Cause for turbocharger becoming red

Change or overhaul the fuel injectors.

The turbocharger might also need an overhaul.

What is the running hours for the set?

high of chimney be the cause for overheating of turbo charge.

Questions:

Are there any noises/vibrations, is it a cheery red colour? What is the condition of the oil? Is the oil level monitored? Is the Oil temperature monitored? Is the Turbo maintained-end float-clearances etc.

I've seen Turbo's run so hot that there almost white but that was under 24 hour full load test conditions.

Copnsult your hand book. BUT maybe if all parameters are correct and turbo is maintained it is running ok. Diesel love a load but 50% may be a little low but given hot ambients and continuous running the engine parameters may be ruight.

Normal Condition red to White

make sure you use the correct engine oil

and change regularly

cheery red !

So much nicer than dull red!

H sunil,

would you give more information...

like engine no

where are you

this will allow me to look at the ngine ans see what spec it was set up for

Engine Serial no : BN1204187

This generator set is in Nepal.

Hi sunil, well well right on top of the world...I will ask for the design details and get back to you.All what has been said read it and if you can take temps it always helps when looking at a problem.

best

Attention: At what height is your set?

Is the derating for height calculated in the power?

6 foot off the floor....?

Sorry Gwen...I'm having a silly day (again!...still? always!)

At least you could get off the floor this time in the morning.

Or are you still floating since last night?

If you go to http://www.heat2power.net/ and then click on Principle on the menu you will see diagrams of temperatures measured on car engines.

Red is very normal.

Randolph Toom

Director Heat2power

Red is not directly a problem, when it goes hotter (to white) it can be dangerous.

I once had it with a pump set: the crack case vent was smoking and the engine sucked in the own gasses, this blocked the air filter is a very short period.

Try to locate the air intake at the other side of the building than the exhaust.

In many cases the standard air filter added to the engine is just there for testing and transport, you should mount a decent one at the final destination. This is not done as it is quite costly (large piping and big filters) and the standard small filter stays on the engine, dragging is the self heated and polluted air.

Did you buy the set at the oroginal manufacturer or through the cheapest? Sometimes they buy engines build for slower and lower power applications and swap/adapt the injector pump. I have found several cases of this.

Provided you keep to the correct oils, changed at the correct intervals and the original manufacturers oil filter (some imitations are NOT to be trusted!!), I do not see a problem. Check the exhaust gas values to make sure that the fuel is being burnt correctly as well though.....

Air cooled Turbos do go a very red to yellow color when in use.....its normal. In a dark environment it can be very impressive!

BUT and a very important BUT, never shut down completely when so hot (this also applies to any engine with an air cooled Turbo charger, including cars and trucks!), run the engine unloaded for several minutes at a tickover if possible.

The reason is that the Turbo lubrication oil may burn in the bearings of the turbo if there is a huge amount of heat still in it when shut down. The oil needs to be pumped through, to help in the cooling down process.

After a hot run on the autobahn, I always give my Turbo Diesel a minute to cool down before switching off. It used to be in the handbook of most cars, but I have not noticed it recently.

At night, do a hot run and then open the hood quickly, most car owners will get a shock at the color of the Turbo.....you do not need to know where it is......its that "Glowing red thingy"....!

Saab cars used to have real problems in this area, I used to work near the central stores for Saab Germany & their paper recycling container was filled everyday mostly with the transport boxes of Turbos........the customers were slow to learn, hopefully for Saab, but quick to pay!!!

They found a way to overcome the issue of aftercooling: a vase is filled up with oil when the engine starts up. When shut down the oil is flowing from the vase back in the engine, cooling down the turbo.

Where do they out the flowers then?

I'm a greeny, flowers stay in the garden.

The average exhaust temperature should not get over 1000F. most diesel engines in large trucks and mid size vehicles run about 900F when pushed hard (Long hills). much more than that and you will start to melt down aluminum parts(Pistons). If this unit doesn't have a pyrometer(Exhaust gas temp gauge), put one on it and monitor the temp. if the temp gets too high, this may indicate you are over fueling. Have your injectors looked at or your injector pump.

If the engine is running lean then the exhaust temp could go over 1000F, but that ususally doesn't happen in this diesel EFI application. I would expect that the turbo would glow a little red when running under load, this is typical. I do agree with allowing a turbocharged engine to idle for a minute before switching off. Even with oil in the vase instead of flowers the risk of oil coking onto the sides of the turbo bearings is real. Use of synthetic oil can help this problem - this is why VW wants synthetic oil in all their engines.

Hey Gwen, how are things in Belgium? Been a few years since I worked in Mortsel - I actually miss the place!

rainy and cold, I'm booking flights to escape.

What have you done in Mortsel? Working at/for Agfa?

A former subsidiary of Agfa called Xeikon. Good bunch of people. They've moved to Lier and then were bought by Punch, but I imagine it's still a good crew.

Does it have a waste gate and is is functioning properly?

Some turbos will do without the waste gate. In a generator I have no idea if one would be present. The waste gate allows wxcess hot gasses to bypass the turbine when not needed. when it sticks it will allow the turbine to run hotter than normal.

You might check into that.

You are correct about overheating. At 50% power there is a lot more oxygen available for the comubustion process thus producing a "lean mixture" and higher exhaust temperatures.

As a pilot, I lean the mixture for minimum fuel flow at cruise and monitor the exhaust temperature to insure I don't exceed the manufacturers temperature specifications. The exhaust temperature difference between a full power take off setting and a 60% lean cruise is about 360 degrees F.

If it looks like the above, I'd be happy!

Now that is definitey 'Cheery' red...

Are there many people from St Paul, Minnesota reading this thread?

What company are you from?

Best regards

Randolph Toom

Dear Mr. sunil mato,

More Diesel is burnt than required. This means, the Engine Efficiency has fallen down.This may be due to single or several reasons.

For example, 1. Leaky piston rings, means the Governor will allow more diesel to be injected, and hence heat release is more.

2. What is the Pressure developed in the cylinder ( motoring test) For a compression ratio of 18:1, the pressure should be 280 psi or 19.71 Kg/cm^2 minimum. If it is below 270 psi or 19 Kg/cm^2 - pl. change the piston rings.

3. Air In-Take may be less - pl. check up for the air flow quantity. If air flow is less, the exhaust gas will have a very High Temp. Check up the speed of Turbo charger.

Pl. post the information, once the problem is solved.

DHAYANANDHAN.S