CERTIFICATION OF Ex MOTORS WITH VSD’S

by
Johannes Auret, Explolabs
(March 2003)

1. Background

When an explosion protected (Ex) motor is driven by a variable speed drive (VSD), the motor
will run hotter due to additional heat losses resulting from the imperfect sine wave supply.
Therefore, the temperature of the motor will rise and the temperature rating of the motor may
be affected, and it is required that steps are taken to ensure that the explosion protection of
motor-VSD combination is not compromised, as follows.

2. Ex d motors

According to SANS 10086-1: 2000 plus Amendments 1 and 2 as well as the most recent IEC
standard, IEC 60079-14 Ed 3.0, an Ex d motor must be either
(a) type tested and certified in conjunction with each VSD used to drive it;
(b) provided with thermistors imbedded in the windings, in which case the motors will be
certified with a so-called “special condition of use” (X) which will be the requirement to
enact the thermistor protection when installing the motor. The certification in this
case covers any suitable VSD, ie the motor and VSD do not have to be tested in
combination; or
(c) protected by a means as effective as the ones defined in (a) or (b); certification of the
motor-VSD combination will again be required.

3. Ex e motors

According to SANS 10086-1: 2000 plus Amendments 1 and 2 as well as the most recent IEC
standard, IEC 60079-14 Ed 3.0, an Ex e motor must be type tested and certified in
conjunction with each VSD used to drive it. A suitable protective device must also be fitted
that is capable of ensuring that overheating cannot occur, eg a protection system based on
thermistor temperature detection. Both the VSD and the protective device must be specified
in the certification documents and the motor marking.

4. Ex n/Type “n” motors

According to SANS 10086-1: 2000 plus Amendments 1 and 2, a Type “n” motor must be
type tested and certified in conjunction with each VSD used to drive it. A suitable protective
device must also be fitted that is capable of ensuring that overheating cannot occur, eg a
protection system based on thermistor temperature detection. Both the VSD and the
protective device must be specified in the certification documents and the motor marking.

The above requirement was introduced on a national level, as the IEC standard on which
SANS 086-1: 2000 was based (IEC 60079-14 Ed 2.0) did not include any requirements.

Even the latest edition (Ed 3.0) of IEC 60079-14 only contains a cautionary note regarding
increased temperatures.

On the other hand, SANS 60079-15: 2001 (IEC 60079-15: 2001) does include requirements
for Ex n/Type “n” motors supplied from a frequency convertor (VSD) or non-sinusoidal
supply. Such motors/supplies must comply with one of the following:
(a) The motor must be type tested and certified in conjunction with each VSD used to
drive it; or

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 (b) A VSD can be type tested and certified and marked as suitable for use with Type “n”
motors with designated voltage and output ratings. At the same time, a Type “n”
motors to be used with a certified VSD must be marked with the application limits,
including maximum speed and load/torque characteristics

5. DIP motors

Although the requirements for a DIP motor are not discussed, it may be deducted that the
requirements will be the same as for a flameproof motor, as the degree of protection and the
type of protection (by enclosure) are the same.

Note – IEC 61241-14, the standard that will address these requirements has not yet been
published as a standard.

6. Discussion

It will be noted that all motor-VSD applications have to be covered by certification additional
to the certification covering the directly-driven motor. The discussion below addresses the
case where the motor has originally been certified for directly-driven applications only.

In general, the requirements for certification are different (more strict) for motors where
surfaces inside the casing (eg the rotor or stator) may act as sources of ignition, such as Ex
e and Type “n” motors, compared to the requirements for motors where only the casings can
act as sources of ignition, such as Ex d and DIP motors.

The reason for this difference lies with the individual nature of internal motor temperatures,
especially the rotor temperature, when a motor is powered through a VSD.

In summary, the difference is that Ex d and DIP motors need not be physically tested in
combination with their VSD only if thermistor protection is applied. (The requirement for
thermistor protection must however be included in the certification and marking as a special
condition of use or “X”.) In all other cases, type testing of the motor-VSD combination is
required.

Note – Type testing means that a particular combination needs only be tested once.

For more information, contact Explolabs Tel: 011-3164601

Fax: 011-3165670
E-mail: info@explolabs.co.za