Product category:
Drives, motors and power transmission, couplings, clutches
News Release from: ABB Automation Tech (Drives and Motors) | Subject: Low voltage high speed motors
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 09 June 2003
Low voltage high speed motors into
production
ABB is beginning production of low voltage high speed motors, which will have applications including compressors, fans, pumps, testing rigs and the aeration systems within wastewater treatment plants
ABB is beginning serial production of low voltage high speed motors - the first time such specialist motors are to be mass-produced by any manufacturer across a range of powers while offering a selection of both IP23 and IP55 protection classes The technology and the market have developed, says ABB, to an extent where high speed motors are now a viable alternative to a standard motor and gearbox
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 25 Jun 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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"We believe that rising customer demand for high speed applications can be met with a modular motor rather than one requiring application specific engineering," says Steve Ruddell, General Manager Electrical Machines.
"While a certain degree of customization may be needed, depending on the maximum speed and application, our approach simplifies production, reduces the need for application engineering and eliminates some of the non-standard solutions that in the past have been used to achieve high speed operation." ABB's new production cell plans to manufacture high speed motors up to 730 kW and in the speed range from 3,600 to 14,000 rpm with air- or water-cooling.
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Higher speeds can be accommodated with special bearing arrangements.
With high-speed motor technology, speeds as high as 60,000 rpm are achievable, compared to the 3,000 to 750 rpm (from 2-pole to 8-pole) for standard low voltage induction motors.
Applications that benefit from such high speeds include compressors, fans, pumps, testing rigs and the aeration systems within wastewater treatment plants.
The advantage of the high speed motor is that it eliminates the need for mechanical gears or belt drives.
Although a frequency converter is needed to achieve good speed control, other benefits such as high total efficiency, decreased maintenance, smaller package size and the ease of installation, readily offset the running costs of a gear solution.
As more power can be achieved from a smaller frame size, the result will be a more compact design.
Generally, in high speed technology, a standard frequency of 50 or 60 Hz can be converted as high as 1000 Hz.
With ABBïs new high speed motor, using special software, a standard frequency of 50 or 60 Hz is converted to 300 Hz via the frequency converter.
This gives accurate power control and enables soft start and stop of the application.
Frequency converters offer considerable energy savings and high efficiency at all speeds.
Technology developments are leading the way to such benefits.
At the core of these developments is a mixture of mechanical and electrical improvements that have tackled challenges such as vibrations and temperature rise.
ABB uses rolling element bearings in high speed motors, with hybrid bearings being selected for certain applications and speeds.
For high speed motors, grease lubrication can be used but if the speed factor is above 1,000,000 then an oil lubrication system is used.
The new motors, available both with air water cooling, will be manufactured at ABB's low voltage motor factory in Vaasa, Finland.
High speed motor production requires great accuracy and cleanliness, for example, in the assembly of bearings.
The special working cell that has been established for high speed motors will also be used for the assembly of other special motors such as permanent magnet motors.
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