www.easa.

com March 2002

A Closer Look: Winding Protection Device

Can Prevent Permanent Damage To Motor
By Cyndi Nyberg degrees, and that could
EASA Technical Support Specialist make the temperature
high enough to start
There are a number of different types of wind- breaking down the insu-
ing protection devices used with motors. However, lation. So winding
they all basically do the same thing; they sense a protection can prevent
change from the normal operating temperature permanent damage.
and either sound an alarm or take the motor off A high or low voltage
line when the specified temperature limit has been supply can increase the
met or exceeded. current that a motor
Temperature protection is not limited to just draws, which will in turn
large motors. A smaller motor that is critical to op- increase the winding temperature. In the case of
eration would be a good candidate for winding ventilation failure, maybe a fan blade has broken
temperature protection if a failure would cause off, or an air vent has become blocked because of
significant costs due to downtime. something in the environment. In that case, the
temperature can increase very quickly.
Areas Of Protection Any of the previous conditions can cause per-
Winding protection will sense a change in the manent damage to a motor. There are a number of
total winding temperature that could potentially devices used to protect the windings from damage
be harmful to the motor. We know that as tem- due to high temperatures. These include thermo-
perature increases, the stats, thermocouples,
insulation life decreases. For thermistors, and resistance tem-
every 10ºC increase in total There are a number of devices perature detectors (RTD’s). Any
winding temperature, the used to protect the windings of these devices that are imbed-
thermal insulation life will from damage due to high ded in the motor winding will
be cut in half. Winding pro- temperatures. These include give an accurate assessment of
tection is designed to protect thermostats, thermocouples, the total winding temperature,
against a number of condi- thermistors, and resistance and any changes to the normal
tions that can cause the temperature detectors (RTD’s). operating level.
winding to heat up rapidly. Any of these devices that are
When a mechanical fail- imbedded in the motor winding Temperature Ratings
ure causes the rotor to lock, will give an accurate assess- When winding protection is
the temperature will increase ment of the total winding tem- replaced or added to an existing
rapidly, first in the rotor and perature, and any changes to design, there are a couple of
then to the stator. the normal operating level. simple rules to follow to ensure
Unexpected loads can oc- that the right critical tempera-
cur during starting and tures are selected. In some
running, so the winding protection can detect the cases, like with a winding RTD, you may need to
high temperatures that will develop due to in- check with the user to see which type is used, to
creased current. Winding protection also will make sure the right one is put back into the motor.
protect the motor from a high ambient temperature. However, you can easily measure the resistance
For that reason, some motors might trip out more before burnout if the device has not been de-
during hot periods in the summer. stroyed.
Voltage unbalance can have a negative effect First, you will need to know the class of the
on the motor’s performance, and one effect is on winding insulation. Class F insulation is good for
the total winding temperature. A good rule of up to 155°C; Class H is good for up to 180°C.
thumb is that the winding temperature (in ºC) in- Some older designs use Class B insulation, but
creases by two times the square of the voltage most service centers use Class F or H when re-
unbalance. For example, if the voltage unbalance winding stators. The alarm and shutdown points
is 2%, then the temperature will go up around 8 Continued On Page 2

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Winding Protection Device . . . Continued From Page 5
of the device are based on the maximum winding
temperature the insulation can handle. However,
many motors are nameplated, for example, “Class
F insulation with Class B rise.” This means that
even though the insulation is good for 155°C, the
expected temperature rise under full load is 80°C,
assuming a 40°C ambient temperature. In this case,
the temperature protection will be based on the to-
tal temperature rise of 120°C, rather than the
maximum of 155°C.
Based on the insulation class and/or the ex-
pected temperature rise of the winding, you can
next determine the alarm and shutdown points. For
Class F insulation, 145-150°C would be the typical
rating of the protection device, unless the name-
plate indicates a lower temperature rise. If an alarm
point is used, it is typically set 10°C lower than the
shutdown point. Caution: One thing to keep in
mind is the actual load the motor sees. If, for ex-
ample, a motor is running very lightly loaded,
winding protection may not sense what may actu-
ally be happening inside the motor.
For example, if a bearing fails (and there are no
bearing RTD’s), it can cause significant damage to
the rest of the motor before the winding temperature
protection kicks in, if the winding temperature is far
below the maximum point allowed. If you know that
the motor is running at a much lower than rated load,
the winding temperature will be lower to begin with,
so the protection device may need to be rated for a
lower critical temperature.
Thermostats
Winding thermostats are simple temperature on-
off switches normally installed in the end turns of
the motor winding (U.L. specifies they be inserted
in the opposite fan end.). They can activate a warn-
ing device, or shut down the motor when the
winding temperature exceeds the temperature rating
of the switch.
Thermostats have contacts that are either nor-
mally closed that open at the specified temperature,
or normally open that close at the specified tempera-
tures. The thermostat is automatically reset after the
temperature drops below the critical point. No exter-
nal controls are necessary for use with thermostats.
There are normally three thermostats provided,
one for each phase, at a specified temperature rat-
ing. U.L. explosion-proof motor requirements
specify thermostat temperature ratings, and they may
be lower than typically specified for a standard mo-
tor to ensure that the frame temperature of the motor
does not exceed the maximum temperature of the
March 2002
hazardous material in the environment.
Thermocouples
Thermocouples are basically two metal conduc-
tors that generate a voltage between them. The
voltage produced is a function of the winding tem-
perature where the thermocouple is placed. They can
be put into the slot with the winding, but there are
not many buried in the end turns.
A separate control is required to convert the volt-
age to a temperature reading that in turn operates the
alarm and/or shutdown. There are a number of types
of thermocouples; the most common types are cop-
per-constantan, chromel-constantan and
iron-constantan. The materials will have a different
relationship between the voltage produced and the
temperature it indicates. Typically, two thermo-
couples per phase are installed in the windings.
Resistance Temperature Detectors
Resistance temperature detectors (RTD’s) have a
definite relationship between resistance and tem-
perature. One type of RTD is the thermistor. It is
made of a semi-conductive material, and as the tem-
perature rises, so does the resistance. As the set
cutoff temperature is reached the resistance rises
quickly and dramatically, causing an alarm or shut-
down. Thermistors are normally put on the end turns
of the winding.
Standard RTD’s have a purely linear relationship
between resistance and temperature. They are placed
in the slots in form wound stators and in the end
turns in random wound stators. There will typically
be two RTD’s per phase. For RTD’s installed in the
slots, they typically will be put into the center of the
slot length, equally spaced around the winding, since
that will be the hottest part of the stator. By putting
them there, you can ensure that the temperature is as
accurate as possible.
There are several types of RTDs and the differ-
ence between them has to do with the resistance
characteristics of the material from which they’re
made. As the temperature increases, so does the re-
sistance. (Bearing temperature detectors operate on
the same principles to protect the bearings.)
The most common RTD’s used in motor wind-
ings are 10 ohm (copper), 100 ohm (platinum), or
120 ohm (nickel). Each type of RTD has a specific
resistance vs. temperature characteristic, so it is im-
portant to know the type for replacement since the
controller is matched to the RTD material. Tip: If
you are installing winding and/or bearing RTD’s,
you will want to use the same type for both so they
can use the same controller.