Research in Life Extension of Electrical Motors by Controlling the Impact of the Environment through Employing Peltier Effect

Stephen Lucas (), Romeo Marian, Michael Lucas, Saiful Bari, Titilayo Ogunwa and Javaan Chahl
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Stephen Lucas: UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia
Romeo Marian: UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia
Michael Lucas: UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia
Saiful Bari: UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia
Titilayo Ogunwa: UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia
Javaan Chahl: UniSA STEM, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, SA 5095, Australia

Energies, 2022, vol. 15, issue 20, 1-16

Abstract: This paper explores the application of thermoelectric cooler/heater (TEC) modules (Peltier heat pumps devices) to control core and winding temperatures, aiming to reduce the effects of thermal cycling and moisture issues that affect the life of electrical machines. Electrical windings in a motor will fail for a variety of reasons, and a major contributor to adverse effects of a motor’s life is humidity. Due to thermal cycling, air containing moisture is drawn into a motor through a variety of access points such as terminal boxes, bearings, end covers and mounting systems. Even spare or replacement motors specially stored in heated spare equipment stores suffer from moisture ingress because of normal daily temperature changes. The better a machine can be kept warm, the less it is affected by moisture and the effects of mechanical stresses from cycling temperatures. A series of experiments were conducted, whereby a TEC was attached to a section of motor core and was set up to pump heat into the core segment. The thermal properties of the core material and the capacity to control winding temperatures along the core in specific locations and over time was measured. The results of this research demonstrate that the temperature of the motor can be tightly controlled, thus enabling the reduction of the effects of moisture, and reducing core and winding temperature differences. This has a positive influence in reducing the thermal stresses, which will result in improved insulation life and machine reliability.

Keywords: motor; condensation; thermoelectric device; moisture ingress; insulation; Thermal Management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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