The problem
Internal surface friction and high current loads give rise to high running costs.
In this client’s process, gearboxes driven by high amperage motors power a line of high volume wet sand cleaning machines. Each of eight motors is connected to a power metering device which records energy consumption. In an effort to optimise power efficiency a trial was undertaken with Lofrix® to reduce internal surface friction and reduce the current required to drive each gearbox.
The solution
An addition of Lofrix® was made to one gearbox and the power consumption over a three week period was recorded.
The result
A power saving of some 10% was achieved. When repeated on other cells in the sand cleaning line a similar level of savings was seen.
Over an extended period, the evaluation validated initial readings from the first cell. The diagram below shows the difference in power consumed by one cell. While monitored over a 24-hour period, just a 2-hour slice of the data is shown here.
The value of energy saving can be seen in the table of data recorded during the evaluation.
| No. 2 Cell Normal | No. 2 Cell Lofrix | |
|---|---|---|
| Average Amps | 35.2 | 32.0 |
| Max.Amps | 40.7 | 38.0 |
| Min. Amps | 27.4 | 28.0 |
| KWh | 22.7 | 20.6 |