Analytical Investigation of the Effects of Induction Motor Transients on Compressor Drive Shafts

Abstract

Centrifugal compressors driven by induction motors are most common in the turbomachinery industry. When sudden transients occur in the driver due to upsets in electrical supply to the motor, the air-gap torque generated by the motor undergoes a transient spike. This in turn gets transmitted through the coupling to the drive-shaft of the driven equipment, causing momentary high spikes in vibration that are torsional in nature, and can sometimes result in shaft torques that can create catastrophic damage to driven equipment components. In order to analytically predict these peak torques that can occur during transients, a complete drive-train torsional model needs to be created for the mechanical system, and the driving torque values need to be derived from the motor electrical system of equations. Various line faults are possible with induction motor driven equipment. A generalized analytical procedure based on motor electrical parameters to predict the peak shaft torques of compressor drive shafts is investigated in this paper. The effects of shaft transients due to 3-phase short circuits and reclosures are analyzed. The simulation has been performed for an industrial compressor train, and has been presented from a mechanical system point of view, rather than electrical. Comparisons and inferences are also made based on the simulation results.