[RE-wrenches] Oddball pumping question

[William Dorsett]

Very good suggestion, Chris. There was (~2003) an electronic soft start
mostly designed for Franklin motors used in PV pumping applications. Surely
they've become more sophisticated in the mean time. At the time it was
Golden Photon who was working on them.

 

Bill Dorsett

Manhattan, KS

 

From: re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org
[mailto:re-wrenches-bounces at lists.re-wrenches.org] On Behalf Of Chris Mason
Sent: Thursday, March 27, 2014 9:20 AM
To: Allan Sindelar; RE-wrenches
Subject: Re: [RE-wrenches] Oddball pumping question

 

I have a couple of suggestions. A pump motor of that size is likely Class H
and requires a 7x starting current or Locked Rotor Amperage. During starting
the power factor can drop to .2 or lower and the inrush can run to 20 times
the rated run current. Even diesel generators have a very difficult time
starting singular loads of this size. I would not even attempt such a task.

That said, the solution is to look at the work to be done. If the intent is
to pump, let's say, 10000 gallons in one hour per day, suggest that a solar
powered DC pump could accomplish the same in the course of a day. DC pumps
are viable speed and don't have inrush currents.

 

On Thu, Mar 27, 2014 at 10:07 AM, Allan Sindelar
<allan at positiveenergysolar.com> wrote:

Wrenches,
Here's one of the oddest questions I have come across in years:

PRC Commisioner Lyons issued a challenge to NM solar companies today. He
stated that he cannot get his electric coop to bring three phase into his
property to run his irrigation (a 150 hp motor). He said that whenever he
mentions this to a solar outfit - running a 150 hp motor on pv - they look
back at him like a deer in the headlights. Can you meet his challenge? 

This application is way above my pay grade, and normally I would not give
this question much pause, as few ranchers would be seriously willing to put
up the money for the design and research time to work up and price a
solution, especially given that as far as I know, none even exists. No rural
water pumping PV designer that I know works with motor loads of such scale.
Indeed, it makes my head spin to think of it.

I checked an older (2003) Franklin motor application guide and found specs
for a 150 HP 3 phase motor: 128 kilowatts at 380-575 VAC at 60 Hz.

The only reason I am writing is this: The rancher is one of our state's five
Public Regulatory Commissioners. These are the folks who regulate our three
private utilities and 20 +/- rural co-ops, and he is perhaps the most
conservative one of the five. Last fall he initiated an ill-conceived
regulation to cut in half our state's RPS and pushed it through to passage
on the PRC; about two months later the ruling was rescinded due to a huge
public outcry. So if it were even possible to address his particular
request, the potential consequences could have far-reaching effects
politically.

Has anyone attempted or accomplished anything even close to this? Is there
existing equipment that could handle such an application? Could such an
application be justified economically? Or can anyone offer a reasoned answer
why it's not possible?

Thank you,
Allan

-- 

Allan Sindelar
 <mailto:Allan at positiveenergysolar.com> Allan at positiveenergysolar.com
NABCEP Certified PV Installation Professional
NABCEP Certified Technical Sales Professional
New Mexico EE98J Journeyman Electrician
Founder, Positive Energy, Inc.

A Certified B CorporationTM
3209 Richards Lane
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87507
505 424-1112 <tel:505%20424-1112>  office 780-2738 cell
www.positiveenergysolar.com <http://www.positiveenergysolar.com/> 

 


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-- 
Chris Mason

President, Comet Systems Ltd

www.cometenergysystems.com

Cell: 264.235.5670

Skype: netconcepts

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