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4791 Selection and Sizing of Conductors Supplying Electrical Equipment That Must Remain Functional During A Fire

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4791 Selection and Sizing of Conductors Supplying Electrical Equipment That Must Remain Functional During A Fire

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Application Note

Fire Safety Cables

Julian Wiatr
Zbigniew Hanzelka
David Chapman
Stefan Fassbinder
December 2010

Selection and sizing of conductors supplying


electrical equipment that must remain
functional during a fire

Safety
Selection and sizing of conductors supplying electrical equipment
that must remain functional during a fire
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Introduction
The maintenance of safety services in a building during an emergency is vital if the situation is to be contained and
the lives of occupants and emergency workers preserved. The first objective is to provide, as far as possible, safe
evacuation routes from the affected areas and to ensure that all services required for fighting the fire are maintained
for the required time. Another objective may be to ensure the preservation of services in areas of the building not
directly affected by fire to provide a safe environment for evacuees from affected areas, pending complete evacua-
tion, or the end of the incident. Finally, the preservation of property is important.
The time for which safety services are required to operate depends on the use of the building and the number and
type of occupants involved. While it may be feasible to evacuate a dwelling or a small office building in a short time,
larger or higher buildings, or those used by the public will take much longer1. The longer that safety services remain
operational, the better the chance of bringing a fire under control and reducing property damage.
Cables that are exposed to fire while being expected to retain their functionality and provide power to essential
equipment at another location must be appropriately selected and sized to take account of the increased electrical
resistance at elevated temperature. Manufacturers offer cables and accessories that will survive a standard cellulose
fire for 30, 60 or 90 minutes when correctly specified and installed.
Cables, including fire safety cables, are specified in terms that reflect their normal duty conditions; design parameters
under fire conditions are rarely, if ever, specified. The objective of this paper is to provide a clear methodology for
designing fire safety circuits based on the derivation and application of correction factors and standard cable param-
eters.

2 The development of a fire


The key to specifying a suitable fire safety cable is a good knowledge of the temperature rise characteristic in areas
affected by the fire. Although the exact process depends on the location and materials involved, temperature-time
curves have been developed to model some typical fires and are defined in standard EN 1363-2:1999 [22]:
• Standard temperature-time curve
• Hydrocarbon curve
• External fire exposure curve
• Parametric temperature-time curves
• Tunnel curves.
The best known of these is the standard temperature-time curve illustrating cellulose fires, which is commonly used
in the fire-testing of buildings. The standard temperature-time curve is expressed by formula: [14]:
T = 345log(8t +1) + 20 (1
where:
T – temperature, in °C
t – time, in minutes
Figure 1 shows the temperature rise against time curve of the development of a cellulose-fuelled fire i.e. a fire fuelled
mainly by wood and wood-based materials such as paper.

1
Following an explosion in World Trade Center 1 in 1993, the evacuation took more than 4 hours during which over 1000 people were injured, many due to smoke
inhalation. Fortunately, the fire had been extinguished.

2
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1200

1029
1000 986
925

800 822
Temperauture (C) 761
658
600
556
482
400 425
329

200

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Time (minutes)

Figure 1 – Time – temperature for standard cellulose fires [1]


About 30 minutes after the initiation of a building fire the temperature reaches about 850°C and continues to grow
after that.
The rate of a building fire development depends on many factors, but most importantly on the fire load density.
The fire load, expressed in megajoules per square metre (MJ/m2), is the average calorific value of combustible materi-
als per square metre of the building floor area or of a fire zone area within the building. The building structure, its type
and function and external factors also have an effect.
Where other materials are involved, such as hydrocarbon fuels, the growth of the fire may be faster and reach a higher
temperature, as illustrated in Figure 2. In this case additional protection must be provided for the cable, for example,
by using fire resistant ducts as well as fire safety cables.

1200

1088 1098 1100 1100 1100


1034
1000
948
887
844
800
743
Temperature (C)

600

400

200

0 20
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Time (minutes)

Figure 2 – Time - temperature characteristic for hydrocarbon fires


The characteristic of a tunnel fire is shown in Figure 3. This curve was developed by the Rijkswaterstaat (ministry
of transport) in the Netherlands. It is based on the assumption that, in a worst case scenario, a 50 m3 fuel, oil or petrol
tanker fire with a fire intensity of 300MW could occur, lasting up to 120 minutes. The curve was based on the results
of testing carried out in the Netherlands in 1979 and recently confirmed in full-scale tests in the Runehamar tunnel
in Norway.

3
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1400
1350
1300 1300
1200 1200 1200
1140

1000

Temperature (C) 890


800

600

400

200

0 20
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140
Time (minutes)

Figure 3 – Time -temperature for tunnel fires


These graphs illustrate the models used for testing and assessment of fire protection materials. Real fires are different
in that the temperature profile is far from constant. For example, in the Channel Tunnel fire in 1996, which burned for
seven hours, the general temperature is thought to have reached around 800 °C with hot spots of up to 1300 °C where
hydrocarbons were locally involved.

3 Fire Safety Cables


Enhanced fire protection is required wherever there is increased risk due, for example to high levels of occupancy
(especially by people unfamiliar with the environment), by the nature of the activities normally carried out or because
the potential consequences may be unacceptable in terms of loss of life, loss of historical artefacts, economic losses,
etc. Typical locations include:
• public buildings and spaces – cinemas, theatres, hotels, museums, transport hubs and shopping centres
• buildings with vulnerable occupants – schools, hospitals and day-care centres
• where evacuation and rescue access may be difficult – mines, tunnels and high rise buildings
• hazardous locations – chemical manufacture and storage, bulk powder storage
• sensitive infrastructure – data centres, communications facilities, banks.
The type of equipment that needs to be available during a fire includes:
• smoke venting systems, including pressurisation and depressurisation fans
• electrically operated fire shutters and smoke curtains
• fire fighting lifts
• sprinkler and wet-riser pumps
• command and communications systems, including audible warning devices and public address systems
• lighting
Since the normal cables commonly used for electrical installations would be damaged at temperatures much lower
than those experienced in a fire, only cables and wires specifically designed for the purpose should be used for fire
safety duty.

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3.1 Selection and erection


The important considerations when installing fire safety services are:
1 Fire safety cables are characterised in terms of the minimum time for which they are required to remain functional
in a fire as circuit integrity classes E30, E60 and E90 (DIN VDE 4102 part 12) [3] or fire resistance classes PH15, PH30,
PH60 and PH90 (EN-50200). Remaining ‘functional’ means that the cable retains sufficient mechanical strength,
insulation resistance and current carrying capacity to maintain circuit integrity and operation of the load. Because
of the high conductor temperatures experienced during a fire the resistance is much higher than during normal
service and this must be taken into account in the design stage. (See 3.2 Conductor Sizing)
2 Fire safety cables should be installed in continuous lengths without joints – it is normally available in lengths up to 500 m.
If joints are essential they should be carefully located in areas of lower risk and given adequate additional fire protection.
3 The route should be carefully planned to avoid areas of particularly high fire risk, such as areas used for fuel
or chemical storage and handling, powder handling and paper file storage. Fire safety services should be kept
separate from other cabling. Where cables are installed in vertical ducts or risers fire stops must be provided2 (as
is required for all cables) to prevent fire spread in the event that the enclosure is breached. All cable accessories
(mounting clips, etc.) should have a fire rating similar to that of the cable to avoid the extra mechanical stress
that could occur in the event of failure of restraining clips. Installation restrictions, such as minimum bend radius,
should be strictly observed. Fire safety services must be installed above a sprinkler system to avoid contact with
water, which would rapidly reduce their insulating properties. [17]
4 Where the expected fire temperature (or the required exposure time) is greater than that provided by fire safely
cables, the installation route must be provided with additional fire protection. This may apply, for example, to
hydrocarbon fires or tunnel fires.

3.1.1. Cable construction


Three classes of safety cables are available for application under fire conditions, i.e. those with ceramizing silicone-rub-
ber insulation, those with mica tape wound under a polymer insulation and copper-clad mineral insulated cables.
Generally, safety cables satisfy the following requirements:
• Halogen free
• Fire retardant according to IEC 60332-3
• Low smoke generation according to IEC 61034-1 and -2
• No emission of corrosive gases according to IEC 60754-2
• Insulation integrity according to IEC60331
• Circuit integrity according to DIN 4102 part 12, or other national standards.
Fire safety cables are tested by heating them in a furnace with a temperature with a temperature profile according to,
e.g., DIN 4102-Part 12 which follows the standard cellulose fire model. Because of the large amounts of energy taken
up by chemical reactions in the cable insulation and sheathing materials during heating, the conductor temperature
lags considerably behind for the first thirty minutes but then closely follows the furnace temperature.
Circuit integrity classes are listed in Table 1. The standard defines requirements and test method for fixings, cable
ducts, sheaths, protective conduits and connectors. The test determines the time for which the system remains func-
tional during a test fire where neither short circuit nor a current interruption occurs in the test installation.

No. Circuit integrity class Minimum maintenance of functionality time, in minutes


1 E 30 ≥ 30
2 E 60 ≥60
3 E 90 ≥90
Table 1 – Circuit integrity class E – according to DIN 4102-12 [3]

2
In 1975 a fire in an office suite on the 11th floor of World Trade Centre 1 spread over 6 floors in the risers housing power and communications cables because they
had large floor openings and no fire stops. Fortunately, the fire did not break out of the riser. The fire burned for three hours, badly damaging part of one floor by
fire (900 m2), and six floors by smoke and water. Cost: $2 million.

5
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Typical cable constructions are illustrated in Figure 4, 5 and 6.

1 3

2 4

Figure 4 – Fire Safety Cable with ceramizing insulation


(1: bare copper; 2: ceramizing halogen-free insulation; 3: inner covering; 4: halogen-free outer sheath)

1 4

3 5

Figure 5 – Fire Safety Cable with mica insulation


(1: bare copper; 2: mica tapes; 3: halogen-free insulation; 4: inner covering; 5: halo

gen-free outer sheath)

Figure 6 – Mineral insulated cable (temporary image)

3.2. Conductor Sizing


The resistance of the conductors in a cable subject to fire will increase by a factor of about 4.5 compared with that at
normal temperature. This has two major effects on conductor sizing; the voltage drop at high temperature must be
sufficiently low to allow equipment to start and run effectively and the circuit protection scheme must be designed
to function with significantly higher loop impedance than normal.
In normal electrical applications, the resistance of a copper conductor can be calculated by the following formula,
which is valid up to about 200 °C:
R = R20 (1+ α 20 ΔT ) (2

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where:
R20 is the conductor resistance at temperature of 20 °C, in Ω
α is the temperature coefficient of resistance at 20 °C, per K. α = 0.0039 for copper.
ΔT = Tk –20 is the temperature difference, in degrees K
Tk is the final temperature, in K.
At temperatures higher than +200 °C, the relation describing the conductor’s resistance becomes non-linear and is
given by the formula [13 21]:
R = R20 (1+ α 20 ΔT + β 20 ΔT 2 ) (3
where:
β20 = 6.0 x 10-7 K-2
Alternatively, application of the Wiedemann-Franz law yields:

⎛ T ⎞1.16 ⎛ T ⎞1.16
R = R20⎜ ⎟ = R20⎜ ⎟ (4
⎝ T20 ⎠ ⎝ 293 ⎠

where:
R is the resistance at temperature T
R20 is the resistance at 20 °C (293 K)
T is the temperature in K. i.e., temperature in °C + 273.
Neither approach is particularly accurate, giving resistance values that are slightly high by a few percent. Given the
many unknowns in a real fire situation, this small uncertainty is of little practical consequence. The important result
is that the resistance of a conductor specified at 70 °C rated cable is increased by a factor of about 4.5 under PH90
conditions. Equation 4 is used for all calculations in this paper.
Because buildings are often compartmentalised into fire zones to reduce fire spread, cables feeding fire protection
equipment are rarely exposed to fire temperatures over their entire length. The part of the cable not affected by
the fire will operate at the normal temperature appropriate to the loading, while that exposed to fire has increased
resistance. The task of the designer is to assess which areas may be simultaneously affected by fire in the worst case
and assess the proportion of cable length that may be affected. The total conductor resistance is then calculated by
assuming normal resistance for the length unaffected by fire and applying a multiplication factor to the length that
is affected.

((100 − y ) +( xm)) RN
RT = (5
100

Where
RT is the resistance of the conductors, in Ω
RN is the resistance of the conductor under normal conditions, in Ω
y is the percentage of the cable length estimated to be affected by fire
m is the resistance factor appropriate to the fire conditions as Table 2

7
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Correction factors for param- Required survival conditions


eters specified at 70 °C PH30 PH60 PH90
m 3.84 4.27 4.52
√m 1.96 2.07 2.13
Table 2 – Correction factors for cables at required survival conditions
Alternatively,
RT = qRN (6
Where:
RT is the resistance of the conductors, in Ω
RN is the resistance of the conductor under normal conditions, in Ω
q is the resistance factor appropriate to the fire conditions and the proportion of conductor affected as given
in Table 3.

Proportion of cable Coefficient of increase of resistance of cable conductors (q)


length in hot zone [%] Class E30 conditions Class E60 conditions Class E90 conditions
0 1.00 1.00 1.00
10 1.28 1.33 1.35
20 1.57 1.65 1.70
30 1.85 1.98 2.06
40 2.14 2.31 2.41
50 2.42 2.64 2.76
60 2.70 2.96 3.11
70 2.99 3.29 3.46
80 3.27 3.62 3.82
90 3.56 3.94 4.17
100 3.84 4.27 4.52
Table 3 – Coefficients of increase of resistance for cable conductors under fire conditions
The increased resistance must be taken into account in calculating the appropriate size of conductor to maintain volt-
age drop within required limits and to ensure that the protective circuits can operate effectively.
Sizing the cable requires a progressive assessment of current-carrying capacity, voltage drop, and short circuit perfor-
mance, with the selected size being the largest size. The next sections provide a process for selection using commonly
quoted 70 °C parameters.

3.2.1. Current-carrying capacity


Normally, the current-carrying capacity of a cable is specified as that which will result in a particular conductor tem-
perature rise under nominal installation conditions. Typically, cable tables give data for a 70 °C conductor tempera-
ture, which corresponds to a 40 K rise. Under PH90 conditions the surrounding temperature is 986 °C which is only
about 100 K below the melting point of copper. In order to ensure that the conductor does not melt – which would
be accompanied by a large increase in resistance, which would destroy integrity – it is necessary to limit the power
dissipated in the cable. A simple approach is to limit the power dissipated in the conductor under fire conditions to
a value similar to that in normal operation. However, as usual, the current value to be used is the rating of the protec-
tive device rather than the actual load current.
PH = IH2 RH ≤ PN = IN2 RN (7

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where:
PH is the power dissipated in a unit length of conductor at the load current under fire conditions, in Watts
IH is the nominal rating of the protective device, in Amps
RH is the resistance of a unit length of conductor under fire conditions, in Ω
PN is the power dissipated in a unit length of conductor for a conductor temperature of 70 °C
IN is the normal rated current of the conductor for a conductor temperature 70 °C
RN is the resistance of a unit length of conductor at 70 °C.
Hence,

IN2 RN IN2
IH2 ≤ =
RH m

IN
IH ≤ (8
m

The current carrying capacity, quoted for the cable for normal duty in embedded conduit, must therefore be √m times
the current carrying capacity required under fire conditions.
As an example, a cable is required to carry 10 A under PH90 conditions. The protective device is rated at 16 A so the
cable must have a current carrying capacity, at 70 °C conductor temperature, of √m times 16 A, i.e., 16 * 2.12 = 34 A.
As a result, a 10 mm2 conductor might be chosen.

3.2.2. Circuit protection


The protection of fire safety circuits is similar to that for other circuits – automatic disconnection of supply within the
required maximum time as specified in standard IEC 60364, Part 41 or in local derivatives.
Residual Current Circuit Breakers (RCCB) should not be used for protection of fire safety circuits because of the high
reliability requirements of the functions served. At the high temperatures involved, leakage currents between live
conductors and from live conductors to earth increase due to ionisation of the insulation leading to uncontrolled
tripping of RCCBs and loss of safety.
Because it is recommended that fire safety cables be installed in single un-jointed lengths it follows that each circuit
will be separate with a dedicated protective device at the origin. Obviously, it is essential that this distribution panel
is in a secure location where the risk of being affected by fire is minimised as far as possible.

Figure 7 – Characteristic of a typical miniature circuit breaker

9
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The characteristic curve of a typical circuit breaker is shown in Figure 7. The so-called ‘inverse time’ part of the characteris-
tic is designed to protect against over-current. It allows for substantial short overloads without tripping, because the rate
at which the cable conductor temperature rises due to the extra heat generated is relatively slow due to the high specific
heat of the copper conductors. As the over-current level increases, the time to respond reduces rapidly to restrict the rise
in temperature and reduce the risk of damage. The characteristic takes advantage of the inherent short time over-cur-
rent tolerance of the cable and allows short duration inrush currents to flow without tripping the breaker.
The instantaneous characteristic is intended to respond very rapidly to fault current. Fast action is needed because
fault currents are high enough to pose a high risk of damage to load circuits.
It must be remembered that the objective of protecting a fire safety cable under fire conditions is very different; in
normal circumstances the cable itself must be protected from damage to preserve its future service life but, under fire
conditions, the functionality of the service provided must be preserved while the cable has no remaining useful life.
In any event, the existence of a significant overload condition under fire conditions will inevitably lead to loss of the
circuit and the functionality of the load due to either cable damage or operation of the breaker. There are some miti-
gating factors. Firstly, the circuit is likely to supply fixed equipment so is not subject to random changes in the same
way as other final circuits and is not likely to be overloaded as long as it and the load equipment remains undamaged.
Secondly, the conductor is already oversized and so has a considerably higher thermal capacity than normal, giving
some protection against short overloads.
Protection against fault current is very important because a fault may pose a danger to rescue services and may be
the cause of fire spread. Meeting the fault current criterion requires that the loop impedances – both the line-neutral
and line-protective conductor loops – are sufficiently low for the protective device to operate if a fault should occur
at the remote end of the circuit. It must be remembered that the tolerance on the instantaneous trip current of circuit
breakers is rather wide – the actual trip current may be up to twice the nominal current.
Care should be taken to ensure that the protective device is capable of breaking the prospective short circuit current
at the source. This level is likely to be higher than normally encountered in a final circuit because the circuit origin is
likely to be electrically closer to the point of common coupling to improve resilience.
The unit conductor resistance under fire conditions is:
Rh = rm mΩ (9
where
Rh is the resistance of one metre of conductor under fire conditions, mΩ
r is the resistance of one metre of conductor at 70 °C (from cable tables), mΩ
m is found from Table 2.

The circuit loop impedance is


RH = rqL mΩ ( 10
where
RH is the loop resistance under fire conditions, in mΩ
r is the resistance of one metre of conductor at 70 °C (from cable tables), in mΩ
q is found from Table 3
L is the length of conductor in the loop, in metres.
Continuing the earlier example, the circuit breaker has a nominal current rating of 16 A and, for a class D
device, a maximum instantaneous breaking current of 640 A. The maximum permissible loop impedance is therefore
0.36 Ω.
A 10 mm2 conductor has a resistance of 2.8 mΩ per metre at a conductor temperature of 70 °C and 12.66 mΩ under
fire conditions. Given the maximum permissible loop resistance of 360 mΩ, the maximum length of 10 mm2 con-
ductor subject to fire would be around 28 metres – or a circuit length of just 14 metres. The conductor size must be
increased until a suitable size is found.

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3.2.3. Voltage drop


Because of the importance of voltage stability to the proper working of any electrical or electronic device, the voltage
drop between the incoming supply at the point of common coupling and the terminals of the end-use equipment
should be limited to 5% under normal conditions and 10% under emergency conditions.
If the protection conditions above have been met it is almost certain that the voltage drop requirement has also been
met; if the short circuit current under fire and fault conditions would be > 20 times the load current, then the volt-
age drop under fire conditions would be less than 5%. In case of doubt, the voltage drop can be calculated from the
resistance given by Equation 10.
However, there are two very important and related considerations:
• Some equipment, such as fire pumps, may be brought into use some time after the fire has developed. Equip-
ment of this type often requires very large starting currents and these must be taken into account if the
equipment is to be available for use when required.
• A fire safety circuit may supply a number of co-located items of equipment. In that case it is necessary to ex-
amine the effects of starting a heavy load on the performance of items already running. Some quite simple
devices, such as electromagnetic contactors, are very sensitive to reduced voltage operation. If the voltage
drop is too high contactors may release, shutting off other vital equipment, adversely affecting the ability to
fight the fire, survive in the immediate environment or make a safe escape.

3.3. Motor starting currents


Electrically driven fire pumps present a particular problem cause they draw starting currents many times higher than
the running current. The fire safety circuits supplying them must be designed to supply this starting current under
fire conditions.
Squirrel-cage induction motors are normally used in fire pumps drives because of their simple construction and high
reliability. However, their starting currents are normally five to eight times their nominal running current and the
power factor varies with load. Deep-bar or double-cage induction motors have much smaller starting currents and
higher starting torque than normal design squirrel-cage induction motors. In addition, the power factor of an induc-
tion motor is low during low-load starting. Larger motors – above 5.5 kW – are normally provided with starter systems
to reduce the starting current.
The motor torque is proportional to the square of the line voltage so a decrease in the supply voltage of only 10%
results in a torque decrease by 19%. An excessive voltage drop at the motor terminals may cause the motor to stall.
The speed-torque characteristics of a squirrel-cage induction motor, at different supply voltage values are shown in Figure 8.

UN
0,9UN

0,7UN

n
nS

Figure 8 – Speed-torque characteristic of a squirrel cage motor against supply voltage

11
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The voltage drop in a squirrel-cage induction motor feeder circuit during motor start should not exceed the values
given in Table 4.

Motor start type Permissible voltage drop ΔU [%]


Low-load starting 35
Heavy duty starting, frequent 15
Heavy duty starting, occasional 10
Table 4 – Permissible voltage dropduring motor starting
The voltage drop in a squirrel-cage induction motor feeder circuit during motor start can be calculated from the for-
mula [10]:

100 ∗ 3
ΔU% = ∗ (RT ∗ cos ϕr + X ∗ sin ϕr ) ∗ Ir ( 11
Un
where:
RT is the motor feeder circuit resistance under fire conditions, calculated using equation 6 or 7, in Ω
X is the motor feeder circuit reactance, in Ω
Un is nominal voltage, in Volts
IR is the motor starting current, according to manufacturer’s data, in Amps
ΔV% is the permissible percentage voltage drop at which starting can be guaranteed, according to manufac-
turer’s data
cosϕr is the power factor of the motor at start-up, according to manufacturer’s data.
Since the power factor of an induction motor is low during start-up, the reactance of the circuit should be taken into
account when calculating voltage drop.
Because of the high starting current and high circuit resistance, it will be necessary to oversize the circuit conductors
appreciably. Methods of reducing the starting current by wye-delta switching or soft starting1 should be considered,
although oversizing will still be necessary.

3.4. Physical installation


Having selected the appropriate cable, it must be installed using suitable accessories with a similar level of fire resis-
tance. The manufacturer’s restrictions on bending radius must be strictly observed and the mounting arrangements
should be such that the cable will not sag under fire conditions.

4. Conclusion
Fire safety circuits require a careful design if they are to perform well. The designer must take into account the in-
creased resistance of the conductors and the consequent effects on current carrying capacity, voltage drop and short
circuit capacity.
This paper has discussed how the standard 70 °C parameters can be used with simple multiplication factors to predict
performance.

(Endnotes)
1 ‘Basics for practical operation Motor starting’, Rockwell Automation, http://literature.rockwellautomation.com/
idc/groups/literature/documents/wp/mot-wp003_-en-p.pdf

This publication is subject to copyright and a disclaimer. Please refer to the Leonardo ENERGY website.

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