ESC burn up with 14.8V 4500mah 45C lipo - Quadcopter

January 17, 2019, 09:49:17 AM

Hi all,

I am a beginner for RC model build, yet I have flied ready-made RC models.

I am currently building a 700mm quadcopter for aerial photography (Strictly no ideas of aerobatics and racing). So I made a very basic research on the components required for the purpose.

My estimated weight of the quad along with battery and camera would be max of 2.5 kg and would not exceed it. I have procured almost all components required for the build and have fabricated the frame and wirings were done properly. The only left over part was to calibrate the controller (APM2.

and the TX-RX input output response.

Now let me come to the actual problem. When I connect the ESC independently to the Lipo, the ESC got burnt and begun to smoke. I even tried to connect a BEC power module used for APM in between the battery and ESC, even this time the ESC was burnt-up.

The below are my component details,

Motor : E-Max MT3110 - 700kV (https://www.emaxmodel.com/mt3110.html)

Prop : 12 x 38 carbon propeller

ESC : E-Max BLHeli Series 25A ESC (https://www.emaxmodel.com/blheli-series-25a-esc.html)

Battery: ZOP Power 14.8V 4500mAh 45C Lipo battery (https://www.banggood.com/ZOP-Power-14_8V-4500mAh-4S-45C-Lipo-Battery-XT60-Plug-p-1087251.html?gmcCountry=IN&currency=INR&cur_warehouse=CN&createTmp=1&utm_source=googleshopping&utm_medium=cpc_bgs&utm_content=frank&utm_campaign=pla-heli-in-pc&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI2cKgs_fz3wIVGyUrCh20-gV3EAQYASABEgJvY_D_BwE)

My understanding is ESC selection is done with respect to the motor power consumption, but in my case the ESC got burnt when connected to the Lipo itself. I confirmed the polarity, wire short and continuity . . .

Can I please get help for the above issue. Have the battery been overrated or the ESC selected was wrong ??

chintal · January 17, 2019, 09:58:15 AM

Which esc did you use ?
Did you check what voltage is the esc accepting ?

taksh · January 17, 2019, 04:41:51 PM

Show connection wiring.....
upload Images..So, we can understand problem.
sometimes, problem is different.

K K Iyer · January 17, 2019, 07:02:51 PM

Likely reason: wrong polarity...

January 18, 2019, 09:35:32 PM

Hi Chantal,

I used Emax Blheli 25amp ESC - which is rated for 2 to 4 cell Lipo. In which my understanding was like, the ESC is compatible for 14.8V LIPO.

January 18, 2019, 09:48:06 PM

Hi Mr.Taken,

Attached is my wiring connections. When ESC was tried to connect with battery, MOSFET started to glow red and begun to smoke. ESC was not connected to the motor or receiver while attempting to connect with battery.

January 18, 2019, 09:51:44 PM

Hi Mr.Iyer,

You are right. I first suspected the same. I double checked the polarity by visualising the wire polarity. Is there a chance that the ESC power terminals were wrongly soldered in company end

Imperial fire · January 18, 2019, 10:41:36 PM

its unlikely that emax would solder the polarity inorrectly...
must have been a short somewhere ...you didnt remove the esc shrinkwrap did you?
sorry for your loss. ive had em too during the initial days of my building . hope you fly it soon

taksh · January 19, 2019, 12:43:43 AM

@ArunKumar Sir,
My name is Taksh not Taken.

January 19, 2019, 09:56:29 AM

Apologies for the #Typo, Mr.Taksh

January 19, 2019, 10:01:35 AM

Hello Imperial fire,

I didn't make a try to remove the heat shrink, until all 4 ESC got burnt . . I unwrapped one ESC and noticed that the MOSFET is the one which is getting burnt while connecting to the lipo

ambattuhari · January 19, 2019, 10:15:31 AM

can you post a picture of the burnt ESC without the heat shrink...?

Imperial fire · January 19, 2019, 10:54:16 AM

OH ALL 4 got burnt....strange mystery...
you need to attach more pics only then someone can tell what went wrong..attach pics of entire setup...

kiran rc · January 19, 2019, 05:23:08 PM

The possible cause is reverse polarity as suggested in earlier replies.
Check the polarity of...
1) battery using a multimeter.
2) ESC using a contuinity tester. See if the Black wire is
connected to the ground pad of the PCB as well as the
capacitor.

Were you able to power the APM via power module? If so,
you may eliminate the battery issue...
A snap of the burnt ESC/component may help. (Was it a burnt FET or voltage regulator?)

taksh · January 19, 2019, 08:57:26 PM

@ArunKumar
Upload real images...
Check continuity for Power Distribution Board.

January 21, 2019, 04:12:59 PM

Hi All,

1. I checked for the polarity of the battery, the multimeter was reading positive 16.47V when connected with the battery terminals.

2. I am attaching few pics of the burnt ESC for reference. (Circuit can also be seen in the attached pics)

January 21, 2019, 04:15:25 PM

Hi Kiran,

I was able to power the APM using the power module with the LIPO. I believe Battery should not be the issue.

ambattuhari · January 21, 2019, 04:37:12 PM

Hi, from where did you buy the ESC ?
Can you Post the link...?

January 21, 2019, 05:18:49 PM

I bought the ESC from aliexpress

https://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/0.html?spm=a2g0s.9042647.6.2.4d7c4c4dbaxIjJ&orderId=93983494117508&productId=32596674276

kiran rc · January 21, 2019, 05:34:00 PM

Do you have any ESC from this lot that's unburnt?
If so, you could simply test for contuinity in the output leads for a short circuit.

From the pics,
The battery and ESC Polarity seems to be correct as the 7805 regulator IC is still intact.
Now the only problem could be a large current flowing through the MOSFETs due to a short in either the PCB(very unlikely for branded ones like EMAX) or the output wires.

January 21, 2019, 05:37:45 PM

Can you please let me know how to perform the continuity test in the output leads that you mention about. Unfortunately I got burnt all 4 ESC, since I bought only 4 ESC in that order.

kiran rc · January 21, 2019, 05:43:01 PM

That wouldn't work for a burnt one since the contuinity will be positive as the circuit/MOSFET is already shorted.

January 21, 2019, 05:47:35 PM

Okay. In general, why does the MOSFET getting burnt once connected with the battery. Could the firmware in the ESC cause this

(It was mentioned like BLHELI was flashed at the factory end)

kiran rc · January 21, 2019, 05:50:03 PM

Are you sure that the output leads aren't creating the short? (Near the Xt60 3pin connector)

kiran rc · January 21, 2019, 05:54:36 PM

Quote from: on January 21, 2019, 05:47:35 PM
Okay. In general, why does the MOSFET getting burnt once connected with the battery. Could the firmware in the ESC cause this (It was mentioned like BLHELI was flashed at the factory end)

Firmware can create a problem sometimes but with the motor connected.
Without a load, it's not possible for an ESC to blow until there's high voltage supply, short or a malfunctioning component.

ESC burn up with 14.8V 4500mah 45C lipo - Quadcopter

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