Debris seal for electrical connectors of pump motors

A motor assembly for a well pump, comprising:

• an upper motor,
• an upper adapter on a lower end of the upper motor having at least one upper adapter passage;
• an upper wire extending downward from the upper motor into the upper adapter passage;
• an upper electrical connector joined to a lower end of the upper wire;
• a lower motor;
• a lower adapter on an upper end of the lower motor that secures to the upper adapter and has at least one lower adapter passage;
• a lower wire extending upward from the lower motor into the lower adapter passage;
• a lower electrical connector joined to an upper end of the lower wire for engaging the upper electrical connector;
• an elastomeric upper adapter debris seal in the upper adapter passage that seals around the upper wire to prevent debris from collecting around the upper wire and the upper electrical connector in the upper adapter passage;
• and
• the upper and lower motors containing a dielectric fluid in which the electrical connectors are immersed as well as both upper and lower sides of the debris seal.

A motor assembly for a well pump, comprising:

• an upper motor,
• an upper adapter on a lower end of the upper motor having at least one upper adapter passage;
• an upper insulator of a rigid insulating material located in the upper adapter passage and having a lower portion extending downward therefrom;
• an upper wire having an insulation layer on its exterior and extending downward from the upper motor into the upper insulator;
• an upper electrical connector joined to a lower end of the upper wire;
• an elastomeric upper adapter debris seal that seals around the insulation layer of the wire to prevent entry of debris between the insulation layer of the wire and an inner diameter of the upper insulator;
• a lower motor;
• a lower adapter on an upper end of the lower motor that secures to the upper adapter and has at least one lower adapter passage;
• a lower insulator of a rigid insulating material located in the lower adapter passage and having an upper portion that extends upward therefrom and engages the lower portion of the upper insulator in an overlapping relation;
• a lower wire extending upward from the lower motor into the lower insulator;
• a lower electrical connector joined to an upper end of the lower wire and engaging the upper electrical connector;
• and
• a lower adapter debris seal located between the lower and upper portions of the upper and lower insulators to prevent entry of debris into the lower insulator.

A motor assembly for a well pump;

• comprising:
• an upper motor;
• an upper adapter on a lower end of the upper motor having at least one upper adapter passage;
• an upper insulator located in the upper adapter passage and having a lower portion extending downward therefrom;
• an upper wire having an insulation layer on its exterior and extending downward from the upper motor into the upper insulator;
• the upper insulator having an inner diameter that is larger than an outer diameter of the insulation layer, defining an annular cavity between the insulation layer and the inner diameter of the upper insulator;
• an upper electrical connector having an upper portion that extends into the annular cavity and joins to a lower end of the upper wire, the upper electrical connector blocking a lower end of the annular cavity;
• and
• an elastomeric upper adapter debris seal that has a final size in which it seals around the insulation layer of the upper wire above the upper electrical connector and blocks entry of debris into the annular cavity, the debris seal being of a material that swells upon contact with a dielectric fluid and has an having an initial size in which it does not seal the annular cavity to enable the dielectric fluid to flow into the annular cavity prior to the debris seal reaching the final size.

A method of operating a motor assembly for a well pump, comprising:

• providing a motor with an electrical connector assembly that has an insulator with a passage, an electrical conductor having an insulation layer on its exterior and extending from the motor into the passage of the insulator, the passage having an inner diameter that is larger than an outer diameter of the insulation layer, defining an annular cavity between the insulation layer and the inner diameter of the passage, and an electrical connector joined to the electrical conductor within the passage;
• mounting an elastomeric debris seal around the insulation layer, the debris seal having a final size in which it seals around the insulation layer and blocks entry of debris into the annular cavity, the debris seal being of a material that swells upon contact with a dielectric fluid and has an having an initial size in which it does not seal the annular cavity to enable the dielectric fluid to flow into the annular cavity prior to the debris seal reaching the final size;
• placing an upper adapter debris seal around the insulation layer, the seal being of a type that swells upon contact with a dielectric fluid and has an initial size that does not seal to the wire;
• then
• drawing a vacuum on the interior of the motor and introducing a dielectric fluid into the interior of the motor, the initial size of the debris seal enabling dielectric fluid to flow past the debris seal into the annular cavity;
• then
• causing the debris seal to swell to seal around the insulation layer due to immersion in the dielectric fluid to seal the annular cavity;
• and
• supplying electrical power to the motor to cause it to operate.