TYPES OF D.C.

GENERATORS

The magnetic field in a DC generator is normally

produced by electromagnets rather than permanent
magnets. Generators are generally classified
according to their methods of field excitation. On
this basis, DC generators are divided into the
following two classes:
• Separately excited D.C generators
• Self-excited D.C generators
The behavior of a DC generator on load depends
upon the method of field excitation adopted.

SEPARATELY EXCITED D.C. GENERATORS

A d.c. generator whose field magnet winding is

supplied from an independent external d.c. source

Since the field winding carries the whole of load

Armature current, Ia = IL
Terminal voltage, V = Eg - IaRa
Electric power developed = EgIa
Power delivered to load = EgIa – Ia2Ra = Ia(Eg – IaRa)
= VIa
SELF-EXCITED D.C. GENERATORS
A d.c. generator whose field magnet winding is
supplied current from the output of the generator
itself is called a self-excited generator.
current, it has a few turns of thick wire having low
resistance.
The series generator must be self-excited, which
means that the pole pieces contain some amount of
residual magnetism. This residual magnetism
produces an initial output volt age that permits
current to flow through the field if a load is
connected to the generator.

Three types:
1. Series generator
2. Shunt generator
3. Compound generator
The amount of output voltage produced by the
generator is proportional to three factors:
SERIES GENERATOR
1. the number of turns of wire in the armature
Armature current, Ia = Ise = IL = Ise = I • When conductors are wound into a
Terminal voltage, V = Eg - I(Ra + Rse) loop, each turn acts like a separate
Power developed in armature = EgIa conductor. Since the turns are
Power delivered to load connected in series, the voltage
= EgIa – Ia2(Ra + Rse) = Ia[Eg – Ia(Ra-Rse)] induced into each conductor adds. If
= VIa or VIL one conductor has an induced
voltage of 0.5 volts and there are 20
The field winding is connected in series with turns, the total induced voltage
armature winding so that whole armature current would be 10 volts.
flows through the field winding as well as the load. 2. the strength of the magnetic field of the pole
pieces
• Flux density is a measure of the
strength of a magnetic field. If the
number of turns of wire in the
armature remains constant and the
 speed remains constant, the output The field winding is connected in parallel with the
volt age can be controlled by the armature winding so that terminal voltage of the
number of flux lines produced by the generator is applied across it.
field poles. Increasing the lines of
flux increases the number of flux The shunt field winding has many turns of fine wire
lines cut per second and therefore the having high resistance.
output voltage. The magnetic field
strength can be increased until the Therefore, only a part of armature current flows
iron of the pole pieces reaches through shunt field winding and the rest
saturation. flows through the load.
3. the speed of the cutting action (speed of
rotation)
• Induced voltage is proportional to the
number of flux lines cut per second.
If the strength of the magnetic field
remains constant and the number of
turns of wire in the armature remains
constant, the output voltage is
determined by the speed at which the
conductors cut the flux lines.
Increasing the speed of the armature
increases the speed of the cutting
action, which increases the output
voltage. Likewise, decreasing the
speed of the armature decreases the
output voltage. Shunt generators contain only a shunt field winding
connected in parallel with the armature.
Connecting Load to the Series Generator:
Shunt generators can be either self-excited or
When a load is connected to the output of a series separately excited
generator, the initial voltage produced by the
residual magnetism of the pole pieces produces a Self-excited shunt generators are similar to self-
current flow through the load. excited series generators in that residual magnetism
in the pole pieces is used to produce an initial
Because the series field is connected in series with output voltage.
the armature, the current flowing through the
armature and load must also flow through the series The self-excited generator exhibits a greater drop in
field. This causes the magnetism of the pole pieces voltage when load is added because the armature
to become stronger and produce more magnetic voltage is used to produce the current flow in the
lines of flux. When the strength of the magnetic shunt field.
pole pieces increases, the output voltage increases
also. Each time the voltage decreases, the current flow
through the field decreases, causing a decrease in
If another load is added, more current flows and the the amount of magnetic flux lines in the pole pieces.
pole pieces produce more magnetic lines of flux, This decrease of flux in the pole pieces causes a
which again increases the output voltage. Each time further decrease of output voltage.
a load is added to the series generator, its output
voltage increases. This increase of voltage continues The separately excited machine does not have this
until the iron in the pole pieces and armature problem because the field flux is held constant by
becomes saturated. At that point, an increase of load the external power source.
results in a decrease of output voltage.
Separately excited generators have their fields
connected to an external source of DC.
SHUNT GENERATOR
The advantages of the separately excited machine
are that it gives better control of the output voltage
and that its voltage drop is less when load is added.

In a self-excited shunt generator, the shunt field

winding provides a complete circuit across the
armature, permitting the full output voltage to be
obtained before a load is connected to the generator.
In the case of a shunt generator, however, the initial
voltage is used to produce a current flow through
the shunt field. This current increases the magnetic
field strength of the pole pieces, which produces a
higher output voltage. This buildup of voltage
continues until a maximum value, determined by
the speed of rotation, the turns of wire in the
armature, and the turns of wire on the pole pieces, is
reached.

COMPOUND GENERATOR

Compound generators contain both series and shunt

field. Most large DC machines are compound
wound. The series and shunt fields can be connected
in two ways:

• The long shunt connection has the shunt

field connected in parallel with both the
armature and series field. This is the most
used of the two connections.
• The short shunt connection has the shunt
field connected in parallel with the armature.
Short Shunt Compound Generator
The series field is connected in series with
the armature. This is a very common
connection for DC generators that must be
operated in parallel with each other.

Compounding

The relationship of the strengths of the two fields in

a generator determines the amount of compounding
for the machine.

• A machine is overcompounded when the

series field has too much control and the
output voltage increases each time a load is
added to the generator. Basically, the
generator begins to take on the
characteristics of a series generator.
Overcompounding is characterized by the
fact that the output voltage at full load is
greater than the output voltage at no load.

Long Shunt Compound Generator