Regenerative drives in the megawatt range for high-performance downhill belt conveyors

Jose Rodríguez, Jorge Pontt, Norbert Becker, Alejandro Weinstein

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

57 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Downhill transport of ore from the mine to the beneficiation plant by means of belt conveyors introduces important advantages both for the personnel and for the equipment Furthermore, if the conveyor is equipped with a regenerative ac drive, the system will generate an important amount of electrical energy for use in the process. This paper discusses the technical alternatives and the criteria used to select a solution, using modern converter-inverter drives in the megawatt and medium-voltage range. The considered drive alternatives are: 1) an ac wound-rotor induction motor drive with additional resistors; 2) an ac synchronous motor with cycloconverter; 3) an ac induction motor with current-source inverter; and 4) an induction motor with multilevel voltage. source inverter. The study reveals that, considering the main technical criteria, the use of a three-level active front end feeding a voltage-source three-level inverter is the most appropriate alternative.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)203-210
Number of pages8
JournalIEEE Transactions on Industry Applications
Volume38
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2002

Keywords

  • AC motor drives
  • Conveyors
  • Induction motor drives
  • Mining industry

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Control and Systems Engineering
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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