Experiment No. 2.4 The Squirrel-Cage Induction Motor OBJECTIVE 1. To determine the construction of the three-phase squirrel-cage motor.
. 2. To determine its starting, no load and full load characteristics. DISCUSSION The simplest and most widely used rotor for induction motors is the so-called squirrel-cage motor, from which the squirrel-cage induction motor gets its name. The squirrel-cage rotor consists of a laminated iron core which is slotted lengthwise around its periphery. Solid bar of copper or aluminium are tightly pressed or embedded into the rotor slots. At both ends of the rotor, short-circuiting rings are welded or brazed to the bars to make a solid structure, the short-circuited bars, because their resistance is much less than the core, do not have to be specially insulated from the core. In an assembled squirrel-cage induction motor, the periphery of the rotor is separated from the stator by a very small air gap. When water is applied to the stator of a practical induction motor, a rotating magnetic field is created by any one of the means learned about. As the field begins to revolve, its flux lines cut the shorted turns embedded and around the surface of the squirrel-cage rotor, and generate voltages in them by electromagnetic induction because these turns are short-circuits with very low resistance, the induced voltages cause high current to circulate in the rotor bars. The circulating current (rotor) then produce their own strong magnetic fields. These local rotor flux fields produce their own magnetic poles, which are attracted to the rotating field thus, the rotor revolves with the main field. The starting torque of the basic squirrel-cage induction motor is low, because at rest the rotor has a relatively large inductive reactance (XL) with respect to the resistance (R) we thus say that the power factor in the circuit is low. This means that the motor is inefficient as a load and cannot derive really useful energy, for its operation from the source. Despite the inefficiency, torque is developed and the motor begins to turn. As its starting turning the difference in speed between rotor and rotating field, or slip, goes from maximum of 100% to some intermediate value say 50%. As the slip decreases in this manner, the frequency of the voltage induced in the rotor decreases, because the rotating field cuts conductors at a decreased rate, this in turn, causes the overall inductive reactance to decrease. As inductive reactance decreases, the power factor begins to increase, this improvement is reflected as an increase in torque and a subsequent increase in speed.
INSTRUMENTS AND COMPONENTS Squirrel-Cage Induction Motor Three-Phase Watt-meter AC Metering Connection Leads Electrodynamometer Power Supply Tachometer Timing Belt PROCEDURE 1. Examine the construction of the squirrel-cage induction motor, paying particular attention to the motor, connection, terminals and wiring. 2. a) Identify the stator windings. Note that they consist of many turns of small diameter wire evenly spaced around the stator (The stator windings are identical to that of the wound rotor induction motor). b) Identify the cooling fan. c) Identify the end rings of the squirrel-cage rotor. d) Note the length of the air gap between stator and the rotor. e) Is there any electrical connection between the rotor and any other part of the motor? 3. Viewing the front face of the module: a) The three separate stator windings are connected to terminals 1 and 4, 2 and 5, 3 and 6. b) What is the rated current of the stator windings? c) What is the rated voltage of the stator windings? d) What is the rated speed and horse power of the motor? r/min = 1670rpm hp = 0.234hp 4. Using your squirrel-cage motor, electrodynamometer, three-phase watt-meter, power supply and AC metering module, connect the circuit shown in Figure 1. Do not couple the motor to the dynamometer at this time. Note that the stator windings are WYE-connected through the watt-meter to the variable 3 output of the power supply terminals 4, 5 and 6. 5. a) Turn on the power supply and adjust E1 to 208VAC the motor should be running.
b) Measure and record in Table 1, the three currents, the two watt-meter readings and the motor speed. c) Return the voltage to zero and turn off the power supply. 6. a) Couple the motor to the electrodynamometer with the timing belt. b) Set the dynamometer control knobs at its full CCW position. c) Repeat Procedure 5 for each of the torque values listed in Table 1, maintaining the input voltage at 208 VAC. d) Return the voltage to zero and turn off the power supply. Table 1 Torque (N-m) 0.2 0.3 0.6 0.9 1 I1 (A) 0.780 0.819 0.947 1.12 1.187 I2 (A) 0.848 0.878 1.02 1.196 1.273 I3 (A) 0.749 0.783 0.935 1.112 1.189 WT (W) 145 150 180 215 240 W2 (W) N (rpm) 1750 1742 1708 1674 1662
7. a) Change the source of the squirrel-cage induction motor from the variable 0208 volts to fixed 3 output (208V) of the power supply. Terminals 1, 2 and 3 is now to be used in Figure 2. b) Set the dynamometer control knob to its full CW position (to provide a maximum starting load for the motor). 8. a) Turn on the power supply and quickly measure E1, I1, and the developed starting torque. E1 = 222.6 Vac I1 = 4.7 Aac Starting Torque = 2.90 Nm
b) Calculate the apparent power to the motor at starting torque. S = 1061.802 VA
