Motor Starting and Running Currents and Rating Guide

A word of caution: The following article is based on National Electrical Manufacturers'

Association (NEMA) tables, standards and nomenclature. This is somewhat different
from Indian and European practice. The class designations are applicable only to
NEMA compatible motors which are in use in the US only. However, the logic and
pattern of calculations are the same everywhere. Hence the reader is cautioned to
follow only the logical sequence of the calculations.
Motor Starting Current
When typical induction motors become energized, a much larger amount of current
than normal operating current rushes into the motor to set up the magnetic field
surrounding the motor and to overcome the lack of angular momentum of the motor
and its load. As the motor increases to slip speed, the current drawn subsides to
match (1) the current required at the supplied voltage to supply the load and (2)
losses to windage and friction in the motor and in the load and transmission system. A
motor operating at slip speed and supplying nameplate horsepower as the load should
draw the current printed on the nameplate, and that current should satisfy the
equation
Horsepower = (voltage X current X power factor X motor efficiency X 3) / 746

Typical induction mo
tors exhibit a starting power factor of 10 to 20 percent and a full-load running power
factor of 80 to 90 percent. Smaller typical induction motors exhibit an operating full-
load efficiency of approximately 92 percent, whereas large typical induction motors
exhibit an operating full-load efficiency of approximately 97.5 percent.
Since many types of induction motors are made, the inrush current from an individual
motor is important in designing the electrical power supply system for that motor. For
this purpose, the nameplate on every motor contains a code letter indicating the
kilovoltampere/horsepower starting load rating of the motor. A table of these code
letters and their meanings in approximate kVA and horsepower is shown in the
following table.
 Code Letter on motor kVA per HP with locked rotor
name plate Minimum Mean Maximum
A 0 1.57 3.14
B 3.15 3.345 3.54
C 3.55 3.77 3.99
D 4 4.245 4.9
E 4.5 4.745 4.99
F 5 5.295 5.59
G 5.6 5.945 6.29
H 6.3 6.695 7.09
J 7.1 7.545 7.99
K 8 8.495 8.9
L 9 9.495 9.9
M 10 10.595 11.19
N 11.2 11.845 12.49
P 12.5 13.245 13.99
R 14 14.995 15.99
S 16 16.995 17.99
T 18 18.995 19.99
U 20 29.2 22.39
V 22.4 No Limit No Limit

Using these values, the inrush current for a specific motor can be calculated as
Iinrush=(code letter value X horse power x 1000) /( 3 X Voltage)
An example of this calculation for a 50-hp code letter G motor operating at 460 V is
shown below
Because of the items listed above, motors that produce constant kVA loads make
demands on the electrical power system that are extraordinary compared with the
demands of constant kilowatt loads. To start them, the overcurrent protection system
must permit the starting current, also called the locked-rotor current, to flow during
the normal starting period, and then the motor-running overcurrent must be limited
to approximately the nameplate full-load ampere rating. If the duration of the
locked-rotor current is too long, the motor will overheat due to I2R heat buildup, and
if the long-time ampere draw of the motor is too high, the motor also will overheat
due to I2R heating. The National Electrical Code provides limitations on both inrush
current and running current, as well as providing a methodology to determine motor
disconnect switch ampere and horsepower ratings.
Table 430-152 of the National Electrical Code provides the maximum setting of
overcurrent devices upstream of the motor branch circuit, and portions of this table
are replicated below

% of Full load current

Dual-
Single Inverse Instantaneou
element
Motor type element time s & Magnetic
time delay
fuse breaker trip breaker
fuse
Single
phase 300 175 250 800
motor
Three
phase
300 175 250 800
squirrel
cage motor
Design E
three phase
300 175 250 1100
squirrel
cage
Synchronou
300 175 250 800
s
Wound
150 150 150 800
rotor
Direct
150 150 150 250
current
For example, a 50 hp, Design B, 460V 3 phase motor has a full
load current of 65A at 460V. The maximum rating of an inverse
time breaker protecting the motor branch circuit would be 65A x
250%, or 162.5A. The next higher standard rating is 175A (US), so
 175A is the maximum rating that can be used to protect the
motor circuit.

Motor Running Current

The following figures illustrate the calculations required by specific types of motors in
the design of electric circuits to permit these loads to start and to continue to protect
them during operation.
Table of full-load currents for three-phase ac induction motors (A part of table 430-
150 of NEC).

HP 208 V 230 V 460 V 575 V

0.5 2.5 2.2 1.1 0.9
0.75 3.5 3.2 1.6 1.3
1 4.6 4.2 2.1 1.7
1.5 6.6 6 3 2.4
2 7.5 6.8 3.4 2.7
3 10.6 9.6 4.8 3.9
5 16.7 15.2 7.6 6.1
10 30.8 28 14 11
15 46.2 42 21 17
20 59.4 54 27 22
25 74.8 68 34 27
30 88 80 40 32
40 114 104 52 41
50 143 130 65 52
60 169 154 77 62
75 211 192 96 77
100 273 248 124 99
125 343 312 156 125
150 396 360 180 144
200 528 480 240 192

Calculating Motor Branch-Circuit Overcurrent Protection and Wire Size

Article 430-52 of the National Electrical Code specifies that the minimum motor
branch-circuit size must be rated at 125 percent of the motor full-load current found
in Table 430-150 for motors that operate continuously, and Section 430-32 requires
that the long-time overload trip rating not be greater than 115 percent of the motor
nameplate current unless the motor is marked otherwise. Note that the values of
branch-circuit overcurrent trip (the long-time portion of a thermal-magnetic trip
circuit breaker and the fuse melt-out curve ampacity) are changed by Table 430-22b
for motors that do not operate continuously.
This is illustrated with a sample problem. Consider the circuit shown.

A 40 HP, 460 V, 3 phase, Code letter G, Service factor of 1.0 is planned for operation
from a 460 V, 3 phase system. The name plate ampere is 50A. The motor is rated for
continuous duty and the load is continuous. Solve for minimum sizes of branch circuit
elements?
1. Take motor full load current from table 430-150 as 52A which is higher than name
plate value.
2. Determine wire size: 125% of 52A = 65A.
3. Determine inverse time breaker setting: 250% of 52A = 130A, next standard rating is
150A.
4. Determine the rating of thermal overloads: 115% of 50A (name plate current) = 57.5
A
5. Determine disconnect switch ampere rating: 115% of 52A = 59.8 A
6. Determine controller HP rating: 40 HP (same as motor nameplate HP)
The completed circuit will look like this.
NEC Torque classes and characteristics

Startin
Relative Stalling
Design Starting current Slip in g
Efficienc torque
Letter (%FLC) % rpm torque
y (%FLT)
(%FLT)
Depends upon
name plate code 120- 200-
A High 3%
letter Normally 250% 275%
630-1000%
Normally 600- 120- 200-
B High 1.5-3%
700% 250% 275%
Normally 600- 200- 190-
C High 1.5-3%
700% 250% 225%
Normally 600-
D Medium 5-8% 275% 275%
700%
Excerpts from EC&M's Electrical Calculations Handbook, by John M Paschal, Jr:
Published by McGraw-Hill 2001.