Electrical Machines II lecture notes

3rd year – undergraduate study,

Department of Electrical Engineering,
College of Engineering, University of Baghdad
Baghdad – Iraq

Prepared and presented by:

Dr. Aslan Sa. Jalal
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 2. Synchronous Motor loading conditions
When a synchronous motor is connected to the lines and started by some
external means, it starts rotating at synchronous speed. If the motor is running
at no-load and has no losses (ideal condition), then the induced emf E is equal
and opposite to applied voltage V as shown in figure (1-a) and the stator and
rotor poles are in line with each other as shown in figure (1-b). The resultant
emf and hence the current drawn by the motor is zero. Thus, the motor is said to
be floating on the lines.

Figure (1): Synchronous motor at no-load (ideal condition)

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 However, in actual machine some losses are always present with the result
induced emf E falls back by an angle 𝜹𝟎 relative to the stator poles as shown in
figure (2-b). This causes a resultant voltage 𝑬𝒓 across the armature circuit and
𝑬
motor draws no-load current (𝑰𝟎 = 𝒓 ) from the mains. This no-load current
𝒁𝒔
𝑿
lags behind the resultant voltage by an angle 𝜽 where 𝜽 = 𝒕𝒂𝒏−𝟏 𝒔 . Since
𝑹
resistance is very small as compared to synchronous reactance, therefore angle
𝜽 is nearly 90°. The power drawn by the motor at no-load is 𝑉 𝐼0 𝑐𝑜𝑠∅0
which is sufficient to supply motor losses while running continuously at
synchronous speed.

Figure (2): Synchronous motor at no-load (losses considered)

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 However, when load is applied on motor shaft on the motor, the rotor poles fall back a
little more (angle 𝜹) relative to stator poles as shown in figure (3-b). Hence the torque
angle increases to 𝜹 with the increase in load. Resultant voltage 𝑬𝒓 increases in turn as
𝑬
well as the current drawn by the motor from the mains (𝑰 = 𝒓 ). Thus, a synchronous
𝒁𝒔
motor is able to supply power to the increased mechanical load, not by decrease in
speed, but by shifting the position of the rotor poles with respect to the stator poles or
field. If too great mechanical load is applied to the synchronous motor, the rotor is
pulled out of synchronism, after which it comes to stand still. This maximum value of
torque that a synchronous motor can develop without losing its synchronism is
called pull-out torque.

Figure (3): Synchronous motor at load

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 3. Equivalent Circuit of a Synchronous Motor
The equivalent circuit of a synchronous motor is the same, in all respects, as
that of a synchronous generator, the only difference is that the direction of
power flow is reversed in this case, i.e. the direction of current flow in the stator
winding of the motor is reverse, as shown in figure (4).

Figure (4): The full equivalent circuit of a three-phase synchronous motor

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 Because of the change in direction of 𝐈𝐀 , the Kirchhoff's voltage law equation
for the equivalent circuit changes too. Writing a Kirchhoff's voltage law
equation for the new per phase equivalent circuit shown in figure (5) yields:

Figure (5): The per phase equivalent circuit of a synchronous motor

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Example: A 2.3 kV, 3-phase, star-connected synchronous motor has 𝑍𝑆 = 0.2 + 𝑗2.2
ohm per phase. The motor is operating at 0.5 power factor leading with a line current of
200 A. Determine the generated emf per phase (E).
Solution:

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4. Torque – Speed characteristics of a Synchronous Motor
Synchronous motors supply power to loads that are basically constant-speed. They are
usually connected to very large power systems, so the power systems appear as infinite
buses to the motors. This means that the terminal voltage and the system frequency will
be constant regardless of the amount of power drawn by the motor. The speed of
rotation of the motor is locked to the applied electrical frequency, so the speed of the
motor will be constant regardless of the load. The resulting torque-speed characteristic
curve is shown in figure (6).
The steady-state speed of the
motor is constant from no load all
the way up to the maximum
torque (pull-out torque), so the
speed regulation of this motor is
0 percent.
The synchronous motor torque
equation is given by:

𝑬𝑨 ∝ 𝑩𝑹
& 𝑽∅ ∝ 𝑩𝒏𝒆𝒕
Figure (6): Torque-Speed characteristics
of a synchronous motor
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 From the torque equation of synchronous motor, the maximum or pull-out
torque occurs when (𝜹 = 𝟗𝟎𝟎 ). Normal full-load torques are much less than
that , however. In fact, the pull-out torque may typically be 3 times the full-load
torque of the machine.
When the torque on the shaft of a synchronous motor exceeds the pull-out
torque, the rotor can no longer remain locked to the stator and net magnetic
fields. Instead, the rotor starts to slip behind them. As the rotor slows down, the
stator magnetic field "laps" it repeatedly, and the direction of the induced torque
in the rotor reverses with each pass. The resulting huge torque surges, first one
way and then the other way, cause the whole motor to vibrate severely. The loss
of synchronization after the pull-out torque is exceeded is known as slipping
poles. The maximum or pull-out torque of the motor is given by:

→
The above equation indicates that the larger the field current (and hence 𝑬𝑨 ) ,
the greater the maximum torque of the motor. There is therefore a stability
advantage in operating the motor with a large field current or a large 𝑬𝑨 . 9
End of Lecture 14

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