Pushing the performance envelope with ABB’s premium low voltage motors

Stefan Floeck , Division President IEC Low Voltage Motors, ABB Motion , explains how premium motors offers the capability to transform industrial operations by embedding advanced energy efficiency technology supported by domain expertise and a commitment to sustainability.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) concluded in its recently updated Net Zero Roadmap that a pathway to limiting global warming to 1.5 °C by 2030 is very challenging – but remains open. The good news is that 80 percent of the required reduction in emissions can come from known sources like improving energy efficiency.

This is particularly important for industry, where few cost-competitive clean energy options are available. Therefore, the best stopgap is to use existing energy resources as efficiently as possible. Motor driven systems are a prime area of focus since they represent 65 percent of industrial electricity use. Furthermore, they are estimated to account for 60 percent of the growth in energy demand over the past decade.

To illustrate the size of the opportunity, if the 300 million-plus industrial electric motor-driven systems operating today were replaced with optimized, high-efficiency alternatives, worldwide electricity consumption could be cut by up to 10 percent – equivalent to more than the annual power consumption of Poland.

The upfront cost of high-efficiency motors is sometimes seen as an obstacle to investment. However, purchase price is just a small fraction of the overall total cost of ownership (TCO). The most significant contributor to a motor’s TCO is the cost of the electricity used to power it over a typical life of 15 years. For efficient motors, the upfront cost is just 2 percent of its TCO, while maintenance accounts for 1 percent and the remaining 97 percent goes to electricity.

This means that more efficient motors can pay for themselves swiftly, with payback periods of only a few months when energy prices are high. While energy prices and markets continue to be volatile, energy efficiency offers a way for operators to minimize risk. And of course, using less electricity to run motors also reduces carbon emissions when a facility uses power generated from non-renewable sources.

Premium motors match performance to the application

While energy efficiency is crucial, it is just one aspect of motor performance that must also include power, reliability, and durability. Continuous reliable operation with no risk of costly downtime is essential for a motor to deliver its promised TCO. This is why at ABB we have incorporated over 140 years of domain expertise into our Premium portfolio of high-performance motors, tailored to meet the unique needs of every industrial application.?

For example, the water and wastewater industries consume a great deal of energy to keep clean water flowing, and the demand is ever increasing. This has prompted operators worldwide to adopt IE5 ultra-premium efficiency synchronous reluctance (SynRM) motors to drive their pumps and keep processes running.

In the food and beverage industry, variable loads and speeds are a challenge for processes like chocolate production. This calls for liquid-cooled SynRM technology to deliver high power density and ultra-premium efficiency from a highly compact footprint.

Meanwhile, chemical processing is the second largest industrial energy consumer, often operating in uniquely hazardous environments. Our Increased Safety ultra-premium energy efficiency motor is the world‘s first IE5 SynRM certified for potentially explosive atmospheres.

For machine building, our high-dynamic performance (HDP) motors are designed to offer a competitive edge as designers strive for high productivity levels and consistent quality. By delivering high power output within a compact footprint they create new opportunities for upgrading or developing new and innovative machine designs.

Circularity by design

ABB’s 2030 sustainability strategy aims to have 80 percent of our products and solutions covered by a circularity approach and to send zero waste from our operations to landfill. Our motors are already designed to be up to 98 percent recyclable, with the remaining two percent of materials available to be incinerated for heat recovery.

We are also collaborating with partners to boost our use of recycled materials. Just one example is our arrangement with Boliden, the mining and smelting company, to purchase low-carbon and recycled copper to cover the demand for our SynRM motors produced in Europe.

Looking ahead, we aim to make even greater use of sustainable materials. This approach is featured in a current development project that has seen the cradle to gate CO2 footprint of a demonstrator IE5 SynRM motor cut by 20 percent. Further refinements could eventually bring this down by 60 percent – with no impact on performance.

Domain expertise is key

With global clean energy policies ramping up, industrial operators in every sector will have to upgrade their technology. Investing in energy efficient motors now will save money in the long run as well as helping to keep the world on track to achieve its carbon reduction goals.

There is no substitute for domain expertise when it comes to selecting the ideal motor. This is where ABB’s knowhow and wide range of motors can make the difference in ensuring the levels of performance and reliability essential for optimized total cost of ownership.

Learn more about ABB’s low voltage motors here: https://new.abb.com/motors-generators/iec-low-voltage-motors