Gap-Pickup Conductor Cooling of Turbine-Generator Fields; Ventilation Arrangements and Analysis of Performance [includes discussion]

The gap-pickup conductor-cooled field design utilizes gas scooped from the gap between the rotor and stator and circulated through passages in the conductors to cool the windings. Because this gas can be introduced at many locations axially along the rotor, the cooling circuits can be highly interspersed, and many ventilation arrangements are available. This paper describes the analysis and results of studies of the heat flow problem presented by these ventilation arrangements. A digital computer has been used to obtain winding temperatures for any set of conductor dimensions or ventilation pattern. The speed, accuracy, completeness, and convenience of this approach provides the designer with detailed temperature information, allowing him to select the best design for each application.