Im wondering how many Volts/Amperes a regular small electric motor can handle.
DC motors are known for their longevity and ability to be overloaded without damage. Its hard to say what motor will take what though because some quality motors will run fine on almost twice the voltage while some cheaper ones will thermally break down very quickly. If you can keep a motor very cold you can probably push it pretty far, if you have a large supply for DC power and a LARGE peltier you may be able to get a dc motor over quadruple its rated voltage. At some particular point though the wire coatings will break down so over-volting a dc motor will eventually damage the motor.
Wow! There is a wide variety of regular small electric motors and you likely need to be a bit more specific. I know of small electric motors that run on a few milliamperes of current at up to 12 volts, running electric trains, etc. There are other motors that run on 120 or 240 volts AC at very low current to run things like clocks, appliance timers, and so on. My tablesaw in my shop has a 2 horsepower motor that uses about 10 amperes at 120 volts AC after it is started. Do you see what I mean about needing a bit more information.
Hello, Is it a DC or an AC motor? I am more familiar with DC motors, but AC motors have a few similarities. An electric motor draws very little current at no-load, so even if it's not designed for a given voltage, it may run just fine (and very fast) if you give it too much voltage. Usually DC motors are designed for 12 volts (16 volts max, typically). But they can usually handle 50 volts if there is no load. Of course, if the motor is going way too fast, it may fall apart - the copper windings will fly off the core and the motor will die. If you load the motor , the current increases rapidly. If the motor is stalled (energy applied, but the motor is physically clamped or restrained, it will draw maximum current and will eventually burn up, or if the motor has an internal circuit breaker, it will trip to protect it. A typical automotive DC motor can handle anywhere from 10 amps to 40 amps at 13 volts. If you let the motor run at no load, or a very light load, it can run indefinitely and will never overheat. However, AC motors are a different animal, and can be rated for either 120 volts or 240, or 460. There are way too many variables if you're talking about an AC motor. They are MUCH more dangerous than a DC motor also. If you disassemble any motor, be very careful. Even if you unplug an AC motor, there may be large capacitors inside it which can hold a potent charge and zap you if you touch the wrong thing
