Using Infrared (IR) Thermography

to Improve Electrical
Preventive Maintenance Programs

White Paper 268

Revision 0

by Jyo Chandrapati, P.E. and Brad Hayes

Executive summary
IR thermography can be used both at
startup and during on-going operations to
locate potentially dangerous problems
quickly allowing for a controlled shutdown
before unplanned interruptions in service
occur. It can prevent premature failure and
extend equipment life, and reduce costly
outages and downtime. However, if done
improperly, these benefits may not be
realized. This white paper explains what IR
thermography is, provides best practices to
follow while performing an IR scan, and
highlights some important factors for
interpreting the resulting thermogram.

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 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 2

Introduction Infrared (IR) thermography is a method used to identify potential problem areas by
detecting “hot-spots” in electrical systems. The underlying principle for this method
is that most components tend to show an increase in temperature while malfunction-
ing. For instance, this rise in temperature could be caused by loose connections, de-
fective or deteriorated equipment, short circuits, overloads, load imbalances, and
even incorrect installations to name a few. IR thermography allows one to observe
the heat patterns in a system which can be used to help identify the location of a po-
tential problem area; this can be analyzed and fixed, if needed, before the equip-
ment fails and causes further damage.

IR thermography is most commonly used during initial start-up (commissioning) for

detecting abnormalities, and in preventative maintenance programs as described in
NFPA 70B 1. When using this process during initial startup, the goal is to identify
“hot-spots” for further evaluation whereas with preventative maintenanc e programs,
it is used to compile a history of collected data that can be used to identify changes
and/or trends in the data. Such focus on data trends as opposed to specific temper-
atures is common in preventative maintenance programs and is often referred to as
trending.

The process of IR thermography involves testing by using a camera-like device

called a thermal imager or a thermograph as shown in Figure 1. This device is used
to scan a large area at a time in order to capture natural infrared emissions from the
equipment and convert them into a visual thermal image, called a thermogram. This
thermal image is then used to analyze the equipment. IR thermography is thus an
example of non-destructive or non-invasive testing.

Figure 1
An infrared camera /
thermal imager

In colored thermograms, white and red colors are usually used to depict hotter ar-
eas, and black and blue colors are used to depict cooler ones. Figure 22 shows
some examples of thermograms showing malfunctioning equipment. These exam-
ples illustrate the differences between the hot and cool areas.

There are several benefits to IR thermography like locating potentially dangerous

problems quickly and performing a controlled shutdown before unplanned interrup-
tions in service occur, preventing premature failure and extending equipment life,
and reducing costly outages and downtime. Both the image acquisition and the im-
age analysis phases need to be performed with great skill in order to reap the bene-
fits of this crucial preventative maintenance tool. The users of IR thermography

1
NFPA 70B: Recommended practice for electrical equipment maintenance. National Fire Protection As-
sociation, 2013.
2
Electrical distribution systems. IRINFO.ORG, a division of T/IR Systems LLC. (http://www.irinfo.org/ap-
plication_electrical_distribution.html

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 3

should therefore hire the right expertise, or, spend the resources in developing the
same in-house. This would greatly reduce the chances of missing hazardous failure
spots, and equally important, reduce the number of false alarms.

Figure 2A
Improperly closed air switch

Figure 2B
Load imbalance on bus duct

Figure 2C
Loose or deteriorated fuse
clips Figure 2A Figure 2B Figure 2C

This white paper explains what IR thermography is, provides best practices to follow
while performing an IR scan, and highlights some important factors for interpreting
the resulting thermogram. The main goal of this white paper is to help identify real
concerns in the system while trying to alleviate concerns that arise due to inaccurate
data collection or due to misinterpretation of the images.

Data collection The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has a standard, NFPA 70B, that
details recommended maintenance in electrical, electronic, and communication sys-
process tems and equipment such as those used in industrial plants, institutional and com-
mercial buildings, and large multi-family residential complexes 3. Through these
maintenance recommendations, this standard intends to help prevent equipment
failures and worker injuries. It provides guidelines for an effective Electrical Preven-
tive Maintenance (EPM) program and explains why this is essential to protect lives
and property.

One of the testing methods that is recommended for electrical equipment mainte-
nance by NFPA 70B is IR inspection. In what follows, we list important points which
can be thought of as “best practices” while conducting an IR thermography scan.

• Make sure the system is operating at loads no less than 40% of the rated load.
In fact, NFPA 70B states that IR scans should be performed during periods of
maximum possible loading. Recall that heat output from the equipment is pro-
portional to the square of the current. Thus, running equipment at loads closer
to full load aids in easier detection of defects 4.
• IR images should not be captured through generic glass doors or windows.
Some equipment have special windows to shoot IR images. In cases where IR
windows are not provided, when safety procedures allow, electrical enclosures
will need to be opened for inspection5. This, however, increases the risk of trig-
gering an arc flash and NFPA 70E should be referred to for appropriate proce-
dures, training, and personal protective equipment (PPE).
• Wind and air-currents due to natural environmental sources should definitely
be considered and accounted for as they might cool hot-spots very quickly to
levels below the threshold of detection. Ventilators and air-conditioners used
for climate-control can have a similar effect too. In conditions where this may

3
NFPA 70B: Recommended practice for electrical equipment maintenance. Nation al Fire Protection As-
sociation, 2013.
4
Electrical distribution systems. IRINFO.ORG, a division of T/IR Systems LLC. http://www.irinfo.org/ap-
plication_electrical_distribution.html
5
Applying infrared thermography to predictive maintenance. Fluke Corporation white paper. 3/2010
2435559C A-US-N http://support.fluke.com/find-sales/download/asset/2435559_6003_ENG_B_w.pdf

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 4

be likely, enclosures should be opened only after the camera settings are set
and the camera is in focus to gather the most accurate temperature readings 6.
Factors such as these might cause potential defects to go undetected by re-
ducing the temperature difference between hot and cold areas.
• Ambient temperatures can have a significant influence on the readings cap-
tured as well. If the surrounding temperature is too hot it might mask the hot -
spot in the thermal image. On the other hand, low ambient temperatures might
cool down hot-spots quickly. In both these cases, the defect will appear like a
warm area. Thus, ambient temperatures should be recorded and accounted for
while analyzing the thermogram.
• Emissivity of a material is defined as the relative ability of its surface to emit
energy by radiation as compared with a black-body 7. The emissivity setting on
a thermal imager needs special attention before making readings.

There are two types of inspections that can be performed – quantitative and qualita-
tive. For quantitative inspections, it is important to know the emissivity of each object
being analyzed in order to obtain accurate temperature values. Special attention
should be given to highly reflective surfaces and unpainted metals as reflections
from such surfaces will interfere with accurate temperature measurements 8. Refer to
the section on interpreting images for tips on how this issue can be overcome in cer-
tain cases. However, quantitative analysis may not always be necessary 9. It is more
common to perform so called qualitative analysis for routine inspections. In these
types of inspections, the goal is to observe trends in temperature for the same ob-
ject over time, or, for same parts in similar equipment. Since the evaluations are
done on a relative basis, this allows one to set emissivity to 1.0 in the thermal im-
ager. As mentioned earlier, this is often referred to as “trending” data. Due to the
large number of variables involved in obtaining accurate temperature values as dis-
cussed throughout this paper, trending is often the preferred method of using IR
thermography, when practical.

• The thermal camera angle and location should be considered carefully. They
should be varied to see if any apparent hot-spots disappear. If the hot-spot dis-
appears when the camera angle is slightly altered, then it clearly shows that
this apparent hot-spot was caused by reflection. Direct sunlight and other light
sources might be reflecting off metal surfaces and might affect the image.
These reflections could interfere with the image during and sometimes even af-
ter the exposure has ended.
• A thermal image as well as a visual image of the equipment should be cap-
tured in order to be able to easily identify the components at a later stage. It is
important to capture both of these from the same angle and distance to avoid
confusion. Additionally, the images should be such that enough surrounding
area is also captured to easily locate the equipment in the future 10.

For example, consider the images shown in Figure 3. The image on the left shows
the thermal image for a particular set of conductors, and the image on the right is a

6
Denio, H. Interpreting the images: Data errors in thermography – electrical & roofs.
http://www.irinfo.org/articles/06_01_2007_Denio.pdf
7
Siegel, R., and Howell, J. Thermal radiation heat transfer. Taylor & Francis, 2002
8
Denio, H. Interpreting the images: Data errors in thermography – electrical & roofs.
http://www.irinfo.org/articles/06_01_2007_Denio.pdf
9
Clausing, L.T. Emissivity: Understand the diffe rence between apparent, actual IR temps. http://www.re-
liableplant.com/Articles/Print/14134
10
Denio, H. Interpreting the images: Data errors in thermography – electrical & roofs.
http://www.irinfo.org/articles/06_01_2007_Denio.pdf

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 5

visual picture of the equipment. The arrow in the thermal image points to what ap-
pear to be cables. However, when the visual image is analyzed, it is clear that this is
merely a reflection of the actual cables. Thus, only analyzing a thermal image might
sometimes cause misleading results.

Figure 3
Example showing the im-
portance of capturing a
thermal as well as a visual
image to avoid any confu-
sion about the equipment
during analysis of the ther-
mal image.

Thermal image for a set of cables Corresponding visual image

• In some rare cases, cold areas in the image might actually be the faulty parts.
For example, a blown fuse will not pass any current through and will appear
colder than the other components. Care should be taken to understand the
working of equipment carefully and make notes about the equipment during
image collection that will later help identify what the heat-related failure signs
might be for those pieces of equipment.
• Maintain records of numerical temperatures as well as thermal images that will
help in qualitative analysis used to evaluate trends in heating patterns of the
same equipment over time. The thermal imager settings at which these partic-
ular thermal images were captured should be recorded as well in order to be
able to recreate them later to observe trends accurately.
• Another piece of information that would be valuable is the measured current in
each phase at the time of the scans. This will help determine if the loading is
consistent and if the phases are balanced.

Interpreting Accurate interpretation of a thermal image is as important as the data collection pro-
cess itself. For instance, every image will have a hottest spot, but that does not
images mean that the temperature at this particular equipment is higher than its threshold or
that the particular equipment is malfunctioning. For example, a hot -spot might just
be an indicator that this equipment is hotter than the rest of the system around it. In
this section of the paper we will review some key points to remember while interpret-
ing hot-spots before determining equipment is defective.

Temperature conversion
The temperature scale on the thermal imager might be set to °F while the standards
list temperature limits in °C. For instance, a common busbar joint allowable tempera-
ture rise per UL891 is 65°C but when converted to the Fahrenheit scale it is 149°F.
This difference in temperature scales might lead to false alarms if not considered
correctly.

If this is the case, either the settings on the camera should be set to the same scale
as the temperature limits being compared, or accurate temperature conversion from
°F to °C (or vice versa) should be performed before comparing measured values
with listed permissible limits. Recall that the conversion from °F to °C is given as

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 6

Color scale setting

Another important camera feature that should be carefully reviewed is the span and
level that the color scale is set to in the displayed thermal image. Different cameras
have different options for setting the color scale. Refer to your camera instructions
for setting color scale. If these are set incorrectly, they might result in some equip-
ment appearing as hot-spots (red or white colors) even though their temperatures
might be well within permissible limits. Without this feature, the camera will detect
the maximum and minimum temperatures in the entire area being scanned (includ-
ing the environment) and display all the temperatures in that range. This makes it
difficult to gauge if the hot-spots in the thermal image actually correspond to a de-
fect.

We recommend you set the color scale such that the threshold temperature is dis-
played, for instance, by color red. Then, every region whose temperature is below
this threshold will appear as “cooler” colors and will not be of concern. This will help
to easily narrow down the problem spots. Consider Figure 4 for example. The image
on the left has the color scale set at 73.2°C as the upper limit. In looking at this pic-
ture, all objects appear to be below the upper limit. However, when the color scale is
changed to 50°C, as seen in the right image, there are many objects that “appear” to
be hot.

In order to decide which image is correct, the threshold temperature of concern

should be decided. In this case, if the cable connections are being inspected and
have a temperature rise limit of 50°C, and the ambient temperature is 23.3°C, then
the absolute temperature limit is 73.3°C (50°C + 23.3°C). Therefore, the image on
the left was taken with the correct color scale. Note that any equipment above the
upper limit of the color scale will appear white.

Figure 4
Thermal images of the
same equipment with
the camera being set to
different color scales.

Color scale set to 73.2°C Color scale set to 50°C

However, this does not mean that every component above the threshold color is of
concern. This is especially true with steel supports, required for the basic st ructure
and design of electrical equipment, that are close to energized busbars. Due to the
close proximity of steel support members to live busbars, they can get hot and often
exceed many of the temperature limitations of other components around them. This
situation often results in the steel member being the hottest spot in the equipment
and is displayed this way in the infrared scan. For example, consider the threshold
being set to 85°C which may be the threshold of a specific plated busbar joint (65°C
rise + 20°C ambient). When the image is taken, a metal support bracket may be in
the image and be displayed by a temperature color, say white, indicating tempera-
tures in excess of 85°C. This situation often raises concerns. However, it is im-
portant to note that metal support brackets located near an energized busbar can

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 7

display higher temperatures and still be perfectly acceptable as long as other con-
siderations are taken into account. Some of these considerations include, for in-
stance, nearby busbars being within limits, temperature limits of other support mem-
bers not being exceeded, temperature of paint being within limits, and insulating ma-
terials not getting damaged. Thus, some components may not really be problem
spots even though they are at temperatures higher than the threshold setting.

When there are several different temperature limitations given in the standards for
similar equipment, the color scale should be set to the lowest of the listed tempera-
tures for a conservative reading. In some cases when the exact class of the equip-
ment cannot be determined, the lowest temperature referenced in the standards for
that equipment group should be used.

As mentioned in the data collection process section, if data is being used for trend-
ing, then the color scale should be set the exact same way each time for a more ac-
curate comparison.

Emissivity setting
For the purposes of thermography, emitted energy from any object is what is most
important because it is the indicator of the object’s temperature11.

A highly reflective object is known to be less emissive, and vice versa. Refer to the
Appendix for further details on this relation between reflectivity and emissivity. Since
a highly reflective object is less emissive it might cause a defect to go undetected
during the thermography process. However, if there is a hotter object in the vicinity,
then it will reflect heat off of that object and appear hotter than it actually is. Thus,
understanding the material properties of the equipment under consideration is very
important before drawing any conclusions based on a thermal image 12.

Since emitted energy is an indicator of the object’s temperature, we would prefer

equipment to be dull and less reflective, and instead have a high emissivity value in
order to get a more accurate reading of its temperature. Unfortunately, the emissivity
of most transmission and distribution equipment is quite low 13. Thus, detecting the
temperature of an object by just measuring its total infrared radiation will mos t prob-
ably result in errors in the data. In order to get more accurate temperature readings
for quantitative analysis, the object’s emissivity must be known. For instance, the
emissivity value for a plated busbar may be different than that for an un-plated bus
bar. So we can see that when quantitative analysis of equipment is being performed,
the emissivity setting on the imager can play a significant role. Of course, even
when the emissivity values are known, obtaining accurate temperature readings can
often be difficult. This is because of the various factors discussed throughout this
paper, including setting and using the camera correctly.

If hot-spots are noticed in a thermogram, then it should be carefully reviewed to

make sure that it was not reflections that were hindering the imager from getting an
accurate output. If this was indeed the case, there are two main ways to overcome
this issue:

11
Epperly, R. A., Heberlein, E., and Lowry G. E. A tool for reliability and safety: predict and prevent
equipment failures with thermography. IEEE Petroleum and Chemical Industry Conference, 1997: 59 -
68.
12
Clausing, L.T. Emissivity: Understand the difference between apparent, actu al IR temps.
http://www.reliableplant.com/Articles/Print/14134
13
Snell, J. R., and Renowden, J. Improving the results of thermographic inspections of electrical trans-
mission and distribution lines. AeroSense, International Society for Optics and Photonics, 2000: 115 -
126.

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 8

A. Most modern thermal imagers have a compensation setting that mathemati-

cally corrects for this issue within the signal processor of the thermal imager.
The operator can quickly and easily set this setting if the emissivity values
for the equipment under consideration are known. Usually, a list of emissiv-
ity values for common materials is provided in the thermal imager manual.
This should only be used as a rough guide because emissivity varies by sur-
face condition, viewing angle, temperature and even by spectral wavelength.
Sometimes even small errors in emissivity values for shiny metals can cause
large errors in the temperature readings.

B. When the emissivity setting is unknown, an easy and common way to signifi-
cantly reduce errors in measurement due to highly reflective surfaces is to
paint a flat black spot using “high temperature” paint, or to use “high temper-
ature” flat black electrical tape that is not shiny (called calibration tape) on
the equipment where temperature is to be scanned. This effort to st andard-
ize emissivity is usually done while the equipment is de-energized. Usually,
a 1” to 2” diameter circle of paint or piece of tape is used. Both black electri-
cal tape and a flat black spot of paint have high emissivity of approximately
0.96 (usually close to 1.0). This helps elevate the target to higher emissivity
levels and thus get a more accurate reading. This is shown in Figure 5 be-
low. The black electrical tape placed as an “X” on the busbar helps obtain a
more accurate reading of the busbar temperature. Note that the tape shows
the busbar temperature to be about 60°C (red) which is the actual tempera-
ture, whereas the surface without the tape is about 32°C (blue).

Figure 5
Thermal image of a busbar
overlaid on its visual image to
show the effect of the cross-
mark ed black tape, and the re-
flection of a hand due to the
shiny surface of the busbar.

However, this is not always practical at very high temperatures. At these extremely
high temperatures, errors due to unknown emissivity of materials can be avoided by
using imagers that use narrow wavelength bands at shorter wavelengths.

• Reflections: As discussed above, highly reflective surfaces hinder accurate

temperature readings. Any heat source in the area, including the operator’s
own thermal radiation, could have caused confounding reflections resulting in
a properly functioning area appearing falsely as a hotspot. For instance, Fig-
ure 5 above shows the image of a hand in the thermal image which was due to
the reflection of the operators hand that was 5’ away. Figure 6 clearly shows
the image of the person using the camera and the ceiling light due to the re-
flections of their heat images on the shiny surface of the busbar. Note that the
operator’s heat signature is only reflected from the busbar and not the table
top or the wall behind that have high emissivity and are not reflective.

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 9

Figure 6
Thermal image showing the
person using the IR camera
and ceiling light due to the re-
flections of their heat images
on the shiny surface of the
equipment.

• The analyst must ensure that precautions were taken during the measurement
phase to reduce this effect; either by using black paint/tape as detailed earlier
or by choosing the measurement angle carefully to try and eliminate these re-
flections. Some modern cameras also have the option to set ambient tempera-
ture and compensate for the reflected apparent temperature.
• Blackbody effect: A blackbody is an ideal device that absorbs all energy that is
incident on it, and is an ideal emitter14. So in some cases, if some equipment
happens to simulate a blackbody, then the effective emissivity is greatly in-
creased and the equipment might appear hotter than it actually is. For exam-
ple, a disconnect switch with shiny blades and narrow gaps between the
blades might simulate a blackbody as shown in Figure 715.

Figure 7
The proximity of the shiny
metal blades with narrow gaps
simulates the blackbody effect
with increased effective emis-
sivity mak ing it appear hotter
than it may actually be.

Power disconnect with knife blade connectors Corresponding thermal image

• This possibility that there could have been a blackbody effect should be taken
into consideration while analyzing the images.

Thermal Conductivity
The ability of a material to conduct heat is measured in terms of its thermal conduc-
tivity. Different equipment is made of different groups of materials that may have
varying thermal properties. For instance, insulation tends to heat up slowly, while
metals heat up quickly. So the same issue could cause different temperature rises in
different materials leading to large temperature differences in certain situations, and
might show misleading results.

14
Siegel, R., and Howell, J. Thermal radiation heat transfer. Taylor & Francis, 2002.
15
Clausing, L.T. Emissivity: Understand the difference between apparent, actu al IR temps.
http://www.reliableplant.com/Articles/Print/14134

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 10

Temperature readings
All scan results show total temperature readings (i.e. a sum of ambient temperature
and temperature rise) while most industry standards express limits only in terms of
the temperature rise over ambient temperature. Thus, ambient temperatures should
be noted while taking thermal images, and should be accounted for while calculating
the temperature rise in the equipment before comparing it to the standards. For ex-
ample, if the ambient temperature was 73°F, and the temperature of a measured
component is 193°F, then the temperature rise in the component is 120°F. This tem-
perature rise should then be compared to the standards, after converting to °C if
needed, to ensure that it is within limits.

Industry standards
Of course, industry standards for temperature requirements should be adhered to
appropriately. It is advisable to maintain a list of common temperature limits listed in
standards in °C as well as °F for ease of use. Some common equipment for which it
is handy to have ratings readily available are:
o Plated busbars
o Cable connections
o Conductor insulation, and
o External metal parts on the outside of equipment that are accessible
to personnel

NOTE: It is important to remember that UL and ANSI standards do not limit tempera-
tures of metal materials that are not current carrying parts located on the inside of
equipment/enclosures that are not to be touched during normal operation. However,
of course, these temperatures should be maintained such that these internal metal
parts are safe and do not damage themselves or other nearby parts.

Sanity check
Lastly, all readings should be double-checked to make sure they seem realistic. For
example, consider the image shown in Figure 8.

Figure 8
A thermal image showing ad-
jacent sides of a lug in differ-
ent colors as an example that
further analysis of the equip-
ment is required to understand
this image.

In this thermal image, for the lug indicated by the arrow, one surface appears blue
while the adjacent surface appears red. However, it is not realistic for a lug such as
this to have a wide temperature difference on two surfaces so close to each other.
On further review of the equipment it is found that the lug is in fact a shiny aluminum
lug and this is due to the effect of emissivity.

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 11

Errors in temperature measurement could occur not only from errors in method, as
noted in all the points above, but also from errors in the imager itself, for example,
wrong calibration. Often, observing temperature trends in the same equipment over
time eliminates some factors that hinder thermography scans from obtaining accu-
rate temperature readings. Seeing temperature rises in these trends often helps
identify potential issues that can be further investigated. Measurements from other
preventive maintenance techniques must be referred to as well before making con-
clusions.

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 12

Electrical Preventive Maintenance programs (data trending) play a very important

Conclusion role in the effective functioning of large electrical systems. If one is able to identify
potential problems before they become critical, then one can prevent the electrical
system from posing hazardous threats to infrastructure and personnel by scheduling
a controlled shutdown, and also prevent costly equipment failures and breakdowns.
Infrared thermography is an extremely useful component of such EPM programs as
it provides a way of testing for such potential problem situations with minimal inter-
vention.

Of course, as is the case with any diagnostic tool, IR thermography can result in a
large number of false positives if the practitioners are not careful, both in the image
collection stage and in the image analysis stage. This is mainly because electrical
equipment is always appropriately hot, and so some hot-spots are inherent in a ther-
mal image. It is important to understand that since a large number of influencing fac-
tors affect the results of an IR thermography scan, just observing hot-spots in a ther-
mal image does not necessarily indicate a problem. Thus, the effective use of IR in-
spection requires a great measure of skill, training, interpretation, and understand-
ing.

The goal of this document is to highlight the most vital areas in both the data collec-
tion and interpretation phases of IR thermography, and provide the reader with some
best practices at each stage. We also endeavor to make accessible a check -list of
the intricacies an IR thermography user should become familiar with to fully harness
the power of this extremely effective imaging paradigm. Our hope is that this infor-
mation will aid the practitioner in making an accurate judgement as to whether an
observed hot-spot is more likely to have been caused by an anomaly, or, by an error
during the collection or diagnosis of data. In the end, it is a combination of a power-
ful diagnostic tool and a well-informed practitioner that provides real value in preven-
tive maintenance, and helps drastically reduce the frequency of equipment break-
down in a power system.

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About the authors

Jyo Chandrapati received her B.Tech. degree in Electrical Engineering from V.J.T.I., Mumbai, In-
dia in 2008, and her M.S. in Electrical Engineering, specializing in Power and Energy Systems,
from University of Wisconsin - Madison in 2010. She also completed the Energy Analysis and Pol-
icy certificate program from The Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies at University o f Wiscon-
sin - Madison in 2010. Ms. Chandrapati joined Schneider Electric in 2010 and is currently a Sr.
Power Systems Engineer in the Engineering Services division. She is a Professional Engineer li-
censed in the state of Wisconsin, Maine, and Vermont.

Bradley Hayes is a Staff Mechani cal Engineer at Schneider Electric. He currently manages a team
of engineers to provide custom engineered solutions for the data center market. Brad received his
Bachelor of Science degree in Electro-Mechanical Engineering Technology from Middle Tennessee
State University in 1995.

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 13

Appendix When energy is incident on some equipment, some of this energy is absorbed, some
is transmitted, and the rest is reflected. This is described by the Total Power Law as

a + t + r = 1,

where a = fraction absorbed

t = fraction transmitted
r = fraction reflected

Also, by what is often called as Kirchoff’s Law, the relationship between an object’s
ability to absorb and emit radiation is given as

a = e,

where e = fraction emitted

So, by combining the above two equations we can see that there are three sources
of thermal energy that radiate from any given object and are detected by a thermal
imager. These three sources of energy are emitted energy, transmitted energy, and
reflected energy, and all three of them should be accounted for while analyzing the
image.

For a piece of equipment that is made of opaque material like steel, transmission of
energy through the equipment is zero (i.e. t = 0). Note that we have

e + r = 1,

for an opaque object.

Thus, it is seen that if an object is highly reflective, it will be less emissive and vice
versa.

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs

 Schneider Electric – Data Center Science Center White Paper 268 Rev 0 14

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If you are a customer and have questions specific to your data center project:
Contact your Schneider Electric representative at
www.apc.com/support/contact/index.cfm

Using Infrared Thermography to Improve Electrical Preventive Maintenance Programs