ZKG INTERNATIONAL No.

3-2007 (Volume 60)

Roland Mayerhofer1, Helmut Weiss2

1
Lehrstuhl für Aufbereitung und Veredlung, Montanuniversität Leoben/Austria
2
Institut für Elektrotechnik, Montanuniversität Leoben/Austria

Power and energy measurement at grinding plants

Summary: Measurements under laboratory conditions are taken as the basis for planning the
determination of torque, power and energy in industrial plants. For this purpose, the relationships
between current and power, as well as electrical energy are explained with reference to the standard
mill drive system using an induction machine. In addition, special points regarding the starting up of
an industrial plant and the technical mastery of the occurring electrical currents are discussed.
Electrical values that can be cheaply and precisely measured during plant operation, in combination
with a detailed loss model, allow the determination of the power input into the grinding process in a
practicable manner.

1 Introduction

Independent of the size of the machines used for the grinding process for fine and finest
comminution, the energy input is a central factor. The specific energy consumption of comminution
processes is defined as the quotient of the energy input for the mass subjected to stress. For
numerous products, the costs involved in the grinding process make up a large part of the overall
expenses or even determine the price of the product. In order to ensure the quality of the ground
product, permanent monitoring of the required dispersity characteristics is necessary. By means of a
practicable acquisition of the power and energy input data and their allocation to the quantity
produced, it is possible to effectively supervise the production process and optimize its efficiency.
Laboratory tests provide the corresponding basis for comparison. Based on the material’s grinding
Characteristics determined on the laboratory scale, industrial grinding plants are designed with
powers ranging from a few kW up to several MW. A grindability test apparatus with less than 1 ‰ of
the planned plant capacity delivers the required fundamental data. In order to permit the correct
application of the data provided by this test stand, all its details have to be precisely known.

2 Laboratory facilities

There are numerous laboratory processes which can be used in order to determine the
characteristics and specific values of a material for the purpose of describing grinding processes. As
a rule, these describe the comminution behaviour of the analysed material in a predefined process
Figure 1 illustrates the set-up of such a grindability test stand at the Chair of Mineral Processing,
Mining University of Leoben. The simple technical model of the test stand in the upper part of
Figure 1 consists of motor, gearbox, torque and speed measuring device and the mill. The
mechanical input power can be directly determined from the torque and the rotation speed of the mill
shaft. However, the real process is considerably more complicated. Shafts are not ideally rigid and
without mass, and the grinding process is characterized by greatly fluctuating torques. In an
extended dynamic model, torsion springs and additional rotating masses are implemented and
strongly fluctuating counter torques occur as excitation of the system. In this part of the test
arrangement (Fig. 1, photo below) the torque measuring shaft dominates as the central measuring
device.

The efficiency of the drive and the simple bearing assembly enforce a direct measurement of the
mechanical variables close to the grinding drum, in order to determine the grinding data of the
respective material with adequately high precision.

The torque measured in the laboratory (Fig. 2) shows the strong fluctuations that are typical of the
grinding process. Some individual peaks can be higher than ± 50 % of the mean value. In a
continuous grinding process, a practically constant mean value of the torque is already obtained
when the momentary values of the torque are averaged over a period of only a few seconds. In
simplified form the energy input of the mill can therefore be represented as a quasi-steady-state
process.

1
ZKG INTERNATIONAL No. 3-2007 (Volume 60)

1 Arrangement of a grindability test stands 2 Torque curve of the grinding process in the
grindability test stand
3 Industrial plants

3.1 Electrical variables instead of torque measurement

In the case of an industrial plant, it is not usual for the mechanical variable “torque at the mill shaft”
to be measured directly (Fig. 3). In view of the complexity of the system needed for this purpose,
and certainly the capital cost, as well as the probably short time of application before the equipment
is overloaded or even fails due to a torque peak, such a system appears impractical. Due to the
subsequent inertias, the direct measurement of the torque at the motor shaft would also result in a
reduction or alteration in the torque peaks caused by the grinding process. While the induction
machine is starting up with full voltage, steady-state and especially transient torques that are far
higher than the nominal torque also occur. These would cause failure or damage of the
measurement shaft unless it were acceptable to over dimension it to a point where there would be a
substantially higher margin of error at start-up than during nominal operation.

A more sensible and practicable alternative is the cost-effective data acquisition of electrical
variables. The voltage, current and power can be measured at the terminals of the machine by
simple means (Fig. 3). Taking the electromagnetic-mechanical conditions of the induction machine
into account, the electrical variables are utilized to calculate the mechanical variables of torque and
shaft output power.

3 Power measurement instead of torque measurement 4 Relationship between current input and
at an industrial plant mechanical power

3.2 Current measurement

An induction machine develops a torque as a result of the Lorenz force. The rotating field (magnetic
flux Ф) created at the stator by the mains voltage induces, at a relative speed between the rotating
field and the rotor, a voltage in the stator which causes a current in the rotor. The action of force
depends on the magnetic flux, the current and the angle between flux and current. There is no direct
relationship between the stator current and the torque. Anyhow, there is a distinct dependence on
the applied voltage. Current flows even when the machine is at idling. Changes in the terminal
voltage cause correspondingly high changes in the power and in the torque when the current is kept
constant (Fig. 4).
2
ZKG INTERNATIONAL No. 3-2007 (Volume 60)
Analysis of a typical mill drive motor shows that only in one point of operation (at slightly less than
half the rated power) can the current be directly allocated to a power. Only in this one point do, for a
reduction in voltage, the lower magnetization current and the increase in active current result in an
equally high total current. It is clear that the utilization of current as the sole characteristic value for
the power would result in very high margins of error in the determination of the power (e.g. ± 10 % of
the rated power).

3.3 Energy measurement

One simple and really cost-effective solution for the measurement of electrical energy (and power) is
the rotary current meter. Nowadays, electronic counters record electrical energy with a high degree
of accuracy, independent of the voltage and with high resolution. Even the flowing momentary power
can be read off. It can be recommended as a standard solution that a meter should be directly
allocated to every mill drive motor for recording the energy. This serves not only for calculation
purposes but also for monitoring the operation of the drive.

3.4 Power measurement

3.4.1 Current locus diagram of the induction machine

The induction machine can be simply analysed by means of the known equivalent circuit. On the
stator side, the absorbed active current and reactive current are determined as a factor of the speed.
When the active current portion is plotted on the vertical axis and the reactive current portion is
plotted on the horizontal axis, the usual representation of the current locus diagram is obtained
(Fig. 5). For constant values of the components of the equivalent circuit, the current locus diagram is
a circle or for the motor operation an arc. Commencing at a speed of zero (startup) it can be seen
that the rated current is greatly exceeded, mainly by reactive current. The break over point (n =
nbreakover) is finally reached at more than 90 % of the motor idling speed and results in the highest
torque, which can however only be delivered briefly. At approximately the nominal point (I = Inomimal, n
= nnomimal), the ratio of active current to reactive current is highest. At this point the greatest
displacement factor cos φ occurs (in the case of sinusoidal voltages and currents, this is equal to the
power factor).

5 Current locus diagram of the induction machine at constant voltage and frequency

The lowest current occurs when the motor is idling (n = no). A low torque of friction in the machine
has the effect that the rotor does not quite attain the speed of the rotating field. At an infinite speed
the current would be only theoretically determinable. The line between infinite speed and motor idling
speed (“torque line”) permits the torque to be determined with a good degree of approximation: the
plotted-in vertical lines from the current locus curve to the “torque line” are proportional to the
mechanical torque. This clearly illustrates the nonlinear relationship between the current and the
torque as a function of the speed. The very high current during the startup is also clear (e. g. steady-
state 4-fold rated current), as is the relatively low starting torque, particularly in the case of machines
with a high power, as a result of the low rotor resistance arising from the machine’s efficiency. In the
case of large grinding plants, the high starting current can cause an inadmissibly strong drop in
mains voltage. The following passages deal with improvement measures with regard to the startup of
an induction machine, which is also associated with high transient torque peaks.

3
ZKG INTERNATIONAL No. 3-2007 (Volume 60)
3.4.2 Startup of an induction machine

3.4.2.1 Soft starting

The so-called soft starting circuit is an appropriate method of reducing the starting current with a
minimum of equipment. This circuit consists of antiparallel thyristors, which are switched in two
phases and are phase controlled (by changing the control angle). The firing angle of the thyristors is
altered as a function of the current, so that approximately constant current amplitude can be
regulated during the motor acceleration. However, this also affects the flux-determining voltage and
with the magnetic flux of the machine ultimately also has a very substantial effect on the torque
(Fig. 6).

6 Current locus diagram at variable voltage and constant 7 Starting torque of the induction machine
Frequency at variable voltage and constant frequency

At a voltage that has been reduced to approx. 25 % of the nominal value by the phase step control,
the associated semicircle of the current locus diagram is also only 25 % and the startup current can
be kept to the amplitude of the rated current. The voltage is increased only gradually and typically
does not reach 50 % of the nominal value until more than 90 % of the speed is attained. The starting
point is indicated by the reduction in voltage with associated reduction in torque in the form of the
vertical current lines. The flux, which is also proportional to the voltage, has an additional effect.
Particularly the starting torque will be very small and the startup of the grinding plant is called into
question. Figure 7 clearly shows the quadratic course of the torque as a function of the voltage, as
both the current I and the flux Ф decrease in line with the voltage. A soft starting circuit limits the
starting current perfectly, but makes the torque of the machine particularly “gentle” and possibly
inadequate.

3.4.2.1 Power converter feeding

Three-phase converters, such as that shown in Figure 8, generate a variable amplitude and variable
frequency three-phase voltage from the 50 Hz three-phase voltage. This enables the achievement of
a pre-set table torque independent of the speed. The mill drive only requires motorized operation,
and for that reason the mains current converter is executed on the left as a Diode current rectifier.
The DC link capacitor decouples the three-phase network from the machine side. The standard type
machine-side converter is a pulse-controlled inverter with turn-off semiconductors in the form of
IGBTs (Isolated Gate Bipolar Transistors) within the power range from kilowatt up to and exceeding
several megawatts. Pulse width modulated (PWM) voltage blocks are sent to the induction machine.
Their fundamental wave produces the voltage that is appropriate for the momentary speed in
amplitude and frequency. Depicted in strongly simplified form, the inductances of the induction
machine reduce the harmonic contents in the current, so that the machine develops a torque which
follows the pre-set table set point value and only displays a low proportion of undesirable oscillating
torque (as an interaction between the fundamental wave flux and the harmonics in the current, with
pulse frequency and higher).

Figure 9 describes the torque via the speed as a function of frequency and voltage. This produces
the known course of the torque over the speed, highlighted for 100 % (excitation) voltage and
frequency, corresponding to the associated current locus diagram shown in Figure 5. If the torque
does not exceed the nominal torque close to the rated speed, then the current also does not exceed
the rated current. In the fundamental speed range, i.e. below the rated frequency, any desired
torque-speed point can now be approached with the aid of the frequency inverter.

4
ZKG INTERNATIONAL No. 3-2007 (Volume 60)
In continuous grinding operation only the narrow range of the current between idling operation and
nominal torque is utilized, with some torque peaks which exceed the nominal. The required torque
determines the current, while the speed – taking account of the machine’s slip – produces the
required frequency. Hereby, the flux in the machine is kept constant. This requires a reduced speed
and a simultaneous decrease in the internal excitation voltage proportional to the frequency (the
external terminal voltage is slightly higher due to the voltages, at stator resistance and stator leakage
inductance).

8 Converter with intermediate voltage circuit 9 Speed/torque curve with power supply via converter

Even at standstill, the nominal torque can be reached without the current exceeding the rated
current. In the selected example this requires 2.5 % of the rated voltage as excitation voltage and 2.5
% of the rated frequency. The 2.5 % are selected for reasons of better present ability and
approximately correspond to a machine of 30 kW. A 1 MW machine would be in the range of about 1
% of the rated voltage and rated frequency. The stated 2.5 % of the rated speed is also attained in
idling condition. With a rising torque the speed declines, so that the machine just comes to a
standstill at the nominal torque. When supplied via the converter, the induction machine shows
absolutely satisfactory line behaviour. The displacement factor cos φ rises from approx. 0.85 in the
case of direct connection to 50 Hz to a power factor of approx. 0.95, which is determined by the
connection to the diode rectifier. The startup can be performed with a high torque (presupposing an
acceleration control unit, e.g. with nominal torque) without exceeding the rated current. This also
permits variable-speed operation, which allows an even better adaptation to changes in production
conditions (feed material, throughput, etc.).

3.4.3 Loss balance

The ultimately effective power in the grinding plant is the supplied power minus the losses. These
losses are shown here for the industrial grinding plant in nominal operation (Fig. 10). For reasons of
better present ability, the energy fluxes are not depicted true to scale. The converter will dissipate
approx. 4 % of its electrical power intake as lost heat. The additional losses of the induction
machine, caused by various parasitic effects such as current displacement in the stator winding,
eddy currents in massive structural elements of the machine and high iron losses due to load, are
estimated to be 1 %. Referred to nominal operation, it is typical for an induction machine in the 1 MW
range to have approx. 2 % stator-copper losses (= Joulean heat losses in the stator winding),
approx. 1 % iron losses at 50 Hz direct on-line operation or approx. 2 % iron losses if supplied via
converter, plus a further 2 % rotor-copper loss (= Joulean heat losses in the rotor winding). After
deduction of all these losses, the mechanical power developed by the induction machine remains. A
comparatively large portion of this, roughly estimated to be 10 % of the electrical power intake, is
ultimately due to mechanical power dissipation due to friction and air circulation within the machine,
at the fan of the machine and in the gearbox. Altogether, approximately 80 % of the power intake
actually reaches the grinding process of an industrial grinding plant. The loss components of the
industrial plant can be determined by means of tests and applied calculation methodics within narrow
margins of error (approx. ± 1 % of the power intake). This means that the margins of error of the loss
calculation are about as high as those of a possible, but not actually practicable torque measurement
by measurement shaft. It is therefore not necessary to have a direct torque and speed measurement
in order to determine the grinding plant's mechanical power intake with a narrow margin of error. A
laboratory setup as grindability test stand primarily serves for the determination of material
characteristics so that no special effectiveness is demanded. Viewed in this light, the 50 % losses of
the laboratory system appear unproblematic, also because of the direct torque measurement at the
mill shaft.

5
ZKG INTERNATIONAL No. 3-2007 (Volume 60)

10 Loss balance (power dissipation diagram without scale)

When the power is being supplied via a converter, the electrical power and energy can be measured
at the supply network side, in the intermediate circuit of the converter or directly at the machine side.
The possible measuring points are depicted in Figure 8. For the supply network side, the described
rotary current meters can be employed. As the currents are pure alternating currents with a DC
portion of practically zero, passive current transformers can be used. The converter control normally
provides converter-internal variables, such as DC link voltage Ud and DC link current Id, as
potential-free signal variables. These can be utilized directly for calculating the power. Due to the
limited accuracy of the converter-internal signals, it can be very expedient to calibrate the power
determined in this manner on the basis of the power on the supply side.

As a basic principle, power measurement directly at the terminals of the induction machine would
also be possible. However, the voltage and the current contain a high portion of harmonics.
Figure 11 depicts the temporal courses of the voltage (voltage blocks, channel 1, top) and current
(with pronounced peaks, channel 2, bottom) at a converter with a low pulse frequency. Due to the
small portion of DC that may be in the voltage and current at the converter, which are irrelevant for
the machine itself because of its air gap, special, normally current-compensating transducers are
required for the measurement.

11 Voltage and current at converter output (fundamental wave 50 Hz)

6
ZKG INTERNATIONAL No. 3-2007 (Volume 60)
At the output of the converter, i.e. directly at the terminals of the machine, special and therefore
really expensive power measuring devices are necessary due to the clearly visible harmonic content
of the voltage (top) and current (bottom). A continuous measurement of the operation is not
recommendable here for reasons of expense, although a calibration measurement could be
performed during the commissioning.

4 Conclusions

In the case of laboratory systems, torque measurement is expedient, while at industrial plants power
measurement is practical. Measurement of the current does not permit conclusions to be drawn
about the power output. Drives supplied with power via a converter represent an optimum solution
for heavy starting conditions and are attracting more and more interest for operational reasons, too.
In the case of large machines, measurement of the electrical power intake by means of a detailed
loss model provides an insight into the mechanical power. The simplest way to measure the power is
directly at the supply side.

Prospects: Small machines show high relative resistance values and thus display shorter time
constants (L/R). It is to be expected that laboratory machines run more in steady-state than industrial
scale plants, in which both the power and the time constants are considerably higher. Induction
machines can thus display transient processes and are, together with the oscillatory parts of the
structure, a very complex electro-mechanical entity. Simulations can clarify the conditions and
provide the basis for enhanced models. Measurements, also performed at large plants, should be
used to verify the derived findings.