Instrumentation, testing, and analysis of electric machine rotor steady-state heating

It is not a simple task to measure temperatures on the rotors or rotor components of large induction and synchronous machines during steady-state operation. The single greatest obstacle to obtaining these data is related to getting the data from the rotating element. Other problems are associated with instrumentation noise, sensor type, and attachment. This paper describes a number of techniques that have been used by the authors and their associates over the last 30 years. Test and calculated temperatures are presented for one machine. Also, test data from a number of machines are presented that show, for this particular population of enclosures and ventilation schemes, the steady-state temperatures at the design load can range from the value of the stator rise to greater than 70°C higher.