Motor Component Selection Criteria

 Direct Online (DOL) Starter Sizing- the IEC and NEMA way - Part 2
 The DOL starting sizing as per NEMA standard, the calculation, and its selection
methodology were covered in the previous article. We will examine starter sizing as per
IEC in this article. IEC 60947-4-1 Edition 4.0 2018-10 (Contactors and motor-starters -
Electromechanical contactors and motor-starters) governs the selection of starter
components, tests (routine, type, sampling and special) carried out on the starter,
selection & coordination of the switchgear.
 The direct-online starter, as in IEC 60947-4-1 (ultimately derived from IEC 60050-
441:2000, 441-14-40), is defined as "starter which connects the line voltage across the
motor terminals in one step". The one-step or single-step there is no intermediate
accelerating position between the OFF and ON positions. The contactor, overload relay
(also known as stall relay) and a short circuit protective device (which may include
overload protection as well) together forms a starter. If the SCPD is equipped with
overload protection, then you may not need an overload relay.
1. What is coordination and significance of type-2 coordination ?

 This IEC regulation also applies to NEMA items. It can be obtained by using a
contactor or starter. After short-circuit conditions, the starter must be reusable
according to the protection type. IEC standards forbid any material modifications to the
overload relay's working time-current features.
 This standard for coordinated protection is applicable to both NEMA and IEC. NEMA,
however, offers a wider range of short-circuit protecting equipment. There is a small
variety of fuses with IEC-inspired devices.
 It's also important to note that IEC products are more prone to being thrown away than
repaired. The majority of those with current ratings below 100A cannot be maintained;
instead, they must be taken from a DIN rail and replaced with a new part.
 Coordination is the process of choosing devices for a system or assembly, such as a
switchboard, based on how they function alongside one another. A poorly coordinated
system can either damage the equipment or render the protection device useless.
Motor protection involves two types of coordination - Type 1 and Type 2. The standard
IEC 60364-5-53 (Selection and erection of electrical equipment – Devices for protection
for safety, isolation, switching, control and monitoring) gives deeper insights about the
coordination and selectivity of protective devices. Type of motor-protection coordination
(as per 8.2.5.1 in IEC 60947-4-1) can be explained as below:
 Type 1: The contactor or starter must not endanger people and the installation, and it
could not be acceptable for additional service without repairs and part replacements.
 Type 2: The contactor or starter must not endanger people or the installation and must
be fit for further use. If contact welding danger is acknowledged, the manufacturer must
specify the precautions to be taken with relation to equipment maintenance.
 Use of an SCPD not in compliance with the manufacturer's recommendations can
invalidate the coordination. This clearly means that if a system deviates the SCPD
rating from the manufacturer type-2 coordination chart, if published, there will be no
coordination guaranteed. See below image for coordination of a starter.
 The overload relay, as mentioned in Part 1, basically mimics the heat generated in a
motor coil and it trips the circuit if unusually high current stays for a longer time. The
short circuit protection provides protection against SC. However, all components are
coordinated such that none of them cause nuisance tripping.
 A typical squirrel cage induction motor may have starting current of 6 times the rated
current. Hence care should be taken to select the SCPD not to trip during the starting of
the motor. At the same time, if the motor is stalled, OLR should trip the circuit without
causing further damage to the coils due to insulation burnout, but shouldn't trip during
starting. As shown in figure 2, the Ics (serviceable short circuit current) should be such
that it should be higher than peak starting current, but should successfully interrupt the
prospective short circuit current in the event of fault. The overload relay shall interrupt
ILRC ( locked rotor current) only after it's set trip time (discussed later what are trip
class). The contactor should withstand ILRC, Icd and Ie (rated operational current)
without damaging itself. Thus if these components are properly coordinated, then we
can achieve optimal motor performance and protect it from unwanted faults.
 Utilization categories and its importance in starter.

 The utilization category of an equipment describes the intended application and must
be defined in the appropriate product standard. While designing the IEC starters it is
important to know the concept of utilization categories. The switching capability of a
contactor is majorly dependent on the utilization categories. Table 1, IEC 60947-4-1
specifies the contactor utilization categories. While the table is an exhaustive list of
various application, the most commonly used utilization category is:
 AC-3: Squirrel-cage motors: starting, switching off motors during running, reversing.
 AC-3e: Squirrel-cage motors: with higher locked rotor current starting, switching off
motors during running, reversing.
 AC-4: Squirrel-cage motors: starting, plugging, inching.
 AC-3 and AC-4 are the most commonly encountered in the industry.
 Every application has its significance and indicates different parameters such as
starting current, power factor, rated voltage, number of operating cycles, thus enabling
user to select the contactor based on the making and breaking capacities. The
calculation is explained in the further section.
 It is important to know the rated making and breaking capacity of a contactor which is
specified by the manufacturer.
1) Trip class of overload relays.

Thermal or electronic overload relays are used to safeguard motors from overloads, but
they must permit the brief overload that results from starting of the motor and must not
trigger unless the starting period is very long. Overload or thermal protection is I2t
IDMT (Inverse Definite Minimum Time).
 The motor starting time can range from a few seconds (for no-load starting, low
resistive torque, etc.) to many tens of seconds (for a high resistive torque, high inertia
of the driven load, etc.), depending on the application. Relays must be installed
according to the start time, therefore.
 IEC Standard 60947-4-1, Table 2 defines a number of types of overload relays to

satisfy this criterion, each of which is distinguished by its own tripping curve. The
nominal motor current and the estimated starting time should be used to determine the
relay rating. Some of the frequently used trip classes are as followed:
a. Class 10: Adapted to normal duty motors is trip class 10.

b. Class 20: It is advised for heavy duty motors to use trip class 20.
c. Class 30: In order to start with a very long start time motor, trip class 30 is
required.
 See below Figure 3 for selecting the overload relays based on their trip class. Refer
Figure 2 to assimilate the overload trip class with motor's current-time characteristics.
1. Example of starter sizing.
1. Consider a 10 HP squirrel cage Induction motor with Direct On-Line (DOL) starting.
Rated Current of the motor In = 15A . Calculated prospective current = 25kA
Solution:
2. Selection of contactor
Motor Operation in AC-3 Utilization category
3. Normal Operation
Making current of the contactor = 6×In = 90A
Breaking current of the contactor = In = 15A
4. Abnormal operation
Making current of the contactor = 10×In = 150A
Breaking current of the contactor = 8×In = 120A
5. Selection of OLR
6. As explained earlier, the most typical trip classes are 5, 10, 20, and 30. According to
these classifications, the overload relay should trip after 5, 10, 20, and 30 seconds. The
tripping often occurs at 720% of its maximum load. Trip Class 10 is typically used for
motors with little thermal capacity, such as submersible pumps, while Trip Class 5 is
best for motors that require quick tripping. For general-purpose applications, Class 10
and Class 20 are used, but Class 30 is used for loads with considerable inertia. Class
30 relays reduce unnecessary tripping.
7. For our example, we have to set the trip to 720% of FLA.
1. Trip class: Application dependent
2. Trip setting: 720%×Rated current = 108A.
3. This implies, that if such overload current flows through the circuit for more than 30
seconds, then the overload relay should trip (if class 30). Keep in mind, that regarding
the ambient temperature we need to consider any necessary derating factors. Let's
assume no derating is required for this example.
8. Selection of SCPD.
9. The rated current of SCPD should be greater than the starting current of the motor (6 or
7.2×In) in order to ensure no nuisance tripping occurs.
10. Rated current : 7.2×In = 108A.
11. Motor breaking current > Calculated prospective short-circuit current.
12. Motor trip curve should be suitable for the motor's characteristics and desired level of
protection.
13. Thus, in this section we learned how the IEC starters are selected. Here are some of
the advantages over NEMA starters:
1. Compact Size: IEC starters are generally more compact in size compared to NEMA
starters. This can be advantageous in applications where space is limited or when
motor control panels need to be more streamlined. An IEC starter often measures less
than half as much as a comparable NEMA starter. The physical differences are minimal
above 100A, though.
2. Cost: Less expensive than NEMA Starters.
3. Modularity: Modular design allows for easy replaceability. IEC products can snap on
DIN rails up to 75mm in width and are more adaptable and modular in nature. This
eliminates the requirement to drill individual mounting holes for every component. It is
then rather simple to incorporate them into a panel.
4. Selection: IEC emphasizes space and money savings. Utilization categories are used
to assess products in accordance with their intended use. NEMA on the other hand,
gives broad range under a single selection, which makes it rugged, but expensive and
overkill.

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 Direct Online (DOL) Starter Sizing- the IEC and NEMA way - Part 2

1. What is coordination and significance of type-2 coordination ?

 Utilization categories and its importance in starter.

 AC-4: Squirrel-cage motors: starting, plugging, inching.

1) Trip class of overload relays.

 IEC Standard 60947-4-1, Table 2 defines a number of types of overload relays to

a. Class 10: Adapted to normal duty motors is trip class 10.

1. Example of starter sizing.

Motor Operation in AC-3 Utilization category

Making current of the contactor = 6×In = 90A

Breaking current of the contactor = In = 15A

Making current of the contactor = 10×In = 150A

Breaking current of the contactor = 8×In = 120A

7. For our example, we have to set the trip to 720% of FLA.

1. Trip class: Application dependent

2. Trip setting: 720%×Rated current = 108A.

10. Rated current : 7.2×In = 108A.

11. Motor breaking current > Calculated prospective short-circuit current.

2. Cost: Less expensive than NEMA Starters.

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