Converter for outfitting machines in open-cast mining

Drive technology in challenging outdoor conditions

PowerTech has many years of experience in railway technology. This means that the company can draw on its extensive expertise when it comes to robust converters on vehicles intended for outdoor use. As a respected specialist for such applications, PowerTech led an extensive development for one of the largest global electrical engineering suppliers in the mining industry in 2015.

The aim was to design customised converters for use on open-cast mining vehicles in a wide range of climatic zones, including high altitudes above sea level. The converters are used wherever the electronics are exposed to severe environmental conditions such as extreme fluctuations in temperature, vibrations, moisture and splash water, sulphur or even mechanical shocks. The required outputs on such diggers range from several hundred kilowatts to several megawatts at low voltage.

The PowerTech-developed converters can be used for the drive, to provide the necessary auxiliary voltage, or for various on-board power supplies. Use of PowerTech technology can save costly protective structures for the electronics and generally ensure safe operation. Reliability and a long service life are essential in such applications, as any failure can result in high costs.

In line with this development, the flexible design of PowerTech converters also makes them suitable for many other applications, such as civil engineering, tunnel drilling, oil and gas production or the wider chemical industry.

Facts and technical data

• For demanding environmental conditions

• Modular system: 50 kW to 6,000 kW, parallel up to 12 MW

• IGBT-based four-Q technology

• With intermediate voltage link and pulsed line-side converters

• Active power switch for active front end (AFE) functionality

• High flexibility thanks to modular design

• High dynamic response in speed and torque

• User-friendly service software

• Modular, flexible design and construction

• Optimised air or water cooling