Electricity consumption is growing worldwide. Innovative motors from FEEC BUT save up to 20% of energy
Research team leader Jan Bárta from FEEC BUT | Author: Václav Koníček
The more economical permanent magnet motors can be powered directly from the single-phase mains. Experts from FEEC BUT have designed unique synchronous machines within the TAČR project that minimize electrical losses and thus meet the new stricter standards of the European Commission. They can be used in heat pumps, ventilation systems or large household appliances such as washing machines and refrigerators. In fact, electric motors consume around 30-40% of all electricity.
According to a technical report by McKinsey & Company, electricity consumption is growing by up to 1.1% per year. By 2050, total consumption could be up to 40% higher in the European Union alone. Reducing energy intensity is therefore one of the prerequisites for sustainable development.
"There is great potential for energy savings. Every percentage that can be saved in electric motor consumption adds up to big numbers. That is why the EU is imposing increasingly stringent requirements for high efficiency of electrical machines and minimisation of losses," explains Jan Bárta, head of the research team from FEEC BUT. In response to the new European Commission regulation, the TAČR project therefore developed new motor models for the South Moravian company EMP.
It is the use of permanent magnets that can ensure high energy savings - the machine immediately goes into synchronous operation, where the rotor rotates at a constant speed.
The energy losses that occur in the cage winding of a standard motor are eliminated. And while in asynchronous machines the magnetisation of the circuit is provided only by the mains, in permanent magnet motors the magnetisation is largely provided by the permanent magnets and thus requires less supply current.
Unique single-phase motors from FEEC BUT with permanent magnets | Author: Václav Koníček
The FEEC research team designed a total of 10 prototype engines in different sizes and for different speeds. Some of the machines allow saving 10-20% of electricity and thus meet the highest efficiency class IE4.
"This is a great result, because for single-phase mains-powered machines, even achieving IE2 class is a big challenge," says Bárta of the three-year development. Now the experts are looking forward to the implementation phase and the creation of a verification series. In the coming months, EMP should start pre-series production so that the greener motors can be sold in standard series production as early as next year.
The project was co-financed with state support from the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic under the THÉTA 3 Programme.
