Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
Losses in DC Machines
As we know “Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, it can only be transferred from
one form to another.” In DC machines, mechanical energy is converted into electrical energy
and vice-versa. During this process, the total input power is not transformed into output
power. Some part of input power gets wasted in various forms as losses. The form of this
loss may vary from one machine to another. These losses give rise in temperature of the
machine and reduce the efficiency of the machine. In DC Machine, there are broadly three
main categories of energy loss shown in Fig. 35.
Fig. 35 – Losses in a dc machine.
Copper Losses or Electrical Losses or Winding Loss in DC Machine
The copper losses are the winding losses taking place when current flows through the
winding. These losses occur due to the resistance in the winding. In dc machines, there are
only two winding, armature and field winding. Thus copper losses may be; armature loss
and field winding loss. The copper losses are proportional to square of the current flowing
through the winding.
So armature copper loss would be:
These losses are mostly about 30% of the total full load losses.
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
Field Winding Copper Loss would be:
These losses are theoretically about 25% of the total full load loss, but practically it is
constant.
Iron Losses or Core Losses or Magnetic Losses in DC Machine
As iron core of the armature is rotating in magnetic field, some losses occur in the core
which is called core losses. Normally, dc machines are operated with constant speed, so
these losses are almost constant. These losses are categorized in two form; Hysteresis loss
and Eddy current loss.
Hysteresis Loss in dc machine: This occurs in the armature winding due to reversal of
magnetization of the core. When the core of the armature is exposed to magnetic field, it
undergoes one complete rotation of magnetic reversal. The portion of armature which is
under S-pole, after completing half electrical revolution, the same piece will be under the N-
pole, and the magnetic lines are reversed in order to overturn the magnetism within the
core. The constant process of magnetic reversal in the armature consumes some amount of
energy which is called hysteresis loss. The percentage of loss depends upon the quality and
volume of the iron.
The Frequency of Magnetic Reversal is given by:
Where P is the number of poles, and, N, the speed of the machine in rpm.
Hysteresis losses can be calculated using the Steinmetz formula, given by:
where,
= Steinmetz hysteresis co-efficient
Bmax = Maximum flux Density in armature winding in wb/m2
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
= Frequency of magnetic reversals
= Volume of armature in m3.
To minimize this loss in a dc machine, armature core is built of materials with small
Steinmetz hysteresis co-efficient e.g., silicon steel.
Eddy Current Loss: According to Faraday’s law of electromagnetic induction, when an iron
core rotates in the magnetic field, an emf is also induced in the core. Similarly, when
armature rotates in magnetic field, small amount of emf is induced in the core which allows
flow of charge in the body due to conductivity of the core. This current is called eddy
current, and is useless to the machine. This loss is almost constant for the dc machines, and
could be minimized by selecting an appropriate laminated core.
Eddy Current loss is given by:
Where,
= constant
= Thickness of lamination in m
V = Volume of core in m3
Note: Constant (Ke) depend upon the resistance of core and system of unit used.
Mechanical Losses in DC Machine
The losses associated with mechanical friction of the machine are called mechanical losses.
These losses occur due to friction in the moving parts of the machine like bearing, brushes
etc., and windage losses occurs due to the air inside the rotating coil of the machine. These
losses are usually very small - about 15% of full load loss.
There are two basic types of mechanical losses: friction and windage losses.
Friction losses are losses caused by the friction of the bearings in the machine, while
windage losses are caused by the friction between the moving parts of the machine and the
air inside the motor's casing.
Generally, the losses in a dc machine are classified into:
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
Constant losses, and
Variable losses.
Constant losses: Are those losses in a dc generator that stay constant at all loads. The
constant losses in every dc generator are:
a. Iron losses
b. Mechanical losses, and
c. Shunt field losses
Variable losses: Are those losses in a dc generator that differ with load. The variable losses
in every dc generator are:
a. Copper loss in armature winding (I2Ra)
b. Copper loss in series field winding (I2seRse)
Now, Total losses (input losses) = Constant losses + Variable losses (copper loss).
Efficiency of DC machines
The efficiency of dc machines, like in most electrical devices, is the ratio of the output power
to the input power.
or
or
There are a number of methods of determining the efficiency of a dc machine, including:
1. Direct loading method
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
2. Swinburne’s method, and
3. Hopkinson’s method
Direct loading Method
In this method, the dc machine is fully loaded directly by means of a brake arrangement
coupled to the shaft of the machine. The input and output are measured and efficiency is
determined directly using:
This method is only applicable to smaller machines, as it is not practically possible to
arrange loads for large machines due to the amount of heat that would be generated at the
brake.
Disadvantages of Direct Loading method
1. Accuracy in determining the mechanical power output of the motor is limited.
2. It is difficult to provide full load for the large capacity motor.
The following methods are for those who are interested, as they are not within the scope
of what I taught you!
Swinburne’s Method
In this method, the dc machine (generator or motor) is run as a motor at no-load and losses
of the machine are determined. Once the losses of the machine are known, its efficiency at
any desired load can be determined in advance. As this test is a no load test it cannot be
performed on series motors, but in shunt and compound motors in which flux is practically
constant at all loads.
To be able to determine the efficiency using this method, the values of the armature and
shunt field resistances needs to be known, as well as the value of constant losses (i.e. Cu
losses).
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
In order to determine the constant losses of the shunt motor, it is run on no-load with
supply voltage adjusted to the rated voltage, and the speed of the motor is adjusted to the
rated speed with the help of field regulator R as shown in Fig. 36.
Fig. 36: Shunt motor.
Let V = Supply voltage
Io = No-load current read by ammeter A1
Ish = Shunt-field current read by ammeter A2.
Therefore, no-load armature current, Ia0 = Io - Ish
No-load input power to motor = VIo
No-load power input to armature = VIao = V(Io - Ish)
Since the output of the motor is zero, the no-load input power to the armature supplies:
(a) iron losses in the core (b) friction loss
(c) windage loss (d) armature Cu loss [ Iao2Ra or (Io - Ish)2Ra .
Constant losses, Wc = Input to motor - Armature Cu loss
Meaning
( )
Since constant losses are known, the efficiency of the machine at any other load can be
determined. Suppose it is desired to determine the efficiency of the machine at load current
. Then,
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
Armature current, ... if the machine is motoring, and
... if the machine is generating
Efficiency When Running as a Motor
Input power to motor = VI
Armature Cu loss = Ia2Ra = (I - Ish)2Ra
Constant losses = Wc found above
Total losses = (I - Ish)2Ra + Wc
Therefore, motor efficiency,
( )
Efficiency When Running as a Generator
Output of generator = VI
Armature Cu loss = Ia2Ra = (I + Ish)2Ra
Constant losses = Wc
Total losses = (I + Ish)2Ra + Wc
Therefore, generator efficiency is:
( )
Advantages of Swinburne’s method
1. The power required to carry out the test is small because it is a no-load test.
Therefore, this method is quite economical.
2. The efficiency can be determined at any load because constant losses are known.
3. This test is very convenient.
Disadvantages of Swinburne’s method
1. It does not take into account the stray load losses that occur when the machine is
loaded.
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
2. This test does not enable us to check the performance of the machine on full-load.
For example, it does not indicate whether commutation on full load is satisfactory
and whether the temperature rise is within the specified limits.
3. This test does not give quite accurate efficiency of the machine. It is because iron
losses under actual load are greater than those measured. This is mainly due to
armature reaction distorting the field.
Hopkinson’s Method
This is another useful method of testing the efficiency of a dc machine. It is a full load test
and it requires two identical machines which are mechanically coupled to each other and
connected in parallel across a dc source as shown in Fig. 37. One of these two machines is
operated as a generator to supply the mechanical power to the motor and the other is
operated as a motor to drive the generator.
Fig. 37: Circuit diagram of Hopkinson’s method.
For this process of back to back driving the motor and the generator, Hopkinson's test is also
called back-to-back test or regenerative test.
If there are no losses in the machine, then no external power supply would been needed.
But due to the drop in the generator output voltage we need an extra voltage source to
supply the proper input voltage to the motor. Hence, the power drawn from the external
supply is therefore used to overcome the internal losses of the motor-generator set.
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
When the machine is started it is started as motor. The shunt field resistance of the machine
is adjusted so that the motor can run at its rated speed. The generator voltage is now made
equal to the supply voltage V (see Fig. 37) by adjusting the shunt field resistance connected
across the generator. When the generator’s generated voltage and the supply voltage V are
equal, the voltmeter connected across the switch will give a zero reading. The machine can
be made to run at rated speed and at desired load by varying the field currents of the motor
and the generator.
Calculation of Efficiency Using the Hopkinson's Test
Form Fig. 37, let;
V = supply voltage of the machines. Then,
( )
where I1 is the current from the generator, and I2 is the current from the external supply
source.
and
If both machines are operating at the same efficiency, , then;
( )
( )
[ ( )] [ ( )]
From the two Eqns. above, we have;
[ ( )]
or
√
( )
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
Now, the motor armature copper loss (see Fig. 37) is;
( )
where is the armature resistance of both the motor and the generator. is the shunt
field current of the motor.
Shunt field copper loss in the motor will be
Now, the generator armature copper loss (see Fig. 37) is;
( )
where is the shunt field current of the generator.
Shunt field copper loss in the generator is
Now, Power drawn from the external supply is
Therefore, the stray losses in both machines will be:
( ) ( )
Assuming that the stray losses are the same for both machines (i.e. motor and generator),
Then, Stray loss per machine is =
Efficiency of the Generator
The total loss in the generator is:
( )
Since generator output power is , then;
Efficiency of the generator is;
Efficiency of the Motor
The total loss in the motor is:
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Notes on EEE309 – Electric Machines I
( )
Since motor input power is ( ), then;
Efficiency of the motor is;
( )
( )
Advantages of Hopkinson's Test
1. This test requires very small power compared to full-load power of the motor-
generator coupled system. That is why it is economical. Large machines can be
tested at rated load without much power consumption.
2. Temperature rise and commutation can be observed and maintained within the limit
because this test is done under full load condition.
3. Change in iron loss due to flux distortion can be taken into account due to the
advantage of its full load condition.
4. Efficiency at different loads can be determined.
Disadvantages of Hopkinson's Test
1. It is difficult to find two identical machines needed for Hopkinson's test.
2. Both machines cannot be loaded equally all the time.
3. It is not possible to get separate iron losses for the two machines though they are
different because of their excitations.
4. It is difficult to operate the machines at rated speed because field currents vary
widely.
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