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James E. Corley

Education

M. S. Mechanical Engineering, Mississippi State University, 1966

B. S., Mechanical Engineering, concentration in Heat transfer and fluid mechanics,
Mississippi State University, 1963

Other: Completed courses towards Ph.D. at University of Tennessee

Employment History

1995-Present Private Consultant to Mitretek Corporation

1992 - 1995: The MITRE Corporation, New Orleans, Louisiana

1991 - 1992: Intellitech Systems Inc., Lucedale, Mississippi

1973 - 1991: Saudi Aramco, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

1966 - 1973: Union Carbide Corp., Oak Ridge, Tennessee

1964 - 1965: Chrysler Corp., Huntsville, Alabama

1963 - 1964: Thiokol Chemical Corp., Huntsville, Alabama

Work Experience

1995- 1996 Independent Consultant

Mr. Corley has worked as an independent consultant to The MITRE Corp, performing analysis on rotating equipment for the Dept. of Energy’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

1992 - 1995: The MITRE Corporation, New Orleans, Louisiana

Mr. Corley was the rotating equipment engineer for The MITRE Corporation's system analysis support of the Department of Energy's (DOE) Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). His primary responsibilities included analysis of machinery reliability and predictive maintenance systems and was responsible for writing the specifications for the purchase of large pumps and motors for the SPR. He has also analyzed the SPR’s motor and pump repair records to optimize the equipment rebuild schedules and sparing levels using statistical Weibull analysis techniques. Mr. Corley implemented a hydraulic analysis program for the SPR and modeled the hydraulic networks for all SPR cavern storage sites.

1991- Present: Intellitech Systems Inc., Lucedale, Mississippi

Mr. Corley was President of a software firm that specialized in software related to vibration analysis of rotating equipment. This included the development of a commercially successful expert system for diagnosing machinery vibration problems. Mr. Corley also has developed unique vibration training programs based on simulated field problems using a case history approach. During this period, Mr. Corley also worked as a private consultant on turbomachinery instrumentation analysis systems.

1973 - 1991: Saudi Aramco, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

From 1981 to 1991 Mr. Corley held the position of Senior Engineering Consultant where he had corporate responsibility for all technical matters relating to rotating equipment, dynamic analysis and maintenance systems. His area of responsibility covered over 50,000 pieces of equipment including combustion gas turbines up to 100 MW, electric motors up to 21,000 HP and pumps over 50,000 GPM. While in this position, Mr. Corley developed and implemented a computer based vibration monitoring program for the company which monitors over 15,000 machines on a monthly basis and developed a maintenance repair and cost record system for rotating equipment in conjunction with the monitoring program. He also developed and implemented a mechanical seal reliability improvement program.

From 1977 to 1981 Mr. Corley supervised the company's central engineering rotating equipment group. This group consisted of 15 engineers and technicians and was responsible for developing company-wide equipment purchasing and operating standards and specifications. Mr. Corley was also responsible for troubling-shooting and analyzing major field problems relating to turbomachinery in the company.

From 1973 to 1977 Mr. Corley organized and supervised the company's first vibration analysis unit which was responsible for all diagnostics and trouble-shooting of machinery vibration problems. This group consisted of 11 engineers and technicians. This work required training of all personnel in vibration theory, measurements and diagnostic techniques.

1966 to 1973: Union Carbide Corp., Oak Ridge, Tenn.

Mr. Corley was Section Head of the Seal Development Unit which was responsible for seal and bearing development in the gaseous diffusion complex that was operated for the USAEC. In this position, Mr. Corley supervised an engineer and a technician. The unit was accountable for conceiving, analyzing, fabricating, testing, and implementing systems to meet the compressor sealing requirements of the gaseous diffusion process. The work required a broad knowledge of lubrication and sealing technology, fluid mechanics, and machinery dynamics.

Mr. Corley also was responsible for vibration testing, analysis and trouble-shooting of rotating equipment in the two gaseous diffusion plants operated by Union Carbide. Vibration problems, associated with the large number of gas compressors, required expertise in areas of bearing stability, rotor dynamics, balancing, vibration instrumentation, and measurements.

1964 to 1965: Chrysler Corp., Huntsville, Alabama

As an analysis engineer, Mr. Corley worked for the Chrysler Corporation in support of NASA. His field of responsibility was heat transfer analysis of space vehicles and support systems.

1963 to 1964: Thiokol Chemical Corp., Huntsville, Alabama

Mr. Corley worked as a design engineer in the field of solid rocket propulsion systems. His work included the design of propellant configuration to meet specified thrust-time curve and impulse requirements for both small systems such as the TOW missile and for large designs such as an ICBM intercept system.

 

Teaching Experience

Mr. Corley has been a Guest Lecturer at Texas A&M University where he lectured to graduate and undergraduate classes in machinery analysis and problems solving.

Technical Committee or Memberships

Mr. Corley served as an industry representative on the American Petroleum Institute's machinery sub-committee.

Professional Society or Association Memberships

Mr. Corley is a member of the Vibration Institute.

Professional Honors

Tau Beta Pi and Pi Tau Sigma honorary engineering societies

Other Technical Interests

Artificial Intelligence and Expert Systems

 

Patents

USA, Applied for classified patent on an improved compressor seal, 1973.

 

Technical Publications

Corley, J. "Pressure Drop for a Compressible Fluid in an Arbitrary Flow System," Masters Thesis, Mississippi State University, 1966

Corley, J. "Damping in a Composite Beam Model," K-1773, Union Carbide Corp., 1969

Corley, J. "Foundation Problems with Large Motors," Bently Senior Orbits Symposium, 1976

Corley, J. "Vibration of a 7500 HP Electric Motor," Bently Senior Orbits Symposium, 1977

Corley, J. "Subsynchronous Vibration on a Large Water Flood Pump," The Texas A&M
7th Turbomachinery Symposium, 1978 and Oil and Gas Journal, April 1979

Corley, J. "Dynamic Analysis of a 7500 HP Induction Motor," Vibration Institute Symposium, 1979

Corley, J. "Vibration of Large Vertical Pumps," The Texas A&M 9th Turbomachinery Symposium, 1980

Corley, J. "Remote Machinery Monitoring Using a Directional Microphone," Vibration Institute,
1st Rotating Machinery Vibration Symposium, 1982

Corley, J. "A Vibration Monitoring Program Using Microcomputers," Vibration Institute Symposium, 1984

Corley, J. "Control of a Wind Induced Stack Vibration Using a Damped Guy System," Vibration Institute Symposium, 1985

Corley, J. "The Importance of Being Stiff - The Effects of Pedestal Stiffness on Rotor Dynamics," The Vibration Institute Symposium, 1986

Corley, J. "Development and Implementation of an Expert System To Diagnose Motor Vibration Problems," The Texas A&M 15th Turbomachinery Symposium, 1986

Corley, J. "The Vibration Analysis of Pumps - A Tutorial," The Texas A&M 4th Pump Symposium, 1987

Corley, J., Campbell, W., Graham, M. "In-Situ Measurement of the Damping in a Steam Turbine Wheel," The Vibration Institute Symposium, 1988

Corley, J. "Troubleshooting Turbomachinery Problems Using a Statistical Analysis of Failure Data," The Texas A&M 19th Turbomachinery Symposium, 1990

Corley, J. "MDCase - A New Method to Teach Vibration Problem Solving," The Vibration Institute Symposium, 1992

Corley, J. "A Statistical Analysis of Pump and Motor Reliability Data Using the Hazard Plotting Technique.", The 2nd International Conference on Improving Reliability in Petroleum Refineries and Chemical and Natural Gas Plants, November 1993

Corley, J. "A Pump Instability Theory Using An Acoustic Feedback Mechanism", ASME 94-GT-30, The International Gas Turbine Institute/ ASME Conference, The Hague, The Netherlands, June 1994.

Corley, J. "A Pump Instability Theory Using An Acoustic Feedback Mechanism", ASME Journal of Engineering for Gas Turbines, July 1997