THE TRANSFORMER

THE TRANSFORMER IS A STATIC PIECE OF APPARATUS

USED EITHER FOR RAISING OR LOWERING THE VOLTAGE OF
AN A.C.SUPPLY WITH A CORRESPONDING DECREASE OR
INCREASE IN CURRENT; THIS IT DOES WITH A VERY HIGH
DEGREE OF EFFICIENCY.

WORKING PRINCIPLE:

THE TRANSFORMER WORKS ON THE PRINCIPLE OF MUTUAL

INDUCTION ACTION. IT CONSISTS ESSENTIALLY OF TWO
COILS, WOUND ON A CLOSED MAGNETIC CIRCUIT OF LOW
RELUCTANCE, BUILT UP OF LAMINATED IRON. TWO SUCH
COILS WILL HAVE A HIGH MUTUAL INDUCTANCE. IF ONE
COIL BE CONNECTED TO AN a.c. SUPPLY, A CURRENT WILL
FLOW AND AN ALTERNATING FLUX WILL BE SET UP IN THE
CORE, MOST OF WHICH WILL LINK THE SECOND COIL. AN
E.M.F. OF MUTUAL INDUCTANCE WILL BE SET UP IN THIS
COIL AND IF THE CIRCUIT BE COMPLETED A CURRENT WILL
FLOW. THE e.m.f. INDUCED WILL BE ACCORDING TO THE
TURNS IN THE SECOND COIL.
THE COIL CONNECTED TO THE SUPPLY IS CALLED THE
PRIMARY (P): THE OTHER COIL IS CALLED THE
SECONDARY (S). NOTE THAT ENERGY IS TRANSFERED
MAGNETICALLY THROUGH THE CORE.

CONSTRUCTION:
THE FOLLOWING ARE THE ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS OF A
TRANSFORMER.
(a)
A GOOD MAGNETIC CORE
(b)
TWO WINDINGS
(c)
A TIME VARYING MAGNETIC FLUX
THE TRANSFORMER CORE IS GENERALLY LAMINATED AND
IS MADE OUT OF A GOOD MAGNETIC MATERIAL SUCH AS
TRANSFORMER STEEL OR SILICON STEEL. SUCH A
MATERIAL HAS HIGH RELATIVE PERMEABILITY AND LOW
HYSTERESIS LOSS. THE THICKNESS OF EACH LAMINATION
VARIES FROM 0.35 mm TO 0.5 mm. EACH OF LAMINATIONS
IS INSULATED FROM EACH OTHER BY VARNISH OR ENAMEL.
SHAPE OF THE ONE STRIP IS SHOWN IN FIG. EI TYPE and
L7 TYPE.
EI TYPES ARE USED FOR SHELL TYPE TRANSFORMER
AND L7 TYPE IS USED FOR CORE TYPE TRANSFORMER.
TWO COILS ARE WOUND ON THE TWO LIMBS OR ON THE
CENTRAL LIMB. ONE COIL IS CALLED PRIMARY WINDING
TO WHICH THE SUPPLY IS GIVEN. SECOND IS CALLED
SECONDARY WINDING FROM WHICH THE SUPPLY IS
TAKEN. TWO TYPES; (1) CORE TYPE ; (2) SHELL TYPE.

ADVANTAGES OF A TRANSFORMER:
1. THE TRANSFORMER IS A STATIC MACHINERY AND
THERE IS NO WEAR AND TEAR OF IT AND NO FRICTION
LOSSES.
2. NO ATTENTION OR LITTLE ATTENTION IS REQUIRED
FOR ITS OPERATION SO ITS MAINTENANCE COST IS
LOW.
3. AS THERE IS NO ROTATING PART IN IT, AN EXTRA HIGH
VOLTAGE OR HIGH VOLTAGE CAN BE TRANSFORMED
EASILY BY PROVIDING A GOOD INSULATION TO ITS
WINDING.

TYPES OF TRANSFORMER:
1. ACCORDING TO THE CORE CORE TYPE, SHELL TYPE,
BERRY TYPE.
2. ACCORDING TO THE VOLTAGE STEP-UP AND STEPDOWN.

3. ACCORDING TO THE PHASES SINGLE-PHASE AND

THREE-PHASE.
4. ACCORDING
TO
THE
POWER

LIGHTING
TRANSFORMER AND POWER
TRANSFORMER
5. ACCORDING TO THE COOLING SELF-COOLED, AIR
FORCE COOLED, OIL
SELF-COOLED, FORCELY OIL-COOLED
WITH AIR OR WATER.

COMPARISON OF TRANSFORMERS:

E.M.F.EQUATION OF A TRANSFORMER:
Let

Np = NO. OF TURNS ON PRIMARY

Ns = NO. OF TURNS ON SECONDARY
m = MAXIMUM VALUE OF FLUX
= Bm a (where a sq.m. = area of cross-section
of core
Bm = maximum flux density)
f = FREQUENCY ( c/s )

FLUX INCREASES FROM ZERO TO m in cycle, i.e., in

time 1/4f sec.
Tf , Average rate of change of flux = m / f = 4 m f
Wb/sec.
Tf, Average e.m.f. inducedin each turn = 4 m f volts.
Assuming the flux to vary sinusoidally, then a
sinusoidal e.m.f. will be induced in each turn of both
windings.
For a sine wave, FORM FACTOR = R.M.S. = 1.11
Mean
Tf, R.M.S. e.m.f. induced in each turn
= 1.11 x 4 m f
Volts
Tf, R.M.S. e.m.f. induced in Primary,
E p = 4.44 m f Np
volts
Tf, R.M.S. e.m.f. induced in Secondary, Es = 4.44 m f Ns
volts
USUAL VALUES FOR Bm:
Transformers.

1.1 1.4 Wb/m

for Power

0.9 - 1.1 Wb/m for Lighting

Transformers.

TRANSFORMATION RATIO:
At No load, Ep is almost equal to the Primary applied
voltage Vp, and Es is equal to the Secondary Terminal
voltage Vs.
Tf,
Es = Vs = Ns
TRANSFORMATION.
Ep
Vp Np

called THE RATIO OF

If, Ns > Np, > 1,

Transformer is called STEP UP
Transformer.
If, Ns < Np, < 1, Transformer is called STEP DOWN
Transformer.
If we neglet Losses, then

OUTPUT = INPUT
Vs Is = Vp Ip
Is = Vp = 1
Ip
Vs

Tf,

TRANSFORMATION RATIO = Ns = Vs = Ip =
Np
Vp
Is

NO-LOAD CURRENT OF A TRANSFORMER:

WITH THE SECONDARY ON OPEN CIRCUIT, THE PRIMARY,
WHICH HAS A HIGH SELF-INDUCTANCE COMPARED WITH
ITS RESISTANCE, TAKES A SMALL CURRENT I O , LAGGING
BEHIND THE APPLIED VOLTAGE, Vp, BY AN ANGLE ,
WHICH IS NEARLY 90. THE VECTOR DIAGRAM IS
SHOWN.
Io CAN BE SPLIT UP INTO TWO COMPONENTS:

1. Io Sin o, THE WATTLESS MAGNETISING COMPONENT,

JUST SUFFICIENT TO PRODUCE THE FLUX WHICH
SETS UP AN E.M.F. OF SELF-INDUCTION Ep,
APPROXIMATELY ANTI-PHASE TO Vp AND NEARLY

EQUAL TO IT. THIS COMPONENT IS THE TRUE

MAGNETISING CURRENT (Imag).
2. Io Cos o, THE POWER COMPONENT SUPPLYING THE
LOSSES (Ic). THESE COMPRISE THE HYSTERESIS AND
EDDY CURRENT LOSSES. THIS COMPONENT IS
SOMETIMES CALLED THE IRON LOSS CURRENT.

TRANSFORMER ON LOAD:
CURRENT FLOWING IN THE SECONDARY SETS UP A
NUMBER OF SECONDARY AMPERE-TURNS, WHICH TEND TO
REDUCE THE FLUX PRODUCED BY THE PRIMARY AMPERETURNS (LENZS LAW). A REDUCTION IN FLUX, HOWEVER,
REDUCES Ep AND HENCE ALLOWS THE PRIMARY CURRENT
TO
INCREASE.
THE
PRIMARY
RESISTANCE
IS
COMPARATIVELY SMALL AND THEREFORE ONLY A SMALL
REDUCTION IN FLUX IS NECCESSARY TO ALLOW THIS
INCREASE IN PRIMARY CURRENT. WE MAY ASSUME THAT
THE FLUX IN THE CORE REMAINS CONSTANT. ACTUALLY
THE FLUX VARIES ONLY A FEW PER CENT. BETWEEN NO
LOAD AND FULL LOAD.
THE MAGNETIC EFFECT OF THE SECONDARY CURRENT IS
NEUTRALISED BY AN ADDITIONAL CURRENT I pb FLOWING
IN THE PRIMARY: ITS VALUE IS SUCH THAT Is Ns = I pb Np
( i.e., I pb = Is) ( pb STANDA FOR PRIMARY
BALANCING). THE PRIMARY CURRENT (Ip) THEN HAS TWO
COMPONENTS:(1)
A CONSTANT NO-LOAD CURRENT (Io);
(2) A COMPONENT Ipb WHOSE MAGNETISING EFFECT IS
EQUAL AND OPPOSITE TO THAT OF THE SECONDARY
CURRENT. THIS IS SHOWN IN THE VECTOR DIAGRAM.
Ip IS THE VECTOR SUM OF Io AND Ipb.

AS IS USUAL, THE VECTOR DIAGRAM HAS BEEN DRAWN

FOR A TRANSFORMATION RATIO OF 1, HENCE Is = Ipb.
SUCH A TRANSFORMER WOULD NOT GENERALLY BE USED
IN
PRACTICE.
IF,
HOWEVER,
CURRENT
VECTORS
REPRESENT AMPERE-TURNS AND VOLTAGE VECTORS
REPRESENT VOLTS PER TURN, THEN THE DIAGRAM CAN
BE USED FOR A TRANSFORMER OF ANY TRANSFORMATION
RATIO.

VOLTAGE DROP DUE TO RESISTANCE OF WINDINGS:

THE RESISTANCE OF THE WINDINGS RESULTS IN A VOLTAGE

DROP, SO THAT (a) THE SECONDARY TERMINAL VOLTAGE
Vs IS LESS THAN THE e.m.f. INDUCED IN THE SECONDARY;
(b) THE PRIMARY APPLIED VOLTAGE Vp IS GREATER THAN
THE e.m.f. INDUCED IN THE PRIMARY.

THEORY OF AN IDEAL TRANSFORMER

AN IDEAL TRANSFORMER IS ONE THAT HAS:

1) NO WINDING RESISTANCE
2) NO LEAKAGE FLUX i.e. THE SAME FLUX LINKS BOTH
THE WINDINGS
3) NO IRON LOSSES (i.e. Eddy current and Hysteresis) IN
THE CORE
ALTHOUGH IDEAL TRANSFORMER CANNOT BE PHYSICALLY
REALISED, YET ITS STUDY PROVIDES A VERY POWERFUL
TOOL IN THE ANALYSIS OF A PRACTICAL TRANSFORMER.
INFACT, PRACTICAL TRANSFORMER HAVE PROPERTIES
THAT APPROACH VERY CLOSE TO AN IDEAL TRANSFORMER.

PRACTICAL TRANSFORMER
A PRACTICAL TRANSFORMER DIFFERS FROM THE IDEAL
TRANSFORMER IN MANY RESPECTS. THE PRACTICAL
TRANSFORMER HAS :

1) IRON LOSSES
2) WINDING RESISTANCE and
3) MAGNETIC LEAKAGE, GIVING RISE TO LEAKAGE
REACTANCES
IRON LOSSES
SINCE THE IRON CORE IS SUBJECTED TO ALTERNATING
FLUX, THERE OCCURS EDDY CURRENT AND HYSTERESIS
LOSS IN IT. THESE TWO LOSSES TOGETHER ARE KNOWN AS

IRON LOSSES or CORE LOSSES. THE IRON LOSSES

DEPEND UPON THE SUPPLY FREQUENCY, MAXIMUM FLUX
DENSITY IN THE CORE, VOLUME OF THE CORE etc,. IT MAY
BE NOTED THAT MAGNITUDE OF IRON LOSSES IS QUITE
SMALL IN A PRACTICAL TRANSFORMER.
WINDING RESISTANCE
SINCE THE WINDINGS CONSIST OF COPPER CONDUCTORS,
IT IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWS THAT BOTH PRIMARY AND
SECONDARY WILL HAVE WINDING RESISTANCE. THE
PRIMARY RESISTANCE R1 AND SECONDARY RESISTANCE R2
ACT IN SERIES WITH THE RESPECTIVE WINDINGS AS
SHOWN IN FIG.
LEAKAGE
REACTANCES:
BOTH
PRIMARY
AND
SECONDARY CURRENTS PRODUCE FLUX. THE FLUX
WHICH LINKS BOTH THE WINDINGS IS THE USEFUL FLUX
AND IS CALLED MUTUAL FLUX. HOWEVER, PRIMARY
CURRENT WOULD PRODUCE SOME FLUX 1
WHICH
WOULD NOT LINK THE SECONDARY WINDING
(SEE FIG). SIMILARLY, SECONDARY CURRENT WOULD
PRODUCE SOME FLUX 2
THAT WOULD NOT LINK THE SECONDARY WINDING. THE
FLUX SUCH AS 1 OR
2 WHICH LINKS ONLY ONE WINDING IS CALLED LEAKAGE
FLUX. THE LEAKAGE FLUX PATHS ARE MAINLY THROUGH
THE AIR.
THE EFFECT OF THESE LEAKAGE FLUXES WOULD BE THE
SAME
AS
THOUGH
INDUCTIVE
REACTANCE
WERE
CONNECTED IN SERIES WITH EACH WINDING OF
TRANSFORMER THAT HAD NO LEAKAGE FLUX. IN OTHER
WORDS, THE EFFECT OF PRIMARY LEAKAGE FLUX 1 IS TO
INTRODUCE AN INDUCTIVE REACTANCE X1 IN SERIES WITH
THE PRIMARY WINDING. SIMILARLY, THE SECONDARY
LEAKAGE FLUX 2
INTRODUCES AN INDUCTIVE
REACTANCE X2 IN SERIES WITH THE SECONDARY WINDING.
NOTE: ALTHOUGH LEAKAGE FLUX IN A TRANSFORMER IS
QUITE SMALL ( ABOUT 5% OF ) COMPARED TO THE
MUTUAL FLUX , YET IT CANNOT BE IGNORED. IT IS
BECAUSE LEAKAGE FLUX PATHS ARE THROUGH AIR OF
HIGH RELUCTANCE AND HENCE REQUIRE CONSIDERABLE
m.m.f. IT MAY BE NOTED THAT ENERGY IS CONVEYED FROM

THE PRIMARY WINDING TO THE SECONDARY WINDING BY

MUTUAL FLUX WHICH LINKS BOTH THE WINDINGS.

LEAKAGE REACTANCE:
WHILST MOST OF THE LINES OF FORCE LIE WHOLLY WITH
IN THE IRON CORE, THERE ARE SOME WHICH LINK WITH
ONE WINDING ONLY; THESE ARE CALLED LEAKAGE LINES.
THE TOTAL FLUX MAY BE DIVIDED INTO THREE PARTS.
1) COMMON FLUX WHICH LINKS BOTH PRIMARY AND
SECONDARY.
2) PRIMARY LEAKAGE FLUX WHICH LINKS PRIMARY ONLY.
3) SECONDARY LEAKAGE FLUX WHICH LINKS SECONDARY
ONLY.

AT NO LOAD, THE PRIMARY AMPERE-TURNS REQUIRED TO

PRODUCE THE MAIN FLUX IS VERY SMALL AND LEAKAGE
REACTANCE IS NEGLIGIBLE. WHEN THE TRANSFORMER IS
ON LOAD, BOTH WINDINGS CARRY CURRENT AND THE
LEAKAGE FLUXES ARE INCREASED. NOTE THAT THE MAIN
FLUX, WHICH IS PRACTICALLY CONSTANT, IS DUE TO THE
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE PRIMARY AMPERE-TURNS AND
THE SECONDARY AMPERE-TURNS. THE LEAKAGE FLUX
BEING LINKED WITH ONE WINDING ONLY, IS DUE TO THE
TOTAL AMPERE-TURNS OF THAT WINDING. THE GREATER

PART OF THE LEAKAGE PATH BEING IN AIR, THE

RELUCTANCE IS PRACTICALLY CONSTANT AND HENCE
LEAKAGE FLUX IS PROPORTIONAL TO CURRENT.
THE LEAKAGE FLUXES THEN PRODUCE, IN THEIR
RESPECTIVE WINDINGS, e.m.f.s OF SELF-INDUCTION
WHICH ARE PROPORTIONAL TO THE CURRENT: THEY ARE
THEREFORE EQUIVALENT TO AN INDUCTANCE PLACED IN
SERIES WITH EACH WINDING, THE REACTANCE OF WHICH
IS CALLED THE LEAKAGE REACTANCE OF THE WINDING,
Xp AND Xs.
THE EFFECT OF LEAKAGE REACTANCE IS TO CAUSE A
FURTHER VOLT DROP AT THE SECONDARY TERMINALS. IN
PRACTICE LEAKAGE REACTANCE IS REDUCED TO A
MINIMUM BY PLACING THE WINDINGS ON BOTH LIMBS OF
THE CORE (HALF ON EACH) AND ALSO SUB-DIVIDING AND
INTERLEAVING THE SECTIONS OF THE WINDINGS. WE MAY
NOW DRAW THE COMPLETE VECTOR DIAGRAM FOR A
LOADED TRANSFORMER.

LOSSES AND EFFICIENCY:

THE LOSSES IN A TRANSFORMER CONSIST OF:1. THE IRON LOSSES;
2. THE COPPER LOSSES.
THERE ARE NO FRICTION AND WINDAGE LOSSES, HENCE
THE EFFICIENCY IS HIGHER THAN THAT OF ROTATING
MACHINERY OF EQUAL OUTPUT.
IRON LOSSES: THESE INCLUDE HYSTERESIS AND EDDY
CURRENT LOSSES. SINCE THE CORE FLUX IS PRACTICALLY
INDEPENDENT OF LOAD, THE IRON LOSSES MAY BE
ASSUMED CONSTANT.
HYSTERESIS LOSS Bn f
(n = 1.5 2.5)
EDDY CURRENT LOSS B f t
(t = thickness of
lamination)
BOTH LOSSES ARE REDUCED BY USING A SILICON STEEL,
WHICH HAS A LOW HYSTERESIS LOSS AND A HIGH
ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE. THE IRON LOSSES MAY BE
CALCULATED FROM DESIGN DATA OR THEY MAY BE MORE
EASILY AND ACCURATELY OBTAINED EXPERIMENTALLY BY
MEANS OF THE OPEN-CIRCUIT TEST.

OPEN-CIRCUIT TEST:

ONE WINDING IS CONNECTED TO A SUPPLY OF NORMAL VOLTAGE

AND FREQUENCY, THE OTHER IS LEFT ON OPEN CIRCUIT. UNDER
THESE CONDITIONS, NORMAL FLUX WILL BE SET UP IN THE CORE
AND THEREFORE NORMAL IRON LOSSES WILL OCCUR.
THE CURRENT TAKEN WILL BE VERY SMALL AND SO THE COPPER
LOSSES MAY BE NEGLECTED. HENCE, THE WATTMETER WILL
INDICATE THE IRON LOSSES (Wi).

COPPER LOSSES:
COPPER LOSSES, DUE TO THE RESISTANCE OF THE WINDINGS,
(current) AND ALSO
(kVA OUTPUT). THEY MAY BE CALCULATED FROM DESIGN DATA
BUT MAY BE MORE EASILY AND ACCURATELY OBTAINED BY MEANS
OF THE SHORT-CIRCUIT TEST.

SHORT-CIRCUIT TEST:

ONE WINDING IS SHORT-CIRCUITED. A SMALL VOLTAGE IS APPLIED

TO THE OTHER WINDING, AND IS INCREASED UNTIL FULL LOAD
CURRENT IS FLOWING IN THIS WINDING: FULL LOAD CURRENT
WILL THEN FLOW IN THE SHORT-CIRCUITED SECONDARY. THE
APPLIED VOLTAGE WILL BE ONLY A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF ITS
NORMAL VALUE HENCE, THE CORE FLUX WILL BE SMALL AND SO
THE IRON LOSSES CAN BE NEGLECTED. THE WATTMETER READING
GIVES THE TOTAL COPPER LOSSES, (Wc).
EFFICIENCY = OUTPUT =
COS _____
INPUT
+ Wi + Wc

IT CAN BE
Wi = W c

SHOWN

OUTPUT____ =

Vs Is

OUTPUT + LOSSES

Vs Is COS

THAT MAXIMUM EFFICIENCY OCCURS WHEN

ADVANTAGES OF TRANSFORMER TESTS

THE ABOVE TWO SIMPLE TRANSFORMER TESTS OFFER THE

FOLLOWING ADVANTAGES:
1) THE POWER REQUIRED TO CARRY OUT THESE TESTS IS VERY
SMALL AS COMPARED TO THE FULL-LOAD OUTPUT OF THE
TRANSFORMER. IN CASE OF OPEN-CIRCUIT TEST, POWER
REQUIRED IS EQUAL TO THE IRON LOSS WHEREAS FOR A
SHORT-CIRCUIT TEST, POWER REQUIRED IS EQUAL TO FULLLOAD COPPER LOSS.
2) THESE TESTS ENABLE US TO DETERMINE THE EFFICIENCY OF
THE TRANSFORMER ACCURATELY AT ANY LOAD AND p.f.
WITHOUT ACTUALLY LOADING THE TRANSFORMER.

3) THE SHORT-CIRCUIT TEST ENABLES US TO DETERMINE R 01 and

X 01 (R 02 and X 02). WE CAN THUS FIND THE TOTAL VOLTAGE
DROP IN THE TRANSFORMER AS REFERRED TO PRIMARY OR
SECONDARY. THIS PERMITS US TO CALCULATE VOLTAGE
REGULATION OF THE TRANSFORMER.

WHY TRANSFORMER RATING IN Kva?

WE HAVE SEEN THAT Cu LOSS DEPENDS ON CURRENT AND
IRON LOSS DEPENDS UPON VOLTAGE. HENCE, THE TOTAL
LOSS IN A TRANSFORMER DEPENDS UPON VOLT-AMPERE (VA)
ONLY AND NOT ON THE PHASE ANGLE BETWEEN VOLTAGE
AND CURRENT i.e. IT IS INDEPENDENT OF LOAD POWER
FACTOR. THAT IS WHY THE RATING OF A TRANSFORMER IS
GIVEN IN kVA AND NOT IN kW. IT MAY BE FURTHER POINTED
OUT THAT TEMPERATURE RISE OF THE TRANSFORMER IS
DIRECTLY PROPORTIONAL TO THE APPARENT POWER (i.e.
kVA) WHICH FLOWS THROUGH IT. THIS MEANS THAT A 500
kVA TRANSFORMER WILL GET JUST AS HOT SUPPLYING A 500
kVAR INDUCTIVE LOAD AS A 500 kW RESISTIVE LOAD.
NOTE: RATING IN kW = kVA x LOAD p.f.
THE LOAD p.f. DEPENDS UPON THE NATURE OF LOAD. THUS,
kW RATING OF A TRANSFORMER WILL BE DIFFERENT AT
DIFFERENT LOAD POWER FACTORS.

COOLING OF TRANSFORMERS

HEAT IS PRODUCED IN A TRANSFORMER BY THE IRON LOSSES

IN THE CORE AND IR LOSS IN THE WINDINGS. TO PREVENT
UNDUE TEMPERATURE RISE, THIS HEAT IS REMOVED BY
COOLING.
1) IN SMALL TRANSFORMERS (BELOW 50 kVA), NATURAL AIR
COOLING IS EMPLOYED i.e. THE HEAT PRODUCED IS
CARRIED AWAY BY THE SURROUNDING AIR.
2) MEDIUM SIZE POWER OR DISTRIBUTION TRANSFORMERS
ARE GENERALLY COOLED BY HOUSING THEM IN TANKS
FILLED WITH OIL. THE OIL SERVES A DOUBLE PURPOSE,
CARRYING THE HEAT FROM THE WINDINGS TO THE
SURFACE OF THE TANK AND INSULATING THE PRIMARY
FROM THE SECONDARY.
3) FOR LARGE TRANSFORMERS, EXTERNAL RADIATORS ARE
ADDED TO INCREASE THE COOLING SURFACE OF THE OIL
FILLED TANK. THE OIL CIRCULATES AROUND THE
TRANSFORMER AND MOVES THROUGH THE RADIATORS
WHERE THE HEAT IS RELEASED TO SURROUNDING AIR.

SOMETIMES COOLING FANS BLOW AIR OVER

RADIATORS TO ACCELERATE THE COOLING PROCESS.

THE

THREE PHASE TRANSFORMER

IN A THREE-PHASE SYSTEM, THE VOLTAGE IS LOWERED OR
RAISED
BY
A
BANK
OF
THREE
SINGLE-PHASE
TRANSFORMERS OR BY ONE 3-PHASE TRANSFORMER. IN
EITHER CASE, THE WINDINGS MAY BE CONNECTED IN Y Y,
, Y , or Y. FOR THE SAME CAPACITY, A 3-PHASE
TRANSFORMER WEIGHS LESS, OCCUPIES LESS SPACE AND
COSTS ABOUT 20% LESS THAN A BANK OF THREE SINGLEPHASE TRANSFORMERS. BECAUSE OF THESE ADVANTAGES,
3-PHASE
TRANSFORMERS
ARE
IN
COMMON
USE,
ESPECIALLY FOR LARGE POWER TRANSFORMATIONS.
AN ADVANTAGE OF THE STAR CONNECTION, PARTICULARLY
ON HIGH-VOLTAGE WINDINGS, IS THAT THE INSULATION
HAS TO WITHSTAND ONLY 1/3 (=57.7%) OF THE LINE
VOLTAGE. ANOTHER ADVANTAGE IS THAT IT ALLOWS THE
THREE-PHASE FOUR WIRE SYSTEM TO BE USED.
AN ADVANTAGE OF THE DELTA CONNECTION IS THAT IF ONE
PHASE FAILS, THE SUPPLY TO ALL THREE PHASES OF THE
LOAD CAN BE CONTINUED UP TO 57.7% OF FULL OUTPUT.
THIS GIVES THE OPEN DELTA or V CONNECTION.

THE BASIC PRINCIPLE OF A 3-PHASE TRANSFORMER IS

ILLUSTRATED IN FIG. THE THREE SINGLE-PHASE CORE-TYPE
TRANSFORMERS, EACH WITH WINDINGS (PRIMARY &
SECONDARY) ON ONLY ONE LEG, HAVE THEIR UNWOUND
LEGS COMBINED TO PROVIDE A PATH FOR THE RETURNING
FLUX. THE PRIMARIES AS WELL AS SECONDARIES MAY BE
CONNECTED IN STAR OR DELTA. THIS ARRANGEMENT GIVES
A 3-PHASE TRANSFORMER. IF THE PRIMARY IS ENERGISED
FROM A 3-PHASE SUPPLY, THE CENTRAL LIMB (i.e.
UNWOUND LIMB) CARRIES THE FLUXES PRODUCED BY THE
3-PHASE PRIMARY WINDING. SINCE THE SUM OF THE THREE
PRIMARY CURRENTS AT ANY INSTANT IS ZERO, THE SUM OF
THREE FLUXES PASSING THROUGH THE CENTRAL LIMB
MUST ALSO BE ZERO. HENCE, NO FLUX EXISTS IN THE
CENTRAL LEG AND IT MAY, THEREFORE, BE ELIMINATED.
THIS MODIFICATION GIVES A THREE-LEG TRANSFORMER
SHOWN IN FIG. IN THIS CASE, ANY TWO LEGS WILL ACT AS
A RETURN PATH FOR THE FLUX IN THE THIRD LEG. ALL THE
CONNECTIONS OF A 3-PHASE TRANSFORMER ARE MADE
INSIDE THE CASE SO THAT ONLY THREE PRIMARY LEADS
AND THREE SECONDARY LEADS ARE BROUGHT OUT OF THE
CASE.

PHASE TRANSFORMATION RATIO (K):

IT IS THE RATIO OF SECONDARY PHASE VOLTAGE TO

PRIMARY PHASE VOLTAGE AND IS DENOTED BY K.
SECONDARY
PHASE VOLTAGE
PHASE TRANSFORMATION RATIO, K =
PRIMARY PHASE
VOLTAGE

THE AUTO-TRANSFORMER
THE AUTO-TRANSFORMER HAS ONLY ONE WINDING AND IS
USED IN CASES WHERE THE RATIO OF TRANFORMATION,
EITHER STEP-UP OR STEP-DOWN, DIFFERS LITTLE FROM 1.
AS WITH THE ORDINARY TRANSFORMER,
RATIO OF TRANFORMATION =
TURNS RATIO.
T.F.

ES = NS =
EP
NP
CONSIDERING A STEP-DOWN AUTO, THE CURRENT
DISTRIBUTION WILL BE AS SHOWN IN FIGURE.
IF,
VP = APPLIED VOLTAGE
VS = SECONDARY TERMINAL
VOLTAGE,
THEN

VS = ES
VP
EP

NEGLECTING LOSSES, VS IS = VP IP
T.F.

IP = VS IS = IS
VP