Jnury 2019 White Pp per Pros nd cons of n upgrde for chrger systems Abstrct Th pper outlines the dvntges nd ddvntges of n upgrde with retrofitting (lter referred to s n upgrde ) of bttery chrgers. Such n upgrde cn be cost-effective lterntive to complete new three-phsee industril system. Essentilly the control electronics of the exting chrger would be replced nd the cbinets, s well s the power trin, will be retined (regrdless of the equipment mnufcturer). In prllel systems, the lod (such ss btteries) cn be continuously supplied during the site-works through the second rectifier. For single operted chrgers, the system needs to be switched off nd therefore not vilble during the site-works. The benefits of the upgrde re shorter delivery time (no complete mnufcturing necessry), less complex instlltion (exting cbinets remin), unchnged look nd dimensions s well s reduction of operting costs (spre( prts re tken from cheper series production). Writers nd project stfff Ptrick Nollmnn, Customer Servicee Sles & Contrct Mnger Aldo Luri, Senior Field Service Engineer Aldin Ljubijnkic, Project Engineer Mrio Eigenmnn, Product Mnger Industril Systemm Mrco Kempf, Customer Service Product Support Engineer Mrc Zwyssig, Hed of Customer Service Ruben Vogelsng, Group Director Mrketingg & Sles, COO Sttron AG Almuesencherstrsse 1 CH-5506 Megenwil Phone. +41 (0) 62 887 488 87 www.sttron.com Pge 1/6
Introduction Industril rectifiers cn be found in mny ppliction ns, such s the power genertion & dtribution sector, the oil & gs sector or the chemicl industry. They re used s chrgers for bttery bnkss (e.g. for uninterrupt ble power supply systems) orr in process technology (e.g. electroplting). Rectifiers in industril pplictions re usully thyrtor bsed systems. They hve been proven over decdes to be very relible nd durble, but like ll electricl devices, they do show norml wer & ter effects upon yers of continuous opertion. The design lifetime of such system in industril design, depending on the mnufctu rer, environmentl conditions nd utiliztion of the grid, bout 20-30 yers. An importnt requirement to rech the promed lifetime the t nnul mintennc ce by experts. Towrds end of design lifetime, most of the spre prts to keep the chrger in opertion, strt to become expensive. In cse mjor repir needed, the question on the idel replcement res. Most common sue Expensive replcements: Outdted inventory chllenge opertors must del with. For mny yers, investments in replcements hve been blocked for sving mesures. Th cn led to expensive renewls. Avilble spce: Some projects re restricted in vilble spce nd were crried out in specil cbinets, to meet the lower spce. Custom-mde solutions s re mostly possible, but time consuming nd expensive. Appernc ce: Mny sites were designed for homogene eous overll ppernce nd colors corresponding to the function. Uniform looking instlltion of UPS systems While the reproduction of color not usully problem, the exct sme cbinet no longer vilblee in most cses nd replcement wouldn t fulfill the specifiction of the overll ppernce. Approc ch 1: Neww system The stndrd solutionn in most projects completely y new system. Th solution offers the dvntges of completely new nts, s well ss smll commsion ning period (pproximtely one dy without btteries). Th option used s reference in reltion to spce equirements, costs nd time equirements. Approc ch 2: Upgrding the t exting system s An lterntive to completely new rectifier the upgrde of the e exting system (retrofit with upgrde). Longg lsting nts, such s trnsformers, cbinets & cbles cn be re-used. During the upgrde, moving prts (fns), electronics s well s wering prts (cpcitors) will be exchnged. The trnsformer, the rectifier bridge ( thyrtors nd temperture switches on the het sink nd fuses), the cbinet (with P. Nollmnn et.l.: The pros nd cons of n upgrde for rectifierr systems Pge 2/6
switches nd nlog dplys), internl switches, specil ts nd bttery fuse boxes re usully retined. In most cses, the mentioned ts cn be re-used esily becuse they lstt longer thn wering prts nd electrics. In project of customer in Middle Est, the trnsformer, the rectifier bridge, the cbinets, the min switch nd the bttery fuse boxes were retined. Rectifier bridge (ws kept) Trnsformer (ws kept) Bttery fusee boxes (were kept) Cbinet before the conclusion (were kept) The upgrde After dconnecting mins (one rectifier cn continuous ly supplyy lod iff redundnt systems instlled), the rectifier to upgrde hs been stripped too the remining com- ponents. Also in th cse it recommended to replce wering prts such s fns nd cpcitors, even if they re in good conditions to be sure these nts lst for the upcoming yers. Switches (were kept) P. Nollmnn et.l.: The pros nd cons of n upgrde for rectifierr systems Pge 3/6
Electronics of the old system Once the rectifier hs been clered, workk strted on expnding the cut-out for the new front dply (cutting depending on the exting pnel). In second step the mechnic l ts, such s the swing-frme for the electronics nd cpcitor-s support, s well s the other ts to instll. Swing frme with cble hrness (mrked in ornge) After instlltion nd connection of ll nts, the retreded rectifier (in th cse "BDTe") clened, ll functions re checked nd thee system, including btteries (if vilble), re commsioned before officilly documenting the chnges nd hnding it over to the customer. Upon request, thee opertor personnel will lso be trined on the systemm loclly. New door cutout New dply The swing-frme will be delivered with prefbrict ted nd lbeled cble- hrness tht cn be quickly connected to the pluggble prints, so tht minimum timee equired for the upgrde. Retrededd chrger system P. Nollmnn et.l.: The pros nd cons of n upgrde for rectifierr systems Pge 4/6
The complexity of the upgrde res with higher rting of the rectifier nd therefore consumes more time on site. Th lso reflected inn slight increse of the price. Neww 220V BDTe BDTe Upgrde Kit Costs 50 100 150 200 300 400 500 Current (A) 600 800 10000 The chrtt bove shows summry compring g the upgrde nd the new system costs. BDTe fter upgrde New system versus upgrde As mentioned, power-relted ts of the exting rectifiers, such ss trnsformer nd the rectifier bridge, re retined nd re-used. Th hs positive effectss on the CO2 nd finncil blnce sheet. Compred to new rectifier, the cost difference to the upgrde kit getting lrger with incresing power. Th becuse trnsformers, rectifier bridges, cbles, etc. hve to be sized lrger with ncresing power while the upgrde usully retin those ts nd sve costs. The on-site work for new rectifier r lsts bout 1-2 dys without the t bttery instlltion. The upgrde needs 3-5 dys. Mteril costss Delivery costs Led time Time for instlltion Technicl integrity Opticl integrity Conclusi on BDTe-Upgrdee kit New BDTe + ++ + + ++ Legend: + less benefits more benefits If the customer wnts new technology in the extingg cbinet,, the upgrde kit rel lterntive to completely new chrger. Th ws demonstrted by the exmple of BDTe upgrde for customer in the Middle Est. In terms of timee nd costs, it highly importnt to t know the detils of the system nd the site conditions. The preprtion work nd the detiled plnning re therefore bsolutely crucil. The upgrde nd retrofit of third-prty systems possible. Especilly in th cse, the preprtion hs to be fulfilled very detiled nd crefully to check which P. Nollmnn et.l.: The pros nd cons of n upgrde for rectifierr systems Pge 5/6
ts to replce nd which to re- use. Once these detils hve been clrified, flwlessly. the upgrde cn be done The uthor Ptrick Nollmnn Customer Service Sles & Contrct Mnger t STATRON AG Switzerlnd nd since 2013 responsible for interntionl service sles. P. Nollmnn et.l.: The pros nd cons of n upgrde for rectifierr systems Pge 6/6