Connections Between Generator Specifications and Fundamental Design Principles

JMFogarty -
Power Generation Technology
GE - Power Systems, SchenectadyNew York

1 INTRODUCTION
Table 1 - Linkage Between Key Technical Require-
The purchaser of a modem power generator expects it to ments and Generator Performance Characteristics
produce electric power reliably and economically over the
useful life of the power plant. In particular, it is expected Purchaser Related Design or
to operate for significant intervals without requiiing off- Requirement Performance Parameter
line maintenance, and that any maintenance, when re- Overall size and cost of the
quired, can be performed quickly and without significant kVA Rating generator
disruption of the power plant operation. Furthermore, it is
expected to operate efficiently and without significant sup- Armature Voltage Cooling system
port personnel. Exciter rating
Rated Power Factor Cooling system
Successful design and operation of the generator de- Volume of active material
pends on agreement between the generator manufacturer Short Circuit Ratio Efficiencv
and purchaser regdrding the t e c h c a l requirements of the
Operating Temperature
generator. Many of those requirements are published in Limits
standards such as ANSI C50.13 and IEC 34-1 and are
common across broad classes of generators. Additional
technical requirements or specific requirements in lieu of
those covered by the standards are given in the purchase
specification for the generator. Reliabilitv Management of Forces

This paper will discuss the interaction between com- Variations

monly specified performance characteristics, such as the
short circuit ratio or the rated power factor, and design and
other performance characteristics. It will explore how key
requirements placed on the generator manufacturer will be Cooling Gas efficiencv
addressed in the fundamental design of the unit. Rotor amortisseur circuits
Unbalanced Loading efficiency

2 KEY TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS Underexcited Opera- Stator core end

Field Winding Ceiling Field winding voltage and
Certain requirements tend to appear in many purchase
specifications and drive the overall design of the generator.
Table 1 lists a number of these requirements along with the
aspects of the generator design or performance they will
affect. In a number of instances, a requirement is linked to Factor field winding arrangements
specific performance parameters (such as efficiency), so
the purchaser may be asked to balance one aspect of per-
formance against another. The generator manufacturer can 3 BASIC PHYSICAL LAWS
provide data to support that analysis, but the decision must
be made by the purchaser. The output rating of the generator is expressed in
terms of kilovolt-amperes (kVA) and is given by the ex-
pression

N@v@I@
kV.4 = -
1000

1
-0/01/$10'2001~IEEE
0-7803-7091
where the voltage and current are phase quantities and the
number of phases is uniformly three. The selection of an
output rating and armature voltage thus fixes the armature
phase current.
According to Faraday's Law, the phase voltage pro-
duced in the armature winding is proportional to the mag-
netic flux in the machine and the speed of operation. The
magnetic flux in the machine is
where k, is a constant, f is the operating frequency, and
NdCKT is the number of turns in one circuit of the armature
winding.
The magnetic characteristics of the materials forming
the stator core and the rotor forging limit how much flux
can be carried in a given section of the machine. There-
fore, machines with greater amounts of magnetic flux must
be physically larger to carry that flux. By choosing the
number of armature turns per circuit, the generator de-
signer can specify the magnetic flux at any appropriate
level.
According to Ampere's Law, both the field winding
current and the armature winding current create magnetic
fields in the generator that interact to produce the electro-
magnetic torque equivalent to the power output of the gen-
erator.
The magnetomotive force produced by the armature
current, referred to as the Armature Reaction MMF, is
proportional to the current and the number of turns per
circuit in the winding. Thus,
where k2 is another constant. Whereas higher levels of flux
require a larger machine, higher levels of armature reaction
MMF drive higher losses, lower efficiency, higher excita-
tion levels, and higher electromagnetic forces within the
generator. Each of those concerns can be addressed but the
solution will generally involve systems of greater com-
plexity and cost. For example, the armature reaction MMF
in generators for large fossil-fired or nuclear power plants
may be twice as great as for indirectly cooled gas turbine-
driven generators. The larger units require water cooling at
elevated hydrogen pressures compared to the air or hydro-
gen cooling of the smaller units.
Simple rearrangement of Eqs. 2 and 3 yields
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kVA = k32@@MAR [41
where k3 is yet another constant. Eq. 4 highlights the fun-
damental design trade-off made by the generator designer.
For a given kVA rating, the designer must select either
high flux or low flux (larger machine vs. smaller machine)
which then fixes the level of armature reaction MMF. A
low flux machine would be physically smaller but it would
then have a higher level of armature reaction MME.
4 EFFECT OF ARMATURE VOLTAGE
The trade-off implied by Eq. 4 does not involve the
armature voltage. For example, by choosing the number of
turns per circuit in the armature winding appropriately, one
could design three different generators for the same kVA
output but at voltages of 13.8, 18, or 28 kV. All of the gen-
erators would all have the same magnetic flux and anna-
ture reaction MMF.
Many times the purchaser specifies an armature volt-
age because of balance of plant or other considerations. In
the absence of these constraints, it is best to let the gen-
erator manufacturer choose a voltage that best satisfies the
entire set of design constraints.
The influence of voltage on the generator design ap-
pears mainly in the cooling circuit. If the winding is indi-
rectly cooled, all of the losses in the copper turns must be
conducted through the armature insulation to the stator
core where it is removed by the cooling gas. If the winding
is directly cooled, that heat does not pass through the in-
sulation. As a result, higher armature voltages requiring
thicker insulation on the coils are practical only for directly
cooled armature windings. Whereas indirectly cooled
windings may operate at voltages as high as 22 kV, di-
rectly cooled windings are in operation at 28 kV.
Higher armature voltages also influence the level of
corona in the machine. This phenomenon is not as impor-
tant in generators cooled by hydrogen because of the
higher corona start voltage. It is a key concern in air-
cooled generators.
5 EFFECT OF POWER FACTOR
The rated power factor is the lowest power factor at
which the generator may be operated at its rated kVA out-
put. A typical generator Vee curve, shown in Fig. 1, relates
the field winding current to the kVA output of the genera-
tor for various power factors. In this instance, the generator
is capable of operating at 0.80 PF overexcited at full rat-
ing. Operation at power factors between 0.80 overexcited
and unity power factor requires lesser field current and However, because most generators exhibit some level of
operation in the underexcited region requires the least field saturation, the SCR is slightly less than that indicated by
current. Eq. 5.

The higher field currents associated with the overex-
cited region power factors allow the generator to produce
greater levels of reactive power (VARS) but at the expense
of higher losses in the generator field winding and a higher
capital cost for the generator and excitation system. The
trend has been to rate smaller turbine-generators at power
factors of either 0.80 or 0.85. At higher ratings, the power
factor shifts to 0.90 or higher to avoid the excessive size of
the generator and excitation system
1.2
Per Unit
kVA
1.o
The trend has been toward lower SCRs. SCRs of 1.0
to 0.8 were common 70 years ago. In the 1960’s, they were
in the range of 0.58 - 0.64. Now 0.50 or less is typical. The
generator designer achieves a given SCR by choosing an
appropriate length of air gap between the rotor and stator.
Higher SCRs require longer air gaps, causing greater gen-
erator field current, higher field winding losses, greater
cooling requirements and lower overall efficiency.
A high SCR was typically specified to achieve desired
stability levels on the power system. Modem static excita-
tion systems with high initial responses, make it possible
to achieve good stability even with generators of low SCR.
Now the purchaser can achieve all of the benefits of a high
SCR without the “costs.”

/ J0.6 PF 7 OPERATING TEMPERATURE LIMITS

0.8
Operating temperature limits are typically specified by
r // JOPF reference to the applicable sections of published standards.
0.6 Thus a generator could be specified to operate at “Class B”
temperature rises. The standards would then specify the
allowable field winding and armature winding temperature
rises.
0.4

High temperatures pose two potential hazards to the

generator. Excessively high temperatures will accelerate
0.2

-----Y
,
Underexcite Overexcited
the degradation of the insulation systems. Typically the
working lifetime of the insulation is halved for every 10°C
increase in the operating temperature. For this reason, the
standards acknowledge that at the peak and peak reserve
Field Current (Amps) capabilities assigned to generators, temperature rises be-
yond the capability of the insulation system are permitted
and that accelerated loss of life will occur.

Fig. 1 - Typical Generator Vee Curve The characteristics of modem insulation systems are
such that no appreciable loss of life occurs provided oper-
ating temperatures do not exceed the temperature rating of
6 EFFECT OF SHORT CIRCUIT RATIO the insulation.

The short circuit ratio (SCR) is a measure of the in- The second hazard posed by high temperatures is re-
herent steady state stability of the generator on the power lated to thermal expansion of the heated components.
system. In the absence of magnetic saturation in the gen- Thermal cycling of the field and armature windings is an-
erator the SCR is the inverse of the direct axis synchronous ticipated in the design of the generator and steps are taken
reactance. Thus, approximately, to accommodate it. Nonetheless, higher than expected
temperatures may lead to excessive relative motion among
1 winding components and accelerated wear of the windings.
SCR ~

1151
Xd Through proper design of the stator and rotor and their
windings, one can provide for the effects of thermal ex-
pansion and thus minimize their impact on the life of the

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machine. If a given application imposes extraordinary
thermal duty on the generator, the specific nature of the
duty should be explicitly defined in the specification to
ensure the generator is properly designed.
designed to accommodate the expected thermal expansions
but limit radial and peripheral motion. Likewise, compo-
nents can be designed to restrain the windings from fault
forces and to immobilize the winding with respect to run-
ning forces.

8 EXTREME AMBIENT CONDITIONS
In many instances, generators are expected to operate
over a wide range of temperatures. In some cases, the
minimum ambient temperature may be as low as -30 "C. In
others, the maximum ambient temperature may be as high
as 50 "C. In all cases, the generator must perform reliably
The final source of forces is purely mechanical and
results from cycling each time the rotor is brought to rated
speed and then stopped. Metallic components in both the
rotor and field coils must be designed to withstand the low
cycle fatigue inherent in such operation.

P
and within temperature limits. System
Fault
Forces
The cooling system must be specifically designed to
accommodate a wide range of temperatures. The liquid loo
coolant may be water or fluids such as ethylene glycol.
The choice of coolant will dictate the size of the coolers
and the type of auxiliary equipment supplying the coolers.
Relative
Force Thermal
Other environmental conditions may dictate special Level Expansion
features within the generator. Particularly dusty conditions Porces
or caustic environments would preclude open ventilated
air-cooled units in favor of TEWAC or hydrogen-cooled
configurations. In particularly corrosive environments,
special steps must be taken to protect the generator.
1 -
0 120 Hz
Running
Forces

9 MANAGEMENT OF FORCES

The effects of forces within the generator are compa-

rable to the effects of thermal cycling. Fig. 2 depicts the
Oal t
types of forces that occur within the generator and their 3 6 9 12
relative magnitudes and frequency of occurrence. 10 10 10 10

The forces associated with thermal expansion are as- Number of Cycles or Occurrences
signed a reference level of 1.0. The normal double fie-
quency running forces would be approximately one-tenth
as great. The forces from synchronizing out of phase or Figure 2 - Range of Forces Encountered
short circuits would be about 100 times as great. During Operation

It is expected a peaking unit will experience approxi-

mately 10,000 thermal expansion cycles, which corre-
sponds to a start and stop each day for 30 years. Over a
similar period, a base-loaded generator will experience one
trillion cycles of double-frequency running forces. Simi-
larly, the system fault forces are much higher in magnitude
but much less frequent. In fact, some generators may never
experience any severe faults.
The forces imposed on the generator are managed by
designing support systems that address each type of force.
For instance, the stator slot support system and the end
winding support system for the armature winding can be
10 OFF-FREQUENCY AND
OFF-VOLTAGE OPERATION
The IEC 34-1 standard defines regions of operation
for which the generator terminal voltage or frequency is
significantly above or below their nominal values. Many
generator specifications now require the generator remain
operational throughout those excursions and some national
grid codes explicitly provide for off-nominal operation
beyond that defined in the standards.

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 The primary effects of these variations are higher than
nominal magnetic loading and excessive heating, both
from the overloaded components and the reduction in
cooling that may occur at slower speeds.
Eq. 2 shows the relationship between the magnetic
flux, armature voltage, and frequency. If the voltage is 5%
high and the frequency is 5% low at some instant, the flux
in the magnetic portions of the machine is 10% above the
nominal value. The higher flux leads to higher core losses,
increased magnetic saturation, significantly higher excita-
tion currents, and higher temperatures.
It is possible to design the generator to accommodate
such off-nominal operation. In general, the designer will
provide additional magnetic material and operate the ma-
chine at slightly lower temperatures in anticipation of these
overloads. Such changes lead to a larger machine and
higher initial capital costs.
11 SUBTRANSIENT REACTANCES
Minimum values of the subtransient reactance (X"dv)
are typically specified to limit fault currents the generator
or high side circuit breakers must handle. Larger genera-
tors will typically have rated voltage subtransient reac-
tances in the range of 15 - 20% on the generator reactance
base. Smaller gas turbine driven generators may have Val-
ues of 15% or less.
The subtransient reactance is the sum of the armature
leakage reactance (Xlv) and a contribution from the amor-
tisseur and field windings. For generators with solid iron
rotors (almost all turbine-generators), the field winding
contribution is insignificant and the amortisseur contribu-
tion is only a few percent.
When a minimum subtransient reactance is specified,
the generator designer can increase the reactance by se-
lecting specific winding pattems. If that step is insuffi-
cient, one may deepen the stator slots or lengthen the stator
core, both of which will increase the size of the machine.
12 COOLING GAS
Hydrogen and air are both used as primary coolants in
the generator. Hydrogen has been used since the late
1930's and a large experience base exists to justify its use.
Air-cooling offers simplicity in the design of the gen-
erator. The stator frame and packaging are designed to
enclose the machine but are not pressure vessels. The gen-
erator does not require any additional auxiliary systems
nor shaft seals. Accordingly, air-cooled generators can
operate unattended in remote locations.
5
Hydrogen cooling enables the generator designer to
achieve a higher specific output (kVAkg), so a hydrogen-
cooled generator will be smaller than an air-cooled ma-
chine of the same rating. It will also be more efficient be-
cause of the reduced fan and windage losses. Many
hydrogen-cooled generators would be unacceptably large
if designed as an air-cooled generator.
13 UNBALANCED LOADING
Unbalanced loading generally refers to negative phase
sequence currents (12) flowing from the power system.
Those currents produce a magnetic field in the generator
that rotates in the opposite direction to the rotor. The rela-
tive motion of the rotor and the magnetic field induces
double frequency currents in the rotor surface that can be
particularly high, leading to damaging temperatures.
The heating caused by a given level of negative phase
sequence currents is directly related to the armature reac-
tion MMF. See Eq. 3. It was noted that the designer might
select a low level of magnetic flux to achieve small size
while accepting a higher level of armature reaction MMF.
The heating level on the rotor surface varies as the square
of the armature reaction MMF and could be the factor that
limits the armature reaction MMF level.
The capability of the generator to withstand short-term
unbalanced loads is expressed as the product of :1 inte-
grated over the transient event and is referred to as I;t.
Both the ANSI and IEC standards specify minimum levels
of unbalanced loading capability as a function of the kVA
rating of the generator. .
In the case of a line-line fault near the generator ter-
minals, the peak rotor surface currents can be extremely
high. A rotor wedge could carry in excess of 100,000 am-
peres. Although such a fault might be cleared within cy-
cles, such currents are capable of burning contact points in
the rotor circuits leading to potential crack initiation sites.
At higher ratings (> 700,000 kVA) it will usually be
necessary to provide additional capability to carry the rotor
surface currents by including explicit amortisseur windings
and taking steps to minimize contact resistances among the
rotor structural components.
Similar heating can occur if the armature current con-
tains harmonic components other than the rated frequency
currents. These currents will generally be present if there
are nonlinear loads, such as solid state power converters or
electric arc furnaces, on the power system. If a given gen-
erator application also includes such harmonic currents, it
is important to define those currents in the specification so
the rotor can be properly designed.
55
 Real e
POU
14 UNDEREXCITED OPERATION 0.30 PF Overexcited

The Generator Reactive Capability Curve, shown in a

Rated PF
typical instance in Fig. 3, describes how the allowable
kVA output of the generator varies as a function of the
power factor and cooling gas pressure.

Typically Point C, where the capability curve breaks

in the underexcited region, is selected to lie on the 0.95
underexcited or unity power factor lines. In a number of
instances, purchasers specify the location of Pt C occur at
0.90 power factor underexcited. In those cases, special
steps may be needed to extend the capability to Pt C.

15 EXCITER CEILING VOLTAGE

Some specifications include specific requirements for

the excitation system ceiling voltage, expressed in per unit 0.70 PF
Curve AB limited by field heating
of the nominal field winding voltage. Values as high as 10 Curve BC limited by armature heating
Underexcited
Curve CD limited by stator end region heating
per unit may be specified to achieve desired levels of per-
formance during system transients.

Regardless of the ceiling voltage, it is generally neces-

sary to maintain the peak voltage in the field winding be-
low levels that will initiate corona. Otherwise, the
insulation system must be designed with inorganic materi-
als to withstand the corona. Therefore, hgh ceiling voltage
requirements will usually dictate low nominal field volt-
ages.
16 ACOUSTIC NOISE
Government occupational safety and health regula-
tions and a general awareness of the hazards of intense
noise levels are driving stringent noise requirements in
power plant specifications. Whereas noise limits of 90 dBa
sound pressure levels have been common, now limits of 85
dBa and even 80 dBa are being specified.
Fig. 3 - Typical Generator Reactive Capability Curve
In order to achieve such noise levels, specific steps
must be taken in the design of the stator frame and the
ventilation system. These steps may include sound dead-
ening materials and barrier walls. In addition, sound pres-
sure measurements correlate well with key ventilation
characteristics, so reduction measures should be applied to
areas of the machine exposed to the ventilation system,
such as ducting.
17 CONCLUSIONS
The requirements included in a generator specification
have a direct connection to fundamental design choices. A
specificationthat covers the key performance requirements
and also reflects how those requirements dovetail with the
design of the generator will best protect the interests of the
purchaser.

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