Induction Motors (LV/HV) Failures and its Prevention

In today's climate of globalization, Indian industry has to improve quality & productivity
and reduce operation costs to become and remain competitive. Maintenance improvement
and cost reduction are essential to reach and maintain these goals. For this, we need to
give a serious thought over reasons of failures, condition monitoring, predictive
maintenance and above all improved repair practices of electric motors to enhance their
reliability and reduce maintenance costs.

A) What causes motors to fail?

In 80% cases motors do not fail just because of wear, aging or operating hours. lot of factors are
responsible for premature failures of motors. Undue stresses developed from following factors
causes this mishap:

Heat
Power supply anomalies.
Humidity
Contamination
Improper lubrication
Unusual mechanical loads.
Use of AC drives.
Vibration.

Above factors work in conjunction with time to degrade components & winding insulations of
motors. It has been established that motors can survive for several hundred and thousand
operating hours, when these stresses are minimized.

Heat
Temperatures over the design rating take their toll in various ways. Electrical insulation
deteriorates at a rate that may double for every 100C. Excessive temperature also causes
separation of greases and breakdown of oils to cause premature failures of bearings. Primary
causes of overheating are:

Overloading
Too frequent starts
High ambient temperatures
Low or unbalanced voltage
High altitude operation
Inadequate ventilation
Vibration in the system

Power Supply Anomalies

Ideal power is a perfect sine wave on each phase at the motor's rated voltage and frequency.
This is rarely achieved. The following problems occur in the power supply:
Over voltage: At moderate levels the over voltage phenomena is usually not damaging, but can
reduce efficiency and power factor. (NEMA limit 110% of rated).

Under voltage: Increases current and causes overheating and reduced efficiency in fully loaded
motors. It is relatively harmless in under loaded motors. (NEMA limit 90% of rated).
Voltage unbalance: Causes overheating and reduced efficiency. Unbalance greater than 1%
requires motor derating and motors should never be powered by a system with more than 5%
unbalance.
The induction motors are designed for optimum performance at rated voltage and load. The
motor performance gets affected when the voltage variation is large. These changes affect the
motors and this is one of the factors for failure of motors. Under voltage and over voltage are
accompanied by variation in frequency also. The change in frequency also affects the
performance of the motor and motor should be designed as per the frequency variation in the
power system of that particular place. As per IS, 3% frequency variation is permissible.
Voltage spikes: Commonly caused by capacitor switching, lightning, or cable, standing waves
from a variable frequency drive (VFD). These tend to cause turn-to-turn insulation failures.
Bearing damage due to shaft currents. This usually originates from Variable Frequency Drives
and big sized HT motors due to high voltage. The electric current flowing through bearings in
variable frequency drives, is due to high frequency current components, called Common Mode
Currents, created by fast switching in solid state electronic devices. Fast frequency currents find
its easy path through bearing capacitances. These currents flow in complete loop. This damages
the bearing surfaces via electrical currents pitting and surface erosion. The extent of bearing
damage depends upon a no. of factors like current density; duration of current flow; bearing load;
speed and type of lubricants. Following solutions have been devised to mitigate the bearing
damage due to shaft current:

Insulate motor bearing to prevent current flow.

Add a shaft grounding brush or brushes to shunt common mode currents to ground.
Make sure that the motor frame is suitably grounded for higher frequency currents.
Change cable to a type that minimizes common mode currents.
Add common mode filter to mitigate common mode noise.
Use conductive grease.

Harmonics: Cause overheating and decreased efficiency.

Frequency variation: Alternating current motors shall operate successfully under running
conditions at rated load and at rated voltage with a variation in the frequency up to 5 per cent
above or below the rated frequency.
Performance within this frequency variation will not necessarily be in accordance with the
standards established for operation at rated frequency.
A frequency higher than the rated frequency usually improves the power factor but decreases
locked-rotor torque and increases the speed and friction and windage loss. At a frequency lower
than the rated frequency, the speed is decreased, locked-rotor torque is increased, and power
factor is decreased. For certain kinds of motor load, such as in textile mills, close frequency
regulation is essential.

Humidity
Humidity becomes a problem when the motor is de-energized for a long time and experiences the
dew point temperature. Moisture weakens the dielectric strength of electrical varnish and other

insulating materials. It also contributes to corrosion of bearings and other mechanical

components. Moisture from the air can mix with certain particulate contaminants to create highly
electro conductive solutions.
Insulation moisture can be significantly reduced, if the motor is kept warm. If possible, motors
stored in humid environments should be pre-warmed for several hours or even days before
startup, to drive out insulation moisture. Then conduct an insulation (Megger) test and if possible
Polarization Index test with insulation tester of suitable voltage rating to ensure a safe start.
The Polarization Index = R10/R1
Where,
R10 = Mega Ohm insulation resistance for 10 minutes.
R1 = Mega Ohm insulation resistance for 1 minute.
IEEE standard No.43 indicates the recommended minimum values of polarization index for AC
machines are as:
For class A insulation = 1.5
For class B insulation = 2.0
For class F insulation = 2.0
Following strategies should be adopted to control the humidity in motor winding insulations:

By heating or dehumidification, keep the environment of unpowered motors below 80%

relative humidity.
Specify new or rewound motors with heating elements for the windings and use these
when motor is not running.
Periodically rotate the shaft of stored motors to keep lubricant on the bearing surfaces.

Contamination
Contamination cannot be completely excluded by total enclosure or even an explosion proof
enclosure. Contamination destroys motors by three methods:

Abrasion.
Corrosion.
Overheating.

Some airborne particles are very abrasive. Motor coils flex when in use, and contamination with
abrasive particles can eat away the wire enamel. Some substances such as salts or coal dust are
electrically conductive and can exploit any weakness in the insulation, especially when assisted
by moisture. Heavy accumulation of contaminants, typically obstructs cooling passages either
internally in open motors or externally in closed motors. This leads to overheating.

Improper Lubrication
During motor lubrication, maintenance personnel can over lubricate as well as under lubricate.
Both under lubrication and over lubrication result in temperature rise of the bearings. Grease itself
can introduce contaminants into bearings, if careful control is not practised in loading grease into

guns and protecting the injector tip from dirt. Mixing greases with different bases can cause
grease constituents to separate and run out. Different motors need different requirements for the
the introduction of lubricant and removal of old lubricant. The maintenance personnel should
consult with motor and bearing manufacturers for proper selection of grease for particular
application.
The records of lubrication and its schedule should be maintained. This will assist in optimizing
lubrication for different operating circumstances.
Selection of lubricants i.e. grease:
Following can serve as guidelines for selection of grease for motor application:

Working temperature.
Requirement to resist water washout.
Speed of journal
Environment condition.
Intensity and type of load.

Relubrication intervals of grease:

Relubrication interval Tf in hour = 0.5 x [106 x K/(N x Di0.5) - C x Di] x A.
Replenishment Quantity of grease:
Replenishment quantity G, in gram = Do x B/200.
Where,
B = Bearing width in mm
N = shaft rpm
Di = ID of the bearing
Do= OD of the bearing
K, C & A are the factors
K is a factor, which depends upon the operating condition of load and velocity.
Example:
Bearing 6220, Working Temperature = 900C, Di = 100 mm, Do = 180 mm
B = 34 mm, N = 500 RPM, Lubricant Grease.
Max. Permissible RPM with grease Lubrication, Nm = 3300
N/Nm = (500/3300)*100 = 15
Hence Initial Fill = 80% of the Housing space
Replenishment Quantity G = 180*34/200 = 30.6 gram
Relubrication Interval, Tf (hour) = 0.5*[106*75/(500*1000.5) - 18*100] * 0.5 = 3300h = 4.25 months
Grease selection table for induction motors:

Grease type

Temperature
Range 0C

Suitability for water wash

out

Ca SOAP
-20 to +60
(with/without EP)

Very stable

Na SOAP (Do)

-20 to +120

Unstable

Li SOAP (Do)

-20 to +120

Stable up to 900C

Ca Complex

-20 to +130

Very Stable

Li Complex

-20 to +150

Stable

Al Complex

-20 to +150

Stable

Poly Urea

-20 to +150

Very Stable

Ca Sulphonate
Complex

-20 to +190

Very Stable

Ca- Li Complex

-20 to +120

Very Stable

Clay Base with

MoS2

-20 to +150

Stable

Unusual Mechanical Loads

A variety of mechanical conditions can either overstress bearings, leading to early failure, or
distort the motor frame causing asymmetric air gap, which in turn can cause vibration and bearing
failure or winding overheating. Conditions to avoid unusual mechanical loads are:

Misaligned couplings.
Over tightened belt, or sheaves out of alignment.
Overly compliant base or poor shimming of mounting feet.
"Soft foot," i.e. motor feet not in the same plane.
Dynamic imbalance of load or internal imbalance of motor rotor.
Failure to bypass resonant speed points in VFD powered motors.
Mis-application of bearings.

Use of AC drives
Widespread use of AC drives is causing AC motors to fail due to various reasons. Motor failure
prevention in this case has been taken care by different methods. These techniques essentially
involve placing additional apparatus between the motor and the inverter to limit the rate of rise of
pulse, reduce the reflection coefficient and thereby reduce the peak voltage. Some of the devices
are also used to compensate for the capacitive cable charging currents. These techniques can be
summarized as follows:

Output reactors.
Output dV/dt filters.
Sinusoidal filters.
Motor termination unit

If AC drive is used, then inverter duty motor should be selected to cope with frequent failure of
motors.

Vibrations

Due to the vibration in the motor following problems may occur:

Frequent failure of bearing

Rotor touching the stator
Terminal box bolt shearing
Grease cup breakage
Motor leg breakage
Undue heating of motor etc.

The above problems may be due to inadequate structural rigidity, soft footing, and misalignment
at coupling, unbalance in driven equipment, bent shaft, rotor unbalance, eccentric air gap,
vibration coming from load side, bearing wear out, poor lubrication, bearing loose in housing etc.
To find out the exact source of vibration, the vibration signature analysis should be carried out at
predefined intervals for taking necessary corrective actions.

B) When should we replace instead of repair?

The answer is simple in principle. Rewind or otherwise repair a motor when it is cheaper than
buying a new motor. Implementing this is a little more difficult because it is needed to consider
the total cost of ownership. Ideally, following points have to be taken into account:

First cost of repair and new purchase should be compared.

Efficiency of existing and proposed new motor should be taken into account.
Availability of a new motor should be identified.
Lifetime discounted cost of electric energy for each scenario has to be considered.
Salvage value of existing motor should be calculated.
Possible modification to the mounting should be explored.
Cost in downtime and repairs from a possible early failure in either scenario.
After each rewinding the efficiency of motor goes down by at least 1 per cent.

The key calculation for the decision will be the annual energy savings from replacing the motor.
This can be calculated by the following formula:

KW saved = hp x L x 0.746 x (1/Eex - 1/En)

where:
hp = Motor nameplate horsepower.
L = Load as percent of full rated load.
Eex = Efficiency in percent of existing motor after repair.
En = Efficiency in percent of replacement motor.

Total Electric Energy Savings in Rupees = (kW saved x annual operating

hrs x kWh rate)
MotorMaster+ is an excellent software tool in this process. It provides default costs of repair and
new purchase and performs simple payback or life cycle cost comparisons. This software assists
in estimating efficiency of existing motors.

C) How can reliability & efficiency be assured in repair?

To help assure a quality repair, you should:

Evaluate prospective motor repair service providers.

Not pressurise the provider for an unrealistic turn-around time.
Communicate your requirements to the provider.
Explore repair solutions through better practices, codes & standards, which can be of
help in motor winding insulations.
Care for winding of stator for large rotating electrical machines.

1. Evaluate prospective motor repair service providers

Look for indicators of a quality control program such as evidence of participation in an

ISO 9000 program.
Inquire about staff morale, training, turnover, etc.
Determine whether the service center has sufficient facilities and materials to handle the
size and type of motors.
The Electrical Repair section should have infrastructure for following test facilities for
Induction Motors:
Type of test

Instruments

Megger Test

Megger

Electrical Balance Test

High Frequency set

Hi-Pot Test

AC/DC High Pot test inst.

Run Test

M G Set

Lock Rotor Test

M G Set

Dynamic balance Test

Balancing machine

Surge Comparison Test

Surge Tester

Core Tester

ELCID (Electronic Core

Imperfection Detection)

P I Test (for HT Motors)

Megger

Ductor Test

Ductor testing machine

Ohmic/Inductance Test

Motor Checker

Growler Test for rotor

Growler machine

Vibration test

Vibration Tester

Wedge Tightness
checking

Wedge Detector Tightness

Actual Load Test

Heat run testing facility

How can a repair cause your efficiency to diminish?

Heat damage to stator core.

Wrong wire size or turn count.
Higher friction bearing/seals.
Bad re-design of winding pattern.

2. Do not pressurize the provider for an unrealistic turn-around time.

The best way to do this is to implements a comprehensive motor systems management plan. A
motor systems management plan helps to ensure that sufficient spares are available for
immediate replacement of critical motors. This will not preclude the repair option because the
repaired motors can be reinventoried as spares. A motor systems management plan also helps to
determine in advance whether any given motor should be repaired or replaced, reducing the
chance of a hasty bad decision. Finally, a plan provides for maintaining a motor's repair history as
well as tracking and ensuring proper maintenance. This helps identify and correct causes of
motor failure and reduce its future incidence. Some service centers offer creative assistance for
your motor systems management.
Some Examples are:

Completely managing your motor tracking system.

Guaranteeing on the shelf spares for specified motors.
Preventative/Predictive Maintenance services.

3. Communicate the requirements to the service provider

Provide a repair specification with each motor to be repaired. This should clearly outline the
requirements for before and after testing, varnish application method, record keeping, etc. Supply
the service center with the motor's "medical history." Items in the medical history can include:

History of past repairs.

History of predictive testing, vibration, insulation resistance, etc.
History of lubrication and other maintenance.
Methods for starting and frequency of starting.
Load; percent of rated, stability, starting inertia.
Power source information, e.g. VFD.

4. Improve repair/rewind quality through better & systematic practices:

Following steps should be followed for efficient and improved repair

Receive stator, visually inspect and take the photograph of unit.

Thoroughly clean and inspect all components.
Thoroughly inspect stator for condition of ties, wedges, coils, leads, lugs, bracing system,
etc.
Measure winding resistance and check impedance balance for all three phases.
Test core by ring flux testing or Electronic Core Imperfection Detection System and
evaluate condition of iron laminations, before stripping.
Remove all windings and thoroughly clean iron.
Test core and evaluate condition of iron laminations, after stripping.
Prepare stator for rewinding.
Arrange complete set of stator coils.
Inspect and test new stator coils before installation, insert coils, fillers and RTDs.
Wedge and materials approved by the manufacturer should only be used.
Perform Megger and polarization Index (PI) test on windings.
Hi pot testing of the windings at a value 2E + 1000 VAC. Where E is rated voltage of the
motor.
Perform Surge Test and compare each coil at a value used during coil manufacturing.
Braze connect all windings, block and brace all windings.

Prior to varnish treat, windings will be Meggered, PI tested and receive a hi-pot test
slightly above the final level.
Perform impedance balance test on windings. Winding resistance should be measured
on all three phases.
Windings should be preheated, cooled to a specific temperature varnished and baked.
Perform Megger and Polarization Index (PI) Tests to insure insulation integrity.
Measure winding resistance and check impedance balance for all three phases.
Record RTD or thermocouple calibration tests wherever applicable.
Test space heaters for proper operation (connection/configuration and wattage).
Spray paint exterior and prepare for shipment and despatch.

5. Codes & standards, which can be of help in motor winding insulations:

IEC 216 - 1 to 4 Guide for the determination of Thermal Endurance Properties of electrical
insulating materials
IEC: 85

Thermal Evaluation and Classification of Electrical Insulation.

IEEE Std 434

machines.

Guide for Functional Evaluation of Insulation Systems for Large High Voltage

IEC publ.: 72-17 Evaluation of Electrical Endurance of Electrical Insulation Systems.

IEEE std 1043

Voltage Endurance Testing of Form wound Bars and Coils.

IEC: 34-15

Impulse voltage withstand levels of Rotating A C machines.

IEC: 544

Guide for determining the Effects of Ionizing Radiation on Insulating Materials.

6. Winding of stator for large rotating electrical machines:

Based on the analysis and investigations of different types of failures of HT motors. Following
points, if followed can provide good results:

The coils should be made from insulated conductors wires. Corona resistant
polymer/mica combination should be used to insure excellent turn-to-turn insulation.
The form wound coils should be wrapped with porous mica tape to a thickness
determined by the rated voltage to provide a durable ground wall insulation of high
dielectric strength.
Conductive corona protections tape or paint to be applied on the stator slot portion of the
coils to avoid corona discharge in the stator slot.
At higher rated voltage a semi conductive layer should be applied to the coil over hang
beginning at the slot exit in order to achieve uniform stress grading of the voltage to the
ground.
Highly resin absorbent fiberglass cords should be used for the coil over hang support.
After vaccum-pressure im-pregnation (VPI) with epoxy resin, the support system forms
an extremely rigid winding overhang structure being able to withstand the most severe
service conditions.
Slots wedges should retain the coils firmly in the stator slots. For asynchronous machines
magnetic slots wedges enhance the power factor and operating efficiency of the
machine. To hold the coil tight in the slot ripple springs or silicon rubber strips should be
inserted between wedge and coil.

D) Condition monitoring in motors to prevent failures

(1) Scheduled Meggering & PI of Big Motors:

The practice of Meggering and taking PI value of the big motors fortnightly or once in a
month happens to be of much advantage.
These values should be properly recorded.
Trends should be plotted to monitor health of insulation.
This practice helps in finding out the deteriorating condition of the insulation health of the
motors, which can be improved by taking the corrective actions.

(2) Application of E-DAS (Electronic-Data Acquisition System) based system for

reducing bearing failure:

The roller table motors in steel plants normally work in the environment, which is full of
water mist, vapors and high ambient temperature. Due to these adverse working
conditions, the bearings of these motors fail at frequent intervals due to loss of lubricating
properties of grease and ingress of water.
To reduce these failures, no-load current monitoring of these motors can be started,
manually on daily basis and whenever there is rise in the current, meaning thereby the
jamming in the motor has started due to loss of grease.
This monitoring has helped a lot in reducing the failures of motor due to grease related
problems in the motor at several steel plants.
Although it is a costly proposition but to make this system automatic, prototype E-DAS
based system can be installed. In this system, during idle condition of the plant, the
motors will be started and the no-load current trend of individual motor shall be captured
in PC for analysis.

(3) On-Line-Vibration monitoring system:

The on line vibration monitoring system can be installed in case of big motors and
tripping of the motor be given through PLC. The monitoring and trending becomes very
easy.

(4) Condition monitoring of Slip rings:

The new practice of temperature monitoring of the slip rings in Induction motors and
synchronous machine especially. High Voltage and big sized can be initiated.
This practice will significantly reduce the slip ring related failures in Induction motors and
Synchronous machine.
Since rise in temperature becomes the root cause for failure of slip rings so the
temperature should be monitored on regular basis depending on the critically of the
machine by laser gun based temperature-measuring instrument or any other portable
instruments.

Following reasons cause high temperature in slip ring:

Higher contact resistance due to improper carbon brush pressure, & improper bedding.
Wrong selection of the carbon brush grade.
Deterioration of contact resistance of the connecting bar/strip with the slip rings.
Loose connection of the terminating cables at slip ring bus.

(5) Measurement of partial discharge for HT eqpt:

It helps in assessing the winding health of HT motors and can predict failures, so that actions for
improving the health of motors can be taken well in advance.

Portable partial discharge detects the insulation deterioration at the incipient stage for HT
transformers, Generators, Motors and cables.
The inductive sensor is attached to the earthing of the equipment and the partial
discharges are picked up by the sensor through inductive coupling & processed in the
equipment and shown on the analog scale calibrated for the various ranges of the pC.
The partial discharge signals are also picked up through capacitive coupling in which no
physical connection through inductive coupling is available.
The probe is pointed towards the location of which we want to measure the partial
discharge.
No shut down of the machine is required for measuring the partial discharge through this
method.
The fault in the machine is detected on the basis of sudden change in the partial
discharge value.
The partial discharges can be seen on the Oscilloscope also.

(6) Electrical-Surge-Comparison:
Traditional insulation tests concentrate on the insulation resistance. Less attention is paid to turnto-turn or phase-to-phase insulation, yet there is evidence that deterioration of this thin film is also
a major cause of motor-failures. Surge comparison testing can be used to identify turn-to-turn and
phase-to-phase insulation deterioration, as well as a reversal or open circuit in the connection of
one or more coils or coil groups.
Looseness, motion and wear of insulation develops as a result of stresses applied to the motor
windings in service. Stresses include:

Differential thermal stress.

Different coefficients of expansion.
Varnish weakening at high temperature.
Magnetic force due to winding currents.

The surge comparison test can identify excessive wear by applying a transient surge at inherently
high frequency to two separate but equal parts of a winding. The resulting voltage waveforms
reflected from each part are displayed on an oscilloscope. If both windings are identical, each
waveform will be exactly superimposed on each other, so that a single trace will appear on the
screen. If, however, one of the two winding segments contains a short-circuit, or a reversed or
open coil, the waveforms will be visibly different.

(7) Motor-Current-Signature-Analysis:
This analysis helps us in finding out the faults like:

Crack or broken rotor bars

Crack in rotor end rings.
High resistance joints in squirrel cage windings.
Casting porosities or blow holes in A1 die cast rotors.
Poor joint brazing in fabricated rotors;

Rotor winding problems in slip ring induction motors;

Stationery or rotating air gap irregularities;
Unbalanced magnetic pull,
Bent shaft & thermal bow;
Out of round stator;
Rotor or bearings.

The motor senses mechanical load variations and converts them into electric current variations
that are transmitted along the motor power cables. These current variations, though very small in
relation to the average current drawn by the motor, can be monitored and recorded at a
convenient location away from the operating equipment. Analysis of these variations can provide
an indication of machine condition, which may be trended over time to provide an early warning of
machine deterioration or process alteration.
One distinction is that there is a strong spectral component in the motor current signature that is
defined as the slip frequency. This signal is a general characteristic of AC induction motors and
reflects the rate at which the spinning armature continually falls behind the rotating electrical field
generated by the motor's field windings. Since this motor slip frequency component is electrical
rather than mechanical in origin, it has no vibration counterpart and it is not present in thevibration-spectrum.

(E) Protections
The induction motors require protections on the following fronts:

Over current protections.

Earth fault protection.
Short ckt protections.
Negative phase sequence protections.
Single-phase protection.
Wrong phase rotation protection.
Blocked rotor protection.
Limiting no of starts.
Under current protection. etc.

The thermal overload relays have been the conventional protective devices in the smaller sized
LT motors. These thermal protections need to be replaced with microprocessor based relays,
which provide fast and reliable operation and recording facilities in case of fault.
In big sized High Voltage motors, the trend has been started to change over from conventional
electromagnetic relays to microprocessor based motor protection relays, which provide abovementioned protections along with recording facilities. There are number of such type of relays
available in the market for reliable HT motor protections having all the above facilities.
Apart from above mentioned electrical protection through integrated relay, following protections
should also be incorporated especially for High Voltage critical motors:

Bearing Temperature High-Alarm & tripping.

Stator winding temperature High-Alarm & tripping.
On line vibration monitoring system-Alarm and tripping.
Cooling air Inlet & outlet temperature monitoring-Alarm.
Heat exchanger inlet & outlet water temperature monitoring-Alarm

Conclusion
The improved and modern repair, maintenance and condition monitoring techniques have been
practically adopted in the various modern plants and resulted in efficient, reliable and longer life of
induction motors. Reduced failure of induction motors has brought significant improvement in
product quality and productivity.
[Source: Electrical India - 15th November 2001]