Engineering Design Process

Turboexpanders are highly engineered machines operating under extreme pressure, temperature and speed. To ensure each turboexpander meets the performance, flow and quality requirements, L.A. Turbine uses multiple engineering approaches in the design process. All engineering design and development processes are ISO 9001:2008 compliant.
3D CAD Based Design
LAT designs the entire turboexpander using 3D parametric CAD design tools. This leads to faster design cycles, with automated drawings and bill of material generation, leading to faster deliveries with less error.



1D Meanline Analysis
LAT uses in-house developed code as well as commercial software to perform initial sizing and 1D meanline analysis of all projects, allowing LAT to confidently predict performance without resorting to time-consuming CFD analysis.


3D Design and Analysis
LAT uses the most advanced commercial turbomachinery design and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes to analyze and predict machine performance, ensuring all designs meet or exceed customer requirements.
Structural Analysis
LAT uses advanced Finite Element Analysis (FEA) software to analyze the stresses in critical parts, such as the wheels, to ensure a robust design throughout the operating range specified by our customers.


Resonance Analysis
LAT also performs predictive resonance analysis to ensure a design will pass our stringent structural resonance safety criteria prior to the fabrication of a wheel.
Resonance Testing
All wheels go through rigorous “ring” tests, using lightweight accelerometers paired with an impact hammer, to identify all resonant frequencies of a wheel.


Rotor Dynamics
LAT uses the most advanced commercial software to perform API-compliant rotor dynamics analysis, ensuring there are no critical speeds throughout the required operating range of the turboexpander.
Critical speeds can be verified on the test stand using our Bently-Nevada ADRE® system to measure and analyze machine vibration.