Variable Speed Operation of Induction Motor under Pumping Load - Technical and Economic Considerations
Year: 2026
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: Centrifugal pumps are an inseparable part of the sustainable life of the population across geographies, agriculture, energy, and all industrial sectors. Hence, pumps and their drives account for a significant portion of global energy consumption, and improving their energy efficiency is critical for sustainability and energy security. One approach to optimizing energy consumption is variable-speed operation of the driving motor with variable-frequency drives (VFDs), rather than the traditional method of throttling the pump valve, which wastes much of the energy when system demand fluctuates. However, deployment of this approach remains limited in scale, especially in non-industrial applications, due to a lack of full understanding of its technical and economic aspects. In the present paper, the impacts on various performance parameters of an 18.5 kW, 4-pole induction motor have been studied under variable-speed operation using Finite Element Analysis (FEA). The deviations in various performance parameters from the theoretical estimates are quantified, and their impact on pump operation is explored. The economic and environmental analyses showed that variable-speed control of the considered machine has an annual energy-saving potential of 35,400 kWh and a potential reduction in carbon emissions of 30.5 tons.
Institutions: Kirloskar Group (India), Delhi Technological University
Language: English
Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7204970086