About
PPI were approached by Quartzelec to produce an air-cooled Induction Motor operating in a 50°C Hazardous ‘Zone 2’ environment for an Oil Refinery Company in Saudi Arabia.
Reason for project & challenges
The motor had to be designed to fit within a confined area, limiting us to a 355 frame size in a 50°C ambient temperature. Since the motor was operating in a hazardous environment, we had to design and certify it to IECEx Non-Sparking (Ex nA) standards, which included stator ignition tests in Hydrogen gas. The motor also had to be strictly built and tested to Shell DEP and IEC specifications.
This project was seen as a good opportunity to have the entire machine range type-test certified to Ex nA specifications for future contracts. While the 630kW machine was designed and built we applied for the factory certification and now have the ability to produce Zone 2 Non-Sparking machines without the need for one-off certification tests.
Motor specifications:
Output: 630 kW
Rated Speed: 1782 rpm
Poles: 4
Voltage: 6.6 kV
Phase: 3
Frequency: 60 Hz
Motor Type: Induction Motor
IP and Hazardous Rating: IP54 Ex nA IIB T3 Gc
Starting Method: DOL
Noise (at 1m, at No-load): 85 dBA
Service Factor: 1.0
Current: 67.5 A
Efficiency: 95.0 %
Power Factor: 0.86
Ambient: 50°C
Conclusion
The final machine performed well during factory acceptance testing and is successfully installed on site.