Energy Efficiency of VDs: A Series of Performance Tests for Variable Speed Drive Systems

A SERIES OF IEEE 112A PERFORMANCE tests were conducted in 1999 and 2000 by Motor Systems Resource Facility (MSRF), Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon. The results of those tests were reported in a paper presented in June 2001 at the IEEE/IAS Pulp and Paper Industry Committee (PPIC) Technical Conference in Portland, Oregon. This article suggests a similar series of performance tests for variable speed drive (VSD) systems. Most applications for VSD systems involve variable torque loads—such as fans and centrifugal pumps—where the load power varies as the cube of the speed.