AC Motor Controllers and Drives
Demand for Regenerative AC Drive Units Intensifies, and ABB Responds with Ever Shorter Lead Times and Fast Order Fulfillment
NEW BERLIN, Wis., October 15, 2008 - Soaring energy prices, and a growing commitment from managers of processing facilities to utilize every kilowatt of energy to increase productivity, is fuelling demand for regenerative drives. In response, ABB, from its factory in New Berlin, WI, continues to shorten the lead time from order-to-fulfillment on a wide range of drives within its product range. ABB offers fully integrated, regenerative AC drives, in a 7.5 to 2,600 horsepower range, to the North American market.
Regenerative drives - also known as four-quadrant drives - incorporate an active supply unit, rather than the passive diode supply used in conventional drives. These drives also have a built-in LCL filter to eliminate high-frequency harmonics.
Full, Constant Energy Utilization; Superior Low Harmonic Solution
"Regenerative drives offer two significant advantages: they can recover energy from a process and feed it back into the network; and they help to maintain power-supply quality, thanks to their superior harmonic performance," according to Teemu Ronkainen, product line manager for the ACS800 family of drives at ABB Inc., Low Voltage Drives. ABB's regenerative AC drives' harmonic-distortion levels are lower than conventional 18-pulse drive products; they meet rigorous harmonic standards right out of the box. Both ABB's Ultra-low Harmonic drives and regen drives help end users meet the IEEE-519 standard for harmonics, he said.
ABB regenerative drives are the first fully integrated units available for the power range up to 2,600 Hp. They feature a line-side IGBT supply that makes it easy to return power to the line, and an active filter keeps the supply clean and sinusoidal. (Conventional non-regenerative AC drives have a passive diode supply that cannot return energy to the supply line.) This ability to return energy to the supply line saves energy and eliminates the need for a braking chopper, resistor hardware, and extra wiring.
Regenerative AC drives for this power range previously have consisted of a number of interconnected power blocks. Via ABB's single-unit design, selection, ordering and delivery logistics all become much more straightforward. The compact and integrated design also is easier to install and commission. Each drive is thoroughly factory tested as a unit - and is guaranteed to perform according to specification.
Everything Inside
In keeping with ABB's "everything inside" product philosophy and design, an extensive range of features and accessories are housed within the drives. The low-harmonic LCL line filter, flexible I/O and control panel are supplied as standard. All the regenerative drives are delivered standard with ABB's start-up assistant, which provides menu-driven help that makes setting parameters intuitive and easy. Optional accessories include EMC filters and extension modules for additional I/O and Field bus (communication) adapters.
Model number ACS800-U11, for wall-mount drives from 7.5 to 125 Hp, are designed for operating voltages of 208 to 240Vac and 380 to 500Vac. The protection class of UL Type 1 (IP21) is standard. Model number ACS800-17 units are designed for operating voltages of 380 to 500 Vac and 525 to 690 Vac, and available from 150 to 2,600 Hp with protection class of UL Type 1 and, optionally, UL Type 12 (IP54).
Full Energy Utilization and Protection of Power Quality
Typical applications for regenerative AC drives include industrial centrifuges, test stands for vehicle engines and transmission, sheet metal presses, cranes and lifting equipment, conveyors, escalators, and even ski lifts and cable cars.
The energy recovery feature of regenerative AC drives makes significant energy savings possible in applications like sugar centrifuges. In each centrifuge cycle, the drum needs to be decelerated and brought to a stop as quickly as possible, once the process is complete. This braking phase releases a considerable amount of energy, which, instead of being wasted as heat, can be fed back into the network. And that's true for any process that has residual momentum - whether it's a converting or papermaking mill utilizing rollers, or a ski lift with riders traversing both up and down mountainsides.
ABB Inc., Automation Technologies, Automation Products, Low-Voltage Drives, is the world's largest manufacturer of electric motors and drives. In the USA, an integrated channel of sales representatives, distributors, and system integrators allow ABB, New Berlin, Wisconsin, to supply a complete line of energy-efficient electric drives, motors and engineered drive systems to a wide range of industrial and commercial customers. Products manufactured include AC and DC variable speed drives for electric motors from 1/8th through 135,000 HP, and application-specific drive system solutions to meet diverse customer needs (http://www.abb-drives.com).
ABB (www.abb.com)is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 115,000 people.
Ken Graber, ABB LV Products, ken.j.graber@us.abb.com
