Thermistor motor protection

A Thermistor is a small non-linear resistance sensor, which can be

embedded within the insulation of a motor winding, to provide a close thermal
association with the winding. It’s made from a metal oxide or semiconductor
material.

Thermistor motor protection

Thermistor is a small non-linear resistance sensors, which can be embedded
within the insulation of a motor winding, to provide a close thermal association
with the winding. It’s made from a metal oxide or semiconductor material.

Practical tips for installation and using of motor thermistor protection (on photo:
10k NTC glass thermistor installed in electric motor; credit: endless-
sphere.com)
The relationship between resistance and temperature is non-linear and the
resistance varies strongly with small temperature changes around the set point.

By correct positioning, thermistors can be located close to the thermally

critical areas, or hot-spots, of the winding, where they closely track the
copper temperature with a certain time lag, depending on the size of the
thermistors and how well they are installed in the winding.
Thermistors are most easily inserted into the non-rotating parts of motors, such
as the stator winding in an AC motor or the interpole and field windings of a DC
motor.

4 thermistor advantages
The main advantages of thermistors are:
1. Their small size allows them to be installed in direct contact with the
stator winding.
2. Their low thermal inertia gives rapid and accurate response to winding
temperature changes.
3. They measure temperature directly irrespective of how these
temperatures are initiated.
4. They can be used to detect overload conditions in motors driven by
frequency converters.
The temperature coefficient can be positive (PTC – positive temperature
coefficient), where the resistance increases withtemperature, or negative (NTC
– negative temperature coefficient), where the resistance decreases with
temperature.

Figure 1 – Characteristic curve of a PTC thermistor sensor to IEC TC2

RRT is Rated response temperature. IEC specified temperature/resistance

limits are clearly marked
The type most commonly used in industry is the PTC
thermistor, whose typical resistance characteristic is
shown in the curve above.
The resistance at normal temperatures is relatively low and remains nearly
constant up to the rated response temperature (RRT). As the RRT is
approached and exceeded, the gradient of the resistance increases sharply,
giving the PTC thermistor a high sensitivity to small changes of
temperature.

At the set point, a temperature rise of a few degrees results in a large increase
in resistance. The resistance is monitored by a thermistor protection relay
(TPR) and, when the sharp change in resistance is detected by the thermistor
protection relay (TPR), it operates a contact to initiate an alarm or to trip the
protected device.
Thermistor protection relays are required to trip reliably
when the sensor resistance rises above about 3 kΩ.
They will also respond to an open circuit, either in the cable or the thermistor
sensor, thus providing fail-safe protection. Modern TPRs are also designed to
detect a thermistor sensor short circuit, when sensor resistance falls below
about 50 Ω.

Figure 2 – Thermistor motor safety relay (on photo: Hiquel in-case Thermistor-
motor safety relay ICM 24Vac)
The specified operating levels are:
1. Thermistor over-temperature protection according to IEC:
• Response level = 3300 Ω± 100 Ω
• Reset level = 1650 Ω± 100 Ω
2. Thermistors short-circuit protection according to IEC:
• Response level ≤ 15 Ω
In AC variable speed drives, PTC thermistors are commonly used to protect
the AC squirrel cage motor fed from inverters. Many modern AC converters
have a thermistor protection unit built into the converter, avoiding the
requirement for a separate thermistor protection relay.
In DC motors, PTC thermistor sensors are increasingly used instead of
microtherms, which are described in the section above. The rated response
temperatures (RRT), which are commonly selected for the various classes of
insulation on electric motors, are summarized in the table in Figure 3.

Figure 3 – Typical temperature level settings used on rotating electrical

machines
Insulation class Rated temperature Alarm temperature Trip temperature

Class B 120°C 120°C 130°C

Class F 140°C 140°C 150°C

Class H 165°C 165°C 175°C

Due to the relatively slow transfer of heat to the sensors through the insulation
medium, PTC thermistors do not provide sufficiently fast protection for short
circuits in motors or transformers. Also, since they are usually located in the
stator windings, they do not provide adequate protection for rotor critical motors
or for high inertia starting or stalled rotor conditions.
In these cases, to achieve complete protection, it is recommended that PTC
thermistors should be used in combination with electronic motor protection
relays, which monitor the primary current drawn by the motor.
The application of PTC thermistors as temperature sensors is only
effective when:
1. The rated response temperature (RRT) of the thermistor is correctly
selected for the class of insulation used on the winding.
2. The thermistors are correctly located close to the thermally critical
areas.
 3. There is a low thermal resistance between the winding and the PTC
thermistor. This depends on the electrical insulation between the
winding and the thermistor. Since thermistors need to be isolated from
high voltages, it is more difficult to achieve a low heat transfer
resistance in HV motors, which have greater insulation thickness.

Figure 4 – Motor temperature sensor (credit: endless-sphere.com)

Several thermistor sensors may be connected in series in a single sensor
circuit, provided that the total resistance at ambient temperatures does not
exceed 1.5 kΩ. In practice, and as recommended by IEC, up to six thermistor
sensors can be connected in series.
For a 3-phase AC motor, two thermistor sensors are usually provided in each of
the 3 windings and connected in two series groups of three. One group can be
used for alarm and the other group for tripping of the motor. The alarm group is
usually selected with a lower rated response temperature (RRT), typically 5°C
or 10°C lower than the tripping group.
If the operator takes no action, the tripping group is used to trip the motor
directly to prevent damage to the winding insulation.

In many cases, users choose both groups to have the

same RRT. In this case, only one group of thermistors is
used (one in each phase) and these are then used for
tripping the motor. This provides for one spare
thermistor in each phase.
The physical location of the thermistor sensors in an AC motor depends on the
construction of the motor, whether it has a cylindrical rotor or salient pole rotor,
and several other design and manufacturing variables. In some cases, the
optimum location may have to be determined from test experience.

Figure 5 – Thermistor protection relay (on photo: 2 Used ABB Thermistor Motor
Protection Monitoring Relay; credit: eBay)

Thermistor protection relay

Thermistor protection relay (TPR) is designed for mounting inside a control
cubicle or motor control center (MCC), usually on standard terminal rail. The
Figure 6 shows a typical connection of two thermistor protection relays, and
their associated groups of thermistor sensors.
For alarm and trip control of a 3-phase AC induction motor. The performance of
thermistor protection relays can be affected by external electrical interference,
where voltages can be induced into the sensor cable.
Consequently, cables between the thermistor protection relay and the PTC
thermistor sensors should be selected and installed with a view to minimizing
the effects of induced noise.

Cables should be kept as short as possible and should

avoid running close to noisy or high voltage cables
over long distances!

Figure 6 – Typical connection of thermistor protection relays

During testing, care should be taken not to megger across the thermistors as
this can damage them!! The correct procedure is to connect all the thermistor
leads together and to apply the test voltage between them and earth or the
phases.
Some practical recommendations for the type of cables that should be used are
as follows:

• Distances ≤ 20 m – Standard parallel cable is acceptable

• Distances ≥ 20 m, ≤100 m – Twisted pair cable is necessary
• Distances ≥ 100 m – Screened twisted pair (STP) cable is
necessary
• High level of interference – Screened twisted pair (STP) cable is
necessary
The screen should be earthed at one end only
For cable distances to the sensors of greater than 200 meters, the cross-
sectional area of the conductors should also be considered. The following are
recommended:
Figure 7 – Recommended cable size to thermistor sensors
Conductor cross-section Maximum length Type of cable

0.5 mm2 200 m Screened twisted pair (screen earthed at one end only)

0.75 mm2 300 m Screened twisted pair (screen earthed at one end only)

1.0 mm2 400 m Screened twisted pair (screen earthed at one end only)

1.5 mm2 600 m Screened twisted pair (screen earthed at one end only)

2.5 mm2 1000 m Screened twisted pair (screen earthed at one end only)