EEDA 512 – AC/DC MACHINERY (LECTURE)

Lesson 3: TRANSFORMERS and REGULATORS

TOPICS INCLUDED:
Transformer Terminologies and Operation Principle; Transformer Construction, Rating, Losses, and Efficiency; Single-Phase
and Three-Phase Connections; and Voltage Regulator Principle
I. TRANSFORMER TERMINOLOGIES
Transformers provide a single means of changing an alternating voltage from one value to another. If a transformer receives
energy at a low voltage and delivers it at a higher voltage, it is called a step-up transformer. When a transformer is supplied energy
at a given voltage and delivers it at some lower voltage, it is called a step-down transformer. Any transformer may be operated as
either a step-up or step-down transformer; however, the
voltage for which the transformer is designed must be
applied at either case.
To transmit a given amount of energy, less current is
required at a higher voltage than at a low voltage. This means
that energy may be transmitted with less I2R or line loss
when high transmission voltages are used. In order to secure
high transmission voltages, such as 345,000 or 765,000 V,
step-up transformers are used at the generating station, since
it is not feasible to generate voltages this high. Then at the
points where energy is to be used, step-down transformers
are used to reduce the high transmission voltage to safe and
usable values. Thus, transformers make possible the
economical transmission of electric energy over long
distances.
Since a basic transformer has no moving parts, it
requires little attention and the maintenance expense is low.
Transformer efficiencies are high, running as high as 98 or
99 percent at full load in the larger sizes.

Figure 3.1 A step-up (above) and step-down (below) transformers

A simple transformer consists of two coils wound on a closed iron

core as represented in Figure 3.1. The coils are insulated from each other
and from the core. Energy is supplied to one winding, called the primary
winding, and is delivered to the load from the other winding, called the
secondary winding. When the transformer is used as a step-up transformer,
the low-voltage winding is called the primary. In a step-down transformer,
the high-voltage winding is the primary.
Standard markings have been adopted for transformer terminals. The
terminals of the high-voltage winding are marked H1, H2, . . . ; and the
terminals of the low-voltage winding are marked X1, X2, . . . . It is
convenient, therefore, to call high-voltage winding the H winding and the
low-voltage winding the X winding and to designate the number of turns
of each winding as TH and TX.

II. THEORY of OPERATION

Transformers work through the principle of mutual induction
which is a further application of Faraday’s Law. In mutual induction,
electromotive forces are induced by devices in which neither the
conductor nor the magnets move but in which the magnetic field is
made to vary in strength or direction. The transformer is a mutual-
induction device used for changing the value of alternating voltages.
It consists of two windings, a primary and a secondary, wound on the
same iron core. When an alternating voltage is applied to the primary
winding, an alternating current flows in the primary winding. The
flux produced in the core increases, decreases, and reverses with the
primary current. This induces an alternating emf in the secondary
winding which is directly proportional to the number of turns on the
secondary winding. An emf induced in a secondary coil by a change
of current in the primary coil is said to be induced by mutual
induction. Figure 3.2 shows mutual induction concept.
Figure 3.2 Mutual Induction in Transformer
 III. TRANSFORMER CONSTRUCTION, RATINGS, LOSSES and EFFICIENCY
CONSTRUCTION:
There are two different transformer core shapes in common use, namely, the core type and the shell type. The cores of both
types are fabricated of special low-loss steel and are laminated to minimize core losses.
In the core-type construction, as shown in Figure 3.3, the windings surround the laminated iron core, whereas in the shell-type
construction, as shown in Figure 3.4, it is the core that surrounds the windings. The core and coil assemblies are designed to be
immersed in insulating oil in a steel tank. In addition to having insulating properties, the oil conducts heat from the core and coils to
the surface of the tank where it is given off to the surrounding air. Connections from the transformer coils to the external circuits are
made through insulating bushings usually made of porcelain.

Figure 3.3 Core-type transformer Figure 3.4 Shell-type transformer

Coils of transformers are wound with copper or aluminum wire or strap. For heavy-current windings, several strands of
conductor are paralleled to reduce eddy-current loss in the conductors.
Two basic types of transformer windings are commonly used. These are the concentric and the pancake types. Concentric
windings are cylindrical in form with one winding placed inside the other with the necessary insulation between them. The low-
voltage winding is normally placed on the inside next to but insulated from the core. Pancake windings are built up with primary
and secondary sections interleaved. In both types, spacers are provided between adjacent coils to permit ventilation or the circulation
of the cooling liquid.

RATINGS:
The output rating or capacity of a transformer is given in kilovoltamperes (kVA) since this is equivalent to specifying the load
current. The rated kilovoltamperes of a transformer is based on the maximum output that the transformer can deliver at rated
secondary voltage and rated frequency without exceeding a given temperature rise. Since power in ac circuit depends upon the power
factor of the load as well as the current flowing, an output rating in kilowatts would have to be at some stated power factor. For this
reason, transformers are rated in kilovoltamperes, which are independent of power factor.
Included on a transformer nameplate in addition to capacity and voltage rating data are the connection diagrams, percent
impedance, polarity data, cooling class, data on winding taps, and basic insulation level. Basic insulation level is an indication of the
ability of the insulation system to withstand transient overvoltages.
Transformers may be classified as distribution or as power transformers. The term distribution transformer, as generally
accepted, is applied to transformers rated 500 kVA and smaller. Transformers rated greater than 500 kVA are referred to as power
transformers.

TRANSFORMER LOSSES and EFFICIENCY

The efficiency of a transformer is the ratio of the useful power output to the total power input. Since the input to a transformer
is equal to its useful output plus its losses, the efficiency equation may be written in either of the following forms:
𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐩𝐮𝐭
Percent Efficiency = 𝒙 𝟏𝟎𝟎% or = 𝒙 𝟏𝟎𝟎%
𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒑𝒖𝒕+𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔

Although transformers are highly efficient, some losses are present in all transformers. There are two classes of losses, namely,
load losses, which are principally I2R losses in the transformer windings, and no-load losses, which are primarily core losses. Load
losses can be calculated for any given load if the resistances of both windings are known or can be measured. If RH and RX are the
high- and low-voltage winding resistances, then the load loss is:
Load Loss = IH2 RH2 + Ix2 Rx
No-load or core losses are due to the effects of hysteresis and eddy currents in the iron core of the transformer. These effects
are similar to those occurring in generators and motors.
 IV. SINGLE-PHASE and THREE-PHASE CONNECTIONS
SINGLE-PHASE CONNECTIONS:
Single phase transformers, like other electrical devices, may
be connected into series or parallel arrangements. For example,
distribution transformers are normally wound with the secondary
or low-voltage windings that can be connected in series or parallel.
The availability of primary voltages and the requirements of the
load dictate how the transformer will be wired. A single-phase
connection diagram is shown in Figure 3.5.

Figure 3.5 Single-phase connection diagrams

THREE-PHASE CONNECTIONS:
Single-phase transformer can be connected to form three-phase transformer banks for raising or lowering the voltages of three-
phase systems. Four common methods of connecting three transformers for three-phase transformations are the delta-delta, wye-
wye, wye-delta, and delta-wye connections. Connection diagrams for three-phase is shown in Figure 3.6.
The delta-delta connection is often used for moderate voltages. An advantage of this connection is that if one transformer
becomes damaged or is removed from the service the remaining two can be operated in what is known as the open-delta or V-
connection. By being operated in this way, the bank still delivers three-phase currents and voltages in their correct phase
relationships, but the capacity of the bank is reduced to 57.7 percent of what it was with all three transformers in service.
In the wye-wye connection, only 57.5 percent of the line voltage is impressed upon each winding, but full line current flows
in each transformer winding. Power circuits supplied from a wye-wye bank often create serious disturbances in communication
circuits in their immediate vicinity. Because of this and other disadvantages, the wye-wye connections is not as commonly used as
the other connections.
The delta-wye connection is well adapted for stepping up voltages since the voltage is increased by the transformer ratio
multiplied by the factor 1.732. Likewise wye-delta connection is used for stepping down voltages. The high-voltage windings of
most transformers operating at above 100,000 V are wye-connected.

Figure 3.6 Circuit Diagrams of Transformers for Three-Phase Connections

V. VOLTAGE REGULATOR PRINCIPLE

Much of the load on an electrical system is at some distance from the generating station. Because of this distance, there is a
drop in voltage between the generating station and the point of utilization. Furthermore, this drop is not constant but is proportional
to the amount of load on the circuit at any one time. As the load varies, the voltage drop varies also. Most electric equipment is
designed to operate at a given voltage, and the efficiency of operation of this equipment is affected appreciably if the applied voltage
deviates from the rated value.
Feeder-voltage regulators are used extensively as an aid to maintaining a reasonably constant voltage at the point of use on an
electrical system. A voltage regulator is in effect an autotransformer with a variable ratio.
The basic principle of the voltage regulator
 A basic voltage regulator relies on a simple electromechanical design. A wire
connected to the circuit is coiled so that it forms an electromagnet. As the voltage
in the circuit increases, so does the strength of the electromagnet. This causes an
iron core to move towards the electromagnet which is connected to a power switch.
When the moving magnet pulls the switch, it reduces the voltage in the circuit.

VI. EQUATIONS for TRANSFORMER

Pole-mounted distribution transformer with center-

tapped secondary winding used to provide "split-phase"
power for residential and light commercial service,
which is typically rated 120/240 V.

VII. SAMPLE PROBLEMS

(To be provided and written on the board)