Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
com/portfolio/firm-calls/cummins-
india/article9550685.ece
Like 51
Comment 5
4
An induction motor with a higher torque means higher capacity to overcome the
inertia of a system and get it kick started from a state of rest.
1. When the motor starts up, the alternating current drawn through
the stator side initially is very high and subsides only after crossing
the breakdown torque.
2. As the load on the motor increases, speed decreases while the
current absorbed increases.
3. In case the load increases to an exceptionally high value and the
motor cannot overcome the system inertia to bring the compressor
to running condition, it causes a deceleration of speed and
subsequently increases the drawn-in current. In such a case, where
the drawn-in currents are high and the motor speed is not enough,
the motor coils can be expected to overheat and to turn into a
cauldron of Spaghetti.
Assumptions
The torque and power are related by the basic equation as follows,
Based on the horsepower calculation in the above case study, if a 3-
Phase, 50Hz, 4 pole squirrel cage induction motor is selected the torque
required to sustain the compressor at rated conditions of 6 bar(a) and
500 ACFM during running conditions of the air compressor at a full load
speed of 1470 rpm would be about,
The breakdown torque at 185% torque (ie., at 97% of full load speed)
from the torque vs. Speed grpah in the previous section is calculated as,
Based on the case study, as per NEMA standards for a 4 pole, 50 Hz,
polyphase, squirrel cage induction motor, either a 125 HP (93 kW)
motor or a 150 HP with a breakdown torque of 200% motor can be
selected.
Choosing the 125 HP motor for the running case of 124 HP would mean
that the motor is running in a neck to neck situation of 124 HP / 125 HP
= ~99.2% of the motor's full load torque. Besides, the calculation made
above does not take into account the compressor rotor and gas loads on
the motor and therefore could cause the 125 HP motor to struggle to help
reach the compressor's rated conditions of 6 bar(a).
Cautionary Note
Selecting an extremely powerful induction motor for a given compressor
system can cause short startup times. This means the anti-surge valve
also has to respond fast enough to recycle cold gas through the anti surge
valve (ASV) of the compressor to avoid a high head at low flow
situation, i.e., a surge during a compressor startup. Hence for the motor
selected, a process dynamic simulation is always advisable to understand
the induction motor's effect on the compressor behaviour and ensure that
the right torque vs. speed curves and motor power have been selected.
------------------------------
References: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12]
------------------------------