POWER POWERDOWN 220
Finding your place on the
Ged Hebdige, technical director at voltage optimisation specialist Powerdown220,
explains how voltage optimisation can
of three-phase motors
F
or the non-technical person, voltage optimisation is straightforward to understand. Lowering your supply voltage
Engineers, however, need a more in-depth explanation of how the technology works before There are a couple of common questions
optimisation (VO) for a facility that operates
installing a voltage optimiser will make the motors run slower. The straightforward answer to this question is no.
Three phase induction motors deliver a constant speed over a wide voltage range. The speed of the motor is dictated by the supply optimisation only alters the supply voltage, not the frequency. As we are not altering the
frequency, the speed of the motor is unaffected. The next commonly asked question, and perhaps the question most frequently asked by electrical engineers, is whether reducing the voltage increases the current. There is a common misconception that power (W) remains constant with a change in voltage. In fact, it is resistance, measured in Ohms (), and dictated by the physical construction of electrical equipment, that remains constant. Power results from the voltage applied to the resistance of the electrical equipment. To understand how voltage optimisation can
deliver energy savings by making three phase begin by understanding the crucial importance of loading requirements.
THE EFFICIENCY LOSSES OF LIGHTLY LOADED MOTORS but only when loaded close to their rated capacity. The problem is, we know that most motors are oversized and therefore not loaded close to their capacity. For example, data from the EU shows that the average load factor of three-phased, squirrel-cage induction motors (SCIMS) is slightly lower than 60%. In some industrial sectors, a large part of the SCIMS operates with a load factor as low as 25%. This means that if you are an electrical
28 April 2024 Irish Manufacturing
www.irish-manufacturing.com
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