Availability Improvement of Induction Motors through Condition Monitoring

Failure of induction motor leads to decrease in availability of the system and increase in cost of maintenance due to downtime. However, these motors do not fail randomly, its failure is a result of propagation of fault for prolonged period of time. Effective utilization of time interval between potential failure and functional failure can help maintenance mangers to improve availability of the system by reducing repair/ replacement time. Typical interval in case of induction motors varies from few weeks to few months, depending on the type of fault. Early detection of potential failure may give maintenance managers sufficiently large time to arrange the necessary equipment for system maintenance. There are several condition monitoring techniques available for fault diagnosis of induction motors, which helps in early detection of various faults. However, each fault has its unique signature and can be diagnosed using a suitable technique only. Incorrect selection of fault diagnostic technique may not be able to find the fault at any point in P-F interval (potential failure to functional failure) and may result in higher losses due to sudden breakdown as well as the expenses made on condition monitoring facility. This paper discusses the impact of condition monitoring on availability improvement of induction motors and proposes different strategies for performing condition monitoring along with their significance.