Every visitor, delegate and exhibitor at the EXPO can attend any of the following presentations, FREE OF CHARGE. Each is delivered by one of the Exhibitors at the EXPO - all of them leading experts in their field.
Wednesday | 1:00 - 1:30pm
Presentation: VEM Sachsenwerk GmbH
Speaker: Dr.-Ing. Robert Seifert
Description: The oil and gas industry must constantly reduce its CO2 emissions following e.g. the European Green Deal. That leads to a high demand for electric drives to substitute gas turbines in new as well as existing compressor plants and industrial heat pumps. To keep the footprint small and drivetrain short, especially for retrofits, gearless high-speed drives are preferred. Their variable frequency enables a more efficient process control without turbo gear boxes or throttle valves. To increase acceptance for high-speed drives in a broader market, motor manufacturers are challenged to offer simple and affordable solutions. Slide bearings are suitable for a large range of applications in this market, but oil-free active magnetic bearings (AMBs) can further reduce the environmental impact and eliminate contamination. They are maintenance-free and allow a simple condition monitoring in most compact plant installations. However, AMBs are costly and their commissioning comparatively time-consuming. After our first high speed prototype with three-lobe sleeve bearings from Renk, which we manufactured and tested with up to 17000 rpm in 2022, we now present a newly developed prototype. It has a revised solid rotor concept with copper cage, designed to mechanically withstand up to 18000 rpm, which also serves as a proof-of-concept for an oil-free alternative based on active magnetic bearings. In this presentation we give a brief introduction in the advantages of AMBs and give insights in the lessons we learned during the design, manufacturing and commissioning of our first in-house AMB concept for a turbo compressor drive (≈1 MW, 12 000. . .18 000 rpm).