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Intelligent use of motor control solutions
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February 2008
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Rising energy prices are motivating industry to explore new methods, such as energy-efficient motor control solutions, for lowering operating costs.
Engineers are tasked with selecting the most reliable motor control solution with the lowest total cost of ownership. This must take into consideration lifetime costs such as installation, operating efficiency, maintenance and energy use, explains Jonathan Smith, field business leader for power control at Rockwell Automation: “Since over 80% of pump and fan applications require control methods to reduce flow to meet demand, those applications are crucial to savings. Process engineers commonly use fixed-speed controllers and throttling devices such as dampers and valves, but these are not very energy efficient.
“Variable-frequency drives (also known as adjustable speed drives) offer an alternative that will both vary the motor speed and greatly reduce energy losses. Advancements in drive topology, careful selection of the hardware and power system configuration and intelligent motor control strategies will produce better overall operating performance, control capability and energy savings.
“Things to consider when choosing a motor control solution include peak-demand charges, operating at optimised efficiency, power factor, isolation transformer cost and losses, regeneration capabilities, synchronous transfer options and specialised intelligent motor control energy-saving features.”
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Author
Chris Rowlands
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