CONVERTING TO ELECTRIC MOTORS AND ADJUSTABLE SPEED DRIVES:

A CASE STUDY OF A 20,000HP GAS TURBINE DRIVEN COMPRESSOR

Copyright Material IEEE
Paper No. PCIC-

Manish Verma Derrick Parker Izhak (Ike) Grinbaum James Nanney

Member, IEEE Consulting Electrical Engineer Member, IEEE
TMEIC TMEIC Conroe, Texas, 77302 TMEIC
2901 Wilcrest Dr, #210 2901 Wilcrest Dr, #210 USA 2901 Wilcrest Dr, #210
Houston, TX, 77042 Houston, TX, 77042 Houston, TX, 77042
USA USA USA

Abstract Compressors of all forms, types and sizes are the burning gas also led to higher NOx emissions. This was
workhorses of the oil & gas industry. Historically, the acceptable 10 15 years ago; however, in recent years,
petrochemical industry has been dominated by mechanical governments have imposed regulatory restrictions that mandate
prime movers like gas turbines, steam turbines, and diesel end users to reduce their carbon footprint and run their plants
engines for multi-megawatt rotating machinery. Some efficiently. Permitting process is a lengthy, time consuming and
installations date back almost 40 50 years. In recent times, is usually not aligned with an operators business objectives.
the prime movers have become difficult and expensive to In recent years, the use of electricity to drive very large loads
service and maintain. They often have lower efficiencies than has become widespread and critical rotating machinery are now
new equipment and availability of spare parts can be difficult. being driven by or converted to electric motors. Adjustable
As Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) permits expire and speed drives (ASD) are used for process control and/or where
strict emission compliance is mandatory, many end users face starting large motors directly on the utility line is not feasible.
the challenging task of decommissioning their entire The following sections provide a primer on the types of
compressor train and procuring a new one. However, a driven equipment that are good candidates for upgrade, how
workable and cost-effective solution is to retrofit existing prime one should plan for a revamp, and application considerations to
movers while retaining the functioning gas compressor. This be successful. This will be supplemented by an end users
paper will present a large pipeline companys experience in experience of replacing a 20,000HP gas turbine driven
replacing an existing gas turbine driven axial compressor with compressor. Table 1 covers the dimension that is applicable to
an engineered electric motor driver and adjustable speed drive this paper.
system (ASD). Issues such as power delivery, application, TABLE 1
motor and drive voltage selection, harmonic distortion
APPLICABLE DIMENSION OF THIS PAPER
mitigation, ASD and motor cooling selection, and its effects on
Motor & ASD design, and overall strategy for selection and Parameter Description
procurement of the equipment will be discussed. The paper Service types Compressors, & pumps
outlines a general guideline of how existing mechanical prime Variable Torque & Constant
Load profile
movers can be replaced with electric solutions, hence lowering Horsepower
operating cost and increasing efficiency, safety, environmental Gas Turbine, Steam Turbine, Diesel
Initial prime mover
compliance and overall reliability of the entire compressor train Engine
from the utility down to the compressor shaft. Converted prime Fixed speed electric motor, variable
mover speed motor with ASD
Index Terms Voltage Source Inverter, Pulse Width Modulation Power Level (HP) 3,000HP 130,000HP
(PWM), Gas Turbine, Cooling, Adjustable Frequency, Drives, Voltage range(kV) Medium Voltage, > 2.3 kV
Adjustable Speed, liquid-cooled, Life Cycle Cost Electric Motor Type Induction or Synchronous
Voltage Source Inverter (VSI),
I. INTRODUCTION ASD type
Current Source Inverter (CSI)

The global petroleum industry has been in existence since
th
the turn of the 20 century. Compression and pumping have
been and continue to be the backbone of oil & gas complexes.
In the early 60s thru 90s, most of the rotating equipment was
driven through mechanical or hydraulic power. The bulk of the
energy came in the form of heat, hydraulics or fluid. Most of the
high power compressors (> 3000HP) were driven by gas
turbines, steam turbines or engines. This prime mover strategy
was beneficial since gas and steam were easily accessible and
inexpensive. The technology developed due to their use in
power generation, aircraft engines, ships, etc. However,
II. WHY REPLACE MECHANICAL BASED PRIME
MOVERS?
Mechanical prime movers like gas turbines, steam turbines,
and engines have a typical life cycle support of 25 30 years
from the time they are introduced in the market by the
manufacturers. This also happens to be the design life of the
equipment. A typical gas turbine driven compressor train
configuration is shown in Figure 1.

1

Fig. 1 Typical Gas Turbine Driven Compressor train
configuration
Some of the advantages of using gas turbine drivers are:-
1. Reliable technology that has been well tested and
accumulated millions of hours of track record in the
compression and power generation industry.
2. Most designers are mechanical engineers and can
relate easily to the technology.
3. Exhaust or waste heat stream can be used in other
processes such as direct heat, process steam, and
power generation
While there are several advantages to a gas turbine, in [1] &
[2], Chellini and Lockley outline some of the concerns
associated with a gas turbine as follows:-
1. Well defined maintenance intervals every 2 years.
2. Maintenance cost almost 10 times compared to an
electric motor.
3. Emissions due to burning of fuel that need to be
monitored and reported to regulatory bodies for
compliance
4. 7 10% lower thermal efficiency than a comparable
electric motor and ASD system (including generation,
transmission & distribution losses).
5. Performance and shaft horsepower dependent on
ambient conditions and composition of fuel.
6. Usually operated in +/- 5% of the rated speed.
7. Soak washes to re-establish turbine efficiency.
8. 20 30 minute warm up time before loading a gas
turbine versus instant dispatch ability of electric motor
& ASD systems.
As the turbine ages, the efficiency drops and frequent
maintenance and rebuilds are required. Even after many years
of regular service and rebuilds, the original power rating of the
turbine can become difficult to obtain.
For a reliability engineer who is tasked at maintaining
maximum uptime; frequent equipment maintenance and
reduced turbine power can lead to lost production affecting the
end users productivity. Hence, evaluating alternative prime
mover technologies that can reduce operation and maintenance
costs can lead to lower cost, high reliability and increased
revenue.
Based on industry experience there are three main reasons
why one would consider to revamp a gas turbine. They are as
follows:-
1. Aging of gas turbine where it is cost prohibitive to
maintain.
2. Emission requirements that have been mandated by
regulatory bodies.
3. Obsolesce of turbine control systems and support for
those systems.
2
The end user in this case study had to find a solution for the
following issues that were being encountered by the Reactor
Effluent Compressor (REC) service:-
1. Turbine obsolescence and aging: The turbine was
installed and put in service in 1993. Hence, it was at
the end of its design life. More importantly, the turbine,
parts were difficult to get, the original equipment
manufacturer was acquired by a new firm and hence
did not have access to the drawings, replacement
parts, and finally getting personnel to service the
turbine was non-existent.
2. Increase compressor rating: The compressor was
designed to run at 17,400HP. However, at the time of
construction, the compressor was capped to
13,000HP due to process requirements. However,
over time, as the facility grew in size, the turbine
driven compressor became a bottle neck to the entire
plant throughput.
III. PRIME MOVER SELECTION
When a decision has been made to take action on aging
equipment, selecting the appropriate replacement technology is
critical. Four main factors affect the selection: 1) Reliability track
record of the prime mover, 2) cost of installation, 3) Operating
and maintenance cost and 4) the time it will take to make the
change. While gas turbines, engines and other mechanical
movers have an estimated design life of 25 years, electric
motors and ASDs have designs that approach the 25 30
years range. This has been made possible by conservative
sizing of components that make up the system, good
engineering practices, attention to details, lessons learned and
feedback from end users.
Cost of the installation is the second most important factor. If
the power distribution infrastructure is easily available at the
installation site or can be upsized by minor modifications, then it
becomes more cost effective to choose electric motors and
ASD as the prime mover. This is because of two reasons. First,
unlike gas turbines and engines there is no need to go through
the EPA permitting process and the entire emission and carbon
footprint can be transferred to the power generating company.
Second, lead times for manufacturing, transportation and
installation of an electric motor and ASD is typically 30% shorter
than a gas turbine
Operating and maintenance costs for ASDs and motors have
been greatly reduced. These days it is common to find ASDs
and motors that can run for 5 years continuously before any
maintenance is required. Appendix A compares and contrasts a
gas turbine with an electric drive on various decision making
parameters.
IV. CONSIDERATIONS WHEN CONVERTING TO
AN ELECTRIC DRIVER
Converting from a mechanical driver to an electric motor is a
significant change for an operator. The decision to select a
prime mover is handled by rotating equipment experts who also
specify compressors and pumps. Since many are mechanical
engineers, they are comfortable with turbines, fluid couplings,
engines, and electric motors. However, when an ASD is also
required, the confidence level is reduced due to the complex
nature of the equipment, recent problems such as water cooling motor current. This is because the ASD by design isolates the
systems leaking, power inverters failing, frequent capacitor motor from the utility which enables limiting the motor inrush
bank replacements, isolation transformer failures, and ASDs current to no more than 100 150% of the motor rated current.
running beyond thermal limits, being reported by one of the For the case study, the installation was being done in an
suppliers. The following section outlines how proper application existing facility. However, the substation transformer was not
engineering, pre-procurement solution definition and sized for delivering the starting current to a 20,000HP motor
understanding of the drive and motor can contribute to a prime direct-on-line (DOL). Hence an ASD was specified for starting
mover system that is not only safe & reliable, but also easily and speed control. Besides ASD, there are several alternative
maintainable. methods of starting large synchronous motors such as soft
starter, auto-transformer, pony motor, and reactor-capacitor.
A. Need for adjustable speed Figure 2 presents a decision making flow chart that was
pertinent to this case study where the client was evaluating
Compressors and pumps in any installation are sized (in between three starting options: 1) DOL, 2) soft-starter and 3)
terms of power rating) based on the worst case process ASD.
scenario. Furthermore, in the petrochemical industry, American
Petroleum Institute (API) mandates a 10 15% margin on the
prime mover that is selected. This is to ensure longer
equipment life and conservative sizing. For example: A
compressor that has a rating of 17,400HP, will need a prime
mover that has a shaft horsepower of at least 20,000HP, even
though the compressor/motor might never see 20,000HP.
Should a compressor be running at fixed speed, a throttling
valve or a recirculation system would have to be employed to
control the flow in the plant. This leads to wasted energy and
increases operating costs. However, if the speed of the
compressor can be controlled, then the pressure and flow can
be matched precisely to the plant process requirements. An
ASD helps accomplish speed control for the compressor. While
doing so, significant energy savings can also be realized. As a
rule of thumb, the required power from the utility varies as the
cube of the compressor speed as shown in equation 1. For
example, a 10% reduction in compressor speed will result in a
27% reduction in energy consumption.

Eq (1)

Hence, the first thing that an end user must ask: Is there
any benefit of controlling the flow in my process. In case of the
installation, the compressor was initially driven by a turbine at
fixed speed and the flow was controlled downstream of the
process. However, when converting to an electric motor, the
need for an ASD was justified and the throttling valve would be
eliminated during the change out.
B. Power availability
In general, power availability is perhaps the most important
consideration in deciding gas turbine versus electric motors.
Power requirements from the utility company will be dependent
on the type of motor starting scheme required. For fixed speed
electric motors, the utility must be able to supply the locked
rotor current as specified by the motor supplier. Locked rotor
current can be between 5 6 times the motor rated full load
current when starting across-the-line. In most cases, starting
motors larger than 10,000HP will need detailed engineering
evaluation of the power system and its ability to handle a large
motor. In case the utility is not stiff enough and cannot deliver
the starting motor current, then an alternative starting scheme
like a soft starter or an ASD will be needed. When the motor will
always be started and operated on an ASD, then there is no
requirement from the utility to supply the higher locked rotor
Fig. 2 Decision making flow chart for starting large motors
It is important to note that if an ASD is NOT used for starting
a large motor, then the end user should keep the following
application considerations in mind:-
1) Short circuit power availability from the utility. Usually
this can be obtained from the utility or it can be
calculated using power simulation software.
2) Allowable voltage drop at the utility bus. In most cases,
utilities allow for a 4 5% voltage drop. However in
radial network configurations or weak power feeds, the
allowable voltage drop could be as low as 1%. This
voltage drop is not to be confused with the motor
terminal voltage drop, which can be as high as 20%.
3) Maximum allowable motor starts per hour. While it might
seem that this motor parameter has little effect on the
overall design; this becomes a critical path during
commissioning the motor. Depending on the motor
specifications, a couple of failed starts could mean
waiting for hours for the motor the cool down.
4) Motor power factor as seen by the utility. When the

3
 motor is started directly on line, the overall power factor
is dictated by the motor. While synchronous motors can
be used to regulate power factor, this is not the case
with large induction motors. Depending on the base
speed, induction motor power factors vary from 0.76
0.95.
C. Cooling water availability
As will be covered in later sections, applying a 20,000HP
motor and ASD requires cooling. Typical ASDs are 96%
efficient. This includes the drive isolation transformer and any
auxiliaries. Hence for a 20,000HP ASD that would imply roughly
600kW of sensible heat. Managing this level of heat loss can be
accomplished in two ways: Air-cooling or water-cooling. While
air-cooled ASD designs are available, they become less
practical for large HP application. This is because a minimum of
172 ton HVAC unit (0.86 tons for every 100hp) would have
been required to cool the ASD, increasing the total cost of
ownership. Instead, water cooled ASD is better suited at these
ratings. In case of a water cooled drive, about 90% of the heat
rejection is managed by water and the remaining 10% is
managed with the building HVAC system. Also, by placing the
drive isolation transformer outdoors, roughly 2% of the heat
only needs to be managed by the building HVACs. Hence, the
availability of cooling water needs to be identified early in the
project. In case cooling water is not available, all water cooled
motors and ASDs can be provided with a closed loop air cooled
heat exchanger that eliminates the need of any plant cooling
water after the initial fill-up. This system works similar to a car
radiator cooling system.
D. Mechanical Integration
Typically, revamp projects are scheduled during a major shut
down. While there is more electrical integration in a gas turbine
replacement, there is a significant amount of mechanical
integration also. The dismantling and removal of the gas turbine
is a priority. Hence, construction crew needs to be set-up
around the clock for removal, placement of new equipment,
interconnections and commissioning. In order to minimize time
spent on the site, a motor skid package is used to reduce field
connections and commissioning.
It is critical that engineering is done ahead of the RFQ for the
compressor package so that all connections from the motor
power leads placement to control wiring and piping to the
compressor are defined to minimize the site work at time of shut
down. The delivery schedule for the equipment to be on site
ahead of the revamp is also a critical parameter. Hence, during
the procurement stage, it is important to select the motor
vendor who has proven track record of delivering on time.
Once on site, care is to be taken to insure the proper storage of
the equipment, appropriate space heaters and other
requirements to reduce issues that might surface during
commissioning.
The civil work had to wait for shut down to remove the old
turbine but not everything had to wait. A great deal of site
preparation was done ahead of the shutdown such as the
industrial control building (ICB) was in place with conduit runs
already completed. Power was already provided to the ICB, so
the ASD had been through the initial commissioning. The
placing of the compressor skid would be similar to other
4
installations with the majority of the operations and connections
verified at the factory acceptance testing (FAT).
Commissioning of the compressor package and motor to begin
once bolted in place.
Having all commissioning engineers from the compressor
supplier, motor and drive vendor on site during the shutdown is
a necessary expense. It also allows each group the time to
plan each step as each connection is completed to the skid
confirmation of the wiring or operation is confirmed. There are
always unforeseen issues so some flex time should be planned
to allow for the unexpected.
The amount of coordination and engineering required to
reduce typical installation and commissioning days requires
strong project leadership with a good understanding of
sequencing of tasks and contingencies of parts and tools. In
the fog of all that needs to be done it is important the little things
like confirming there is lubrication in all the bearing that can be
overlooked or all the planning would be lost.
This is also a time to have a safety first mindset with the time
pressure and multiple disciplines working in parallel, safety
protocols must be maintained and supervised to ensure the
safety of all involved.
E. Control interface to DCS system / Process Control
Transitioning from mechanical based controls to electrical
controls poses serious process control challenges. Gas
turbines and motors by themselves have very large inertias and
have a very slow response time to any changes in speed and
torque. However, by applying an ASD to the motor can make
the motor very responsive to any step-changes in speed or
torque demand. This means that the faster response time of the
ASD and motor can work in concert with the surge control
system and can help keep the compressor operation out of any
surge condition. Hence, the ASD speed regulation has to be
de-tuned significantly and have a very slow response time in
the order of 2 3 rad/s. While there are several control
methodologies in modern ASDs like Volts/Hz, sensor less
vector, sensor vector control; the most optimum control strategy
is to have Volts/Hz (V/Hz). In a V/Hz control, the ASD maintains
a constant Volts to Hertz ratio across the entire speed range
eliminating sudden responses of the ASD to any changes in
torque from the compressor thereby jeopardizing the motor-
compressor coupling.
Another important consideration for controls is to employ
proper cabling techniques. Grounding and selecting the proper
cable for the ASD is in itself a paper on its own, however, it is
important to strictly follow the guidelines of the ASD vendor for
cabling.
Typical inputs to an ASD include: 1) Start, 2) Stop, 3) Speed
Reference, 4) E-Stop. Outputs from the ASD include: 1) Drive
status, 2) Speed Feedback, 3) Current Feedback, 4) Drive
Fault. Most of the input and outputs can be wired or be sent via
a LAN communication like Profibus, ISbus, etc. Finally, all
motor protections are transferred to the ASD including E-stop,
ground fault, differential, etc. Only vibration and temperature
detectors are routed to the compressor control.
F. Locked rotor current
Under usual fixed speed direct-on-line applications, the motor
mounting and the foundation design have to be designed to
handle the locked rotor current that the motor can experience TABLE 3
during starting. This inrush current can create almost 6 12 SELECTED ASD HIGH LEVEL DETAILS
times the torque in the motor resulting in an expensive
Parameter Value
foundation. However, by using an ASD, the amount of inrush
Type of ASD VSI, PWM type
current is reduced to 100% of the motor current rating. This is a
critical consideration in a retrofit application because the Cooling method Water cooled
foundation of the gas turbine was being used to mount an Output voltage rating 6000V
electric motor. The gas turbine foundation was not designed for Input voltage rating 12470V
seeing the forces that would be experienced by a fixed speed Converter pulses 36 Pulse
motor. Output voltage waveform 5 Level
Power Rating 20 MVA
V. ADJUSTABLE SPEED DRIVE SELECTION
This topology of ASD provided the end user with the
Once it has been decided that an ASD will be procured to run following benefits:
the process, selecting the type of ASD becomes critical. For a 1) The rectification in the converter is done by diodes in a
20,000HP application, there are two major types of ASDs that 36-pulse configuration. This fixed and passive
are available: Voltage Source Inverters (VSI) and Current configuration means that the harmonic signature of the
Source Inverters (CSI). Historically, ASDs at this rating were ASD on the utility is unaffected by power system events
load commutated inverters (LCI) drives, which are a subset of or motor speed operating envelope.
CSI drives. While LCIs had their advantages, one of the key 2) By using a VSI type ASD, the power factor as seen by
limitations of an LCI type ASD is poor line side harmonics, the utility has a minimum of 0.95 across the entire
speed dependent power factor, and output torque ripple that speed range without the need of additional harmonic
they create. This implied complicated harmonic analysis, filters or power factor correction equipment as in the
torsional analysis, and use of expensive couplings. Table 2 case of an LCI drive.
gives a side-by-side comparison of the two types of ASD 3) The use of medium voltage rated power semiconductor
technology. devices eliminates the need for bypass or redundancy,
thereby increasing the reliability of the ASD.
TABLE 2
These foregoing benefits were important to the existing
COMPARISION BETWEEN VSI AND LCI DRIVES facility, because it eliminates the need for detailed power
Parameter VSI LCI system harmonic studies, load flow analysis and other time
Footprint Compact Large consuming system studies which might be required with an LCI
Torque ripple <0.5 1% <7% (12-pulse) type drive.
5 15% ITHD
Line side
< 2% ITHD Need Harmonic
harmonics
compensators
>0.95 across entire 0.75 0.8, need
Power Factor
speed range capacitors
Current
Obsolescence 1980s technology
Technology
Proven Proven technology,
Reliability & Technology and aging service
Maintainability trained service professionals, little
professionals support available

Based on the end users evaluation and past experience of

drives in the 15,000HP 25,000HP range, a VSI based ASD
was selected.

A. ASD Topology evaluation

VSI drives come in different topologies. In a recent IEEE

paper [3], Lockley and Paes outline the different types of
inverters available in the market. However, for this application,
the end user chose a diode based line side converter with a
Neutral Point Clamped (NPC) Pulse Width Modulated (PWM)
load side inverter. A NPC converter offers a small torque ripple
at the motor, lower switching losses of the semiconductor
devices and a proven technology that has been field tested and
installed for several years. The high level specifications of the
ASD selected are shown in table 3 and the ASD circuit
configuration of a NPC inverter employed is shown in Figure 3.
Fig. 3 Circuit Configuration of a 5-Level NPC ASD [8]
B. Cooling methodology
As mentioned previously, a water cooled ASD was selected.
Water cooled ASDs are available in two configurations: Closed
loop and open loop. In a closed loop system, the ASD is
provided with an outdoor fin-fan heat exchanger. In an open
loop system, the ASD relies on the plant cooling water. In IEEE
paper [4], details of ASD cooling system specifications,

5
evaluation and considerations can be found. Since the revamp
was going to take place in an existing facility which had water 3)
on-site, it was decided to use the plant water to cool the ASD
through a liquid/liquid heat exchanger. This arrangement also
led to significant real estate and cost savings that would 4)
otherwise have to be incurred by the end user. Figure 4 shows
the cooling system configuration that was applied for the ASD.
5)
the ASD operation is eliminated.
Capability to move all controls and motor control centers
for compressor auxiliary services like pumps, coolers
and fans in a single location.
Complete acceptance testing and checkout of low
voltage equipment, I/O and communications interface
ahead of plant shut down time.
Elimination of on-site labor and significant reduction in
risks.

Fig. 4 Cooling system configuration of the ASD [4]

From figure 4, it can be noted that there are two loops in the
ASD cooling system; 1) ASD cooling loop, and 2) plant water
cooling loop. The two loops are isolated from each other by a
water-to-water heat exchanger. This isolation is very important
because the ASD requires de-ionized water and the
conductivity is tightly regulated. Also, the cooling skid (internal
to the ASD) is provided with 100% redundant pumps and a
deionizer loop. A detailed explanation of how the cooling
systems work has been explained in [4].
C. Physical System integration
Revamping an existing gas turbine in an operational facility
implies that the change out has to be completed during a
normal shut down period. As mentioned previously, a 30-day
shutdown period was planned. Hence, in order to meet the
timeline, the end-user strategically required the ASD to be
packaged in an ICB by the ASD vendor as shown in Figure 5.
By doing so, the end user accomplished the following:-
1) Single point of contact for the ASD, ICB, transformer
and the incoming switchgear.
2) Since ASDs reject significant amount of heat, HVAC
units are required to keep it cool. By having the ASD
supplier take responsibility of the ICB, the risk of having
the cooling undersized and consequently jeopardizing
Fig. 5 Interior and exterior of Industrial control building
Key items integrated into the ICB were:-
1) 20,000HP water cooled ASD with Field Excitation
system
2) Incoming 12.47kV ASD isolation metal-clad switchgear
3) Low Voltage Motor control center line up for auxiliary
pumps, fans and other loads to service the ASD, motor
and compressor.
4) Uninterruptable power supply system for 120V control
power.
5) Fire and smoke detection systems.
Being in a petrochemical environment near the gulf coast, it
was important that the ICB be designed for the gulf coast
environment. Hence, the client chose to use the process
industry practices PIP-ELSSG11 [5] standard for electrical
power center specification. It is important to note that when
specifying this standard, the data sheets need to be accurately
filled out. Merely mentioning the specification is not sufficient.
Figure 6 shows the entire scope of equipment that was needed
to replace the gas turbine with an electric motor and ASD.

6
 per HP.
Most common options such as vibration probes tied into the
compressors system were specified in the motor requirements.
Bearing, winding RTDs and space heaters monitored by the
compressor controls were also included.
The bearing are forced lubricated sleeve, when properly
maintained have an expected life of 20 years or longer.
Typically, bearing lubrication for the motor is shared from the
compressor lubrication console which might be designed to API
614 standards resulting in greater reliability of the installation.
The motor being located in a division II area and applied to
an ASD, needed additional modifications to be made to the
motor specification. First, the motor insulation must be suitable
Fig. 6 ASD and motor system configuration for voltage spikes (dv/dt) from the ASD which generally means
adding an additional wrap of insulation. Second, both bearings
VI. MOTOR SELECTION were insulated to handle shaft voltages that can damage
bearings. Shaft grounding is a common method on motors
The goal of any retrofit equipment project is that it be more applied on ASDs, but not permitted by UL as it is a potential
reliable, efficient or more productive than what it replaced. This source for arcing. Most other common accessories for motor
would mean operation of 5-10 years without an unscheduled protection this size such as surge capacitors, surge arrestors
down time. 20,000HP rating is a gray area between selecting and differential protection are not needed and instead are
induction versus synchronous motors. Induction motors have handled by the ASD.
the advantage of being simpler to build and simpler to operate The selection of a 4 pole motor required the use of a gear
resulting in a lower CAPEX. Synchronous motors are more box which increased the losses and statistically reduced the
complex due to field excitation, but the reliability is very high reliability. A 2-pole motor could have been used and driven the
when API 546 [6] standard is applied. compressor with the ASD driving the motor above 60Hz but this
The simplicity of the induction motor and lower cost is offset was rejected over a traditional solution.
by the higher efficiency of the synchronous motor.
Synchronous motors are 0.5 1% more efficient than induction
TABLE 5
motors. The motors being on an ASD, the power factor is fixed
for both motors so the synchronous motor cannot be used to PROS AND CONS OF MOTOR TYPES
improve plant power factor. For the case study, the end user Enclosure Cons
Pros
decided to choose a synchronous motor for lower life cycle cost Type
reasons. Table 4 shows the high level details of the motor Weather - Highest noise
- Smaller Motor Frame
selected. Protected II level
- Lowest cost
TABLE 4 (WPII)
SELECTED MOTOR HIGH LEVEL DETAILS Totally - Highest cost
- Enclosed & higher
Enclosed Air - Limited in
Parameter Value reliability
to Air Cooled motor size
Type of motor Synchronous - Lower noise
(TEAAC)
Totally enclosed Water to Totally - Same frame as WPII - Must have
Cooling method/ Enclosure Air Cooled (TEWAC), Enclosed - Lower cost than cooling water
Class 1 Div. 2 Water to Air TEAAC available
Motor Voltage 5800V Cooled - Considered to be the
Motor Speed 1,800 RPM (TEWAC) highest reliability
Motor HP 20,000 HP
Motor power factor 1.0
Design standard API 546 VII. CONCLUSION

The second important selection factor for the motor was the
motor enclosure. Common options include Weather Protected
II, Totally Enclosed Air-to-Air Cooled (TEAAC), and Totally
Enclosed Water to-Air Cooled (TEWAC). In [7] Ghirardi et. al
outline the pros and cons of each enclosure type. This is
summarized in Table 5. Since reliability was critical and water
was available on site, the obvious choice was to select a
TEWAC motor. Also, since water is used as the heat dissipation
medium, the motor frame size is smaller than a comparable
TEAAC motor. This resulted in significant CAPEX spending
from a customer perspective. Historically, enclosed motors
have shown statistically to be more reliable than WPII motors.
They also have the advantage of being the lowest noise motors
Converting from a gas turbine to an electric motor and ASD is
a big step in a companys operations procedures. It takes
radical thinking and a change in mindset to make the switch.
This paper outlined some of the key application considerations
that an end user must bear in mind before starting a gas turbine
replacement project. The benefit of lower total cost of
ownership, and maintenance far exceeds the risk involved in
making that change.
VIII. REFERNCES
[1] Chellini. R, The electric LNG Option for US, Compressor
Tech2 Magazine, June 2014, Pages 64 65

7

[2] Leuw, J.; Lockley, B., "Fast tracking a 30.6 MW
supersynchronous LCI compressor drive on a large gas
transmission pipeline," Petroleum and Chemical Industry
Conference, 1997. Record of Conference Papers. The
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Incorporated Industry Applications Society 44th Annual ,
vol., no., pp.175,181, 15-17 Sep 1997
[3] Lockley B, Paes, R. Whats new with MV Drives
http://sites.ieee.org/northern-canada-
pesias/files/2014/02/Whats-New-with-MV-Drives-IEEE-
NCS-2014-Final.pdf , Pages: 43
[4] Verma, M.; Phares, D.; Grinbaum, I; Nanney, J., "Cooling
systems of large capacity adjustable speed drive
systems," Petroleum and Chemical Industry Technical
Conference (PCIC), 2013 Record of Conference Papers
Industry Applications Society 60th Annual IEEE , vol., no.,
pp.1,11, 23-25 Sept. 2013
[5] Process Industry Practices, PIP-ELSSG11, Electrical
Power Center specification
[6] API 2008, API Standard 546: Brushless Synchronous
Machines-500 kVA and Larger. Washington DC API
[7] Ghirardi, Gordon; Mills, Russell W., "Enclosures for Large
AC Motors for the Petroleum and Chemical Industry,"
Industry Applications, IEEE Transactions on , vol.IA-14,
no.1, pp.18,22, Jan. 1978
Currently, he is working with TMEIC as a Technical Sales
Manager.
Izhak (Ike) Grinbaum, P.E (izgrinbaum@yahoo.com)
graduated from Howard University in Washington D.C, with a
BSEE. He is a registered professional engineer in the state of
Texas. He has over 40 years of experience in electrical
engineering, and over the years has been involved in the
design of power systems, maintenance, construction,
commissioning and start-up of industrial facilities in USA, UK,
France and South Korea, Qatar. He has extensive knowledge
of large engineered adjustable speed drives. He has worked
with Procter & Gamble, Scott Paper, and ExxonMobil. Ike
retired from ExxonMobil and presently works as a Consulting
Electrical Engineer.
James Nanney (James.Nanney@tmeic.com) graduated in
1979 from Texas A&M with a bachelors in Industrial
Distribution. He has been involved with the design,
manufacture, application and selling of low and medium voltage
motors with Baldor Electric, Hyundai Ideal and World Wide
Electric. Currently, he is working with TMEIC Corporation as a
Technical Sales Manager. His responsibilities include
specifying and applying medium voltage motors for critical oil &
gas applications such as: turbo compressors, pumps, fans,
extruders etc. An author of multiple articles for trade
publications. Presented papers and tutorials for IEEE PCIC
dealing with motors and motor/drive applications. Currently a
member of the API standards committee for electric motors.

[8] Tsukakoshi, M.; Al Mamun, M.; Hashimura, K.; Hosoda,

H.; Kojima, T., "Performance evaluation of a large
capacity VSD system for Oil and Gas industry," Energy
Conversion Congress and Exposition, 2009. ECCE 2009.
IEEE , vol., no., pp.3485,3492, 20-24 Sept. 2009

IX. VITA

Manish Verma (Manish.Verma@tmeic.com) graduated in

2006 from Virginia Tech with BSEE. He began his career with
TMEIC in 2006 while continuing his professional education. In
2009 he completed his MSEE with concentration in power. After
a broad exposure and education in the various TMEIC business
units, he joined the global drives division, with concentration on
sales and application engineering, new product developments
and drive enhancements. His responsibilities include power
systems and electronics, adjustable speed drives, and technical
training. He is an active member of IEEE and has authored
technical papers and tutorials for several conferences.

Derrick Parker (Derrick.Parker@tmeic.com) graduated in

1995 from Alabama A&M university with a bachelors degree in
Electrical Engineering. He has worked in different industries in
specifying, selling or using low voltage and high-
voltage products. He started as an Automation Engineer at US
Steel for two years, five years with an Automation Distributor,
five years as an Area Manager with ABB in Alabama, three
years as a District Manager with ABB in Colorado and two
years as a Regional Sales Manager with ABB for the west.

8

Consideration
factor
Minor maintenance
schedule and duration
Major over haul
schedule and duration
Reliability - MTBF
hours
Repair time - MTTR
X. APPENDIX A
Electric Adjustable
Gas Turbine
Speed Drive
Every 4,000-8,000 hrs. Every 25,000 hours,
6-10 days downtime 0.5 days downtime
Every 20-30,000 hours. No major overhaul
30 days downtime required
4,000 to 10,000 hours 140,000 hours
0.5 to 72 hours 0.5 hours (assuming LOTO
and spares on hand)

3,600 rpm to as high as

Maximum speed Typically 6,000 rpm 12,000 rpm without a
gearbox
Wide, accurate variable
Narrow speed range; large gas
Variable speed speed control range,
turbines range is 96-101% speed
69% to 105% speed
Faster control
Slow speed control response. response. Good energy
Speed control
Narrow speed control range efficiency at lower
speeds
Short starting time
Electric starter motor usually using the ASD. No
Starting
required, turbine start takes time negative effect on the
power system.
Efficiency & power drops with Efficiency is
Variation in energy high ambient temperature, independent of ambient
efficiency & power narrow range of best efficiency temperature, speed,
point (BEP) and load
Power output level Up to 150,000 HP Up to 130,000 HP

Electric pony motor / helper Reliable grid

Power supply
motor required to start turbine connection required
Drive & motor have no
High local CO2, NOx emissions.
emissions. Utilities can
Emissions and noise Noise levels can reach up to 87
use economies of scale
90dBA
to controls its emissions
Turbine, piping and installation
Initial equipment cost Lower than turbine cost
cost

ASD has 8-10 months.

Delivery time 18 months
Motor has 9-15 months
Fig. A-1 Comparative decision points for consideration between ASD and Gas turbine