Synchronous Generator

Detailed Study Notes — Electrical Machines

1. Classification and Constructional Features

Feature Cylindrical Rotor Salient Pole Rotor

Speed High speed (1500–3000 RPM) Low speed (125–500 RPM)

Prime Mover Steam turbines (Turbo-alternators) Water turbines / Diesel engines

Air Gap Uniform throughout Non-uniform (smaller at pole face)

Projecting poles with concentrated

Rotor Shape Smooth cylinder with slots
winding

Application Thermal power stations Hydroelectric stations

Dimensions Long axial length, smaller diameter Larger diameter, shorter axial length

2. Armature Reaction
When the alternator supplies current to a load, the armature (stator) current creates its own magnetic flux. The
interaction of this armature flux with the main rotor flux is called Armature Reaction. Its nature depends entirely
on the power factor of the connected load.

Load Type Phase Relation Effect on Main Flux

Unity PF (Resistive) Ia in phase with Vt Cross-magnetizing (distortion only)

Demagnetizing (weakens main

Lagging PF (Inductive) Ia lags Vt by 90°
flux)

Magnetizing (strengthens main

Leading PF (Capacitive) Ia leads Vt by 90°
flux)

3. Equivalent Circuit
The per-phase equivalent circuit of a synchronous generator consists of:
• Ef — Internal EMF (excitation voltage)
• Ra — Armature resistance (per phase)
• Xs — Synchronous reactance
• Zs = Ra + jXs — Synchronous impedance
• Vt — Terminal voltage (per phase)

Ef = Vt + Ia (Ra + jXs)
Note: For lagging PF: Ef = Vt∠0° + Ia∠−φ × Zs → |Ef| > |Vt|
4. Phasor Diagrams

Lagging PF Load
• Vt is taken as the reference phasor
• Ia lags Vt by power-factor angle φ
• IaRa is added in phase with Ia
• IaXs leads Ia by 90°
• Ef = Vt + IaZs → |Ef| > |Vt| (positive voltage regulation)

Leading PF Load
• Ia leads Vt by φ
• Ef can be less than Vt → negative voltage regulation

5. Voltage Regulation
Voltage Regulation (VR) measures the change in terminal voltage from no-load to full-load conditions,
expressed as a percentage of full-load voltage.

VR (%) = [ (Ef − Vt) / Vt ] × 100

PF Condition VR Sign Interpretation

Lagging PF Positive (+) Voltage drops on loading

Unity PF Small Positive Slight drop on loading

Leading PF Negative (−) Voltage rises on loading

6. OCC and SCC Characteristics

Open Circuit Characteristic (OCC)

• Machine runs at rated speed with armature open-circuited
• Plot of open-circuit voltage (Voc) vs. field current (If)
• Initially linear (air-gap line), then curves due to magnetic saturation
• The linear portion is called the air-gap line

Short Circuit Characteristic (SCC)

• Armature terminals short-circuited; speed at rated value
• Plot of short-circuit current (Isc) vs. field current (If)
• Almost perfectly linear — machine operates in unsaturated region

Synchronous Impedance: Zs = Voc / Isc (at the same If)

7. Effect of Excitation & Prime Mover (Infinite Bus)

An infinite bus maintains constant voltage and constant frequency regardless of the load. Once a generator is
synchronised to an infinite bus:
Varying Field Excitation (constant prime mover input)
• Controls reactive power (MVAR) output only
• Under-excitation → machine absorbs reactive power (acts as inductor)
• Over-excitation → machine delivers reactive power (acts as capacitor)
• Active power (MW) remains unchanged

Varying Prime Mover Input (constant excitation)

• Controls active power (MW) output
• Torque angle δ increases as input mechanical power increases
• Reactive power remains approximately constant

8. V-Curves and Inverted V-Curves

V-Curves (Ia vs. If at constant power)

• Plot of armature current (Ia) vs. field current (If)
• Shape resembles the letter "V"
• Minimum Ia occurs at unity power factor
• Left of minimum → under-excited, lagging PF, absorbing VAR
• Right of minimum → over-excited, leading PF, supplying VAR
• Family of V-curves exists, one for each active power level

Inverted V-Curves (PF vs. If at constant power)

• Plot of power factor vs. field current — shape is an inverted V
• Maximum PF (unity) occurs at the peak of the curve
• One inverted V-curve for each level of active power

9. Parallel Operation and Load Division

Conditions for Synchronisation

# Condition How Adjusted

1 Same terminal voltage magnitude Field current / AVR

2 Same frequency Prime mover speed / governor

3 Same phase sequence Checked during commissioning

4 Same phase angle Synchroscope / synchronising lamps

Load Division After Synchronisation

• Active power (MW) is controlled by the prime mover input (governor/throttle setting)
• Reactive power (MVAR) is controlled by field excitation (AVR)
• Increasing steam/water input of one machine → it picks up more active load
• Increasing excitation of one machine → it supplies more reactive power

10. Two-Reaction Theory (Salient Pole Machines)

Proposed by Blondel, this theory accounts for the non-uniform air gap in salient pole machines by resolving the
armature current into two orthogonal components:

Component Axis Reactance Remarks

Id — Direct-axis Along pole axis (d-axis) Xd (larger) Air gap is small → high flux

Iq — Quadrature-axis Between poles (q-axis) Xq (smaller) Air gap is large → lower flux

Xd > Xq (always, for salient pole machines)

The phasor voltage equation for a salient pole machine (neglecting Ra) is:
Ef = Vt + jId·Xd + jIq·Xq

11. Phasor Diagram of Salient Pole Machine

Construction steps for the phasor diagram:
Step 1: Draw Vt as the reference phasor
Step 2: Add IaRa in phase with Ia to get an intermediate voltage
Step 3: Add IaXq perpendicular to Ia — the tip locates the q-axis direction
Step 4: Resolve Ia into Id (along d-axis) and Iq (along q-axis)
Step 5: Add IdXd (perpendicular to d-axis) to arrive at Ef
Step 6: The angle between Vt and Ef is the torque angle δ

12. Power-Angle Equations

Cylindrical Rotor Machine

Neglecting armature resistance (Zs ≈ Xs):
P = (Ef × Vt / Xs) × sin δ
• Maximum power at δ = 90° (pull-out / steady-state stability limit)
• Active power is proportional to sin δ
• Beyond δ = 90°, the machine loses synchronism

Salient Pole Machine (Two-Reaction Theory)

P = (Ef·Vt / Xd)·sin δ + (Vt²/2)·(1/Xq − 1/Xd)·sin 2δ

Term Name Depends on

(Ef·Vt / Xd)·sin δ Excitation power Field excitation Ef

Saliency (Xd ≠ Xq), exists even if

(Vt²/2)·(1/Xq−1/Xd)·sin 2δ Reluctance power
Ef = 0

Note: Maximum power occurs at δ slightly less than 90° for salient pole machines, unlike cylindrical rotor where it is
exactly 90°.

Quick Reference Summary

Topic Key Concept / Formula

Cylindrical Rotor Uniform air gap, high speed (steam turbine), turbo-alternator

Salient Pole Rotor Non-uniform air gap, low speed (hydraulic turbine)

Armature Reaction Unity PF → cross-mag; Lag PF → demag; Lead PF → magnetising

Equivalent Circuit Ef = Vt + Ia(Ra + jXs)

Voltage Regulation VR = (Ef − Vt)/Vt × 100%

OCC / SCC Zs = Voc/Isc at same field current

Infinite Bus — Excitation Controls reactive power (MVAR)

Infinite Bus — Governor Controls active power (MW)

V-Curves Ia vs If; minimum Ia at unity PF

Two-Reaction Theory Xd > Xq; Blondel's theory for salient poles

Power Angle (Cyl.) P = (Ef·Vt/Xs)·sin δ

Power Angle (Salient) P = (Ef·Vt/Xd)·sin δ + (Vt²/2)(1/Xq−1/Xd)·sin 2δ

All equations are per-phase values. Neglect Ra unless stated otherwise.