Illumination Engineering Overview
Illumination Engineering Overview
LECTURE NOTES
ON
UTILASATION OF ELECTRICAL
ENERGY
2018 – 2019
UNIT-1
ILLUMINATION
INTRODUCTION
Study of illumination engineering is necessary not only to understand the principles of light
control as applied to interior lighting design such as domestic and factory lighting but also to
understand outdoor applications such as highway lighting and flood lighting. Now a day, the
electrically produced light is preferred to the other source of illumination because of an account
of its cleanliness, ease of control, steady light output, low cost, and reliability. The best
illumination is that it produces no strain on the eyes. Apart from its esthetic and decorative
aspects, good lighting has a strictly utilitarian value in reducing the fatigue of the workers,
protecting their health, increasing production, [Link] science of illumination engineering is
therefore becoming of major importance.
NATURE OF LIGHT
Light is a form of electromagnetic energy radiated from a body and human eye is
capable of receiving it. Light is a prime factor in the human life as all activities of human being
ultimately depend upon the light.
Various forms of incandescent bodies are the sources of light and the light emitted by
such bodies depends upon their temperature. A hot body about 500–800°C becomes a red hot
and about 2,500–3,000°C the body becomes white hot. While the body is red hot, the
wavelength of the radiated energy will be sufficiently large and the energy available in the form
of heat. Further, the temperature increases, the body changes from red-hot to white-hot state,
the wavelength of the radiated energy becomes smaller and enters into the range of the
wavelength of light. The wavelength of the light waves varying from 0.0004 to 0.00075 mm,
i.e. 4,000-7,500 Å (1 Angstrom unit = 10–10 mm). The eye discriminates between different
wavelengths in this range by the sensation of color.
The whole of the energy radiated out is not useful for illumination purpose. Radiations
of very short wavelength varying from 0.0000156 × 10–6m to 0.001 × 10–6 m are not in the
visible range are called as rontgen or x-rays, which are having the property of penetrating
through opaque bodies.
TERMS USED IN ILLUMINATION
Fig. [Link]
Relative sensitivity: The reacting power of the human eye to the light waves of different
wavelengths varies from person to person, and also varies with age. The average relative
sensitivity is shown in Fig. 6.2. The eye is most sensitive for a wavelength of 5,500 Å. So that,
the relative sensitivity according to this wavelength is taken as unity. Referred from Fig. 6.1,
blue and violet corresponding to the short wavelengths and red to the long wavelengths, orange,
yellow, and green being in the middle of the visible region of wavelength. The color
corresponding to 5,500 Å is not suitable for most of the applications since yellowish green. The
relative sensitivity at any particular wavelength (λ) is known as relative luminous factor (Kλ).
Light: It is defined as the radiant energy from a hot body that produces the visual sensation
upon the human eye. It is expressed in lumen-hours and it analogous to watthours,which
denoted by the symbol ‘Q’.
Luminous flux: It is defined as the energy in the form of light waves radiated per second from
a luminous body. It is represented by the symbol ‘φ’ and measured in lumens.
Ex: Suppose the luminous body is an incandescent lamp. The total electrical power input to the
lamp is not converted to luminous flux, some of the power lost through conduction, convection,
and radiation, etc. Afraction of the remaining radiant flux is in the form of light waves lies in
between the visual range of wavelength, i.e. between 4,000 and 7,000 Å, as shown in Fig. 6.3.
Plane angle
A plane angle is the angle subtended at a point in a plane by two converging lines (Fig.6.4). It is
denoted by the Greek letter ‘θ’ (theta) and is usually measured in degrees or radians. One radian
is defined as the angle subtended by an arc of a circle whose length by an arc of a circle whose
length is equals to the radius of the circle.
Solid angle Solid angle is the angle subtended at a point in space by an area, i.e., the angle
enclosed in the volume formed by numerous lines lying on the surface and meeting at the point
(Fig. 6.5). It is usually denoted by symbol ‘ω’ and is measured in steradian.
BD = OB – OD From
From the Equation (6.3), the curve shows the variation of solid angle with plane angle is
shown in Fig. 6.7.
flux crossing a spherical segment of solid angle ‘ω’. Then luminous intensity
lumen/steradian or candela.
Lumen: It is the unit of luminous flux. It is defined as the luminous flux emitted by a source of
one candle power per unit solid angle in all directions.
Lumen = candle power of source × solid angle.
Lumen = CP × ω
Total flux emitted by a source of one candle power is 4π lumens.
Candle power (CP)
The CP of a source is defined as the total luminous flux lines emitted by that source in a unit
solid angle.
Illumination
Illumination is defined as the luminous flux received by the surface per unit [Link] is usually
denoted by the symbol ‘E’ and is measured in lux or lumen/m2 or meter
Brightness
Brightness of any surface is defined as the luminous intensity pen unit surface area of
the projected surface in the given direction. It is usually denoted by symbol ‘L’.If the luminous
intensity of source be ‘I’ candela on an area A, then the projected area is Acos θ.
The unit of brightness is candela/m2 or candela/cm2 or candela/(ft)2.
Lamp efficiency
It is defined as the ratio of the total luminous flux emitting from the source to its
electrical power input in watts. It is expressed in lumen/W.
Specific consumption
It is defined as the ratio of electric power input to its average candle power.
Maintenance factor
It is defined as the ratio of illumination under normal working conditions to the illumination
when everything is clean. Its value is always less than 1, and it will be around 0.8. This is due to
the accumulation of dust, dirt, and smoke on the lamps that emit less light than that they emit
when they are so clean. Frequent cleaning of lamp will improve the maintenance factor.
Depreciation factor
It is defined as the ratio of initial illumination to the ultimate maintained illumination on the
working [Link] values is always more than 1.
Example 6.2: A room with an area of 6 × 9 m is illustrated by ten 80-W lamps. The luminous
efficiency of the lamp is 80 lumens/W and the coefficient of utilization is [Link] the average
illumination.
Solution:
Room area = 6 × 9 = 54 m2.
Total wattage = 80 × 10 = 800 W.
Total flux emitted by ten lamps = 80 × 800 = 64,000 lumens.
Example 6.3: The luminous intensity of a lamp is 600 CP. Find the flux given out. Also find
the flux in the hemisphere containing the source of light and zero above the horizontal.
Solution:
Flux emitted by source (lumen)
= Intensity (I) × solid angle (ω)
= 600 × 2 π = 3,769.911 lumens
∴ Flux emitted in the lower hemisphere = 3,769.911 lumens.
Example 6.4: The flux emitted by 100-W lamp is 1,400 lumens placed in a frosted globe of 40
cm diameter and gives uniform brightness of 250 milli-lumens/m2 in all directions. Calculate
the candel power of the globe and the percentage of light absorbed by the globe.
Solution:
Flux emitted by the globe
= brightness × globe area
= 1,256.63 lumens
Flux absorbed by the globe
= flux emitted by source – flux emitted by globe
= 1,400 – 1,256.63
= 143.36 lumens.
Example 6.5: A surface inclined at an angle 40° to the rays is kept 6 m away from 150 candle
power lamp. Find the average intensity of illumination on the surface.
Solution:
From the Fig. P.6.1:
θ = (90° – 40°) = 50°.
∴ Average illumination:
Fig. P.6.1
LAWS OF ILLUMINATION
Mainly there are two laws of illumination.1. Inverse square law. 2. Lambert's cosine law.
1 Inverse square law
This law states that ‘the illumination of a surface is inversely proportional to the square of
distance between the surface and a point source’.
Proof:
Let, ‘S’ be a point source of luminous intensity ‘I’ candela, the luminous flux emitting from
source crossing the three parallel plates having areas A1 A2, and A3 square meters, which are
separated by a distances of d, 2d, and 3d from the point source respectively as shown in Fig.
6.10.
Hence, from Equation (6.8), illumination on any surface is inversely proportional to the square
of distance between the surface and the source.
Lambert's cosine law
This law states that ‘illumination, E at any point on a surface is directly proportional to the
cosine of the angle between the normal at that point and the line of flux’.
Proof:
While discussing, the Lambert's cosine law, let us assume that the surface is inclined at an angle
‘θ’ to the lines of flux as shown in Fig. 6.11.
Let
PQ = The surface area normal to the source and inclined at ‘θ’ to the vertical axis.
RS = The surface area normal to the vertical axis and inclined at an angle θ to the source
‘O’.
Therefore, from Fig. 6.11:
where d is the distance between the source and the surface in m, h is the height of source from
the surface in m, and I is the luminous intensity in candela. Hence, Equation (6.11) is also
known as ‘cosine cube’ law. This law states that the ‘illumination at any point on a surface is
dependent on the cube of cosine of the angle between line of flux and normal at that point’.
Note:
*From the above laws of illumination, it is to be noted that inverse square law is only applicable
for the surfaces if the surface is normal to the line of flux. And Lambert's cosine law is
applicable for the surfaces if the surface is inclined an angle ‘θ’ to the line of flux.
Example 6.6: The illumination at a point on a working plane directly below the lamp is to be
60 lumens/m2. The lamp gives 130 CP uniformly below the horizontal plane. Determine: 1.
The height at which lamp is suspended. 2. The illumination at a point on the working plane 2.8
m away from the vertical axis of the lamp.
Solution:
Given data:
Candle power of the lamp = 130 CP.
The illumination just below the lamp, E = 60 lumen/m2.
1. From the Fig. P.6.2, the illumination just below the lamp, i.e., at point A:
Fig. P.6.2
POLAR CURVES
The luminous flux emitted by a source can be determined using the intensity distribution curve.
Till now we assumed that the luminous intensity or the candle power from a source is
distributed uniformly over the surrounding surface. But due to its s not uniform in all directions.
The luminous intensity or the distribution of the light can be represented with the help of the
polar curves. The polar curves are drawn by taking luminous intensities in various directions at
an equal angular displacement in the sphere. A radial ordinate pointing in any particular
direction on a polar curve represents the luminous intensity of the source when it is viewed
from that direction. Accordingly, there are two different types of polar curves and they are:
1. A curve is plotted between the candle power and the angular position, if the luminous
intensity, i.e., candle power is measured in the horizontal plane about the vertical axis, called
'horizontal polar curve’.
2. curve is plotted between the candle power, if it is measured in the vertical plane and the
angular position is known as 'verticalpolar curve’. Figure 6.12 shows the typical polar curves
for an ordinary lamp.
The area under the Rousseau's curve can be determined by Simpson's rule.
PHOTOMETRY
Photometry involves the measurement of candle power or luminous intensity of a given source.
Now, we shall discuss the comparison and measurement of the candle powers. The candle
power of a given source in a particular direction can be measured by the comparison with a
standard or substandard source. In order to eliminate the errors due to the reflected light, the
experiment is conducted in a dark room with dead black walls and ceiling. The comparison of
the test lamp with the standard lamp can be done by employing a photometer bench and some
form of photometer.
Principle of simple photometer
The photometer bench essentially consists of two steel rods with 2- to 3-m long. This bench
carries stands or saddles for holding two sources (test and standard lamps), the carriage for the
photometer head and any other apparatus employed in making measurements. Graduated scale
in centimeters or millimeters in one of the bar strips. The circular table is provided with a large
graduated scale in degrees round its edge so that the angle of the rotation of lamp from the axis
of bench can be measured. The photometer bench should be rigid so that the source being
compared may be free from vibration. The photometer head should be capable of moving
smoothly and the photometer head acts as screen for the comparison of the illumination of the
standard lamp and the test lamp. The principle methods of measurement are based upon the
inverse square law. The photometer bench consists of two sources, the standard source ‘S’
whose candle power is known and the other source ‘T’ whose candle power is to be determined.
The photometer head acts as screen is moved in between the two fixed sources until the
illumination on both the sides of screen is same. A simple arrangement for the measurement of
the candle power of the test source is shown in Fig. 6.14.
. In order to obtain the accurate candle power of test source, the distance of the sources
from the photometer head should be measured accurately.
Photometer heads
The photometer heads that are most common in use are:
1. Bunsen grease spot photometer.
2. Lumer–Brodhun photometer.
3. Flicker photometer.
The first two are best suited for use, if the two sources to be compared give the light of same or
approximately similar colors. Increase the light from the two sources to be compared differ in
color, a flicker photometer is best suited.
(i) Bunsen grease spot photometer
Bunsen photometer consists of a tissue paper, with a spot of grease or wax at its center. It held
vertically in a carrier between the two light sources to be compared. The central spot will
appear dark on the side, having illumination in excess when seen from the other side. Then, the
observer will adjust the position of photometer head in such a way that until the semitransparent
spot and the opaque parts of the paper are equally bright then the grease spot is invisible, i.e.,
same contrast in brightness is got between the spot and the disc when seen from each sides as
shown in Fig. 6.15. The distance of the photometer from the two sources is measured. Hence,
the candle power of test source is then determined by using relation:
The photometer head essentially consists of screen made of plaster of Paris, two mirrorsM1and
M2, glass cube or compound prism, and a telescope. The compound prism made up of two
right-angled glass prisms held together, one of which has sand blasted pattern on its face, i.e.,
principal surface as spherical with small flat portion at the center and the other is perfectly
plain. A typical Lumer–Brodhun photometer head is shown in Fig. 6.16.
prisms are flat, but one of the prism has its hypotenuses surface etched away at A,B, and C to
get pattern of the type shown in Fig. 6.17.
16 Define illumination.
Illumination is defined as the luminous flux received by the surface per unit area.
In arc lamps, the electrodes are in contact with each other and are separated by some distance
apart; the electric current is made to flow through these two electrodes. The discharge is
allowed
to take place in the atmosphere where there are the production of a very intense light and a
considerable amount of UV radiation, when an arc is struck between two electrodes. The arcs
maintain current and is very efficient source of light. They are used in search lights, projection
lamps, and other special purpose lamps such as those in flash cameras.
Generally, used arc lamps are:
1. carbon arc lamp,
2. flame arc lamp, and
3. magnetic arc lamp.
Carbon arc lamp
Carbon arc lamp consists of two hard rod-type electrodes made up of carbon. Two electrodes
are placed end to end and are connected to the DC supply. The positive electrode is of a large
size than that of the negative electrode. The carbon electrodes used with AC supply are of the
same size as that of the DC supply. The DC supply across the two electrodes must not be less
than 45 V. When electric current passes through the electrodes are in contact and then
withdrawn apart about 2–3 mm an arc is established between the two rods. The two edges of the
rods becomes incandescence due to the high resistance offered by rods as shown in Fig. 7.1 by
transfer of carbon particles from one rod to the other. It is observed that carbon particles
transfer from the positive rod to the negative one. So that the positive electrode gets consumed
earlier than the negative electrode. Hence, the positive electrode is of twice the diameter than
that of the negative electrode.
In case of AC supply, the rate of consumption of the two electrodes is same; therefore, the
cross-section of the two electrodes is same. A resistance ‘R’ is connected in series with the
electrode for stabilizing the arc. As current increases, the vaporizing rate of carbon increases,
which decreases the resistance so much, then voltage drop across the arc decreases. So, to
maintain the arc between the two electrodes, series resistance should be necessarily connected.
For maintaining the arc, the necessary voltage required is:
V = (39 + 2.8 l ) V,
where l is the length of the arc. The voltage drop across the arc is 60 V, the temperature of the
positive electrode is 3,500 – 4,200°C, and the temperature of the negative electrode is 2,500°C.
The luminous efficiency of such lamps is 9–12 lumens/W. This low luminous efficiency is due
to the service resistance provided in DC supply while in case of AC supply, an inductor is used
in place of a resistor. In carbon arc lamps, 85% of the light is given out by the positive
electrode, 10% of the light is given out by the negative electrodes, and 5% of the light is given
out by the air.
Flame arc lamp
The electrodes used in flame arc lamp are made up of 85% of carbon and 15% of fluoride. This
fluoride is also known as flame material; it has the efficient property that radiates light energy
from high heated arc stream. Generally, the core type electrodes are used and the cavities are
filled with fluoride. The principle of operation of the flame arc lamp is similar to the carbon arc
lamp. When the arc is established between the electrodes, both fluoride and carbon get
vaporized
and give out very high luminous intensities. The color output of the flame arc lamps depends
upon the flame materials. The luminous efficiency of such lamp is 8 lumens/W. A simple flame
arc lamp is shown in Fig. 7.2. Resistance is connected in service with the electrodes to stabilize
the arc.
1 Carbon has high melting point of 3,500°C; even though, its melting point is high, carbon
starts
disintegration at very fast rate beyond its working temperature of 1,800°C.
2 Its resistance decreases with increase in temperature, i.e., its temperature coefficient of
resistivity is negative, so that it draws more current from the supply. The temperature
coefficient (α) is –0.0002 to – 0.0008.
3 The efficiency of carbon filament lamp is low; because of its low operating tem perature,
large electrical input is required. The commercial efficiency of carbon lamp is 3 – 4.5
lumens/W approximately.
4 Carbon has high resistivity (ρ), which is about 1,000–7,000 μΩ-cm and its density is 1.7–3.5.
Osmium
1 The melting point of osmium is 2,600°C.
2 It is very rare and expensive metal.
3 The average efficiency of osmium lamp is 5 lumens/W.
Tantalum
1 The melting point of tantalum is 3,000°C.
2 Resistivity (ρ) is 12.5 μΩ-cm.
3 The main drawback of the negative temperature coefficient of carbon is overcome in
tantalum. It has positive temperature coefficient (α) and its value is 0.0036.
4 The density of tantalum is 16.6.
5 The efficiency of tantalum lamp is 2 lumens/W.
Tungsten
1 The working temperature of tungsten is 2,500–3,000°C.
2 Its resistance at working temperature is about 12–15 times the cold resistance.
3 It has positive temperature coefficient of resistance of 0.0045.
4 Its resistivity is 5.6 12.5 μΩ-cm.
5 The density of tungsten is 19.3.
6 The efficiency of tantalum when working at 2,000°C is 18 lumens/W.
7 Its vapor pressure is low when compared to carbon.
In fact, the carbon lamp is the first lamp introduced by Thomas Alva Edison in 1879, owing to
two drawbacks, tungsten radiates more energy in visible spectrum and somewhat less in
infrared spectrum so that there was a switch over in infrared spectrum so that there was a switch
over from carbon filament to tungsten filament. Nowadays, tungsten filament lamps are widely
used incandescent lamps.
The chemically pure tungsten is very strong and fragile. In order to make it into ductile,
tungsten oxide is first reduced in the form of gray power in the atmosphere of hydrogen and this
powder is pressed in steel mold for small bars; the mechanical strength of these bars can be
improved by heating them to their melting point and then hammered at red-hot position and
rerolled into wires.
Construction
Figure 7.3 shows the construction of the pure tungsten filament incandescent lamp. It consists
of an evacuated glass bulb and an aluminum or brass cap is provided with two pins to insert the
bulb into the socket. The inner side of the bulb consists of a tungsten filament and the support
wires are made of molybdenum to hold the filament in proper position. A glass button is
provided in which the support wires are inserted. A stem tube forms an air-tight seal around the
filament whenever the glass is melted.
When electric current is made to flow through the fine metallic tungsten filament, its
temperature increases. At very high temperature, the filament emits both heat and light
radiations, which fall in the visible region. The maximum temperature at which the filament can
be worked without oxidization is 2,000°C, i.e., beyond this temperature, the tungsten filament
blackens the inside of
the bulb. The tungsten filament lamps can be operated efficiently beyond 2,000°C, it can be
attained by inserting a small quantity of inert gas nitrogen with small quantity of organ. But if
gas is inserted instead of vacuum in the inner side of the bulb, the heat of the lamp is conducted
away and it reduces the efficiency of the lamp. To reduce this loss of heat by conduction and
convection, as far as possible, the filament should be so wound that it takes very little space.
This
is achieved by using a single-coil filament instead of a straight wire filament as shown in Fig.
7.4(a). This single-coil filament is used in vacuum bulbs up to 25 W and gas filled bulbs from
300 to 1,000 W.
2 The current drawn from the mains and the power consumed by the filament decrease, which
decrease the efficiency of the lamp with the passage of time. In addition, the evaporation of the
filament at high temperature blackens the inside of the bulb.
The effects of voltage variations
The variations in normal supply voltages will affect the operating characteristics of
incandescent lamps. The performance characteristic of an incandescent lamp, when it is
subjected to voltage other than normal voltage, is shown in Fig. .
where I is the current taken by the lamp A, a is the filament cross-section, sq. m, ρ is the
resistivity of the filament at working temperature Ω-m, l is the length of the filament m, andd is
the diameter of the filament. Let the emissivity of the material be ‘e’. Total heat dissipated will
depend upon the surface area and the emissivity of the material
∴ Heat dissipated ∝ surface area × emissivity:
At the steady state condition, the power input should be equal to the heat dissipated. From
Equations (7.1) and (7.2), we can write that:
If two filaments are made up of same material, working at same temperature and efficiency
but with different diameters, then from Equation (7.3):
If two filaments are working at the same temperature, then their luminous output must be same
Limitations
The incandescent lamp suffers from the following drawbacks:
o Low efficiency.
o Colored light can be obtained by using different colored glass enclosures only.
DISCHARGE LAMPS
Discharge lamps have been developed to overcome the drawbacks of the incandescent lamp.
The
main principle of the operation of light in a gaseous discharge lamp is illustrated as below. In
all discharge lamps, an electric current is made to pass through a gas or vapor, which produces
its illuminance. Normally, at high pressures and atmospheric conditions, all the gases are poor
conductors of electricity. But on application of sufficient voltage across the two electrodes,
these ionized gases produce electromagnetic radiation. In the process of producing light by
gaseous conduction, the most commonly used elements are neon, sodium, and mercury. The
wavelength of the electromagnetic radiation depends upon the nature of gas and the gaseous
pressure used inside the lamp. A simple discharge lamp is shown in Fig. 7.6.
resistance characteristics. A choke or ballast is provided to limit high currents to a safe value.
Here, the choke serves two functions.
o It provides ignition voltage initially.
o Limits high currents.
The use of choke will reduce the power factor (0.3–0.4) of all the gaseous lamps so that all the
discharge lamps should be provided with a condenser to improve the power factor. The nature
of
the gas and vapor used in the lamp will affect the color affected of light.
Types of discharge lamps
Generally used discharge lamps are of two types. They are:
1. The lamps that emit light of the color produced by discharge takes place through the gas or
vapor present in the discharge tube such as neon gas, sodium vapor, mercury vapor, etc.
Ex: Neon gas, sodium vapor lamp, and mercury vapor lamp.
2. The lamp that emits light of color depends upon the type of phosphor material coated inside
the walls of the discharge tube. Initially, the discharge takes place through the vapor produces
UV radiation, then the invisible UV rays absorbed by the phosphors and radiates light energy
falls in the visible region. This UV light causes fluorescence in certain phosphor materials, such
lamps are known as fluorescent lamps.
Ex: Fluorescent mercury vapor tube.
In general, the gaseous discharge lamps are superior to the tungsten filament lamps.
Drawbacks
The discharge lamps suffer from the following drawbacks.
1. The starting of the discharge lamps requires starters and transformers; therefore, the lamp
circuitry is complex.
2. High initial cost.
3. Poor power factor; therefore, the lamps make use of the capacitor.
4. Time required to give its full output brilliancy is more.
5. These lamps must be placed in particular position.
6. These lamps require stabilizing choke to limit current since the lamps have negative
resistance
characteristics.
electrodes, which are sealed with the ends. These electrodes are connected to a pin type base
construction of
sodium vapor lamp is shown in Fig. .
increases gradually and the metallic sodium vaporizes and then ionizes thereby producing the
monochromatic yellow light. This lamp takes 10–15 min to give its full light output. The
yellowish output of the lamp makes the object appears gray. In order to start the lamp, 380 –
450 V of striking voltage required for 40- and 100-W lamps. These voltages can be obtained
from a high reactance transformer or an auto transformer. The operating power factor of the
lamp is very poor, so that a capacitor is placed to improve the power factor to above 0.8. More
care should be taken while replacing the inner tube, if it is broken, then sodium comes in
contact with the moisture; therefore, fire will result. The lamp must be operated horizontally or
nearly so, to spread out the sodium well along the tube. The efficiency of sodium vapor lamp is
lies between 40 and 50 lumens/W. Normally, these lamps are manufactured in 45-, 60-, 85- and
140-W ratings. The normal operating temperatures of these lamps are 300°C. In general, the
average life of the sodium vapor lamp is 3,000 hr and such bulbs are not affected by voltage
variations.
Following are the causes of failure to operate the lamp, when:
o The cathode fails to emit the electrons.
o The filament breaks or burns out.
o All the particles of sodium are concentrated on one side of the inner tube.
o The life of the lamp increases due to aging.
The average light output of the lamp is reduced by 15% due to aging. These lamps are mainly
used for highway and street lighting, parks, railway yards, general outdoor lighting, etc.
HIGH-PRESSURE MERCURY VAPOR LAMP
The working of the mercury vapor discharge lamp mainly depends upon the pressure, voltage,
temperature, and other characteristics that influence the spectral quality and the efficiency of
the
lamp. Generally used high-pressure mercury vapor lamps are of three types. They are:
1. MA type: Preferred for 250- and 400-W rating bulbs on 200–250-V AC supply.
2. MAT type: Preferred for 300- and 500-W rating bulbs on 200–250-V AC supply.
3. MB type: Preferred for 80- and 125-W rating bulbs and they are working at very high
pressures.
MA type lamp
It is a high-pressure mercury vapor discharge lamp that is similar to the construction of sodium
and an arc is established, and then discharge takes place through argon for few minutes between
the main and the auxiliary electrodes. As a result, discharge takes place through argon for few
minutes in between the main and the auxiliary electrodes. The discharge can be controlled by
using high resistance that is inserted in-series with the auxiliary electrode. After few minutes,
the argon gas, as a whole, gets ionized between the two main electrodes. Hence, the discharge
shifts from the auxiliary electrode to the two main electrodes. During the discharge process,
heat is produced and this heat is sufficient to vaporize the mercury. As a result, the pressure
inside the discharge tube becomes high and the voltage drop across the two main electrodes will
increases from 20 to 150 V. After 5–7 min, the lamp starts and gives its full output. Initially, the
discharge through the argon is pale blue glow and the discharge through the mercury vapors is
greenish blue light; here, choke is provided to limit high currents and capacitor is to improve
the power factor of the lamp. If the supply is interrupted, the lamp must cool down and the
vapor pressure be reduced before it will start. It takes approximately 3 – 4 min. The operating
temperature of the inner discharge tube is about 600°C. The efficiency of this type of lamp is
30–40 lumens/W. These lamps are manufactured in 250 and 400 W ratings for use on 200–250
V on AC supply. Generally, the MA type lamps are used for general industrial lighting, ports,
shopping centers, railway yards, etc.
MAT type lamp
This is another type of mercury vapor lamp that is manufactured in 300 and 500 W rating for
use on AC as well as DC supplies. The construction of the MAT type lamp is similar to the MA
type
lamp except the outer tube being empty; it consists of tungsten filament so that at the time of
starting, it works as a tungsten filament lamp. Here, the filament itself acts as a choke or ballast
to limit the high currents to safer value. When the supply is switched on, it works as a tungsten
filament lamp, its full output is given by the outer tube. At this time, the temperature of the
inner discharge tube increases gradually, the argon gas present in it starts ionizing in the
discharge tube at any particular temperature is attained then thermal switch gets opened, and the
part of the filament is detached and voltage across the discharge tube increases. Now, the
discharge takes place through the mercury vapor. Useful color effect can be obtained by this
lamp. This is because of the combination of light emitted form the filament and blue radiations
from the discharge tube. In this type of lamp, capacitor is not required since the overall power
factor of the lamp is 0.95; this is because the filament itself acts as resistance. Fig. 7.10 shows
the construction of MAT type lamp.
in the form of a long tube. The tube consists of two spiral tungsten electrode coated with
electron emissive material and are placed at the two edges of long tube. The tube contains small
quantity of argon gas and certain amount of mercury, at a pressure of 2.5 mm of mercury. The
construction of fluorescent lamp is shown in Fig. 7.12. Normally, low-pressure mercury vapor
lamps suffer from low efficiency and they produce an objectionable colored light. Such
drawback is overcome by coating the inside of the tube with fluorescent powders. They are in
the form of solids, which are usually knows as phosphors.
starting glow. This glow warms up the bimetallic strip thus glow starts gets short circuited.
Hence, the two electrodes come in series and are connected across the supply voltage. Now, the
two electrodes get heated and start emitting electrons due to the flow of current through them.
These
electrons collide with the argon atoms present in the long tube discharge that takes place
through
the argon gas. So, in the beginning, the lamp starts conduction with argon gas as the
temperature
increases, the mercury changes into vapor form and takes over the conduction of current. In the
mean time, the starter potential reaches to zero and the bimetallic strip gets cooling down. As a
result, the starter terminals will open. This results breaking of the series circuit. A very high
voltage around 1,000 V is induced, because of the sudden opening of starter terminals in the
series circuit. But in the long tube, electrons are already present; this induced voltage is quite
sufficient to break down the long gap. Thus, more number of electrons collide with argon and
mercury vapor atoms. The excited atom of mercury gives UV radiation, which will not fall in
the visible region. Meanwhile, these UV rays are made to strike phosphor material; it causes the
re-emission of light of different wavelengths producing illumination. The phenomenon of the
emission is called as luminescence.
This luminescence is classified into two ways. They are:
1. Fluorescence: In this case, the excitation presents for the excited periods only.
2. Phosphorescence: In this case, even after the exciting source is removed, the excitation will
present. In a lamp, the re-emission of light causes fluorescence, then such lamp is known as
fluorescent lamp. Depending upon the type of phosphor material used, we get light of different
colors as given in Table.
. Table Colors of light
Phosphor material Color effect
1. Zinc silicate Green
2. Calcium tungstate Green
3. Magnesium tungstate Bluish while
4 4Cadmium silicate Yellowish pink
5 Zinc beryllium silicate Yellowish while
6 Cadmium borate Pink
3. riffusion, and
4. absorption.
Reflection
The light falling on the surface, whole of the light will not absorbed or transmitted through the
surface, but some of the light is reflected back, at an angle equals to the angle of incidence. The
ratio of reflected light energy to the incident light energy is known as reflection factor. The two
basic types of reflection are:
1. mirror or specular reflection and
2. diffuse reflection.
Specular reflection
When whole of the light falling on a smooth surfaces will be reflected back at an angle equal to
he angle of incidence. Such a reflection is known as specular reflection. With such reflection,
observer will be able to see the light source but not the illuminated surface. Most of the surfaces
causing the specular reflection are silvered mirrors, highly polished metal surfaces. Specular
reflection is shown in Fig. 7.17.
glass, the disadvantage of frosted glass is, it collects more dust particles and it is difficult to
clean.
Absorption
In some of the cases, whole of the light emitted by tungsten filament lamp will be excessive, so
that it is necessary to avoid that the amount of unwanted wavelengths without interference. This
can be achieved by using a special bluish colored glass for the filament lamp to absorb the
unwanted radiation.
TYPES OF LIGHTING SCHEMES
Usually, with the reflector and some special diffusing screens, it is possible to control the
distribution of light emitted from lamps up to some extent. A good lighting scheme results in an
attractive and commanding presence of objects and enhances the architectural style of the
interior of a building. Depending upon the requirements and the way of light reaching the
surface, lighting schemes are classified as follows:
1. direct lighting,
2. semidirect lighting,
3. indirect lighting,
4. semi-indirect lighting, and
5. general lighting.
Direct lighting schemes
Direct lighting scheme is most widely used for interior lighting scheme. In this scheme, by
using deep reflectors, it is possible to make 90% of light falls just below the lamp. This scheme
is more efficient but it suffers from hard shadows and glare. Hence, while designing such
schemes, all the possibilities that will cause glare on the eye have to be eliminated. It is mainly
used for industrial and general outdoor lighting. Semidirect lighting schemes In semidirect
lighting scheme, about 60–90% of lamps luminous flux is made to fall downward directly by
using some reflectors and the rest of the light is used to illuminate the walls and ceiling. This
type of light scheme is employed in rooms with high ceiling. Glare can be avoided by
employing diffusing globes. This scheme will improve not only the brightness but also the
efficiency. Indirect lighting schemes In this lighting scheme, 90% of total light is thrown
upwards to the ceiling. In such scheme, the ceiling acts as the lighting source and glare is
reduced to minimum. This system provides shadowless illumination, which is very useful for
drawing offices and in workshops where large machines and other difficulties would cause
trouble some shadows if direct lighting schemes were used. Semi-indirect lighting schemes In
semi-indirect lighting scheme, about 60–90% of light from the lamp is thrown upwards to the
ceiling and the remaining luminous flux reaches the working surface. Glare will be completely
eliminated with such type of lighting scheme. This scheme is widely preferred for indoor
lighting decoration purpose. General lighting scheme This scheme of lighting use diffusing
glasses to produce the equal illumination in all directions. Mounting height of the source should
be much above eye level to avoid glare. Lamp fittings of various lighting schemes are shown in
Fig. 7.20.
STREET LIGHTING
Street lighting not only requires for shopping centers, promenades, etc. but also necessary for
the following. o In order to make the street more attractive, so that obstructions on the road
clearly visible to the drivers of vehicles.
o To increase the community value of the street.
o To clear the traffic easily in order to promote safety and convenience.
The basic principles employed for the street lighting are given below.
1. Diffusion principle.
2. The specular reflection principle.
Diffusion principle
In this method, light is directed downwards from the lamp by the suitably designed reflectors.
The design of these reflectors are in such a way that they may reflect total light over the road
surface uniformly as much as possible. The reflectors are made to have a cutoff between 30°
and
45°, so that the filament of the lamp is not visible expect just below the source, which results in
eliminating glare. Illumination at any point on the road surface is calculated by applying inverse
square low or point-by-point method.
Specular reflection principle
The specular reflection principle enables a motorist to see an object about 30 m ahead. In this
case, the reflectors are curved upwards, so that the light is thrown on the road at a very large
angle of incidence. This can be explained with the help of Fig. 7.21. An object resides over the
road at ‘P’ in between the lamps S1, S2, and S3 and the observer at ‘Q’.
Thus, the object will appear immediately against the bright road surface due to the lamps at a
longer distance. This method of lighting is only suitable for straight sections along the road. In
this method, it is observed that the objects on the roadway can be seen by a smaller expenditure
of power than by the diffusion method of lighting. Illumination level, mounting height, and the
types of lamps for street lighting Normally, illumination required depends upon the class of
street lighting installation. 1. Road junctions and important shopping centers. 30
2. Poorly lighted sub-urban streets. 4
3. Average well-lighted street. 8–15
Mercury vapor and sodium vapor discharge lamps are preferable for street lighting since the
overall cost of the installation of discharge lamps are less than the filament lamps and also the
less power consumption for a given amount of power output. Normal spacing for the standard
lamps is 50 m with a mounting height of 8 m. Lamp posts should be fixed at the junctions of
roads.
FLOODLIGHTING
Floodlighting means flooding of large surface areas with light from powerful projectors. A
special reflector and housing is employed in floodlighting in order to concentrate the light
emitted from the lamp into a relatively narrow beam, which is known as floodlight projector.
This projector consists of a reflecting surface that may be a silvered glass or chromium plate or
stainless steel. The efficiency of silvered glass and polished metal are 85–90% and 70%,
respectively. Usually metal reflectors are robust; therefore, they can be preferred. An important
application of illumination engineering is the floodlighting of large and open areas. It is
necessary to employ floodlighting to serve one or more of the following purposes.
UNIT 2
Electric Heating
INTRODUCTION
Heat plays a major role in everyday life. All heating requirements in domestic purposes such as
cooking, room heater, immersion water heaters, and electric toasters and also in industrial
purposes such as welding, melting of metals, tempering, hardening, and drying can be met
easily by electric heating, over the other forms of conventional heating. Heat and electricity are
interchangeable. Heat also can be produced by passing the current through material to be
heated. This is called electric heating; there are various methods of heating a material but
electric heating
is considered far superior compared to the heat produced by coal, oil, and natural gas.
ADVANTAGES OF ELECTRIC HEATING
The various advantages of electric heating over other the types of heating are:
(i) Economical
Electric heating equipment is cheaper; they do not require much skilled persons; therefore,
maintenance cost is less.
(ii) Cleanliness
Since dust and ash are completely eliminated in the electric heating, it keeps surroundings
cleanly.
(iii) Pollution free
As there are no flue gases in the electric heating, atmosphere around is pollution free; no need
of providing space for their exit.
(iv) Ease of control
In this heating, temperature can be controlled and regulated accurately either manually or
automatically.
(v) Uniform heating
With electric heating, the substance can be heated uniformly, throughout whether it may be
conducting or non-conducting material.
(vi) High efficiency
In non-electric heating, only 40–60% of heat is utilized but in electric heating 75–100% of heat
can be successfully utilized. So, overall efficiency of electric heating is very high.
(vii) Automatic protection
Protection against over current and over heating can be provided by using fast control devices.
(viii) Heating of non-conducting materials
The heat developed in the non-conducting materials such as wood and porcelain is possible
only through the electric heating.
(ix) Better working conditions
No irritating noise is produced with electric heating and also radiating losses are low.
(x) Less floor area
Due to the compactness of electric furnace, floor area required is less.
(xi) High temperature
High temperature can be obtained by the electric heating except the ability of the material to
withstand the heat.
(xii) Safety
The electric heating is quite safe.
MODES OF TRANSFER OF HEAT
The transmission of the heat energy from one body to another because of the temperature
gradient takes place by any of the following methods:
1. conduction,
2. convection, or
3. radiation.
Conduction
In this mode, the heat transfers from one part of substance to another part without the
movement in the molecules of substance. The rate of the conduction of heat along the substance
depends upon the temperature gradient. The amount of heat passed through a cubic body with
two parallel faces with thickness ‘t’ meters, having the cross-sectional area of ‘A’ square meters
and the temperature of its two faces T1°C and T2°C, during ‘T’ hours is given by:
where k is the coefficient of the thermal conductivity for the material and it is measured in
MJ/m3/°C/hr.
Ex: Refractory heating, the heating of insulating materials, etc.
Convection
In this mode, the heat transfer takes place from one part to another part of substance or fluid
due to the actual motion of the molecules. The rate of conduction of heat depends mainly on the
difference in the fluid density at different temperatures.
Ex: Immersion water heater.
The mount of heat absorbed by the water from heater through convection depends mainly upon
the temperature of heating element and also depends partly on the position of the heater. Heat
dissipation is given by the following expression.
H = a (T1 – T2)b W/m2,
where ‘a’ and ‘b’ are the constants whose values are depend upon the heating surface and
T1and T2 are the temperatures of heating element and fluid in °C, respectively. Radiation In
this mode, the heat transfers from source to the substance to be heated without heating the
medium in between. It is dependent on surface.
Ex: Solar heaters.
The rate of heat dissipation through radiation is given by Stefan's Law.
where T1 is the temperature of the source in kelvin, T2 is the temperature of the substance to be
heated in kelvin, and k is the radiant efficiency:
= 1, for single element
= 0.5–0.8, for several elements
e = emissivity = 1, for black body
Hotspots are the points on the heating element generally at a higher temperature than the main
body. The main reasons of the formation of hotspot in the heating element are the high rate of
the local oxidation causing reduction in the area of cross-section of the element leading to the
increase in the resistance at that spot. It gives rise to the damage of heating element due to the
generation of more heat at spot. Another reason is the shielding of element by supports, etc.,
which reduces the local heat loss by radiation and hence the temperature of the shielded portion
f the element will increase. So that the minimum number of supports should be used without
producing the distortion of the element. The sagging and wrapping of the material arise due to
the insufficient support for the element (or) selection of wrong fuse material may lead to the
uneven spacing of sections thereby developing the hotspots on the element. Oxidation and
intermittency of operation A continuous oxide layer is formed on the surface of the element at
very high temperatures such layer is so strong that it prevents further oxidation of the inner
metal of the element. If the element is used quite often, the oxide layer is subjected to thermal
stresses; thus, the layer cracks and flakes off, thereby exposing fresh metal to oxidation. Thus,
the local oxidation of the metal increases producing the hotspots. Embrittlement causing grain
growth In general, most of the alloys containing iron tend to form large brittle grains at high
temperatures. When cold, the elements are very brittle and liable to rupture easily on the
slightest handling and jerks. contamination and corrosion The heating elements may be
subjected to dry corrosion produced by their contamination with the gases of the controlled
atmosphere prevailing in annealing furnaces.
DESIGN OF HEATING ELEMENTS
By knowing the voltage and electrical energy input, the design of the heating element for an
electric furnace is required to determine the size and length of the heating element. The wire
employed may be circular or rectangular like a ribbon. The ribbon-type heating element permits
the use of higher wattage per unit area compared to the circular-type element.
Circular-type heating element
Initially when the heating element is connected to the supply, the temperature goes on
increasing and finally reaches high temperature. Let V be the supply voltage of the system and
R be the resistance of the element, then electric power input, If ρ is the resistivity of the
element, l is the length, ‘a’ is the area, and d is the diameter of the element, then: Therefore,
power input,
(volts), R is the resistance of the element (Ω), l is the length of the element (m), a is the area of
cross-section (m2), d is the diameter of the element (m), and ρ is the specific resistance (Ω-m)
According to Stefan's law, heat dissipated per unit area is
where T1 is the absolute temperature of the element (K), T2 is the absolute temperature of the
charge (K), e is the emissivity, and k is the radiant efficiency. The surface area of the circular
heating element:
S = πdl.
∴ Total heat dissipated = surface area × H
= Hπdl.
Under thermal equilibrium,
Power input = heat dissipated
P = H × πdl.
Substituting P from Equation (4.2) in above equation:
By solving Equations (4.3) and (4.4), the length and diameter of the wire can be determined.
Ribbon-type element
Let ‘w’ be the width and ‘t’ be the thickness of the ribbon-type heating element.
By solving Equations (4.7) and (4.8), the length and width of the heating element can be
determined.
Example 4.1: A 4.5-kW, 200-V, and 1-φ resistance oven is to have nichrome wire heating
elements. If the wire temperature is to be 1,000°C and that of the charge 500°C. Estimate the
diameter and length of the wire. The resistivy of the nichrome alloy is 42.5 μΩ-m. Assume the
radiating efficiency and the emissivity of the element as 1.0 and 0.9, respectively.
Solution:
Given data
Power input (P) = 4.5 kW
Supply voltage (V) = 200 V
In this method, by striking the arc between the charge and the electrode or electrodes, the heat
so developed is directly conducted and taken by the charge. The furnace operating on this
principle is known as direct arc furnaces. The main application of this type of heating is
production of steel.
Indirect arc heating
In this method, arc is established between the two electrodes, the heat so developed is
transferred
to the charge (or) substance by radiation. The furnaces operating on this principle are known as
indirect arc furnaces. This method is generally used in the melting of non-ferrous metals.
Direct induction heating
In this method of heating, the currents are induced by electromagnetic action in the charge to be
heated. These induced currents are used to melt the charge in induction furnace.
Indirect induction heating
In this method, eddy currents are induced in the heating element by electromagnetic action.
Thus, the developed heat in the heating element is transferred to the body (or) charge to be
heated by radiation (or) convection. This principle of heating is employed in induction furnaces
used for the heat treatment of metals.
Dielectric heating
In this method of electric heating, the heat developed in a non-metallic material due to
interatomic friction, known as dielectric loss. This principle of heating usually employed for
preheating of plastic performs, baking foundry cores, etc.
RESISTANCE HEATING
When the electric current is made to pass through a high-resistive body (or) substance, a power
loss takes place in it, which results in the form of heat energy, i.e., resistance heating is passed
upon the I2R effect. This method of heating has wide applications such as drying, baking of
potteries, commercial and domestic cooking, and the heat treatment of metals such as annealing
and hardening. In oven where wire resistances are employed for heating, temperature up to
about
1,000°C can be obtained.
The resistance heating is further classified as:
1. direct resistance heating,
of the salt, therefore, in order to maintain the constant power input, the voltage can be
controlled by providing a tap changing transformer. The control of power input is also affected
by varying the depth of immersion and the distance between the electrodes.
(ii) Electrode boiler
It is used to heat the water by immersing three electrodes in a tank as shown in Fig. 4.2. This is
based on the principle that when the electric current passed through the water produces heat due
to the resistance offered by it. For DC supply, it results in a lot of evolution of H2 at negative
electrode and O2 at positive electrode. Whereas AC supply hardly results in any evolution of
gas,
but heats the water. Electrode boiler tank is earthed solidly and connected to the ground. A
circuit breaker is usually incorporated to make and break all poles simultaneously and an over
current protective device is provided in each conductor feeding an electrode.
The efficiency of the resistance oven lies in between 60% and 80%.
Infrared or radiant heating
In this method of heating, the heat transfer takes place from the source to the body to be heated
through radiation, for low and medium temperature applications. Whereas in resistance ovens,
the heat transfers to the charge partly by convection and partly by radiation. In the radiant
heating, the heating element consists of tungsten filament lamps together with reflector and to
direct all the heat on the charge. Tungsten filament lamps are operating at 2,300°C instead of
3,000°C to give greater portion of infrared radiation and a longer life. The radiant heating is
mainly used for drying enamel or painted surfaces. The high concentration of the radiant energy
enables the heat to penetrate the coating of paint or enamel to a depth sufficient to dry it out
without wasting energy in the body of the workpiece. The main advantage of the radiant heating
is that the heat absorption remains approximately constant whatever the charge temperature,
whereas with the ordinary oven the heat absorption falls off very considerably as the
temperature of the charge raises. The lamp ratings used are usually between 250 and 1,000 W
and are operating at voltage of 115 V in order to ensure a robust filament.
TEMPERATURE CONTROL OF RESISTANCE HEATING
To control the temperature of a resistance heating at certain selected points in a furnace or oven,
as per certain limits, such control may be required in order to hold the temperature constant or
to
vary it in accordance with a pre-determined cycle and it can be carried out by hand or
automatically. In resistance furnaces, the heat developed depends upon I2 R t (or) t. Therefore,
the temperature of the furnaces can be controlled either by:
1. Changing the resistance of elements.
2. Changing the applied voltage to the elements (or) current passing through the elements.
3. Changing the ratio of the on-and-off times of the supply.
Voltage across the furnace can be controlled by changing the transformer tapings. Auto
transformer or induction regulator can also be used for variable voltage supply. In addition to
the
above, voltage can be controlled by using a series resistance so that some voltage dropped
across
this series resistor. But this method is not economical as the power is continuously wasted in
controlling the resistance. Hence, this method is limited to small furnaces. An on-off switch can
be employed to control the temperature. The time for which the oven is connected to the supply
and the time for which it is disconnected from supply will determine the temperature.
Temperature can be controlled by providing various combinations of groups of resistances used
in the furnace and is given as follows:
1. Resistivity: The graphite electrodes have low-specific resistance than the carbon electrodes,
so the graphite required half in size for the same current resulting in easy replacement.
2. Oxidation: Graphite begins to oxides at 600°C where as carbon at 400°C.
3. Electrode consumption: For steel-melting furnaces, the consumption of the carbon
electrodes is about 4.5 kg of electrodes per tonne of steel and 2.3–to 6.8 kg electrodes per tonne
of steel for the graphite electrodes.
4. Cost: The graphite electrodes cost about twice as much per kg as the carbon electrodes. The
choice of electrodes depends chiefly on the question of the total cost. In general, if the
processes requiring large quantities of electrode, carbon is used but for other processes, the
choice depends on local conditions.
Types of arc furnaces
There are two types of arc furnaces and they are:
1. direct arc furnace and
2. indirect arc furnace.
(i) Direct arc furnace
When supply is given to the electrodes, two arcs are established and current passes through the
charge, as shown in Fig. 4.5. As the arc is in direct contact with the charge and heat is also
produced by current flowing through the charge itself, it is known as direct arc furnace.
inherent due to the electromagnetic force setup by the current, such furnace is used for
manufacturing alloy steel and gives purer product. It is very simple and easy to control the
composition of the final product during refining process operating the power factor of arc
furnace is 0.8 lagging. For 1-ton furnace, the power required is about 200 kW and the energy
consumed is 1.0 MWh/ton.
(ii) Indirect arc furnace
In indirect arc furnace, the arc strikes between two electrodes by bringing momentarily in
contact
and then with drawing them heat so developed, due to the striking of arc across air gap is
transferred to charge is purely by radiation. A simple indirect arc furnace is shown inFig. 4.6.
HIGH-FREQUENCY HEATING
The main difference between the power-frequency and the high-frequency heating is that in the
conventional methods, the heat is transferred either by conduction convection or by radiation,
but
in the high-frequency heating methods, the electromagnetic energy converted into the heat
energy in side the material. The high-frequency heating can be applied to two types of
materials. The heating of the conducting materials, such as ferro-magnetic and non-ferro-
magnetic, is known as induction heating. The process of heating of the insulating materials is
known as dielectric heating. The heat transfer by the conventional method is very low of the
order of 0.5–20 W/sq. cm. And, the heat transfer rate by the high-frequency heating either by
induction or by dielectric heating is as much as 10,000 W/sq. cm. Thus, the high-frequency
heating is most importance for tremendous speed of production.
INDUCTION HEATING
The induction heating process makes use of the currents induced by the electromagnetic action
in
the material to be heated. To develop sufficient amount of heat, the resistance of the material
must be low , which is possible only with the metals, and the voltage must
be higher, which can be obtained by employing higher flux and higher frequency. Therefore,
the magnetic materials can be heated than non-magnetic materials due to their high
permeability. In order to analyze the factors affecting induction heating, let us consider a
circular disc to be heated carrying a current of ‘I’ amps at a frequency ‘f’ Hz. As shown in Fig.
4.9.
where ρ is the specific resistance in Ω-cm, f is the frequency in Hz, and μ is the permeability of
the charge. There are basically two types of induction furnaces and they are:
1. Core type or low-frequency induction furnace.
2. Coreless type or high-frequency induction furnace.
Core type furnace
The operating principle of the core type furnace is the electromagnetic induction. This furnace
is
operating just like a transformer. It is further classified as:
1. Direct core type.
2. Vertical core type.
3. Indirect core type.
(i) Direct core type induction furnace
The core type furnace is essentially a transformer in which the charge to be heated forms
singleturn secondary circuit and is magnetically coupled to the primary by an iron core as
shown
in Fig. 4.10.
direction. The repulsion may cause the interruption of secondary circuit (formation of bubbles
and voids); this effect is known as pinch effect.
The pinch effect is also dependent on frequency; at low frequency, this effect is negligible, and
so it is necessary to operate the furnace at low frequency.
(ii) Vertical core type induction furnace
It is an improvement over the direct core type furnace, to overcome some of the disadvantages
mentioned above. This type of furnace consists of a vertical core instead of horizontal core as
shown in Fig. 4.11. It is also known as Ajax–Wyatt induction furnace.
Coreless type induction furnace It is a simple furnace with the absence core is shown in Fig.
4.13. In this furnace, heat developed in the charge due to eddy currents flowing through it.
is made of hollow copper tube through which cold water is circulated. Minimum stray magnetic
field is maintained when designing coreless furnace, otherwise there will be considerable eddy
current loss. The selection of a suitable frequency of the primary current can be given by
penetration formula. According to this:
where ‘t’ is the thickness up to which current in the metal has penetrated, ‘ρ’ is the resistivity in
Ω-cm,'μ’ is the permeability of the material, and ‘f’ is the frequency in Hz. For the efficient
operation, the ratio of the diameter of the charge (d) to the depth of the penetration of currents
(t) should be more than ‘6’, therefore let us take: Substitute above in Equation (4.11). Following
are the advantages of coreless furnace over the other furnaces:
o Ease of control.
o Oxidation is reduced, as the time taken to reach the melting temperature is less.
o The eddy currents in the charge itself results in automatic stirring.
o The cost is less for the erection and operation.
o It can be used for heating and melting.
o Any shape of crucible can be used.
o It is suitable for intermittent operation.
DIELECTRIC HEATING
When non-metallic materials i.e., insulators such as wood, plastics, and china glass are
subjected to high-voltage alternating electric field, the atoms get stresses, and due to
interatomic friction caused by the repeated deformation and the rotation of atomic structure
(polarization), heat is produced. This is known as dielectric loss. This dielectric loss in
insulators corresponds to hysteresis loss in ferro-magnetic materials. This loss is due to the
reversal of magnetism or magneto molecular friction. These losses developed in a material that
has to be heated. An atom of any material is neutral, since the central positive charge is equals
to the negative charge. So that, the centers of positive and negative charges coincide as long as
there is no external field is applied, as shown in Fig. (a). When this atom is subjected to the
influence of the electric field, the positive charge of the nucleus is acted upon by some force in
the direction of negative charges in the opposite direction. Therefore, the effective centers of
both positive and negative charges no longer coincident as shown in Fig. (b). The electric
charge of an atom equivalent to Fig.(b) is shown in Fig. (c).
Fig. Polarization
This gives raise to an electric dipole moment equal to P = q d, where d is the distance between
the two centers and q is the charge on the nucleus. Now, the atom is said to be polarized atom.
If we apply alternating voltage across the capacitor plate, we will get alternating electric field.
Electric dipoles will also try to change their orientation according to the direction of the
impressed electric field. In doing so, some energy will be wasted as inter-atomic friction, which
is called dielectric loss. As there is no perfect conductor, so there is no perfect insulator. All the
dielectric materials can be represented by a parallel combination of a leakage resistor ‘R’ and a
capacitor ‘C’ as shown in Fig. 4.15 (a) and (b).
leading the applied voltage by 90° and IR is in phase with applied voltage as shown in Fig.
4.15(c). where ‘V' is the applied voltage in volts, ‘f’ is the supply frequency in Hz, ɛ0 is the
absolute permittivity of the medium = 8.854 × 10-12 F/m, ɛr is the relative permittivity of the
medium = 1
for free space, A is the area of the plate or electrode (m2), d is the thickness of the dielectric
medium, and δ is the loss angle in radian. From Equation (4.14): Normally frequency used for
dielectric heating is in the range of 1–40 MHz. The use of high voltage is also limited due to the
breakdown voltage of thin dielectric that is to be heated, under normal conditions; the voltage
gradient used is limited to 18 kV/cm.
The advantages of the dielectric heating
o The heating of the non-conducting materials is very rapid.
o The uniform heating of material is possible.
o Heat is produced in the whole mass of the material.
The applications of the dielectric heating
o The drying of paper, wood, etc.
o The gluing of wood.
o The heat-sealing of plastic sheets.
o The heating for the general processing such as coffee roasting and chocolate industry.
o The heating for the dehydration such as milk, cream, and vegetables.
o The preparation of thermoplastic resins.
o The heating of bones and tissues.
o Diathermy, i.e., the heat treatment for certain body pains and diseases, etc.
o The sterilization of absorbent cotton, bandages, etc.
o The processing of rubber, synthetic materials, chemicals, etc.
SHORT QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1. Give any two advantages of electric heating.
1. Electric heating equipment is cheaper; it does not require much skilled
persons so maintenance cost is less.
2. In this heating, the temperature can be controlled and regulated accurately
either manually or automatically.
What are the modes of the transfer of heat?
Electric Welding
INTRODUCTION
Welding is the process of joining two pieces of metal or non-metal together by heating them to
their melting point. Filler metal may or may not be used to join two pieces. The physical and
mechanical properties of a material to be welded such as melting temperature, density, thermal
conductivity, and tensile strength take an important role in welding. Depending upon how the
heat applied is created; we get different types of welding such as thermal welding, gas welding,
and electric welding. Here in this chapter, we will discuss only about the electric welding and
some introduction to other modern welding techniques. Welding is nowadays extensively used
in
automobile industry, pipe-line fabrication in thermal power plants, machine repair work,
machine frames, etc.
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF WELDING
Some of the advantages of welding are:
o Welding is the most economical method to permanently join two metal parts.
o It provides design flexibility.
o Welding equipment is not so costly.
o It joins all the commercial metals.
o Both similar and dissimilar metals can be joined by welding.
o Portable welding equipment are available.
Some of the disadvantages of welding are:
where I is the current through the electrodes, R is the contact resistance of the interface, and t is
the time for which current flows. Here, the total resistance offered to the flow of current is
made up of:
1. The resistance of current path in the work.
2. The resistance between the contact surfaces of the parts being welded.
3. The resistance between electrodes and the surface of parts being welded.
In this process of welding, the heat developed at the contact area between the pieces to be
welded
reduces the metal to plastic state or liquid state, then the pieces are pressed under high
mechanical pressure to complete the weld. The electrical voltage input to the welding varies in
between 4 and 12 V depending upon area, thickness, composition, etc. and usually power
ranges
from about 60 to 180 W for each sq. mm of area. Any desired combination of voltage and
current can be obtained by means of a suitable transformer in AC; hence, AC is found to be
most suitable for the resistance welding. The magnitude of current is controlled by changing the
primary voltage of the welding transformer, which can be done by using an auto-transformer or
a tap-changing transformer. Automatic arrangements are provided to switch off the supply after
a pre-determined time from applying the pressure, why because the duration of the current flow
through the work is very important in the resistance welding. The electrical circuit diagram for
the resistance welding is shown in Fig. 5.2. This method of welding consists of a tap-changing
transformer, a clamping device for holding the metal pieces, and some sort of mechanical
arrangement for forcing the pieces to form a complete weld.
2. Seam welding.
3. Projection welding.
4. Butt welding.
(i) Spot welding
Spot welding means the joining of two metal sheets and fusing them together between copper
electrode tips at suitably spaced intervals by means of heavy electric current passed through the
electrodes as shown in Fig. 5.3.
The generation of heat at junctions 1 and 3 will effect electrode sticking and melt through holes,
the prevention of electrode striking is achieved by:
1. Using water-cooled electrodes shown in Fig. 5.4. By avoiding the heating of junctions 1 and
3 electrodes in which cold water circulated continuously as shown in Fig. 5.3.
2. The material used for electrode should have high electrical and thermal conductivity. Spot
welding is widely used for automatic welding process, for joining automobile parts, joining and
fabricating sheet metal structure, etc.
them heats the two metal pieces to the plastic state and results into continuous spot welds. In
this welding, the contact area of electrodes should be small, which will localize the current
pressure to the welding point. After forming weld at one point, the weld so obtained can be
cooled by splashing water over the job by using cooling jets. In general, it is not satisfactory to
make a continuous weld, for which the flow of continuous current build up high heat that
causes burning and wrapping of the metal piece. To avoid this difficulty, an interrupter is
provided on the circuit which turns on supply for a period sufficient to heat the welding point.
The series of weld spots depends upon the number of welding current pulses. The two forms of
welding currents are shown in Fig. 5.6(a) and (b).
two parts and the force between them affects the weld. The percussion welding can be obtained
in two methods; one is capacitor energy storage system and the other is magnetic energy
storage system. The capacitor discharge circuit for percussion welding is shown in Fig. 5.10.
3. Welding pressure.
Figure 5.11 shows how the energy input to the welding process, welding strength, and welding
current vary with welding time
.
Fig. 5.11 Performance characteristics of electric welding
The heat developed during welding process is given by H = I2Rt. Here both welding current
and welding time are critical variables. Greater the welding current, the shorter the welding
time required is; usually longer welding time produces stronger weld but there is lot of
distortion of workpiece and high energy expenditure. From Fig. 5.11, it is to be noted that, from
0 to t1 sec, there is appreciable increase in welding strength, but after t2 sec, the increase in the
welding time does not appreciably result in the increase in strength; therefore, ‘t2’ is the
optimum welding time. This optimum time varies with the thickness of the material. The
optimum times of material (sheet steel) with different thickness are given as:
Dimensions of material Optimum time
2 × 24 SWG 8 cycles
2 × 14 SWG 20 cycles
2¼″ 2 sec
Therefore, from the above discussion, it is observed that shorter welding times with strength
and
economy are always preferable. Electromagnetic storage welding circuit is shown in Fig. 5.12.
In this type of welding, the energy stored in the magnetic circuit is used in the welding
operation.
to 500 A depending upon the type of work to be welded. The main disadvantage in the DC
metal arc welding is the presence of arc blow, i.e., distortion of arc stream from the intended
path due to the magnetic forces of the non-uniform magnetic field with AC arc blow is
considerably reduced. For obtaining good weld, the flux-coated electrodes must be used, so the
metal which is melted is covered with slag produces a non oxidizing gas or a molten slag to
cover the weld, and also stabilizes the arc.
Atomic hydrogen arc welding
In atomic hydrogen arc welding, shown in Fig. 5.16, the heat for the welding process is
produced from an electric arc struck between two tungsten electrodes in an atmosphere of
hydrogen. Here, hydrogen serves mainly two functions; one acts as a protective screen for the
arc and the other acts as a cooling agent for the glowing tungsten electrode tips. As the
hydrogen gas passes through the arc, the hydrogen molecules are broken up into atoms, absorbs
heat from the glowing
tungsten electrodes so that these are cooled.
consumable tungsten electrodes under a pressure of about 0.5 kg/cm2. In order to obtain equal
consumption of electrodes, AC supply is used. Arc currents up to 150 A can be used. High
voltage about 300 V is applied for this welding through a transformer. For striking the arc
between the electrodes the open circuit voltage required varies from 80 to 100 V. As the atomic
hydrogen welding is too expensive, it is usually employed for welding alloy steel, carbon steel,
stainless steel, aluminum, etc. Inert gas metal arc welding It is a gas-shielded metal arc welding,
in which an electric arc is stuck between tungsten electrode and work piece to be welded. Filler
metal may be introduced separately into the arc if required. A welding gun, which carries a
nozzle, through this nozzle, inert gas such as beryllium or argon is blown around the arc and
onto the weld, as shown in Fig. 5.17. As both beryllium and argon are chemically inert, so the
molten metal is protected from the action of the atmosphere by an envelope of chemically
reducing or inert gas.
o The weld so obtained has good ductility, impact strength, high corrosion resistance, etc.
o The submerged arc welding can be done manually or automatically.
Applications
o The submerged arc welding is widely used in the heavy steel plant fabrication work.
o It can be employed for welding high strength steel, corrosion resistance steel, and low carbon
steel.
o It is also used in the ship-building industry for splicing and fabricating subassemblies,
manufacture of vessels, tanks, etc.
ELECTRON BEAM WELDING
It is one of the processes of the electric welding, in which the heat required for carrying out the
welding operation is obtained by the electron bombardment heating. In the electron
bombardment heating, continuous stream of electron is produced between the electron emitting
material cathode and the material to be heated. The electrons released from cathode possess KE
traveling with high velocity in vacuum of 10-3-10-5 mmHg. When the fast moving electrons
hit, the material or work piece releases their KE as heat in the material to be heated. This heat is
utilized to melt the metal. If this process is carried out in high vacuum, without providing any
electrodes, gasses, or filler metal, pure weld can be obtained. Moreover, high vacuum is
maintained around the (filament) cathode. So that, it will not burn up and also produces
continuous stable beam. If a vacuum was not used, the electron would strike the small partials
in the atmosphere, reducing their velocity and also the heating ability. Thus, the operation
should be performed in vacuum to present the reduction of the velocity of electron. That's why
this is also called as'vacuum electron beam welding’. The power released by the electron beam
is given by:
P = nqv watts,
where n is the number of charged particles, q is the charge in coulombs per meter, and v is the
voltage required to accelerate the electrum from rest. The electron beam welding (Fig. 5.19)
process requires electron-emitting heating filament as cathode, focusing lens, etc.
Electric welding accessories required to carry out proper welding operation are:
1. Electric welding power sets.
2. Electrode holder to hold the electrodes.
3. Welding cable for connecting electrode and workpiece to the supply.
4. Face screen with colored glass.
5. Chipping hammers to remove slag from molten weld.
6. Wire brush to clean the weld.
7. Earth clamp and protective clothing.
COMPARISON BETWEEN AC AND DC WELDING
AC welding DC welding
1 Motor generator set or rectifier is required in case of
the availability of AC supply.
Only transformer is required.
2 The cost of the equipment is high. The cost of the equipment is cheap.
3 Arc stability is more. Arc stability is less.
4 The heat produced is uniform. The heat produced is not uniform.
5 Both bare and coated electrodes can be used. Only coated electrodes should be used.
6 The operating power factor is high. The power factor is low. So, the capacitors are necessary
to improve the power factor.
7 It is safer since no load voltage is low. It is dangerous since no load voltage is high.
8 The electric energy consumption is 5–10 kWh/kg of deposited metal. The electrical energy
consumption is 3–4 kWh/kg of deposited metal
9 Arc blow occurs due to the presence of non-uniform magnetic field. Arc blow will not occur
due to the uniform magnetic field.
10 The efficiency is low due to the rotating parts. The efficiency is high due to the absence of
rotating parts.
UNIT 3
Electric Traction-I
INTRODUCTION
The system that causes the propulsion of a vehicle in which that driving force or tractive force
is obtained from various devices such as electric motors, steam engine drives, diesel engine
dives, etc. is known as traction system. Traction system may be broadly classified into two
types. They are electric traction systems, which use electrical energy, and non-electric traction
system, which does not use electrical energy for the propulsion of vehicle. Requirements of
ideal traction system Normally, no single traction system fulfills the requirements of ideal
traction system, why because each traction system has its merits and suffers from its own
demerits, in the fields of applications.
The requirements of ideal traction systems are:
o Ideal traction system should have the capability of developing high tractive effort in order to
have rapid acceleration.
o The speed control of the traction motors should be easy.
o Vehicles should be able to run on any route, without interruption.
o Equipment required for traction system should be minimum with high efficiency.
o It must be free from smoke, ash, durt, etc.
o Regenerative braking should be possible and braking should be in such a way to cause
minimum wear on the break shoe.
o Locomotive should be self-contained and it must be capable of withstanding overloads.
o Interference to the communication lines should be eliminated while the locomotive running
along the track.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Electric Traction
Electric traction system has many advantages compared to non-electric traction systems. The
following are the advantages of electric traction:
o Electric traction system is more clean and easy to handle.
o No need of storage of coal and water that in turn reduces the maintenance cost as well as the
saving of high-grade coal.
o Electric energy drawn from the supply distribution system is sufficient to maintain the
common necessities of locomotives such as fans and lights; therefore, there is no need of
providing additional generators.
o The maintenance and running costs are comparatively low.
o The speed control of the electric motor is easy.
o Regenerative braking is possible so that the energy can be fed back to the supply system
during the braking period.
o In electric traction system, in addition to the mechanical braking, electrical braking can also
be used that reduces the wear on the brake shoes, wheels, etc.
o Electrically operated vehicles can withstand for overloads, as the system is capable of
drawing more energy from the system.
In addition to the above advantages, the electric traction system suffers from the following
drawbacks:
o Electric traction system involves high erection cost of power system.
o Interference causes to the communication lines due to the overhead distribution
networks.
o The failure of power supply brings whole traction system to stand still.
o In an electric traction system, the electrically operated vehicles have to move only on the
electrified routes.
o Additional equipment should be needed for the provision of regenerative braking, it will
increase the overall cost of installation.
REVIEW OF EXISTING ELECTRIC TRACTION SYSTEM IN INDIA
In olden days, first traction system was introduced by Britain in 1890 (600-V DC track).
Electrification system was employed for the first traction vehicle. This traction system was
introduced in India in the year 1925 and the first traction system employed in India was from
Bombay VT to Igatpuri and Pune, with 1,500- V DC supply. This DC supply can be obtained
for traction from substations equipped with rotary converters. Development in the rectifiers
leads to the replacement of rotary converters by mercury arc rectifiers. But nowadays further
development in the technology of semiconductors, these mercury arc valves are replaced by
solid-state semiconductors devices due to fast traction system was introduced on 3,000-V DC.
Further development in research on traction system by French international railways was
suggested that, based on relative merits and demerits, it is advantageous to prefer to AC rather
than DC both financially and operationally. Thus, Indian railways was introduced on 52-kV,
50-Hz single-phase AC system in 1957; this system of track electrification leads to the
reduction of the cost of overhead, locomotive equipment, etc. Various systems employed for
track electrification are shown in Table .
Table Track electrification systems
SYSTEM OF TRACTION
Traction system is normally classified into two types based on the type of energy given as input
to drive the system and they are:
1. Non-electric traction system
Traction system develops the necessary propelling torque, which do not involve the use of
electrical energy at any stage to drive the traction vehicle known as electric traction system. Ex:
Direct steam engine drive and direct internal combustion engine drive.
2. Electric traction system
Traction system develops the necessary propelling torque, which involves the use of electrical
energy at any stage to drive the traction vehicle, known as electric traction system. Based upon
the type of sources used to feed electric supply for traction system, electric traction may be
classified into two groups:
1. Self-contained locomotives.
2. Electric vehicle fed from the distribution networks.
Self-contained locomotives
In this type, the locomotives or vehicles themselves have a capability of generating electrical
energy for traction purpose. Examples for such type of locomotives are:
1. Steam electric drive
In steam electric locomotives, the steam turbine is employed for driving a generator used to
feed the electric motors. Such types of locomotives are not generally used for traction because
of some mechanical difficulties and maintenance problems.
2. Diesel electric trains
A few locomotives employing diesel engine coupled to DC generator used to feed the electric
motors producing necessary propelling torque. Diesel engine is a variable high-speed type that
feeds the self- or separately excited DC generator. The excitation for generator can be supplied
from any auxiliary devices and battery. Generally, this type of traction system is suggested in
the areas where coal and steam tractions are not available. The advantages and disadvantages of
the diesel engine drive are given below:
Advantages
o As these are no overhead distribution system, initial cost is low.
o Easy speed control is possible.
o Power loss in speed control is very low
guided routes only. Rehostatic and mechanical brakings can be applied to tramways.
Mechanical brakes can be applied at low speeds for providing better saturation where electric
braking is ineffective, during the normal service. The erection and maintenance costs of
tramways are high since the cost of overhead distribution structure is costlier and sometimes, it
may cause a source of danger to other road users.
Trolley buses: The main drawback of tramways is, running along the track is avoided in case
of trolley buses. These are electrically operated vehicles, and are fed usually 600-V DC from
two overhead conductors, by means of two collectors. Even though overhead distribution
structure is costlier, the trolley buses are advantageous because, they eliminate the necessity of
track in the roadways. In case of trolley buses, rehostatic braking is employed, due to high
adhesion between roads and rubber types. A DC compound motor is employed in trolley buses.
SYSTEM OF TRACK ELECTRIFICATION
Now a day, based on the available supply, the track electrification system are categorized into.
1. DC system.
2. Single-phase AC system.
3. Three-phase AC system.
4. Composite system.
1 DC system
In this system of traction, the electric motors employed for getting necessary propelling torque
should be selected in such a way that they should be able to operate on DC supply. Examples
for such vehicles operating based on DC system are tramways and trolley buses. Usually, DC
series motors are preferred for tramways and trolley buses even though DC compound motors
are available where regenerative braking is desired. The operating voltages of vehicles for DC
track
electrification system are 600, 750, 1,500, and 3,000 V. Direct current at 600–750 V is
universally employed for tramways in the urban areas and for many suburban and main line
railways, 1,500–3,000 V is used. In some cases, DC supply for traction motor can be obtained
from substations equipped with rotary converters to convert AC power to DC. These
substations receive AC power from 3-φ high voltage line or single-phase overhead distribution
network. The operating voltage for traction purpose can be justified by the spacing between
stations and the type of traction motors available. Theses substations are usually automatic and
remote controlled and they are so costlier since they involve rotary converting equipment. The
DC system is preferred for suburban services and road transport where stops are frequent and
distance between the stops is small.
2 Single-phase AC system
In this system of track electrification, usually AC series motors are used for getting the
necessary propelling power. The distribution network employed for such traction systems is
normally 15–25 kV at reduced frequency of 163∴ Hz or 25 Hz. The main reason of operating at
reduced frequencies is AC series motors that are more efficient and show better performance at
low frequency. These high voltages are stepped down to suitable low voltage of 300–400 V by
means of step-down transformer. Low frequency can be obtained from normal supply
frequency with the help of frequency converter. Low-frequency operation of overhead
transmission line reduces the line reactance and hence the voltage drops directly and single-
phase AC system is mainly preferred for main line services where the cost of overhead structure
is not much importance moreover rapid acceleration and retardation is not required for
suburban services.
3 Three-phase AC system
In this system of track electrification, 3-φ induction motors are employed for getting the
necessary propelling power. The operating voltage of induction motors is normally 3,000–
3,600-V AC at either normal supply frequency or 16∴-Hz frequency. Usually 3-φ induction
motors are preferable because they have simple and robust construction, high operating
efficiency, provision of regenerative braking without placing any additional equipment, and
better performance at both normal and seduced frequencies. In addition to the above
advantages, the induction motors
suffer from some drawbacks; they are low-starting torque, high-starting current, and the
absence of speed control. The main disadvantage of such track electrification system is high
cost of overhead distribution structure. This distribution system consists of two overhead wires
and track rail for the third phase and receives power either directly from the generating station
or through transformer substation. Three-phase AC system is mainly adopted for the services
where the output power required is high and regeneration of electrical energy is possible.
4 Composite system
As the above track electrification system have their own merits and demerits, 1- φ AC system is
preferable in the view of distribution cost and distribution voltage can be stepped up to high
voltage with the use of transformers, which reduces the transmission losses. Whereas in DC
system, DC series motors have most desirable features and for 3-φ system, 3-φ induction motor
has the advantage of automatic regenerative braking. So, it is necessary to combine the
advantages of the DC/AC and 3-φ/1-φ systems. The above cause leads to the evolution of
composite system.
Composite systems are of two types.
1. Single-phase to DC system.
2. Single-phase to three-phase system or kando system.
Single-phase to DC system
In this system, the advantages of both 1-φ and DC systems are combined to get high voltage for
distribution in order to reduce the losses that can be achieved with 1-φ distribution networks,
and DC series motor is employed for producing the necessary propelling torque. Finally, 1-φ
AC distribution network results minimum cost with high transmission efficiency and DC series
motor is ideally suited for traction purpose. Normal operating voltage employed of distribution
is 25 kV at normal frequency of 50 Hz. This track electrification is employed in India. Single-
phase to 3-φ system or kando system In this system, 1-φ AC system is preferred for distribution
network. Since single phase overhead distribution system is cheap and 3-φ induction motors are
employed as traction motor because of their simple, robust construction, and the provision of
automatic regenerative braking. The voltage used for the distribution network is about 15–25
kV at 50 Hz. This 1-φ supply is converted to 3-φ supply through the help of the phase
converters and
high voltage is stepped down transformers to feed the 3-φ induction motors. Frequency
converters are also employed to get high-starting torque and to achieve better speed control
with the variable supply frequency.
SPECIAL FEATURES OF TRACTION MOTORS
The general features of the electric motors used for traction purpose are:
1. Mechanical
2. Electrical features.
Mechanical features
1. A traction motor must be mechanically strong and robust and it should be capable of
withstanding severe mechanical vibrations.
2. The traction motor should be completely enclosed type when placed beneath the locomotive
to protect against dirt, dust, mud, etc.
3. In overall dimensions, the traction motor must have small diameter, to arrange easily beneath
the motor coach.
4. A traction motor must have minimum weight so the weight of locomotive will decrease.
Hence, the load carrying capability of the motor will increase.
Electrical features
High-starting torque
A traction motor must have high-starting torque, which is required to start the motor on load
during the starting conditions in urban and suburban services.
Speed control
The speed control of the traction motor must be simple and easy. This is necessary for the
frequent starting and stopping of the motor in traction purpose.
Dynamic and regenerative braking
Traction motors should be able to provide easy simple rehostatic and regenerative braking
subjected to higher voltages so that system must have the capability of withstanding voltage
fluctuations.
Temperature
The traction motor should have the capability of withstanding high temperatures during
transient conditions.
Overload capacity
The traction motor should have the capability of handling excessecive overloads.
Parallel running
In traction work, more number of motors need to run in parallel to carry more load. Therefore,
the traction motor should have such speed–torque and current–torque characteristics and those
motors may share the total load almost equally.
Commutation
Traction motor should have the feature of better commutation, to avoid the sparking at the
brushes and commutator segments.
TRACTION MOTORS
No single motor can have all the electrical operating features required for traction. In earlier
days, DC motor is suited for traction because of the high-starting torque and having the
capability of handling overloads. In addition to the above characteristics, the speed control of
the DC motor is very complicated through semiconductor switches. So that, the motor must be
designed for high base speed initially by reducing the number of turns in the field winding. But
this will decrease the torque developed per ampere at the time of staring. And regenerative
braking is also complicated in DC series motor; so that, the separately excited motors can be
preferred over the series motor because their speed control is possible through semi-controlled
converters. And also dynamic and regenerative braking in separately excited DC motor is
simple and efficient. DC compound motors are also preferred for traction applications since it is
having advantageous features than series and separately excited motors. But nowadays squirrel
cage induction and synchronous motors are widely used for traction because of the availability
of reliable variable frequency semiconductor inverters. The squirrel cage induction motor has
several advantages over the DC motors.
They are:
1. Robust construction.
2. Highly reliable.
3. Low maintenance and low cost.
4. High efficiency.
Synchronous motor features lie in between the squirrel cage induction motor and the DC motor.
The main advantages of the synchronous motor over the squirrel cage induction motor are:
1. The synchronous motors can be operated at leading power by varying the field excitation.
2. Load commutated thyristor inverter is used in synchronous motors as compared to forced
commutation thyristor inverter in squirrel cage induction motors. Even though such forced
commutation reduces the weight and volume of induction motor, the synchronous motor is less
expensive.
1. DC series motor
From the construction and operating characteristics of the DC series motor, it is widely suitable
for traction purpose. Following features of series motor make it suitable for traction.
1. DC series motor is having high-starting torque and having the capability of handling
overloads that is essential for traction drives.
2. These motors are having simple and robust construction.
3. The speed control of the series motor is easy by series parallel control.
4. Sparkless commutation is possible, because the increase in armature current increases the
load torque and decreases the speed so that the emf induced in the coils undergoing
commutation.
5. Series motor flux is proportional to armature current and torque. But armature current is
independent of voltage fluctuations. Hence, the motor is unaffected by the variations in supply
voltage.
6. We know that:
But the power output of the motor is proportional to the product of torque and speed.
∴ Motor output
That is motor input drawn from the source is proportional to the square root of the torque.
Hence, the series motor is having self-retaining property.
7. If more than one motor are to be run in parallel, their speed–torque and current–torque
characteristics must not have wide variation, which may result in the unequal wear of driving
wheels.
2 DC shunt motor
From the characteristics of DC shunt motor, it is not suitable for traction purpose, due to the
following reasons:
1. DC shunt motor is a constant speed motor but for traction purpose, the speed of the motor
should vary with service conditions.
2. In case of DC shunt motor, the power output is independent of speed and is proportional to
torque. In case of DC series motor, the power output is proportional to So that, for a given load
torque, the shunt motor has to draw more power from the supply than series motor. 3. For shunt
motor, the torque developed is proportional to armature current (T ∝ Ia). So for a given load
torque motor has to draw more current from the supply.
4. The flux developed by shunt motor is proportional to shunt field current and hence supply
AC series motor
Practically, AC series motor is best suited for the traction purpose due to high starting torque
(Fig. 9.1). When DC series motor is fed from AC supply, it works but not satisfactorily due to
some of the following reasons:
1. If DC series motor is fed from AC supply, both the field and the armature currents reverse for
every half cycle. Hence, unidirectional torque is developed at double frequency.
2. Alternating flux developed by the field winding causes excessive eddy current loss, which
will cause the heating of the motor. Hence, the operating efficiency of the motor will decrease.
3. Field winding inductance will result abnormal voltage drop and low power factor that leads
to the poor performance of the motor.
4. Induced emf and currents flowing through the armature coils undergoing commutation will
cause sparking at the brushes and commutator segments.
The three-phase induction motors are generally preferred for traction purpose due to the
following advantages.
1. Simple and robust construction.
2. Trouble-free operation.
3. The absence of commutator.
4. Less maintenance.
5. Simple and automatic regeneration.
6. High efficiency.
Three-phase induction motor also suffer from the following drawbacks.
1. Low-starting torque.
2. High-starting current and complicated speed control system.
3. It is difficult to employ three-phase induction motor for a multiple-unit system used for
propelling a heavy train. Three-phase induction motor draws less current when the motor is
started at low frequencies. When a three-phase induction motor is used, the cost of overhead
distribution system increases and it consists of two overhead conductors and track rail for the
third phase to feed power to locomotive, which is a complicated overhead structure and if any
person comes in contact with the third rail, it may cause danger to him or her. This drawback
can be overcome by employing kando system. In this system, 1- φ supply from the overhead
distribution structure is converted to 3-φ supply by using phase converters and is fed to 3-
φinduction motor. The speed controller of induction motor becomes smooth and easy with the
use of thyristorized inverter circuits to get variable frequency supply that can be used to control
the speed of three-phase induction motor. Nowadays, by overcoming the drawbacks of three-
phase induction motor, it can be used for traction purpose.
Linear induction motor It is a special type of induction motor that gives linear motion instead
of rotational motion, as in the case of a conventional motor. In case of linear induction motor,
both the movement of field and the movement of the conductors are linear. A linear induction
motor consists of 3-φ distributed field winding placed in slots, and secondary is nothing but a
conducting plate made up of either copper or aluminum as shown in Fig.
according to mutual induction, the induced currents are flowing through secondary and ferro
magnetic plate. Now, the ferro magnetic plate energized and attracted toward the primary
causes to unequal air gap between primary and secondary as shown in Fig. 9.2(a). This
drawback can be overcome by double primary system as shown in Fig. 9.2(b). In this system,
two primaries are placed on both the sides of secondary, which will be shorter in length
compared to the other depending upon the use of the motor. When the operating distance is
large, the length of the primary is made shorter than the secondary because it is not economical
to place very large 3-φ primary. Generally, the short secondary form of system is preferred for
limited operating distance, as shown in
When 3-φ primary winding is excited by giving 3-φ AC supply, magnetic field is developed
rotating at linear synchronous speed, Vs.
The linear synchronous speed is given by:
Vs = 2τ f m/s,
where τ is the pole pitch in m and f is the supply frequency in hertzs. Note: here, the
synchronous speed does not depend upon the number of poles but depends upon the pole pitch
and the supply frequency.
1. Short single primary.
2. Short double primary.
3. Short secondary.
The flux developed by the field winding pulls the rotor same as to the direction of the magnetic
field linearly, which will reduce relative speed between field and rotor plate. If the speed of the
rotor plate is equal to the magnetic field, then the field would be stationary when viewed from
the rotor plate. If rotor plate is rotating at a speed more than linear synchronous, the direction of
a force would be reversed, which causes regenerative braking. The slip of the linear induction
motor is given by:
be operated at leading and lagging power factors by varying field excitation. The synchronous
motor can be widely used various applications because of constant speed from no-load to full
load.
o High efficiency.
o Low-initial cost.
o Power factor improvement of three-phase AC industrial circuits.
BRAKING
If at any time, it is required to stop an electric motor, then the electric supply must be
disconnected from its terminals to bring the motor to rest. In this method, even though supply is
cut off, the motor continue to rotate for long time due to inertia. In some cases, there is delay in
bringing the other equipment. So that, it is necessary to bring the motor to rest quickly. The
process of bringing the motor to rest within the pre-determined time is known as braking.
A good braking system must have the following features:
o Braking should be fast and reliable.
o The equipment to stop the motor should be in such a way that the kinetic energy of the
rotating parts of the motor should be dissipated as soon as the brakes are applied.
Braking applied to bring the motor to rest position is of two types and they are:
1. Electric braking.
2. Mechanical braking.
Electric braking
In this process of braking, the kinetic energy of the rotating parts of the motor is converted into
electrical energy which in turn is dissipated as heat energy in a resistance or in sometimes,
electrical energy is returned to the supply. Here, no energy is dissipated in brake shoes.
Mechanical braking
In this process of braking, the kinetic energy of the rotating parts is dissipated in the form of
heat by the brake shoes of the brake lining that rubs on a wheel of vehicle or brake drum.
The advantages of the electric braking over the mechanical braking
o The electric braking is smooth, fast, and reliable.
o Higher speeds can be maintained; this is because the electric braking is quite fast. This leads
to the higher capacity of the system.
o The electric braking is more economical; this is due to excessive wear on brake blocks
or brake lining that results frequent and costly replacement in mechanical braking.
o Heat produced in the electric braking is less and not harmful but heat produced in the
mechanical braking will cause the failure of brakes.
o In the electric braking, sometimes, it is possible to fed back electric energy during braking
period to the supply system. This results in saving in the operating cost. This is not possible in
case of mechanical braking.
Disadvantages
In addition to the above advantages, the electric braking suffers from the following
disadvantages.
o During the braking period, the traction motor acts generator and electric brakes can almost
stop the motor but it cannot hold stationary. Hence, it is necessary to employ mechanical
braking in addition to electric braking.
o Traction motor has to work as a generator during braking period. So that, motor has to select
in such a way that it should have suitable braking characteristics.
o The initial cost of the electric braking equipment is costlier.
TYPES OF ELECTRIC BRAKING
Electric braking can be applied to the traction vehicle, by any one of the following methods,
namely:
1. Plugging.
2. Rehostatic braking.
3. Regenerative braking.
Plugging
In this method of braking, the electric motor is reconnected to the supply in such a way that it
has to develop a torque in opposite direction to the movement of the rotor. Now, the motor will
decelerates until zero speed is zero and then accelerates in opposite direction. Immediately, it is
necessary to disconnect the motor from the supply as soon as system comes to rest. The main
disadvantage of this method is that the kinetic energy of the rotating parts of the motor is
wasted and an additional amount of energy from the supply is required to develop the torque in
reverse direction, i.e., in this method, the motor should be connected to the supply during
braking. This method can be applied to both DC and AC motors.
Plugging applied to DC motors
Pulling is nothing but reverse current braking. This method of braking can be applied to both
DC shunt and DC series motors by reversing either the current through armature or the field
winding in order to produce the torque in apposite direction, but not both. The connection
diagrams for both DC shunt and DC series motors during normal and braking periods are given
as follows. The connection diagram for normal running conditions of both DC shunt and DC
series motors are shown in Figs. 9.4 (a) and 9.5 (a). The back emf developed by the motor is
equal in magnitude and same as to the direction of terminal or supply voltage. During the
braking, the armatures of both shunt and series motors are reversed as shown in Fig. 9.4 (b) and
Fig. 9.5 (b). Now, the back emf developed by the motor direction of terminal voltage. A high
resistance ‘R’ is connected in series with the armature to limit high-starting current during the
braking period.
where V is the supply voltage, Eb is the back emf, and Ra is the armature resistance.
Current flowing through the armature during braking period:
Where and .
We know that,
in case of series motor flux (φ) developed by the winding is depending the current flowing
through it. In case of shunt motor, the flux remains constant.
But the voltage induced in the rotor (E2) is proportional to the slip (S ) × stator
voltage (V):
∴ E2 ∝ SV.
So, the rotor voltage during the braking period is twice the normal voltage. To avoid the
damage of the rotor winding, it should be provided with additional insulation, to withstand the
high induced voltage. The rotation of the magnetic field in the reverse direction produce torque
in reverse direction; thereby applying the brakes to the motor. The braking of induction motor
can be analyzed by the torque–slip characteristics shown in Fig. 9.7.
the starts working as generator during the braking period and all the kinetic energy of the
rotating parts is converted into electric energy and is dissipated across the external resistance.
One of the main advantages of the rehostatic braking is electrical energy is not drawn by the
motor during braking period compared to plugging. The rehostatic braking can be applied to
various DC and AC motors.
Rehostatic braking applied to DC motors
The rheostatic braking can be applied to both DC shunt and DC series motors, by disconnecting
the armature from the supply and reconnecting it across and external resistance. This is required
to dissipate the kinetic energy of all rotating parts thereby brining the motor to rest.
DC shunts motor
Figure 9.10 shows the connection diagram of the DC shunt motor during both normal and
braking conditions. In case of DC shunt motor, both armature and field windings are connected
across the DC supply, as shown in Fig. 9.10 (a.)
In this braking, which is applied to DC series motor, the armature is disconnected from the
supply and is reconnected across an external resistance ‘R’ shown in Fig 9.11 (a) and (b). But,
simply, it is not possible to develop the retarding torque by the DC series motor after
connecting armature across the resistance as DC shunt motor.
where Eb is the back emf developed, R is the external resistance, and Ra is the armature
resistance.
winding is also reversed; hence, there is no retarding torque. And, a short-circuit condition will
set up both back emf and supply voltage will be added together. So that, during the braking
period, it is necessary to reverse the terminals of field winding.
2. Some sort of compensating equipment must be incorporated to take care of large change in
supply voltage On doing some modifications during the braking period, the regenerative
braking
can be applied to DC series motor. Any one of the following methods is used.
Method-I (French method)
If one or more series motors are running in parallel, during the braking period, the field
windings, of all series motors, are connected across the supply in series with suitable resistance.
Thereby converting all series machines in shunt machines as shown in Fig. 9.15.
At that time, the field winding of the series machine is connected across an excited being driven
by motor operated from an auxiliary supply. Now, during the braking period, the series machine
acts as separately excited DC generator which supplies energy to the main lines. A stabilizing
resistance is used to control the braking torque (Figs. 9.16 and 9.17).
across the stabilizing resistance, which will reduce the voltage across the armature circuit and
cause the reduction of the exciter current of the series machine field winding. Hence, the
traction motors operating as series generators.
Regenerative braking applied to 3-φ induction motor
Regenerative braking is applied to the induction motor by increasing its speed above the
synchronous speed. Now, the induction motor acting as an induction generator that feeds power
to the main line. The torque slip characteristics of the induction motors are shown in Fig. 9.18.
where Vs is the voltage drop across starting resistance and IaRa is the voltage drop in armature.
During the running condition:
At the end of accelerating period, the total starting resistance will be cut off from the armature
then:
1. Various drops during staring and running with armature resistance.
2. Various drops during staring and running with negligible armature resistance.
When armature resistance is neglected Ra = 0 and ‘t’ is the time in seconds for starting, then
total energy supplied is, VaIat watts-sec and the energy wasted in the starting resistance at the
time of starting can be calculated from Fig. 9.21(b) as:
If the track electrification system is AC motors and available traction motors are DC motors,
then rectifiers are to be equipped with the traction motors to convert AC supply to DC to feed
the DC traction motors.
Transformer or autotransformer
Depending on the track electrification system employed, the locomotive should be equipped
with tap-changing transformers to step-down high voltages from the distribution network to the
feed low-voltage traction motors. Driving axles and gear arrangements All the driving motors
are connected to the driving axle through a gear arrangement, with ratios of 4:1 or 6:1.
TRANSMISSION OF DRIVE
Drive is a system used to create the movement of electric train. The electric locomotives are
specially designed to have springs between the driving axles and the main body. This
arrangement of springs reduces the damage not only to the track wings but also to the hammer
blows. The power developed by the armature of the traction motors must be transferred to the
driving axels through pinion and gear drive. There are several methods by which power
developed by the armature can be transferred to the driving wheel. Gearless drive Gearless
drives are of two types.
Direct drive
It is a simple drive. The armatures of the electric motors are mounted directly on the driving
axle with the field attached to the frame of locomotive. In this system, the poles of electric
motors should be flat so that the armature can be able to move freely without affecting of the
operation. Here, the size of the armatures of the traction motor is limited by the diameter of the
driving wheels. The arrangement of direct drive is shown in fig,
UNIT-4
Electric Traction-II,
INTRODUCTION
The movement of trains and their energy consumption can be most conveniently studied by
means of the speed–distance and the speed–time curves. The motion of any vehicle may be at
constant speed or it may consist of periodic acceleration and retardation. The speed–time curves
have significant importance in traction. If the frictional resistance to the motion is known value,
the energy required for motion of the vehicle can be determined from it. Moreover, this curve
gives the speed at various time instants after the start of run directly.
TYPES OF SERVICES
There are mainly three types of passenger services, by which the type of traction
system has to be selected, namely:
1. Main line service.
2. Urban or city service.
3. Suburban service.
Main line services
In the main line service, the distance between two stops is usually more than 10 km. High
balancing speeds should be required. Acceleration and retardation are not so important.
Urban service
In the urban service, the distance between two stops is very less and it is less than 1 km. It
requires high average speed for frequent starting and stopping.
Suburban service
In the suburban service, the distance between two stations is between 1 and 8 km. This service
requires rapid acceleration and retardation as frequent starting and stopping is required.
SPEED–TIME AND SPEED–DISTANCE CURVES FOR DIFFERENT SERVICES
The curve that shows the instantaneous speed of train in kmph along the ordinate and time in
seconds along the abscissa is known as ‘speed–time’ curve. The curve that shows the distance
between two stations in km along the ordinate and time in seconds along the abscissa is known
as ‘speed–distance’ curve. The area under the speed–time curve gives the distance travelled
during, given time internal and slope at any point on the curve toward abscissa gives the
acceleration and retardation at the instance, out of the two speed–time curve is more important.
Speed–time curve for main line service Typical speed–time curve of a train running on main
line service is shown in Fig. 10.1. It mainly consists of the following time periods:
1. Constant accelerating period.
2. Acceleration on speed curve.
3. Free-running period.
4. Coasting period.
5. Braking period.
current taken by the motor remains constant. But, at the same time, even though train
accelerates, the acceleration decreases with the increase in speed. Finally, the acceleration
reaches to zero for certain speed, at which the tractive effort excreted by the motor is exactly
equals to the train
resistance. This is also known as decreasing accelerating period. This period is shown by the
curve ‘AB’.
Free-running or constant-speed period
The train runs freely during the period T2 to T3 at the speed attained by the train at the instant
‘T2’. During this speed, the motor draws constant power from the supply lines. This period is
shown by the curve BC.
Coasting period
This period is from T3 to T4, i.e., from C to D. At the instant ‘T3’ power supply to the traction,
the motor will be cut off and the speed falls on account of friction, windage resistance, etc.
During this period, the train runs due to the momentum attained at that particular instant. The
rate of the decrease of the speed during coasting period is known as coasting retardation.
Usually, it is denoted with the symbol ‘βc’.
Braking period
Braking period is from T4 to T5, i.e., from D to E. At the end of the coasting period, i.e., at ‘T4’
brakes are applied to bring the train to rest. During this period, the speed of the train decreases
rapidly and finally reduces to zero. In main line service, the free-running period will be more,
the starting and braking periods are very negligible, since the distance between the stops for the
main line service is more than 10 km. Speed–time curve for suburban service In suburban
service, the distance between two adjacent stops for electric train is lying between 1 and 8 km.
In this service, the distance between stops is more than the urban service and smaller than the
main line service. The typical speed–time curve for suburban service is shown in Fig. 10.2.
for the urban service lies between 1.6 and 4 kmphp. The coasting retardation is about 0.15
kmphp and the braking retardation is lying between 3 and 5 kmphp. Some typical values of
various services are shown in Table. 10.1.
with ‘Va’.
where Va is the average speed of train in kmph, D is the distance between stops in km, and T is
the actual time of run in hours.
Schedule speed
The ratio of the distance covered between two stops to the total time of the run including the
time for stop is known as schedule speed. It is denoted with the symbol ‘Vs’.
where Ts is the schedule time in hours.
Schedule time
It is defined as the sum of time required for actual run and the time required for stop.
i.e., Ts = Trun + Tstop.
FACTORS AFFECTING THE SCHEDULE SPEED OF A TRAIN
The factors that affect the schedule speed of a train are:
1. Crest speed.
2. The duration of stops.
3. The distance between the stops.
4. Acceleration.
5. Braking retardation.
Crest speed
It is the maximum speed of train, which affects the schedule speed as for fixed acceleration,
retardation, and constant distance between the stops. If the crest speed increases, the actual
running time of train decreases. For the low crest speed of train it running so, the high crest
speed of train will increases its schedule speed. Duration of stops If the duration of stops is
more, then the running time of train will be less; so that, this leads to the low schedule speed.
Thus, for high schedule speed, its duration of stops must be low. Distance between the stops If
the distance between the stops is more, then the running time of the train is less; hence, the
schedule speed of train will be more.
Acceleration
If the acceleration of train increases, then the running time of the train decreases provided the
distance between stops and crest speed is maintained as constant. Thus, the increase in
acceleration will increase the schedule speed.
Breaking retardation
High breaking retardation leads to the reduction of running time of train. These will cause high
schedule speed provided the distance between the stops is small.
SIMPLIFIED TRAPEZOIDAL AND QUADRILATERAL SPEED TIME CURVES
Simplified speed–time curves gives the relationship between acceleration, retardation average
speed, and the distance between the stop, which are needed to estimate the performance of a
service at different schedule speeds. So that, the actual speed–time curves for the main line,
urban, and suburban services are approximated to some from of the simplified curves. These
curves may be of either trapezoidal or quadrilateral shape. Analysis of trapezoidal speed–time
curve Trapezoidal speed–time curve can be approximated from the actual speed–time curves of
different services by assuming that:
o The acceleration and retardation periods of the simplified curve is kept same as to that of the
actual curve.
o The running and coasting periods of the actual speed–time curve are replaced by the constant
periods.
This known as trapezoidal approximation, a simplified trapezoidal speed–time curve is shown
in fig,
Area under the trapezoidal speed–time curve gives the total distance between the two stops
(D).
∴ The distance between the stops (D) = area under triangle OAE + area of
rectangle ABDE + area of triangle DBC
= The distance travelled during acceleration + distance travelled during freerunning period +
distance travelled during retardation.
Now:
The distance travelled during acceleration = average speed during accelerating period × time for
acceleration
The distance travelled during free-running period = average speed × time of free running
The distance travelled during retardation period = average speed × time for retardation
By considering positive sign, we will get high values of crest speed, which is practically not
possible, so negative sign should be considered:
Total distance travelled during the running period D: = the area of triangle PQU + the area of
rectangle UQRS + the area of triangle TRS.
= the distance travelled during acceleration + the distance travelled during
coastingretardation + the distance travelled during breaking retardation.
But, the distance travelled during acceleration = average speed × time for Acceleration
The distance travelled during breaking retardation = average speed × time for
breaking retardation
the locomotive. Here, the gear wheel transfers the tractive effort at the edge of the pinion to the
driving wheel.
The tractive effort at the edge of the pinion transferred to the wheel of locomotive is:
UNIT-5
INTRODUCTION
The function of a power station is to deliver power at the lowest possible cost per kilo watt
hour. This total cost is made up of fixed charges consisting of interest on the capital, taxes,
insurance, depreciation and salary of managerial staff, the operating expenses such as cost of
fuels, water, oil, labor, repairs and maintenance etc.
For example, real power produces the mechanical output of a motor. Reactive power is not used
to do work, but is needed to operate equipment and is measured in volt-amperes-reactive
(VAR) or kilovar (kVAR). Many industrial loads are inductive such as motors, transformers,
fluorescent lighting ballasts, power electronics, and induction furnaces.
The current drawn by an inductive load consists of two components: magnetizing
current and power producing current. The magnetizing current is required to sustain the
electromagnetic field in a device and creates reactive power. An inductive load draws current
that lags the voltage, in that the current follows the voltage wave form. The amount of lag is
the electrical displacement (or phase) angle between the voltage and current. n the absence of
harmonics, apparent power (also known as demand power) is comprised of (vectorial sum) both
real and reactive power and is measured in units of volt-amps (VA) or kilovolt-amps (kVA).
Power factor (PF) is the ratio of the real power to apparent power and represents how much real
power electrical equipment uses. It is a measure of how effectively electrical power is being
used. Power factor is also equal to the cosine of the phase angle between the voltage and current
Electrical loads demand more power than they consume. Induction motors convert at most 80%
to 90% of the delivered power into useful work or electrical losses. The remaining power is
used
to establish an electromagnetic field in the motor. The field is alternately expanding and
collapsing (once each cycle), so the power drawn into the field in one instant is returned to the
electric supply system in the next instant. Therefore, the average power drawn by the field is
zero, and reactive power does not register on a kilowatt-hour meter. The magnetizing current
creates reactive power. Although it does no useful work, it circulates between the generator and
the load and places a heavier drain on the power source as well as the transmission and
distribution system. As a means of compensation for the burden of supplying extra current,
many utilities establish a power factor penalty in their rate schedule. A minimum power factor,
usually 0.85 to 0.95, is established. When a customer’s power factor drops below the minimum
value, the utility collects a low power factor revenue premium on the customer’s bill. Another
way some utilities collect a low power factor premium is to charge for kVA (apparent power)
rather than kW (real power). With a diverse range of billing rate structures imposed by
electrical utilities especially for large users, it is imperative to fully understand the billing
method employed
Improving power factor:
Adding capacitors is generally the most economical way to improve a facility’s power factor.
While the current through an inductive load lags the voltage, current to a capacitor leads the
voltage. Thus, capacitors serve as a leading reactive current generator to counter the lagging
reactive current in a system.
The expression “release of capacity” means that as power factor of the system is improved, the
total current flow will be reduced. This permits additional loads to be added and served by the
existing system. In the event that equipment, such as transformers, cables, and generators, may
be thermally overloaded, improving power factor may be the most economical way to reduce
current and eliminate the overload condition. Primarily, the cost-effectiveness of power factor
correction depends on a utility’s power factor penalties. It is crucial to understand the utility’s
rate structure to determine the return on investment to improve power factor.
Maintaining a high power factor in a facility will yield direct savings. In addition to reducing
power factor penalties imposed by some utilities, there may be other economic factors that,
when
considered in whole, may lead to the addition of power factor correction capacitors that provide
a
justifiable return on investment. Other savings, such as decreased distribution losses, improved
voltage reduction, and increased facility current carrying capacity, are less obvious. Though
real,
often these reductions yield little in cost savings and are relatively small in comparison to the
savings to be gained from reducing power factor penalties.
Harmonic current considerations:
This article intentionally assumes that a facility does not have significant harmonic currents
present. However, some caution must be taken when applying capacitors in a circuit where
harmonics are present (true power factor). Although capacitors themselves do not generate
harmonics, problems arise when capacitors for power factor correction improvement are
applied
to circuits with nonlinear loads that interject harmonic currents. Those capacitors may lower the
resonant frequency of that circuit enough to create a resonant condition. Resonance is a special
condition in which the inductive reactance is equal to the capacitive reactance. As resonance is
approached, the magnitude of harmonic current in the system and capacitor becomes much
larger than the harmonic current generated by the nonlinear load. The current may be high
enough to blow capacitor fuses, create other “nuisance” problems, or develop into a
catastrophic event. A solution to this problem is to detune the circuit by changing the point
where the capacitors are connected to the circuit, changing the amount of applied capacitance,
or installing passive filter reactors to a capacitor bank, which obviously increases its cost. Use
of an active harmonic filter may be another solution.
Capacitor bank considerations and associated costs:
The selection of the type of capacitor banks and their location has an impact on the cost of
capacitor banks. More difficult than determining the total capacitance required is deciding
where the capacitance should be located. There are several factors to consider, including:
Should one large capacitor bank be used, or is it better to add small capacitors at individual
loads? Should fixed or automatically switched capacitors be employed? In general, since
capacitors act as a kVAR generator, the most efficient place to install them is directly at an
inductive load for which the power factor is being improved.
Fixed capacitor location schemes include:
This will generally improve losses, although it is not an optimal solution .Distributing the
capacitors using the motor sizes and the NEMA tables as a guide. This solution does not reflect
the need for more released capacity, if this is a goal. Capacitors sized for small loads are often
proportionally much more expensive than larger fixed capacitors, primarily because of
installation costs.
Capacitor switching options include:
Switching a few of the capacitors with larger motors is an option. The capacitors may be
physically installed either directly connected to the motor or through a contactor on the motor
control center that is tied in with the motor control. If the motors are large enough to use
capacitors of the same size as were being considered for the fixed capacitor scheme, little
additional cost is incurred for installing them on the motors. Where the economy is lost is when
the capacitors are placed on several small motors. There is relatively little difference in
installation costs for large and small 480-V units.
The second switching option is to consider an automatic power factor controller installed in the
Capacitor bank. This will switch large capacitor banks in small steps (25 through 50 is
common)
to follow the load. Automatic power factor capacitor banks should be installed at the motor
control center rather than on the main bus, if optimal distribution loss is a goal. The economics
of purchasing, installing
Improving Load Factor Your company could increase efficiency by improving load factor.
Increasing your load factor will reduce the average unit cost (demand and energy) of the kWh.
Depending on your situation, improving your load factor could mean substantial savings. The
load factor corresponds to the ratio between your actual energy consumption (kWh) and the
maximum power recorded (demand) for that period of time.
WHAT IS LOAD FACTOR? Consumption (kWh) during the period x 100 /Demand (kW) x
hours in that period
By analyzing your load profile and your needs, you may be able to improve your load factor by
doing the following:.
Demand Reduction Reduce demand by distributing your loads over different times or by
installing load management systems.
Increase Production Keeping the demand stable and increasing your consumption is often a
cost-effective way to increase production while maximizing the use of your power. In both
cases, the load factor will improve and therefore reduce your average unit cost per kWh.
The peak demand
The peak demand of an installation or a system is simply the highest demand that has occurred
over a specified time period (Gönen 2008). Peak demand is typically characterized as annual,
daily or seasonal and has the unit of power. Peak demand, peak load or on-peak are terms used
in energy demand management describing a period in which electrical power is expected to be
provided for a sustained period at a significantly higher than average supply level. Peak demand
fluctuations may occur on daily, monthly, seasonal and yearly cycles. For an electric
utility company, the actual point of peak demand is a single half-hour or hourly period which
represents the highest point of customer consumption of electricity. At this time there is a
combination of office, domestic demand and at some times of the year, the fall of darkness.[1]
Some utilities will charge customers based on their individual peak demand. The highest
demand during each month or even a single 15 to 30 minute period of highest use in the
previous year may be used to calculate charges
Exhaust stem
These turbines receive steam from a boiler and exhaust it to a condenser. ... Non-condensing or
back pressure turbines are most widely used for process steam applications.
The exhaust pressure is controlled by a regulating valve to suit the needs of the
Heat recovery steam generators: A heat recovery steam generator (HRSG) is a steam boiler
that uses hot exhaust gases from the gas turbines or reciprocating engines in a CHP plant to heat
up water and generate steam. The steam, in turn, drives a steam turbine or is used in industrial
processes that require heat. HRSGs used in the CHP industry are distinguished from
conventional steam generators by the following main features: The HRSG is designed based
upon the specific features of the gas turbine or reciprocating engine that it will be coupled to.
Since the exhaust gas temperature is relatively low, heat transmission is accomplished mainly
through convection. The exhaust gas velocity is limited by the need to keep head losses down.
Thus, the transmission coefficient is low, which calls for a large heating surface area. Since the
temperature difference between the hot gases and the fluid to be heated (steam or water) is low,
and with the heat transmission coefficient being low as well, the evaporator and economizer are
designed with plate fin heat exchangers.