Analysis of electrical and non-electrical causes of variable frequency drive failures

Variable frequency drives (VFD) are an integral part of many industrial plants and stations. Reliable operation and maintenance of these drives is vital to ensure sustained plant operation and availability. Understanding of the principles of operation of VFD systems as well as knowledge about their required operating environment is necessary for all operating personnel. Many times the operating personnel do not get involved with different technical issues until a complete failure has occurred. Hence, the awareness of the most dominant failure causes has a significant impact on assisting operators to avoid catastrophic failures and tremendous economic losses due to VFD shutdown. Proper plant design, accurate monitoring and data logging, following manufacturer preventive maintenance schedule, and choosing qualified team of operators can be the key to an efficient operation and a long lifetime for any VFD system. In this paper, we have analyzed the electrical and non-electrical causes of VFD failures based on a case study of a typical medium voltage VFD pumping station. Finally, recommendations are given from field analysis and observations.