Electric Power Systems Research 59 (2001) 83 88 www.elsevier.

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New electromagnetic contactor

Joz e Pihler *, Alojz Lovrenc ic
Engineering Laboratory, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Uni6ersity of Maribor, Smetano6a 17, 2000 Maribor, Slo6enia Received 10 February 2000; accepted 16 February 2001

Abstract This paper deals with the design concept and test results of the experimental development phase of a new electromagnetic contactor. The contactor is used for making, switching and breaking of apparatuses and devices at voltage levels up to 1 kV. The use of this contactor will be illustrated in the example of a star-delta starter for induction motors. Currently, starters consist of three contactors, together with its power-, control- and signal connections. An experimental prototype of the new contactor has already been made. Among the tests performed on this prototype are tests for temperature rise limits, dielectric properties and partial tests of mechanical properties. The tests of the rated making and breaking capacities have also been executed. After some constructional modications, the electromagnetic contactor has successfully passed all the above mentioned tests. 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Asynchronous motor; Electromagnetic contactor; Induction motor

1. Introduction Electromagnetic contactors are most commonly used to switch on and off in the low voltage part of the electrical power system. The rated currents of these devices range from a few amperes to 200 A. Together with some additional elements such as time-delay relays or overcurrent devices, they often perform the protective and controlling function of appliances, or the starting function of motors. The contactors must operate reliably, in spite of an extremely high possible number of switching operations (in the range of a million operations). The price of contactors also plays a very important role. In recent years there have not been any important innovations in the functional and construction properties of electromagnetic contactors. Current solutions have been found to be very non-innovative, especially in the eld of motor drives-namely when three contactors, xed on a metal board, are used for starting, change of rotation direction and change of rotation speed. These contactors are connected to each other with ordinary wires. There are also some auxiliary elements used to control individual contactors.
* Corresponding author.

An analysis of the world market has shown that there are about 60 manufacturers of contactors for electric drives, almost 20 of them are from Europe, 10 from America, around 20 from the Far East, and the remaining 10 from other parts of the world. The annual demand for these contactors amounts to a few billion units. Since the 1980s the contactors industry has experienced growth above the industry average. This is expected to continue in the future. A high degree of international trade is characteristic of this branch. Due to a cheaper labor force, the manufacturing is moving from Europe to Asia. Almost all manufacturers of electrical equipment produce these contactors. The technical solutions for contactors of various manufacturers are similar, the differences are only in the design and rated data. The above facts have led us to the development of a new electromagnetic contactor. This contactor is used to solve a technical problem that is most frequently manifested in the case of control or the starting of asynchronous motors (such as a star-delta starter, Dahlander circuit, etc.). However, this does not limit the universality and application of this contactor in other areas of use. These contactors differ from conventional contractors in their technical concepts.

0378-7796/01/$ - see front matter 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 3 7 8 - 7 7 9 6 ( 0 1 ) 0 0 1 3 0 - 4

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This paper gives a comparison between the current solutions and the new innovative electromagnetic contactor. An experimental prototype of this device has been made. A series of initial tests has been performed on this prototype to ascertain the appropriateness of its functional operation and congruity with technical standards. On the basis of these initial tests, some necessary constructional modications were made before the nal construction of the new electromagnetic contactor was dened.

2. Electromagnetic contactor

2.1. Existing constructional solutions of contactors for motor dri6es

Current solutions for starting and operating electric motors with nominal power above 4 kW use a stardelta motor combination. This combination, schematically shown in Fig. 1 is comprised of three classical contactors and a time-delay relay.
Fig. 2. Scheme of the new solution. KZT, new electromagnetic contactor; F1, protective relay; M-3, electric motor.

2.2. New electromagnetic contactor

The advantages of the new solution, as shown in Fig. 2 are, three contactors, designed for a rated current, are replaced by only one contactor; there is no need for power and control connections between contactors; the number of connecting points, which represent the critical part of the network, is reduced;

the dimensions and weight of the new contactor are reduced; the price of the new contactor is lower. The new electromagnetic contactor is shown in Fig. 3. It consists of the following three main parts: driving part A, contact part B and control part C. The entire device is protected by the housing (1) which is enclosed by the cover (2). The position of the contact parts is signaled by two LEDs (33). In the drive, there are two coils (7 and 7%). The xed parts of theses two coils have a common moving core (8), and a lever (10), which transmits force to the contact. Contact part B consists of nine moving and nine xed contacts. The moving contacts (17) are placed on a special moving post (18), which is held in a neutral position by springs (19). The

Fig. 1. Star-delta motor combination. K1, K2, K3, contactors; T1, time delay relay; F1, protective relay; M-3, electric motor.

Fig. 3. Cross section of new contactor. A, driving part; B, contactpart; C, control part; 1, housing; 2, cover; 7, 7%, coils; 8, moving core; 9, steel support.

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The main purpose of the tests was to determine the functionality of the operation of the experimental prototype, and to remove imperfections in the development phase of the product. For this purpose, the following have been testing, temperature-rise, dielectric properties, partial test of mechanical durability and the making and breaking capacities. The tested object was in the star-delta starter KZT, 400 V, 85 A, which is described in the earlier chapter and shown in Fig. 4. The housing (1) and the cover (2) are made of painted textolite.

3.2. Laboratory tests

The temperature-rise test (the test of heating limits) of the star-delta starter was performed. After the measurements, it was determined that the temperature rise in the main circuits had been about 10 K too high. The temperature rise in the auxiliary circuits and insulating parts of the contactor was within the permissible range. We increased the aperture for cooling at all xed contacts. This constructional change has resulted in half as much of a temperature rise on the main contact parts. With these modications, the electromagnetic contactor has successfully passed the temperature-rise testing. In all cases, the test of dielectric properties of the star-delta starter was successfully passed. The test of mechanical durability of the star-delta starter has been also executed. In our case, a partial test of mechanical durability with 10,000 operation cycles has been chosen. The starter sustained its position without any intervention from the outside. The testing for all 10,000 cycles included switching on, switching from star to delta, and switching off. After the testing was completed, the contactor still operated normally.

Fig. 4. Experimental prototype. 10, transmission lever; 12, xed core; 17, moving contact; 18, moving post; 19, springs; 22, springs; 33, LED.

xed contacts are designed in such a way that their contact points extend into the middle between the moving contacts. The necessary contact pressure is provided by other springs (22). In the control part, there is a time-delay relay, which switches from the star connection to the delta connection in the pre-set time. The realization of the electromagnetic contactor, shown in Fig. 3 can be used for starting motors in a star-delta combination and for controlling a motors operation. The experimental prototype of this contactor is shown in Fig. 4.

3. Testing of the new contactor An essential element in the development and manufacturing of devices and appliances is testing. The testing already starts in the development phase of a new product. Testing on the experimental prototype is very extensive. Below is a detailed description of the tests made on the experimental prototype.

3.3. The test of the making and breaking capacities

The test of the star-delta starters making and breaking capacities will be described more in detail. AC contactors and motor starters were divided into 20 utilization categories, while the equivalent DC devices were divided into 11 utilization categories. Each of these categories addressed one of the main areas of use for contactors. The electromagnetic contactor described in this paper belongs to the utilization category AC-3 squirrel-cage motors (typically used for starting and switching off motors). The standard species the ratio between the making and rated operational current, and the breaking and rated operational current. It also gives the permitted recovery voltage, with a power factor of cos , and the required number of operating cycles. The recovery voltage is the voltage that appears between the contacts of one pole after the interruption of the current.

3.1. Requirements of standards

The testing of a low voltage electromagnetic contactor is specied in the standard IEC 60947-4-1. The standard requires a series of different tests. A type test is comprised of testing the temperaturerise limits, dielectric properties, making and breaking capacities, change-over ability and reversibility, as well as conventional operational performance, operation and operating limits, ability of contactors to withstand overload current, performance under short-circuit conditions, mechanical properties and the degree of protection for the contactor.

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At the beginning, the starter has to perform 50 operating cycles of making capacities; breaking operations have to be done by another device. After that, the starter has to perform 50 operating cycles of making and breaking capacities. Each cycle has to be comprised of the following, making contacts in a star connection, breaking contacts in a star connection, making contacts in a delta connection, and breaking contacts in a star connection. The load circuit must be connected to the starter, as would be the windings of a motor. The purpose of testing the making and breaking capacities is to determine the quality of the material and construction of the contacts and springs, and the quality of the electromagnetic drive of the contactor. These characteristics inuence the construction of the arc control device for each individual phase eld and the design of the entire electrical arc quenching system. Poor quality of these properties can cause the following malfunctions jolting of contacts; welding of contacts; ashover between the contacts; and the appearance of a permanent electrical arc. There is also a possibility of the appearance of return voltages during switching from star to delta and during switching off.

electrical current. When switching between the star and delta connection with switching times ranging from 10 to 20 ms, it is possible that the electrical arc caused by the breaking of the star connection is still present when the making of the delta connection occurs. Thus, a short circuit between two phases can occur through the star connection. That example is shown in Fig. 5. The gure shows the voltage drop on the contact for phase L1 and the three phases, where phases L2 and L3 came into line-to-line fault. The current rose to 1200 A. To solve the problems we increased the amount of time between the switching from star to delta.

4. Results of laboratory tests The tests of the star-delta starters making and breaking capacities were performed with a short duration current of up to 680 A at 230 and 400 V. The use of the load impedance enabled the changing of the power factor cos from 0.45. Consequently, tests of the making and breaking capacities and tests for the electrical life expectancy of the product were done with currents up to eight times the rated value at the above stated power factors and voltages. The test circuit was connected using the scheme given in the standard. The central measurement instrument was a very efcient power analyzer (DRANETZ model 658), which was used for measuring voltage and current. The sampling time could be precisely set, which is very important for observing the transient phenomena. Four channels were available for current and voltage measurement. The system of moving and xed contacts, of which the moving contact is essentially a double contact, is specic to the newly developed contactor. For nominal currents above 50 A, we used contact nibs, which are applied to both sides of the contacts core material (copper or brass) through a specic processes. The xed contacts also have a special form. This also drives the form of the arc control devices, which control the electrical arc quenching system and the breaking of the

Fig. 5. Short circuit between two phases when switching from star to delta (eight times the nominal current).

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Fig. 6. Prolonged electrical arc burning when breaking the delta connection.

Another difculty that presented itself was the prolonged electrical arc burning in the delta connection. In some instances, this even caused a short-circuit between two phases through the conductive driver parts. Fig. 6 shows the voltage drop on the contact of the phase L1 (the prolonged electrical arc burning) and the all three phase currents. The reason for this problem was incorrectly formed arc control devices and xed contacts. The exhaust gases, which are created by the electrical arc, did not leave the contact area via the shortest possible path. We solved the problem with additional exhaust paths and with the making of openings on the xed contacts. We illustrated only two of the problems, which we needed to solve to pass the required number of switching operations and conrm the switching capability of the new contactor. An example of a successful operation of the contactor is shown in Fig. 7 (the voltage drop in the contract of phase L1 and the respective currents). Due to extensive research, it is not possible to describe in detail the research done on the new electromagnetic contactor.

5. Conclusions This paper describes the development, making and laboratory testing of the new electromagnetic contactor. In our opinion, the combination of contactors, which is currently used for motor starting, was replaced with the modern and essentially cheaper construction of the new electromagnetic contactor. This new construction is justied because of the enormous number of applications of contactors in motor drives. The hypothesis that investment in the new contactor is not reasonable because of the possibility for usage of the existing contactors is far from acceptable. This paper also presents the series of tests done on the prototype of the contactor. As stressed above, the purpose of the tests was to determine the functionality of the contactor and to make preparatory tests for the type tests. This objective was fully achieved, which is conrmed by the results of the tests done after the constructional changes. Due to the limited extent of this paper, it was not possible to describe the entire course of tests and to mention all problems that emerged

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during the testing. The troubles connected to the shape of contact nibs, supercial protection and construction materials are only partially mentioned in the text. The Slovenian Ofce for Intellectual Property has conferred a patent for this new electromagnetic contactor.

Acknowledgements The authors of the paper want to express acknowledgements to the Slovenian Ministry of Science and Technology for the nancial support granted, a part of which was also spent for the development and testing described in this paper.

Fig. 7. Successful operation of the new contactor operating at eight times the nominal current.