Electrical Components & Lighting Forum - Recent Threads

Optimizing Catwalk Lighting with Type I Optics

Ellen Helm — Fri, 14 Jun 2019 18:34:52 GMT

As discussed in a prior EmersonExchange365 post “Understanding Light Distribution Patterns for Industrial Locations”, directional LED lighting can be harnessed using effective optic design. Perhaps the greatest opportunity for this unique LED benefit lies in the luminaire reductions that can be achieved in catwalk lighting applications.

Traditionally, catwalk lighting was designed utilizing 70W high pressure sodium (HPS) lighting spaced at intervals of 15ft; typically stanchion mounted at a 25 degree angle, 8-10ft high. The determination of this spacing and mounting height was based on achieving the IES requirement of 5 foot-candles of illumination on a walkway in an industrial facility. Although these HPS luminaires produced over 5600 lumens of light, the omni-directional nature of the light source resulted in only about 72% of the light in downward illumination. The other 28% of the light was lost to side and up-light, not contributing to the needed 5 foot-candles of illumination. Below you can see a traditional catwalk shown both during the daytime and at night.

Today’s LED luminaires provide an opportunity to increase spacing in new industrial facilities, without compromising illumination, while improving light uniformity and of course, reducing energy usage and environmental impact. The most significant improvement is seen when utilizing Emerson’s Appleton Mercmaster LED Generation 3 Type I secondary optic.

IESNA Type I simulation Type I used in a walkway

The IESNA Type I optic provides a long narrow light distribution pattern, perfect for illuminating a walkway. Compare a typical HPS light spread, shown on the left below, the Type I light spread shown on the right. This light pattern perfectly fills a typical 3ft wide catwalk, without unneeded overspill, allowing us to provide illumination just where it is needed, thereby optimizing the efficiency of each luminaire.

As shown in the illustration, a 146% increase in luminaire spacing, to 37ft, provides enough illumination to achieve the required 5 foot-candles, with a uniformity improvement of 80% and a power savings of 68%. A diffused globe was used in this simulation which provides the maximum visual comfort for workers maneuvering on the catwalk. In a recent project, Emerson was able to reduce the customers' planned luminaire count by 10% utilizing these Type I optics. Additionally, cable costs were reduced by 10% and the reduction of load currents translated to fewer panelboards and lower overall engineering and installation costs.

For more information on Mercmaster Genertaion 3 LED secondary optics, check out our video “Appleton Mercmaster LED Generation 3 Luminaire Overview”, or visit us at www.materingledcom.

Understanding Light Distribution Patterns for Industrial Locations

Ellen Helm — Tue, 19 Mar 2019 21:26:52 GMT

A lesser known benefit of LED lighting is the ability to direct light uniformly, where it is needed most, without overspill. A knowledge of light distribution patterns can help a lighting specifier choose the best luminaires for a given application; reducing the number of luminaires required, and consequently, the electrical load, power distribution costs, and labor costs

Light distribution patterns reference the spatial distribution of the light as it exits the luminaire. Every luminaire will have a different pattern depending on the globe design, material selection, placement of the LEDs, and many more defining characteristics. However, to make things easier, the industry groups the luminaire’s pattern into several already classified and accepted patterns. The IESNA (Illuminating Engineering Society of North America) classifies roadway, low and high bay, task, and area lights into five major patterns. NEMA (National Electrical Manufacturer Association) categorizes floodlights based on their horizontal and vertical spreads.

IESNA uses five main types of light distribution patterns ranging from Type I to Type V. In the hazardous and heavy industrial world, you will typically see Type I, Type III, and Type V.

Type I is long and narrow pattern great for longer distances only requiring a narrow spread, an example would be a narrow walkway or aisle.
Type III is more of an oval pattern with some backlight while also being designed to push the light forward from its source. You typically see Type III patterns on a wall or a stanchion mount pushing the light forward.
Type V is by far the most common type of pattern giving a symmetrical circular pattern. This design is used in general work or task areas where you need light in all directions such as a pipe racks or work shop.

A common practice in the industry is the further break down the five main groups into additional light spreads. You can take the Type 5 symmetrical circular pattern and depending on the spread can be further classified into a narrow, medium, or wide configuration. This can be very useful depending on your mounting height and exactly where you want most of the light. If you have very high mounting height you could use the Type 5 Narrow beam to push the light down without it spreading too much; keeping the main beam closer together. Whereas you might use the Type 5 Wide pattern for a very low mounting height where you need the light to spread as quickly as possible; giving you additional light on the outer edges.

NEMA classifies floodlight patterns based on their horizontal and vertical spreads as seen on the table below. Each NEMA pattern will have a numerical value for the horizontal spread by a numerical value for the vertical spread.

NEMA TYPE	FIELD ANGLE RANGE	PROJECTION DISTANCES	BEAM DESCRIPTION
0	< 10°	—	Extremely Narrow
1	10° to 18°	240 ft (73 m) and Greater	Very Narrow
2	18° to 29°	200 to 240 ft (61 to 73 m)	Narrow
3	29° to 46°	175 to 200 ft (53 to 61 m)	Medium Narrow
4	46° to 70°	145 to 175 ft (44 to 53 m)	Medium
5	70° to 100°	105 to 145 ft (32 to 44 m)	Medium Wide
6	100° to 130°	80 to 105 ft (24 to 32 m)	Wide
7	130° and Up	Under 80 ft (24 m)	Very Wide

Using the picture below you can see how the NEMA 7X7 pattern is very close to the NEMA 7X6 pattern, except that the NEMA 7X6 pattern doesn’t quite have the same vertical spread or light throw causing the light to drop off faster. While NEMA 5x5 is a narrower beam allowing you to reach out further distances.

Overall, these different light distribution patterns are designed to help you get the optimal amount of light exactly where you need it the most. By specifying the correct pattern, you can reduce the size of the luminaire, reduce the number of luminaires needed, and ensure you are meeting all your lighting requirements. If you would like more information please visit us at www.masteringled.com

Emerson Electric Motor

Michael — Mon, 18 Feb 2019 19:40:20 GMT

Company seems to be closed due to Holiday... I need to order an electric motor made byy Emerson for a spa... any advice?

Cable Supports in Vertical Raceways

Frank Cunningham — Tue, 29 Jan 2019 22:18:44 GMT

Emerson has been furnishing O-Z/Gedney Cable Supports to the electrical industry for decades. Cable Supports are installed in vertical raceways in high rise buildings throughout North America. They prevent excessive strain on terminations, panels or other connected devices.

Cable supports are one of the electrical industry’s unsung heroes. When installed, they provide end-users with enhanced safety and lower maintenance.

Cable supports must provide needed support to the heavy cable without damaging the insulation or excessively reducing the amount of insulation over time, so the materials that are used and their engineering are important. Impregnated hardwood or Bakelite wedging plugs are standards. Iron or Canvas Bakelite bodies, combined with sealing compound, are also used for certain applications since it can furnish a weatherproof seal and provide ventilation at the top of the conduit riser. Proper venting can reduce the temperature in a riser by up to 20° F.

Learn more with the O-Z/Gedney Cable Supports Reference Chart.

GETTING A GRIP ON THE CODE
The National Electric Code (NEC) calls out specific installation methods for long vertical runs. NEC Article 300.19 (Supporting Conductors in Vertical Raceways) states that cable support is needed at the top of a long raceway, with intermediate supports installed at specified lengths according to a formula based on the size of the wire, some as frequently as every 40 feet.

TYPES OF CABLE SUPPORTS
Cable support design is deceptively simple: Essentially, cable support bodies are threaded to conduit or rest on an existing bushing atop any conduit raceway in which non-armored cables pass through. The one-piece or multiple segment wedging plug is inserted into the cable support body. The wedging plug exerts pressure around the cable, providing holding force of that required by code.

There are two basic types of cable supports: the one-piece plug and the multiple segment plug. the one-piece has a single wedging plug with a groove for each wire. It is ideal for all types of non-armored cables 600 Volts or less, plus is considered the easiest to install. In contrast, the multiple segment version has a wedging plug constructed so that each cable is supported between grooves in adjacent segments. This uniform pressure distribution is required by the softer types of insulation frequently used at higher voltages. Some supports line cable grooves with coarse grain grit to improve holding power without damaging the jacket or insulation on the cable. In both cases, either single or multiple segment, it is good practice to space conduits about 1/2" or more further than normal to accommodate the cable support body.

Draining Electrical Conduit Systems

Frank Cunningham — Tue, 29 Jan 2019 16:20:35 GMT

Luminaires experiencing water ingress, specifically pendant mount fixtures, can be a frustrating and costly problem.

Conduit is the culprit in such instances and provides the perfect path for water to find its way into the wiring compartment or mounting hood of the fixture. Every effort should be made to drain conduit before it terminates into the fixture. Let’s explore how.

How does water find its way into conduit systems?

- Rain, sleet, snow and ice are obvious
- Hose-down or spray-down locations
- Condensation forms in raceways exposed to weather or temperature changes
- The threads on both Intermediate Metal Conduit (IMC) and Rigid Metal Conduit (RMC) are tapered (NPT), while the standard couplings that come with each ten-foot length of conduit are straight (NPS)

As a result, moisture accumulates within raceways at low points throughout the installation and in luminaires, enclosures, conduit bodies and fittings. Per the National Electrical Code, raceways are required to be installed so that moisture drains from the raceway through drain holes located at appropriate points throughout the system.

Code Review
Let’s review some specific articles of the 2017 National Electrical Code pertaining to raceway systems and wet locations, as follows:

Article 100 – Definitions
Location, Damp
Locations protected from weather and not subject to saturation with water or other liquids but subject to moderate degrees of moisture.

Location, Wet
Installations underground or in concrete slabs or masonry in direct contact with the earth; in locations subject to saturation with water or other liquids, such as vehicle washing areas; and in unprotected locations exposed to weather.

225.22 Raceways on Exterior Surfaces of Buildings or Other Structures
Raceways on exteriors of buildings or other structures shall be arranged to drain and shall be listed or approved for use in wet locations.

314.15 Damp or Wet Locations
In damp or wet locations, boxes, conduit bodies, outlet box hoods, and fittings shall be placed or equipped so as to prevent moisture from entering or accumulating within the box, conduit body, or fitting. Boxes, conduit bodies, outlet box hoods, and fittings installed in wet locations shall be listed for use in wet locations.

300.9 Raceways in Wet Locations Abovegrade
Where raceways are installed in wet locations abovegrade, the interior of these raceways shall be considered to be a wet location. Insulated conductors and cables installed in raceways in wet locations abovegrade shall comply with 310.10(C).

Drain Solutions

Conduit Outlet Bodies and Boxes Incorporating Drains
Emerson offers a full line of Appleton hazardous and non-hazardous rated Drains to thread into a hub of a Conduit Outlet Body or Conduit Outlet Box (normally a T or X configuration). Every location or facility is unique, so it’s imperative that the drain is located appropriately to be effective.

Sealing Fittings with Drains

In addition, Emerson has a complete line of Appleton Sealing Fittings, for ½” – 4” trade size conduit installed in hazardous locations, that incorporate a drain to keep your conduit systems free of water.

Watertight Pendant Hood
An Appleton Watertight Pendant Hood by Emerson can be installed if water cannot be drained from the conduit system prior to terminating into a pendant mounted fixture. The hood protects against water ingress into the fixture housing by incorporating an IP68 cord grip for the conductors to pass through. The Watertight Pendant Hood can be installed on the Appleton Mercmaster LED Generation 3 Series Luminaires and Appleton Mercmaster LED Low Profile Series Luminaires.

Dan Moses Discusses the Total Cost of Ownership Savings with LED Lighting

Ellen Helm — Tue, 16 Oct 2018 21:24:44 GMT

The biggest concern addressed by customers relative to upgrading to LED lighting is the upfront investment. In this video, Dan Moses discusses the total cost of ownership and the savings that can be achieved through the benefits of LED lighting, including the reduction in maintenance and energy costs, and other material reductions in cable, panel and transformer costs.

www.emerson.com/.../lighting-solutions-178030

Do you have questions about upgrading your lighting? Share your experiences and questions with us in the Emerson Exchange 365 community group: Electrical Components & Lighting.

VIDEO: Tips & Tricks to Selecting the Right LED Lights

Ellen Helm — Fri, 05 Oct 2018 16:14:02 GMT

It can be difficult to navigate through the myriad of choices available in lighting systems. In this video, I discuss some of the important considerations when upgrading to LED lighting and provide tips on how to get the best retrofit lighting solution.

www.youtube.com/watch

Do you have questions about upgrading your lighting? Share your experiences and questions with us in the Emerson Exchange 365 community group: Electrical Components & Lighting.

BASF Deepens Understanding of Switchgear Health

Emerson Exchange News — Fri, 05 Oct 2018 00:55:29 GMT

Chemicals manufacturer BASF has implemented a proactive solution to solve humidity issues in transformers, bus ducts, medium voltage switchgear and motor control center (MCC) lineups. The inherent design of arc-rated equipment limits air flow in and out of the gear. This can lead to excess humidity buildup within the gear. This buildup has the potential to cause electrical faults, and can cause significant unscheduled outages.

BASF implemented Emerson IntelliSAW technology to continuously monitor its critical electrical assets. "We have the motor and cable connection down pat," said Joel Logue, E&I engineer, power systems, at BASF. "It's the device connecting the motor and cable that we needed to monitor. The IntelliSAW system filled the void and gave us the data to understand the full health of our switchgear."

The application didn't have a lot of solutions available to monitor assets, continued Logue. "In other industries, you can monitor every little piece, and there is a lot of information you can pull from instrumentation," he said. "However, at a higher level, power-system-wise, it's not there; nobody is focused on it. Fortunately, Emerson acquired a company that provided a unique solution and showed us how to implement it. The system showed its value to our organization by reducing preventive maintenance."

IntelliSAW fills sensing gap

IntelliSAW technology fits in well to the pervasive sensing methods talked about all week at the at the Emerson Global Users Exchange in San Antonio, said Chris Short, Emerson’s field sales specialist, Rosemount Measurement. "It provides a system to get more data to keep the plant up and running and safe," he said.

There are a variety of asset failure modes that the IntelliSAW Critical Asset Monitoring (CAM) can detect with temperature, partial discharge and humidity sensors. "One is thermal breakdown failure modes such as overload, corrosion or loose connections," said Short. "Another is insulation breakdown failures due to aging insulation and partial discharge, such as small electrical arcs at voids, or air pockets, within or on insulation surfaces. A third failure mode is air dielectric breakdown due to humidity contamination and moisture on the insulation surface resulting in long term insulation damage and metallic corrosion."

Some drawbacks with traditional monitoring are that it is only periodic, once or twice a year, and it requires a technician, which can be dangerous and expensive. "IntelliSAW continuous monitoring provides better safety in point of contact measurement, and it uses a wireless connection," said Short. "No maintenance is needed with the passive, long-life sensors used, and it is easy to install with a rugged design for medium voltage environments."

Critical asset monitoring

BASF installed the IntelliSAW devices in the assets to monitor a 2B/2B1 substation feeding power to its plant. "This switchgear and related hardware powered all the compressors in the facility—any failures would be costly," said Logue. "Components included temperature, partial discharge and humidity sensors mounted in and monitoring several locations including transformer primary and secondary, incoming breaker and incoming connection on each side of the substation."

A local reader wirelessly drives, or powers, the temperature and partial-discharge sensors and provides remote monitoring with network connection via Modbus RTU (RS-485). The continuous monitoring data is transferred through a third-party system to the DeltaV DCS where operators view the alarm notifications. Engineering also has access to detailed trends of the collected temperature, partial-discharge and humidity data.

"I now have a clear indication of the health of my switchgear equipment versus past failures where I only knew I had a failure when it blew up," said Logue. "I needed to know it was going bad six months prior. IntelliSAW continuous monitoring provides more electrical insight into the gear at the facility enabling predictive maintenance and helping eliminate reactive maintenance."

BASF was able to increase reliability, lower maintenance costs and avoid catastrophic failures due to unforeseen indicators. "With the solution installed and implemented, we detected an error in one of our readings," said Logue. "On a rainy day, the graph showed one of our humidity sensors had a high value of 60%. Later in that day, the sun came out and the humidity quickly dropped to 15%. The trend chart, compared to other humidity sensors that showed a flat trend, clearly suggested there was something going on. Based on that and historical data, it told us we had a water leak in one of our bus ducts. With this one measurement, the system paid for itself."

Cargill Integrates Smart Motor Control Centers

Emerson Exchange News — Fri, 05 Oct 2018 00:54:52 GMT

The Cargill Oilseeds canola-crushing facility, located outside of Clavet, Saskatchewan, first opened in 1996, using a Provox DCS with Modicon PLCs for discrete I/O. Prior to its expansion in 2009, the facility migrated to DeltaV in 2008. Darren Walls, technical sales specialist at Spartan Controls in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, worked on all of the original Provox configuration and his company was contracted to do all of the DCS work when a refinery was added in 2015.

Walls knows the controls at the Cargill plant as well as anyone does. As the facility continues to modernize and digitalize, he was part of a plan to give operators more information. Walls shared the story at this week’s Emerson Global Users Exchange in San Antonio, explaining how this plant integrated smart motor control centers (MCCs), giving operators the right information to make the plant run more efficiently.

Five-second rule

“When a motor stops or trips, an operator should know what happened within 5 seconds,” explained Walls. “We should be able to distinguish between an electrical problem and a process interlock, so we can get the plant back up as quickly as possible.”

The original plant had Modicon PLC I/O for motor I/O. It used Emerson’s Mynah PLC I/O scanner and Virtual I/O Module (VIM) gateway to interface to the PLC drops. “A typical motor had seven inputs—control fuse, MCC disconnect, field stop, overload, output fuse, field start and run aux—and one output,” said Walls. “There was code in the PLC to send the status up to the Provox, but there was a delay in getting the statuses up.”

Spartan Controls decided to put those inputs directly in the control modules and color-code the control wiring to correspond with the MCC.

“We put the color on the faceplate,” explained Walls. “We’re telling the electricians right where to go and what the problem is. We give them the alarm for the motor, and we tell them the cause on the faceplate and the graphics. The color coding is there, and they know to go and reset. If there’s a trip on an overload at midnight, the operator is allowed to go and reset because there’s no maintenance there. If it runs, they can keep the plant running. If it trips again, they have to call maintenance staff.”

Balloon diagrams

Cargill uses a balloon diagram to visualize programming. “If I’ve got low pressure, the diagram shows it’s going to interlock the pump, for example,” explained Walls. “Cargill does the programming. During a software FAT, they’ll test the interlock. They’ll do final checks when a plant is commissioned. If we’re going to add an interlock to a high tank level, you highlight the balloon diagrams, copy and reuse.”

Prior to the plant expansion, when Cargill went from Provox to DeltaV, the faceplates would pop up over the display real estate, making it cluttered. “We tried to limit the screen real estate; we have some code so if they mouse down over an ‘I’ it will bring up the interlocks,” explained Walls. “They’re allowed to put bypasses on certain pieces of equipment and certain instrumentation. There are some critical safety devices that we don’t allow them to bypass. They can bypass a transmitter, for example, so the whole plant isn’t down while it’s waiting to be replaced.”

MCC expansion

Previously, everything was DeviceNet. “The MCCs were wired for DeviceNet,” said Walls. “We tried to keep the number down to 30 devices/segment. Each Rockwell Automation E3 Plus overload relay has four inputs—MCC, field stop, run, field start—and two outputs. We used no Rockwell software, and the electricians configured all of the devices.”

The new plant has the same input statuses and same color coding. “When a relay trips, you get an overload status, and a button comes up on the faceplate,” said Walls. “The operator can try once, and, if the button pops again, they have to get someone from maintenance. The electrician can log in via DeltaV Explorer to look at the fault code.”

In an effort to try to continue to improve, the next step will be to bring in the trip status. “The cause of the trip will come up automatically,” explained Walls. “We’re going to put that information right on the faceplates. Now, they’ll get ‘current imbalance’ or ‘phase loss,’ rather than a ‘jam’ or an ‘overload,’ so it will indicate which personnel needs to look at it for repair.”

The LED Experience at Emerson Exchange 2018

Ellen Helm — Wed, 03 Oct 2018 17:57:56 GMT

Attendees of Emerson Exchange 2018 have had an opportunity to participate in our LED Experience. This new interactive exhibit brings the benefits of Emerson’s Appleton LED solutions to life. If you are at the Exchange, I hope you will stop by and let us give you a tour! If not, I want to share some images from the exhibit, so you can participate in our LED experience. As they say, “a picture is worth a thousand words”!

Upon entering the LED experience, you are engulfed in a haze of yellow light, produced by a 70W high pressure sodium Mercmaster luminaire. High pressure sodium lighting is the traditional solution of choice for a multitude of harsh and hazardous location applications.

On this first side of the exhibit, activities such as reading labels and a schematic and distinguishing wire colors on a terminal block help you experience lighting in a facility illuminated with high pressure sodium lighting.

Moving through a curtain to the LED side of the exhibit, the transformation is remarkable. (For those of us that grew up watching “The Wizard of Oz,” it is reminiscent of Dorothy waking up in the colorful world of Oz.) Colors are vibrant, and labels and the schematic are crisp and easily deciphered. The side to side comparison below illustrates the difference of the HPS scenario on the left versus the transformation to LED on the right.

Several customers have challenged whether the two sides of the exhibit are identical. I assure you, they are. Below, I have shared a few side by side comparisons of some of the activities, so you can see the visual improvements up close.

Compare the colors of the wires on the left to the right. The higher color rendering index of the LED luminaire (nearly 4 times better), makes colors "pop".

See the two schematics below. The clarity of the LED illuminated schematic is noticeably superior.

Besides the obvious visual improvements, translating to safety and productivity gains, the 24W LED solution provides an energy savings of over 65%, and generates far less heat. The maintenance savings is remarkable as well, with an LED solution providing over 100,000 hours of maintenance free operation, compared to an HPS solution which will require a lamp change approximately every 20,000 hours. Considering luminaires are often inconveniently located with difficult access, lamp changes can require ladders or scissor lifts, which add additional expense and safety concerns.

Other subtle benefits of LED luminaires include “instant on” as compared to a high intensity discharge solution that requires warm up time, and high Tcodes, allowing for brighter luminaires in hazardous locations that were never possible before.

If you are with us in San Antonio, please stop by and Experience LED for yourself! If not, I hope you enjoy the photos, and please post any lighting questions. Additional information on our LED lighting solutions can be found at www.masteringled.com. We'd love to help you find your ideal LED lighting solution!

Dyno Nobel Cuts Energy Costs with Wireless Monitoring

Emerson Exchange News — Tue, 02 Oct 2018 22:48:33 GMT

Dyno Nobel is a global explosives manufacturer. Its site in Louisiana, Missouri, manufactures 54 million lb of packaged explosives and more that 1.2 million tons of ammonium nitrate annually. Powerful production like that requires a lot of energy. Indeed, a 5% reduction equals about $60,000 in savings.

“Dyno Nobel’s utility budget can have a cost variance as high as 10% monthly,” explained Chris Short, Emerson’s field sales specialist for Rosemount Measurement, who spoke this week at the Emerson Global Users Exchange in San Antonio.

“The challenge is meeting monthly electrical budgets with high swing demands,” said Andy Hawkins, I&C engineer at Dyno Nobel’s Missouri facility. “We needed a more granular view of power consumers in the facility, and we needed to be able to measure power usage from the substation.”

Lack of information is the biggest challenge for any type of energy management, so finding a measurement solution that was affordable was the first step. “The big concern was running wire. The distance was cost-prohibitive. We decided to take a top-down strategy and measure each motor control center (MCC) to establish a baseline measurement on a day-to-day basis,” explained Hawkins.

The Dyno Nobel facility has four main operating units with 12 MCCs. “Our MCCs are spread out geographically,” said Hawkins. “I/O solutions were cost-prohibitive. But we have five wireless gateways with about 200 wireless devices. Our plan was to use our existing wireless infrastructure and bring that data into the DeltaV control system via Modbus. Emerson’s 56WM WirelessHART power meter was an easy solution to sell to management because of our existing wireless infrastructure.”

Each MCC is monitored, and, based on analysis of energy usage, the power monitors are then retasked to individual loads within each MCC to give increased granularity as required to find high or unwarranted energy loads.

“The 56WM wireless power meter is meant to measure three-phase or three single-phase,” explained Mike Truitt, senior application engineer for Emerson’s Therm-O-Disc systems. “The 0-600 V native range can be measured. We can look at the load of the entire facility or measure down to each load.”

The devices will scavenge power, so they can be moved around without worrying about the mesh network or WirelessHART. “Dyno Nobel installed two 56WM power meters in the acid-cooling-tower MCC as a method for anticipating equipment failure in cooling fan systems, such as electric motors and attached gear boxes,” explained Truitt. “We can look at imbalances in power. If we have an increased load, we can see that. The power meter directly measures phase currents, phase voltage and frequency over time.”

Based on the measurements, individual phase and system calculations are made for kW, kWh, VA, VAr, VArh, displacement and apparent power factor, as well as total harmonic distortion.

“The system provides real-time power usage,” said Truitt. “We can go through a gateway—Rosemount or DeltaV WIOC—with Modbus TCP, Modbus RTU, EtherNet/IP, OPC or HART to the control room.”

The power monitoring provides increased visibility of where and when electrical costs are incurred, explained Short. “Increased visibility provides actionable information that leads to improvements. The facility looks at assets such as pumps or electrical assets for granularity to trend and track through the DeltaV system. Recent studies show midsize refineries can save 7% of electrical costs by energy management, so their 5% goal is very realistic.”

Learn about Companies seeing Savings By Moving Power Distribution Back into Hazardous Area at Emerson Exchange

Michael McCormack — Thu, 27 Sep 2018 14:41:00 GMT

Come join Mark Garton & myself next week at Emerson Exchange to discuss and learn more about savings achieved by moving power distribution back into the hazardous location.

For facilities, being able to move electrical distribution closer to the electrical apparatus and equipment presents a cable cost-savings opportunity and a lower overall total cost of ownership. Easier maintenance, installation, and operation through the use of component level protection in easy to access, stainless steel enclosures becomes possible. Instead of traditional bolts on heavy NEMA 7 cast aluminum enclosures, these enclosures allow for quarter-turn latches which require no torquing or specialized tools for servicing. Additionally, the factory sealed design of these solutions means there's no need for additional seals or barrier glands during installation. This panel solution offers replaceable, standard breakers and the ability for field expansion, giving end users flexibility and convenience in configuration with a smaller footprint than the legacy cast switch rack alternative.

Every project has installation challenges & costs associated with engineered-to-order cast panels, including design lead times and dedicated heavy installation equipment can be reduced through the use of component level protection. Long power cable installations are reduced by eliminating most home run cables. Complex inventory management of specialized breakers was reduced by allowing for standard, off the shelf replacements.

The Appleton PlexPower solution allowed for the power distribution cabinets to be moved back into the hazardous areas while simplifying maintenance, reducing inventory complexity, and providing flexibility for Exxon's blowers and pumps. This solution speeds up installation time, reduces home run cables and simplifies ongoing maintenance.

What is Correlated Color Temperature in Lighting, and How Do You Choose?

Ellen Helm — Mon, 24 Sep 2018 21:09:48 GMT

Anthony Di Domenico, Sr. IEC Lighting Product Manager talks about how to use color temperature in industrial LED lighting design:

Many industrial lighting customers are starting to think more and more about color temperature options in lighting, and how to choose the best one for their site application. What follows are the basics of color temperature, the common options available for industrial/hazardous luminaires and, some techniques used around designing with color temperature.

Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) is a measure of how warm or cool a light source appears to the human eye. It is measured in degrees Kelvin. The CCT is defined by the proximity of the light source’s color appearance coordinating to a blackbody radiator – think of the color of steel or iron when removed from a forge.

It is important to note that CCT does not tell you anything about the color rendering index (CRI) or brightness (lumens) of a light source. Color temperature options allow a lighting designer, or end user to make choices about illuminating their locations that previously weren’t available before LED luminaires.

Typical industrial/hazardous lighting color temperatures range from 3000K (warm white) to 4000K (neutral white) to 5000K or 6000K (cool white). LED lighting has allowed Appleton to provide these options within practically any luminaire design. Previously manufacturers were limited to the natural color temperature of the light source, whether that be high intensity discharge (HID) or fluorescent lamps.

Each CCT range allows a lighting designer, or end user to make focused decisions on the color appearance they need to safely and effectively light their space. A chart below shows the benefits to choosing one color temperature over another. Those benefits revolve mostly around mood or time of day, the application you are lighting, or the presence of humans or wildlife in the area.

A common misconception is that a cooler color temperature, like 5000K, is much brighter than a warmer CCT of 3000K. This is an effect commonly called, “perceived brightness”. Perceived brightness is a trick our eyes play caused by the increased presence of blue in the color spectrum of 5000K luminaires. The 5000K CCT is crisp and similar to daylight, and our eyes see the light in such a way as to make you feel as if the light is brighter. Meanwhile, the lumen difference between a cool light source and warm light source is minimal, and is more due to the manufacturing process for creating color temperature in LEDs.

Color temperature variations are created at the individual LED chip level. The basic construction elements of an LED include: a substrate, a semi-conductor chip, and a phosphor coating. The semi-conductor chip emits a highly efficient blue LED light. The conventional white color temperatures are created by layering a yellow phosphor coating on top of this chip. The warmer the color temperature, the more phosphor is required. The result is the warmer LEDs require a little more wattage to power and have about 5-10% less light than much cooler LEDs. The light loss is rarely noticeable, especially in high output luminaires. Instead of having color temperature choices revolve around the amount of lumens required for an application, other lighting design decisions should be taken into consideration.

One lighting design technique that can be used with color temperature is highlighting. Highlighting creates visual contrast between one area of a site and another. This can be used to provide attention to an important piece of equipment, or give visual contrast between different areas, like a process area and a walkway. Color temperature variations can also be used at varying height levels, as cooler white CCT luminaires could be desired at higher mounting heights, away from eye lines.

In summary, correlated color temperature (CCT) is an important aspect to take into consideration when making a luminaire choice. Behind brightness, it is arguably one of the top choices you could make when designing a lighting layout for a site. We have covered some of the basics here around CCT options and why a lighting specifier would choose one over another. What are some of the ways you think color temperature could best be used to enhance a lighting layout design?