BEKG 2433

Synchronous Generator

UNIVERSITI TEKNIKAL MALAYSIA MELAKA (UTeM)

Synchronous Generators
Synchronous generators or alternators are used to

convert mechanical power derived from steam, gas, or

hydraulic-turbine to ac electric power
Synchronous generators converts the primary source
energy to electrical energy we consume today
Large ac power networks rely almost exclusively on
synchronous generators
Synchronous motors are built in large units compare to
induction motors (Induction motors are cheaper for
smaller ratings) and used for constant speed industrial
drives
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The basic construction

Basic parts of a synchronous generator:
Rotor - dc excited winding
Stator - 3-phase winding in which the ac emf is generated

Slip ring is an electromechanical device that allows the

transmission of power and electrical signals from a
stationary to a rotating structure
Brush is a device which conducts current between
stationary wires and moving parts

Construction
The armature are designed for generation of balanced
three-phase voltage and are arranged to develop the
same number of magnetic poles as the field winding
that is on the rotor
The rotor is driven by a prime mover at constant speed
and its field circuit is excited by direct current (DC)
Modern excitation systems usually use ac generators
with rotating rectifier and are known as brushless
excitation
The generator excitation system maintains generator
voltage and controls the reactive power flow
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Operation Principle
The rotor of the generator is driven by a
prime-mover
A dc current is flowing in the rotor
winding which produces a rotating
magnetic field within the machine
The rotating magnetic field induces a
three-phase voltage in the stator winding of
the generator
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The speed of rotation and internal

voltage of Syn. Generator
Synchronous means that

p nm
f
2 60

the electrical frequency

produced is locked with
the mechanical rate of
rotation of the generator.

The internal voltage in SG

E A 2N cf K

is given by following
formula:

K : constant represents
construction of machine
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: radian /s

Generated Voltage
The rms value of generated voltage of a synchronous generator
is given by
E 4.44 K N f
w

where = flux in the machine (function of If)

f = frequency
Kw= winding factor
N = No of coil turns
.

Various Types
1. Salient-pole synchronous machine
2. Cylindrical or round-rotor synchronous
machine

Salient-Pole Synchronous Generator

1. Most hydraulic turbines have to turn at low speeds
(between 50 and 300 r/min)
2. A large number of poles are required on the rotor

d-axis

Non-uniform
air-gap

D 10 m
q-axis

Turbine
Hydro (water)

Hydrogenerator

p nm
f
2 60
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Salient-Pole Synchronous Generator

Stator

10

l e ro
o
p
t
n
Salie

tor

Cylindrical-Rotor Synchronous Generator

D 1 m

Turbine

L 10 m
Steam

d-axis
Stator winding

High speed

3000 r/min -pole

1500 r/min -pole

p n
f
2 60

Stator

q-axis

Rotor winding

Direct-conductor cooling (using hydrogen

or water as coolant)

Rotor

Rating up to 2000 MVA

S

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Uniform air-gap

Turbogenerator

Cylindrical-Rotor Synchronous Generator

Stator

12

Cylindrical rotor

GENERATOR
MODEL

( X R)

GENERAL EQ. FOR GENERATOR => Va = Ea - jXsIa

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Equivalent Circuit

The internal voltage E produced in a machine is not usually

the voltage that appears at the terminals (V) of the generator.
The only time E is same as the output voltage of a phase is
when there is no armature current flowing in the machine.
There are a number of factors that cause the difference
between E and V:

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The distortion of the air-gap magnetic field by the current

flowing in the stator, called the armature reaction
The self-inductance of the armature coils.
The resistance of the armature coils.
The effect of salient-pole rotor shapes.

Three Phase Equivalent Circuit of the

Synchronous Generator
You observe the DC power source

supplying the rotor field circuit.

The figure also shows that each
phase has an induced voltage
with a series XS and a series RA.
The voltages and currents of the
three phases are identical but 120
apart in angle.

The three phases can be

either Y or . If they are Y

connected, then the
terminal voltage VT is
related to the phase
voltage
by
VT 3 V
If connected :

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VT V

The full equivalent circuit of a three-phase

synchronous generator

Phasor Diagram
Voltages in a synchronous
generator are expressed as
phasors because they are
AC voltages. Since we have
magnitude and angle, the
relationship between
voltage and current must
be expressed by a twodimensional plot.
It is noticed that, for a
given phase voltage and
armature current, a larger
induced voltage EA is
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required for lagging loads

Phasor diagram of a
synchronous
generator at unity
power factor (purely
resistive Load).

Phasor Diagram
Phasor diagram of
a synchronous
generator at
lagging factor
(Inductive Load).

Phasor diagram of
a synchronous
generator at
leading factor
(Capacitive Load).
Notice that larger internal voltage is needed for lagging loads,
therefore, larger field currents is needed with lagging loads to
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get same terminal E
voltage
A K

Voltage Regulation
A convenient way to compare the voltage behaviour of two
generators is by their voltage regulation (VR). The VR of a
synchronous generator at a given load, power factor, and at
rated speed is defined as

VR

Vnl V fl
V fl

100%

E Vrated
VR
100%
Vrated

Where Vfl is the full-load terminal voltage, and Vnl (equal to E)

is the no-load terminal voltage (internal voltage) at rated speed
when the load is removed without changing the field current.

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For lagging power factor (PF), VR is fairly positive, for unity

PF, VR is small positive and for leading PF, VR is negative.

POWER FACTOR CONTROL

Most Synchronous machines are connected to large
interconnected electric power networks
The system voltage (terminal voltage) at the point of
connection must be constant in magnitude, phase
angle and frequency
This voltage will not be altered by machine loading
This point is referred to as an infinite bus

Large
System
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 Consider the effect of rotor excitation variation (vary If)

when generator operates at constant mechanical input
power
If increased (), E increased, power factor vary
For constant developed power at a fixed terminal
voltage, Ia cos and E sin must be constant

P3=3Vt Ia cos
3Vt E sin
P3
Xs
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E 4.44 K w N f

Phasor diagram of a synchronous generator in

under excitation, unity power factor &
over excitation mode
Ia cos

E2

E3
Ia3

1
1

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Ia2
Ia1

jXs Ia3

E1

jXs Ia2
jXs Ia1

E sin

Generation of reactive power and power factor

can be controlled by the variation of rotor

excitation while maintain a constant Pout.
Lagging system, overexcited gen deliver Q to

the system Gen acts as capacitor

Leading system, underexcited gen receiving Q

from the system Gen acts as inductor

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Power Angle Characteristics

The P() curve shows that
the increase of power
increases the angle between
the induced voltage and the
terminal voltage.
The power is maximum when
=90o
The further increase of input
power forces the generator
out of synchronism. This
generates large current and
mechanical forces.
The maximum power is the
static stability limit of the
system.

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Safe operation requires a 15-

Pmax

3V E A
XS

Example 1 (Example from Hadi Saadat)

A 50-MVA, 30-kV, three-phase, 60-Hz synchronous generator

has a synchronous reactance of 9 per phase and a negligible
resistance. The generator is delivering rated power at a 0.8 pf
lagging at the rated terminal voltage to an infinite bus.

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a. Determine the excitation voltage per phase E and power

angle
b. With the excitation held constant at the value found in (a),
the driving torque is reduced until the generator is delivering
25 MW. Determine the armature current and the power
factor.
c. If the generator is operating at the excitation voltage of part
(a), what is the steady-state max. power the machine can
deliver before losing snynchronism? Also, find the armature
current corresponding to this maximum power.

Example 2 (Example from Hadi Saadat)

The generator of example 1 is delivering 40MW at a terminal
voltage of 30kV. Compute the power angle, armature current, and
power factor when the field current is adjusted for the following
excitations:
(a) The excitation voltage is decreased to 79.2% of the value

found in Example 1.
(b) The excitation voltage is decreased to 59.27% of the value
found in example 1
(c) Find the minimum excitation below which the generator will
lose synchronism

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