EXCITATION SYSTEMS

Dr. Vikas Gupta | Head |

Associate Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering |
MIEEE, MISTE, SMIACSIT, MIAENG |
Malaviya National Institute of Technology | JLN Marg, Jaipur, India-302017

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Basic function of
excitation sys:
•The basic function of an excitation
system is to provide direct current to
the synchronous machine field winding.
•Excitation system also provide control
and protective function
Control Function:
•It
control the voltage and reactive
power flow

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Protective function :
It ensure that the limit of synchronous
machine excitation system and other
equipment are not exceeded.
Need of Excitation system
From Generator
consideration :
•To maintain the terminal voltage as
output varies.

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From power system
consideration:
•Effective control of voltage and
enhancement of system stablity.
•Rapid response to improve transient
stablity
(so that we can improve transient stablity )
Main element of excitation system
1.Exciter
2.Regulator
3.Terminal voltage transducer and load
compensator.
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4. Power system stablizer
5.Limiter and protective circuits

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Elements of an Excitation System

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Terminal voltage
transducer
•It step down the ac output (which is
generally 11 kv )
•Then after rectification the
equivalent dc output is obtained.
•So this block brings down the output
voltage to such a level which can be
used for control .

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Limiter and protective
circuits :
•Limiter will limit the output voltage
•Limiter will check whether the
generator is working under limits or not
Power system stablizer :
it will operate only during dynamic
conditions not under steady state
condition.

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Classified into three broad
categories based on the
excitation power source:

1.DC excitation systems

2.AC excitation systems
3.Static excitation systems

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1.DC Exciter
•The dc generator is the source of power
for supplying dc current to the field
winding of synchronous generator.
•The dc generator may be self excited or
separately excited.
•self-excited dc exciter supplies current to
the main generator field through slip rings

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Fig : DC excitation system

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Limitation of DC
excitation
1. More will be the accommodation
problem as the amount of power
required increases.
2. Problem of commutation

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2.AC Exciter
•Field power is obtained from ac
exciter
•usually, the exciter is on the same
shaft as the
turbine-generator
Or they may be driven by separate
motor

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•the ac output of exciter is rectified by
either controlled or non-controlled
rectifiers

•rectifiers may be stationary or rotating

•early systems used a combination of

magnetic and rotating amplifiers as
regulators; most new systems use
electronic amplifier regulators
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 2.1Stationary rectifier
systems

•dcoutput to the main generator field

supplied through slip rings
•When controlled rectifiers are used,
the regulator directly controls the dc
output voltage of the exciter

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Field controlled alternator rectifier excitation
system
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Here we are using stationary diode ,
then how to regulate field current??

•In this the field current of main

generator is controlled by controlling
the field current of ac exciter.
•Which is controlled by controlling the
firing angle of controlled rectifier at the
exciter.

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Alternator supplied controlled-rectifier excitation system

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In this scheme the output is controlled by
controlling the firing angle of controlled
rectifier itself
Here AC regulator directly control the firing
angle of stationary controlled rectifier
In the above two scheme the field is
getting supply through slip rings

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2.2Rotating rectifier
systems
•This is the alternative arrangement
where we don’t use slip ring , thus it
is known as Brushless Excitation
system
•In this system
1. Armature is rotating
2. Rectifiers are rotating
3. And field winding of synchronous
Generator is also rotating

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Brushless excitation system

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•In this scheme excitation to the exciter
is provided by the help of PILOT
EXCITER
•PILOT EXCITER having permanent
magnet field winding , and its armature
is stationary
•In this we can not access the rectifiers
as they are rotating , so now ho to
control the field current ??
•Here to control the field current of main
generator we control
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institute
Advantage of brushless
excitation system
As here we not use slip rings thus
1. Problem of maintenance of slip ring is
eliminated.
2.Flash over is eliminated

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3. Static Excitation system

•all components are static or

stationary
•The excitation power is derived from
the terminal of synchronous
generator .
•Ac regulators directly acts on
controlled rectifiers.

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Advantage
1. We do not having any rotating part
2. The response time is very less i.e.
they are very fast

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3.1 Potential-source
controlled rectifier system
•Excitation power is supplied through
a transformer from the main
generator terminals
•Regulated by a controlled rectifier

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Potential-source controlled-rectifier excitation system

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 3.2 Compound-source
rectifier system
•power to the exciter is formed by
utilizing current as well as voltage of
the main generator
•achieved through a power potential
transformer (PPT) and a saturable
current transformer (SCT).
•The field current of main generator is
made function of terminal voltage of
synchronous generator and load
current .
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compound-controlled rectifier excitation system
Advantage of compound
source rectifier scheme :
•Ifwe use potential source controlled rectifier
system and say if 3-phase fault occurs on the
system then the voltage available to the
exciter become zero
•This is eliminated in compound source
rectifier scheme , as here the field current is
made function of both the generator current
and voltage
•Now if 3-phase fault occurs here voltage dips
but current raises .
•So we are able to maintain the field current in
disturbed condition.
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