normally, a

15% margin of separation is exercised between operating speed and critical speeds to avoid excitation of

bending modes. Modifications in rotor design can be performed if a critical speed lies within the rotor

operating range. Parameters which can be modified include bearing stiffness and spans, and mass properties

of shaft rotating components 5. For instance, variations in polar moment of inertia and mass of discs lead to a

change in synchronous critical speeds. Assessment of the Campbell diagram and the Critical Speed Map

(CSM) guides such modifications.

Sometimes, critical speeds do not exhibit vibration magnitude peaks in imbalance response analysis

when imbalance is near a nodal point of a mode. In this case, a comparison of CD with imbalance response

plots identifies the sensitivity of modes to the magnitude and axial locations of residual imbalance 5.

Backward and forward whirl critical speeds bifurcate in a CD where the forward mode is stiffened, and the

backward mode is softened due to gyroscopic moments. VibronRotor generates the Campbell diagram by

iteratively extracting and plotting damped natural frequencies from Equation 7 for a range of rotor rotational

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speeds. Synchronous critical speed is determined by marking the spin speed at the intersection of damped

natural frequencies and the synchronous excitation line with a slope of one. CD assessments are useful when

multiple design configurations are competing.

3.2.1 Validation with impact hammer test

Impact hammer test is an experimental modal testing method and is widely employed for model validation in

structural dynamics. The test measures the natural frequencies, mode shapes, and damping factors of

structures 22. For flexible rotors, rigid body and flexural modes with low damping can be determined by using

the standard experimental modal analysis 23.

Due to the uncertainties involved in the accurate calculation of bearing and coupling stiffness values,

impact test is performed by first hanging the rotor with a pair of vertical slings as shown in Figure 8 . Testing

on vertical slings corresponds to a free-free boundary condition in the horizontal lateral direction which is

easy to simulate in the model and convenient to experiment. Sling length is kept a little greater than one-third

of the length of the rotor to have an extremely low stiffness in the horizontal plane24. Horizontal stiffness of

each sling equals the weight of the rotor divided by twice the length of each sling 25. Rotor is impacted in the

horizontal lateral direction with a hammer. To effectively capture the excitation of modes, accelerometer is

placed at the axial location of maximum deflection corresponding to predicted second mode. Mode shapes

plotted by VibronRotor guide the placement of sensor. Analog output from the accelerometer is low-pass

filtered at 230 Hz which is slightly above the maximum frequency of interest. Again, VibronRotor is relied

upon to estimate this cut-off frequency. The reduction in sensor bandwidth reduces the high frequency

electrical noise and hence increases the measurement resolution. Data sampling rate is set to be 500 Hz. The

Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) is utilized to convert the captured time-domain sensor data to frequency domain

were the amplitude peaks correspond to measured modal frequencies. Afterwards, an incremental approach is

adopted by impact testing the rotor on bearings without coupling in one instance and finally with the coupling

attached in another instance.

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Figure 8 Rotor on slings with an accelerometer

The validation of predicted natural frequencies from VibronRotor with experimental natural

frequencies is summarized in Table 3. Self-aligning ball bearings are modelled to only have radial stiffness

coefficients as it is the conventional modelling approach for rolling element bearings26. For the impact test on

slings, VibronRotor predicts 0.742 and 2.056 Hz to be the rigid body cylindrical and conical modes

respectively, while the third mode, i.e. the first bending mode is predicted at 48.395 Hz as shown in Figure 9a.

Experimentation validates the predicted frequencies by measuring 0.725, 1.945, and 48.63 Hz to be the first

three modal frequencies, respectively, as presented in Figure 9b. Maximum percentage error for the three FE

predictions with experimental results is at 5.7%. The first and the second bending modes for the rotor with

bearings and no coupling are shown in Figure 10a and predicted at 11.427 and 61.566 Hz, respectively. Figure

10b presents the experimental results of 11.566 and 61.554 Hz for the first and the second modes,

respectively. This leads to an agreement between FE results and experimentation within 1.2% and establishes

confidence into the approximated bearing radial stiffness of 2e07 N/m. With the coupling stiffness also

included, the VibronRotor prediction of 13.259 and 68.510 Hz as the first and the second bending modes,

respectively, are presented in Figure 11a. The FFT spectrum of the impact test shown in Figure 11b

determines 14.221 and 69.946 Hz as the first two modal frequencies. Maximum percentage error remains at

6.8% and therefore supports reliance on approximated coupling radial stiffness of 202842 N/m.

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Table 3 Impact test validation summary with percentage errors in predicted FE results

Configuration Method First Mode Second Mode Third Mode

(Hz) (Hz) (Hz)

VibronRotor 0.742 (2.3%) 2.056 (5.7%) 48.395 (0.5%)

On slings
Experimental 0.725 1.945 48.63

VibronRotor 11.427 (1.2%) 61.566 (0.02%) -

On bearings
without coupling
Experimental 11.566 61.554 -

VibronRotor 13.259 (6.8%) 68.510 (2.1%) -

On bearings with
coupling
Experimental 14.221 69.946 -

Figure 9 Results for the rotor hanged on slings. a) VibronRotor mode shapes and

corresponding natural frequencies. b) FFT spectrum showing amplitude peaks

corresponding to experimental natural frequencies.

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Figure 10 Results for the rotor placed on bearings with no coupling attached.

Figure 11 Results for the rotor placed on bearings with a flexible coupling attached.

3.2.2 Validation with dynamic testing

Continuing with the experimental modal analysis, a dynamic run-up test is performed and compared with the

VibronRotor Campbell diagram. The excitation source is the rotation of the rotor. During a run-up test

limited to sub-critical speeds, modes of the rotor can be excited and measured 27.

Vibration displacement data is acquired through two orthogonally-mounted inductive displacement

sensors. These sensors are pointed at a 31.8 mm thick disc after calibration with the same disc. Mild steel is

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the material of choice for the disc since LD701 inductive sensor operates at its full range with mild steel. The

rotor is accelerated from 0-9 Hz, i.e. 0-543 rpm, in sub-critical speed range with a linear ramp rate of 0.167

Hz/s. Data sampling is stopped when the rotor spin speed is around 8.5 Hz to avoid running frequency peaks

in the FFT results. Guided by the FE predictions, analog signals from the sensors are low-pass filtered at 20

Hz since only the first mode is the frequency of interest. For an accurate digitization of analog signals, a

sampling rate of 100 Hz is used which is five times the maximum frequency of interest.

Figure 12 shows the VibronRotor Campbell diagram for experimental rotor which predicts the first

forward and backward modes as 13.289 and 13.229 Hz respectively. At lower speeds, gyroscopic effects do

not produce a significant difference between backward and forward modes. In the run-up test, rotor

displacement amplitude undergoes a prominent amplification around 7.5 Hz, i.e. 450 rpm, as shown in Figure

13(a). The FFT result of sensor time-domain data, depicted in Figure 13(b), measures 13.62 Hz as the first

modal frequency. Thus, predictions from CD are in close agreement with experiments.

Figure 12 CD showing the bifurcation of damped natural frequencies with the rotor spin

speed. 1X line is the synchronous excitation line.

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Figure 13 Dynamic run-up results. a) Time domain rotor displacement. b) FFT result with a

frequency peak of 13.62 Hz.

3.2.3 Verification with XLRotorTM damped natural frequency map

While the validation studies are limited to no-spin condition in impact hammer test and to a single value of

bearing stiffness in dynamic testing, verification with XLRotorTM results is more thorough. Based on the rotor

parameters given in Table 2, Figure 14 plots the bifurcation of damped natural frequencies due to gyroscopic

effects with rotor speed for VibronRotor and XLRotorTM. A good agreement is obtained.

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Figure 14 CD benchmarking. First three modes are numbered where b and f refer to the

backward and forward modes respectively. 1X line is the synchronous excitation line.

3.3 Critical speed map

Extending the critical speed analysis, a CSM shows variation of the forward synchronous critical speeds with

a range of bearing stiffness. It gives an insight in to the design of system from a stiffness perspective. Design

engineers can change the stiffness values of one or more bearings to ensure that critical speeds and operating

speed of machine are well-separated to maintain an adequate safety margin. VibronRotor generates CSM by

iteratively constructing Campbell diagrams for various bearing stiffness values by employing the state matrix

in Equation 7. Afterwards, synchronous critical speeds from each Campbell diagram are extracted. Finally,

all critical speeds are plotted against the corresponding bearing stiffnesses.

3.3.1 Verification with XLRotorTM critical speed map

A comparison of forward synchronous critical speed variation with bearing stiffness between VibronRotor

and XLRotorTM is shown in Figure 15 based on the rotor shown in Figure 7 and parameters of Table 2. Only

the first two forward critical speeds are plotted and bearing damping is ignored. While this agreement is

encouraging, a deviation of about 8% for higher stiffness values in the second critical speed warrants further

identification work to reconcile the results.

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Figure 15 Results from XLRotorTM plotted on VibronRotor critical speed map.

3.4 Mode shapes

Mode shapes give an appreciation of the shape the rotor attains when it vibrates at natural frequencies.

Additionally, plotting mode shapes for a range of bearing stiffness values depicts the extent of rigid or

flexible behavior of rotor during critical speed excitation.28 Mode shapes also guide the placement of

imbalance weights on the rotor for imbalance response analysis. 11

3.4.1 Verification with XLRotorTM mode shapes

With rotor parameters of Table 2, the first three mode shapes predicted by VibronRotor are compared with

those from XLRotorTM at no-spin condition in Figure 16. Using VibronRotor, damped natural frequencies

associated with the first three mode shapes are 2299.7, 3283.8, and 7051.2 cycles per minute respectively.

Since the eigenvectors can be arbitrarily scaled, the amplitude of each mode shape has been scaled to have 1

as the maximum value.

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Figure 16 First three mode shapes by VibronRotor and XLRotorTM at rotational speed of 0

RPM with rotor geometry. Vertical dashed lines represent the bearing axial locations.

3.5 Imbalance response amplitude and phase plots

Irrespective of the balancing precision, there always remains a residual imbalance in rotors. This, in addition

to skew of discs and rotor bow, is the main cause of synchronous excitations. Amount of imbalance can be

quantified by use of multi-plane balancing machines 12. ISO 11342 and API standards are utilized to

determine appropriate amount of imbalance for response analysis. Bode and orbit plots are usually employed

in this analysis.

A Bode plot depicts the variation of vibration amplitude and phase relative to imbalance mass

against a range of rotor spin speed by iteratively solving Equation 14. Severity of rotor critical speed

vibrations to residual imbalance and its axial locations is quantified by studying the rise in vibration

amplitude. Since the amplitude of deflection at resonance is dependent on support damping, response plots are

drawn for various postulated damping values to ascertain the safety of system while passing through the

critical speeds. Bode plot is also directly compared with the Campbell diagram to determine the well-damped

critical speeds.

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3.5.1 Verification with XLRotorTM response plots

Using the rotor parameters in Table 2 and configuration of Figure 7, imbalance response analysis is conducted

while placing two mass imbalances of 2.54e-04 and 5.08e-05 kg-m on discs 2 and 3 respectively with a phase

difference of 90 degrees. Amplitude and phase responses are evaluated on the node of disc 2 as presented in

Figure 17. Due to isotropic support conditions, rotor amplitude in horizontal and vertical directions is same,

therefore, only amplitude in horizontal X direction is shown. In terms of rotor speed, the first and the second

VibronRotor amplitude peaks deviate 0.8% and 2.9% from respective XLRotorTM peaks. A similar deviation

in phase change corresponding to second amplitude peak in both horizontal X and vertical Y directions is

observed. Considering an error of only 2.9%, the agreement is deemed good.

Figure 17 Amplitude and phase response benchmarking at disc 2.

3.6 Orbit plot

Orbit plot is another important analysis tool utilized to investigate rotordynamic behavior. Response

amplitudes in horizontal and vertical lateral directions are used to construct the orbit plots employing

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Equation 13. For isotropic support conditions, orbits are essentially circles. However, orbits become ellipses

for non-isotropic cases. For design purposes, major axis length of ellipse is compared to the available

clearance around the rotor to determine the rubbing margin. A negative minor axis length shows a backward

whirl while a positive value shows a forward whirl. Same whirl directions can be worked out by analyzing the

phase lags along the lateral axes. Backward whirls are particularly an important consideration in touchdown

dynamics of active magnetic bearing systems.29, 30 To gain a detailed insight into rotor whirl, isometric plots

are drawn at different axial locations. Orbit plots aid the analysis of complex slender rotors with fluid-film

bearings where mixed precession can occur at a single spin speed. In a mixed precession, rotor whirl direction

changes as a function of axial location. Additionally, interpretation of experimental orbits allows detection of

machinery faults.31

3.6.1 Verification with XLRotorTM orbit plot

Extending the imbalance response analysis with the same imbalance distribution and rotor properties, Figure

18 plots the whirl orbit for node of disc 2 at the rotor speed of 2750 RPM. Isotropic bearing conditions have

resulted in a circular orbit. Plus sign indicates the starting position of the whirl orbit and hence the counter-

clockwise (CCW) direction of whirl. Considering the CCW rotation of the shaft, CCW whirl direction means

the forward whirl.

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Figure 18 Orbit plots from VibronRotor and XLRotorTM at 2750 RPM for disc 2. Plus sign

indicates the starting position of whirl orbit.

3.7 Instability threshold analysis

Rotordynamic stability is a crucial goal in the design and control of rotary mechanical systems32. Failures in

rotor systems continue even with the best practices to avoid self-excited lateral vibrations 11. According to

Crandall 33, common factor in several mechanisms leading to self-excited vibrations is a dynamic force

component that acts in the direction of instantaneous velocity of trajectory. Instability threshold analysis

involves identifying the boundaries for operating parameters including speed and output power where

damping of a mode transitions from positive to negative or its damping exponent transitions from negative to

positive. Such a boundary in terms of speed is known as instability threshold speed. Rotor operation near this

speed is best avoided. In VibronRotor, only threshold speed can be identified at this stage.

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3.7.1 Verification with XLRotorTM damping exponent plot

To demonstrate instability threshold analysis, speed-dependent bearing coefficients mentioned in Table 4 are

provided to VibronRotor for both bearings of the rotor configuration shown in Figure 7. Stiffness and

damping coefficients can be expressed as Kij and Cij respectively, where subscript i refers to direction of force

and j refers to direction of displacement.

Table 4 Speed-dependent bearing coefficients

Speed (RPM) 1 1000 3000 5000 7000 10000

Kxx (N/m) 1.58E+06 1.40E+06 1.23E+06 1.05E+06 8.76E+05 7.00E+05

Kyy (N/m) 1.58E+06 1.40E+06 1.23E+06 1.05E+06 8.76E+05 7.00E+05

Cxx (Ns/m) 1.75E+03 5.25E+03 8.76E+03 1.23E+04 1.58E+04 1.93E+04

Cyy (Ns/m) 1.75E+03 5.25E+03 8.76E+03 1.23E+04 1.58E+04 1.93E+04

With cubic splines given in Equation 15, VibronRotor interpolates for the bearing coefficient values

at intermediate speeds between the data provided by user. Figure 19 plots the real parts of complex

eigenvalues, also called damping exponents, against the rotor speeds for the first three backward and forward

modes. Modes are numbered, and b and f refer to backward and forward modes respectively. Eigenvalues

have been sorted based on the frequency. The agreement with XLRotorTM results is encouraging. Primary

utility of such a plot is to study rotor speeds where damping exponents attain positive values, however, this is

not being witnessed in the example used here.

Page 35 of 40
Figure 19 Damping exponent versus rotor speed for VibronRotor and XLRotorTM. First

three modes are numbered where b and f refer to the backward and forward modes

respectively.

Page 36 of 40
4. Conclusion

This paper presents VibronRotor, an open-source rotordynamic finite element code. VibronRotor employs

standard Euler beam formulation to assemble global matrices for eigenanalysis, imbalance response, and

instability threshold analysis. VibronRotor provides analysis tools to predict the dynamic response of rotors

and hence adjust rotor design parameters to ensure stable operation and prevent failure. These analysis tools

also have the potential to aid troubleshooting of rotary mechanical systems by comparing predicted response

of modelled rotors with experimental data. An important capability to analyze the stability of closed-loop

electromechanical levitation systems is also presented. Mesh approach in VibronRotor limits element length

to diameter ratio within the user-provided value for modeling accuracy. The code is benchmarked against an

established rotordynamic software XLRotorTM and experimental results from an inhouse-developed rotor test-

rig.

Open-source development of the code aims to provide analysis tools to local industry for design and

troubleshooting of rotors without completely relying on commercial venues. Moreover, open-source code and

the detailed algorithm described in the paper ensures incremental progress as code can be customized and

extended by researchers. A free scientific programming language GNU Octave is utilized to run VibronRotor,

however, code can also be executed on MATLAB without any syntax modifications.

VibronRotor has its limitations since sophisticated rotor components including different element

types are not included at this stage. Future directions include linking this FE code with codes for micro-hydro

turbine design as well as rotating machinery condition monitoring and prognostics. This will allow micro

hydro turbine manufacturers in Pakistan and possibly elsewhere to improve their indigenous capacity for

design and maintenance and rely less on expensive commercial software.

References

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Page 39 of 40
 1. VibronRotor, an opensource rotordynamic code: Development and
benchmarking
Manuscript No: MEAS-D-18-00799

Highlights

• A finite element code for rotordynamic analysis of flexible rotors is developed

• Code functionalities enable selection of rotor design parameters for safe operation
• Code is validated by an experimental test-rig and an already established rotor code
• Opensource development provides an alternative to costly commercial rotor codes

Page 40 of 40