Current Transformer

INSTITUTE OF DEPATMENT OF
TECHNOLOGY OF CAMBODIA ELECTRICAL AND ENERGY ENGINEERING
Assignment Electrical Machine

Report: Current Transformer (CTs)
Lecturer: SEAN Piseth

Group: I4-GEE-EE
Students ID
HIM Tivorn e20160179
KHIN Darabun e20160253
LORM Rathana e20160349
NEAK Sambath e20160420
Academic Year
2019-2020
Electrical Machine CTs Institute of Technology of Cambodia
OVERVIEW
In the modern power system, the needs of large voltage and current are increased.
According to the system voltage and current are increased, the needs of Protection Instrument
and Measurement Instrument also develop.
In the past, the first measurement instrument is called Galvanometer. The galvanometer
uses Shunt Resistance connection to measure the current and it uses the Series Resistance
connection to measure the voltage. But, this way of measurement can be used only with a small
voltage and current with low accuracy and provide many risks and dangerous.
After that, the engineers are trying to invent the new measurement type which generated
from the transformer, which is called Current Transformer. This instrument can be used to
measure the large current and it has more safety than the using of galvanometer.
In this report, our group member will do the research about the “Current Transformer” to
understand more about the historical, the construction, the operation, the characteristic, the
applications and the reason of the needs of this Instrument Transformer.
1
CONTENTS
OVERVIEW……………………………………………………………………………….. 1
CONTENTS………………………………………………………………………………... 2
I. History of Current Transformer………………………………………………... 3
II. The definition of CTs…………………………………………………………... 5
III. Why Current Transformer is Important?............................................................. 5
IV. The Construction Type of CTs………………………………………………… 6
V. The operation of CTs…………………………………………………………... 7
1. Inside feather…………………………………………………………………… 7
2. Equivalent Circuit of CTs……………………………………………………… 8
A. Operation in Measurement…………………………………………………. 10
B. Operation in Protection…………………………………………………….. 10
VI. Application of CTs……………………………………………………………... 11
1. CTs in Measurement…………………………………………………………… 11
2. CTs on Protection of Power System…………………………………………… 12
VII. Conclusion……………………………………………………………………… 14
REFERENCES……………………………………………………………………………... 15
2
I. History of current transformer
A current transformer (CT) is a type of transformer that is used to reduce or multiply

an alternative current (AC). It produces a current in its secondary which is proportional to the
current in its primary.
Figure 1: The first transformer
First the property of induction was discovered in the 1830’s but it wasn’t until 1886 that
William Stanley, working for Westinghouse built the reliable commercial transformer.
Figure 2: The transformer in 1885 and 1886
3
Transformer was invented by Otto Blathy, Miksa Deri, Kalory Zipernowsky of the
Austro-Hungarian Empire first designed and use transformer in both experiment, and
commercial systems. Later on, Lucian Gaulard, Sebstian Ferrani, and William Stanley is perfect
design.
Figure 3: The Hungarians transformer inventor
The first use AC power system that used the modern transformer was in Great
Barrington, Massachusetts in 1886. Earlier forms of the transformer were used in Austro-
Hungary 1878-1880s and 1882 onward in English.Lucien Gaulard ( Frechman) used his AC
system for revolutionary Lanzo to Turin electrical exposition in 1884 (Norther Italy). In 1891
mastermind Mikhail Dobrovsky designed and demonstrated his 3-phase transformers in the
Electro technical Exposition at Frankfurt Germany.
Current transformers, along with voltage or potential transformers, are instrument

transformer. Instrument transformers scale the large values of voltage or current to a small value,
standardized values that are easy to handle for measuring instruments and protective relay. The
instrument transformers isolate measurement or protection circuits from the high voltage of the
primary system. A current transformer provides a secondary current that is accurately
proportional to the current flowing in its primary. The current transformer presents a negligible
load to the primary circuit.
4
II. The Definition of Current Transformer
The Current Transformer (CT), is a type of “instrument transformer” that is designed to

produce an alternating current in its secondary winding which is proportional to the current being
measured in its primary. Current transformers reduce high voltage currents to a much lower
value and provide a convenient way of safely monitoring the actual electrical current flowing in
an AC transmission line using a standard ammeter. The principal of operation of a basic current
transformer is slightly different from that of an ordinary voltage transformer.
Figure 4: The Construction of CTs
III. Why Current Transformer is Important

In power system, the currents are very large. Therefore, their direct measurements are not
possible. It might appear that the extension of range could be conveniently done by the use of
shunts for currents measurement, as in DC.
But this method is suitable only for small values of current. Difficult to achieve accuracy
with a shunt on AC, Capability of having shunt of large range is not possible and the measuring
circuit is not isolated electrically from the power circuit.
The solution is to step-down these currents with the help of Instrument Transformer is called
Current Transformer. So that, they could be metered with instruments of moderate size.
5
IV. Current Transformer Construction type
According to the construction of the CTs, the inventors has divided the current transformer into 3
difference types such as, Wound type, Ring Type
• Wound Transformer – In this transformer the primary winding is composed inside the
transformer. The primary winding had a single turn and connected in series with the
conductor that measured the current. The wound transformer is mainly used for
measuring the current from 1amps to 100 amps.
Figure 5: Wound transformer
• Bar-type Current Transformer – This type of current transformer uses the actual cable
or bus-bar of the main circuit as the primary winding, which is equivalent to a single turn.
Figure 6: Bar-type CTs
6
• Toroidal Current Transformer – This transformer does not contain primary windings.
The line through which the current flow in the network is attached through a hole or a
window of the transformers. The major advantage of this transformer is that the
transformer has a symmetrical shape due to which it has a low leakage flux, thus less
electromagnetic interference.
V. The Operation or How CTs Work
1. Inside Feather
CT consists of two sets of wire windings around an iron core, as shown in Fig. 1. The concept is
the same for a window or bushing CT, which consists of a secondary winding around a core, with
the primary winding being the primary conductor that passes through it.
Figure 7: The current transformer magnetic fied
Transformers work based on the principle of electromagnetic induction. When alternating current
IP flows in the primary winding of a transformer, it generates an alternating magnetic field H,
which corresponds to an alternating magnetic flux Φ, around the transformer core. This alternating
magnetic flux passes through the secondary winding. What happens next depends on the load
connected to the secondary winding. If the secondary is connected to a burden, the alternating
magnetic flux in the core induces an alternating voltage VS across the secondary winding. This
causes a corresponding alternating current IS to flow in the secondary winding.
The alternating current in the secondary creates its own alternating magnetic field and alternating
magnetic flux that oppose those created by the primary winding. These primary and secondary
fluxes cancel, leaving a negligible amount of net flux in the core. This occurs until the core
becomes saturated. If the secondary is open-circuited, the alternating magnetic flux in the core
induces a very high alternating voltage VS across the secondary winding. VS remains on the
7
terminals with no secondary current flowing, which is why it is very dangerous to open-circuit an
in-service CT. Because IS cannot flow, it cannot create an opposing magnetic field, leaving a net
flux in the core equal to the flux created by the primary current.
2. Circuit Equivalent
Figure 8: Equivalent circuit of CTs
𝑁1 𝐼𝑆𝑇 𝑁2
• Turn ratio is 𝑎 = = or IP= 𝐼𝑆𝑇 = 𝐼𝑆𝑇 × 𝑁2 (generally in CT the primary turn is
𝑁2 𝐼𝑃 𝑁1
N1=1)
• IP is the primary current of CT
• IST is the primary current refer to the secondary side of CT
• Is is the secondary load current
• VE represent the secondary voltage
• ZE represent the impedance of magnetizing behavior of the CT core
• IE is the current that is lost through the magnetizing branch, is called Excitation current or
Error current
• RS is the resistance contain in the secondary copper winding
• ZB is the impedance burden of CT that include the impedance of the relay and CT leads.
8
The two main purposes of CT are metering and fault current protective. Both kinds are designed
base on the percentages of Error current or Excitation current IE that describe how accurate they
are.
A. Operation in Metering Current Transformer
A metering CT carries the full load current and are designed near the saturation point of the
magnetizing behavior to know the current in the primary side (high amount current) by measuring
the current at secondary side (in rate 1~5 A). So, it is required accurately by following the
properties: IST = IE + IS.
*** Noted that, we can measure the IS only and IE depend on the behavior of magnetizing of CT.
Thus, they must be minimized the IE as much as they can. It means that the smaller IE the more
accurate CT are. It operates near the saturation region of
B. Operation in Protective Current Transformer
Protective CTs is operated in the saturation region of the magnetizing behavior. Generally, it works
in the fault current condition in 5 times, 10 times, 20 times of rated current in secondary side or
more than this, so that its accuracy is lower also (maybe 10 percent).
9
❖ To know clearly, we have to see the Knee point voltage curve or magnetizing characteristic
below.
Figure 9: The magnetizing graph
• The measuring current transformer has the flux density in the region of ankle-point only.
• Protection current transformer generally operates over-working flux density extending
from the ankle-point to the knee-region of above.
10
Figure 11: the magnetizing behavior of difference class of CT following the CT ratio.
VI. Application of Current Transformer
The current transformer is a safely isolated measurement and control circuit from high
voltage typically present on the circuit being measured.
The CTs are commonly used in electrical industry for Measurement and Protection of power
system.
1. CTs measurement
In the measurement circuit, the CTs is connected the secondary winding to the Ammeter while
the primary winding is connected to the line current the being measured.
11
Figure 12: The connection of current transformer to Amperemeter
Figure 13: The real used of CTs for measurement
2. The CTs on Protection of Power System
The CTs can be used as the power protection when there is a surge current occurred and ground
fault in the power distribution and power substation.
The CTs is used to connect with the relay in the power generation line, when the current through
the line increase over the limit current, the CTs provide the current Is to relay to break the circuit
for the safety.
12
Figure 14: The circuit diagram of CTs in protection
Figure 15: The real application in the power transfer protection
13
VII. Conclusion
To sum up, the Current Transformer is an instrument transformer which has an operation the
same as power transformer. The CTs are usually used in the industry and power distribution
with high current.
The CTs operates the same to the power transformer, the different point is the CTs is only
used to step down the current, while the power transformer is being used in two ways.
In addition, the CTs will be develop into a new technology which is easy to use and develop
its function to be used in the other application in electrical.
14
REFERENCES
1. Standard_Handbook_For_Electrical_Engineer_1915
2. Electric Machinery Fundamentals Fifth Edition by Stephen J. Chapman
3. A study of Current Transformer by P.G. Agnew
4. Website:
https://www.electronics-tutorials.ws/transformer/current-transformer.html
https://cdn.selinc.com/assets/Literature/Publications/Technical%20Papers/6811_BeyondKneePoi
nt_AH_20190418_Web.pdf?v=20190418-200921
END
15

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INSTITUTE OF DEPATMENT OF

TECHNOLOGY OF CAMBODIA ELECTRICAL AND ENERGY ENGINEERING

Assignment Electrical Machine

Lecturer: SEAN Piseth

I. History of current transformer

A current transformer (CT) is a type of transformer that is used to reduce or multiply

Figure 1: The first transformer

Figure 2: The transformer in 1885 and 1886

Figure 3: The Hungarians transformer inventor

Current transformers, along with voltage or potential transformers, are instrument

II. The Definition of Current Transformer

The Current Transformer (CT), is a type of “instrument transformer” that is designed to

Figure 4: The Construction of CTs

III. Why Current Transformer is Important

IV. Current Transformer Construction type

Figure 5: Wound transformer

Figure 6: Bar-type CTs

Figure 7: The current transformer magnetic fied

Figure 8: Equivalent circuit of CTs

A. Operation in Metering Current Transformer

B. Operation in Protective Current Transformer

Figure 9: The magnetizing graph

VI. Application of Current Transformer

Figure 12: The connection of current transformer to Amperemeter

Figure 13: The real used of CTs for measurement

2. The CTs on Protection of Power System

Figure 14: The circuit diagram of CTs in protection

Figure 15: The real application in the power transfer protection

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