Study Notes – Generators

1. Generator Principles
Introduction

 AC vs. DC Generators:
 DC Generator:
 Stationary magnetic field.
 Rotating armature collects generated electricity via brushes and a
commutator (which acts as a rectifier).

 AC Generator (Alternator):
 Rotating magnetic field with a stationary armature that produces a
sinusoidal (3-phase) waveform.
 Useful voltage is expressed as the Root Mean Square (RMS) value
 E= 0.707 × E Max

Type Magnetic Field Armature Electricity Waveform Voltage

Collection Expression
DC Generator Stationary Rotating Brushes and N/A N/A
commutator
AC Generator Rotating Stationary N/A Sinusoidal (3- RMS value E=
(Alternator) phase) 0.707 × E Max

Key Electrical Relationships

 Voltage Generation:
 The generated voltage is proportional to both the excitation (magnetic flux)
and rotor speed:
ⅆϕ
 Eα
ⅆt
 Frequency Relationships:
 Frequency is directly proportional to both the number of poles (or pole pairs)
and the rotor speed.
NP
 f= , where N = RPM and P = number of poles.
120
 Example:
 For 1 pole pair to generate 60 Hz the required speed is 3600 RPM.
 For 2 pole pairs, the speed is 1800 RPM.
 3-Phase Generation:
 Three windings are positioned with phase shifts of 120° to produce a
balanced 3-phase power supply.
 v L =√ 3× v ph
440
 v L =440 , v ph= =254
√3
2. AC Generator Construction and Excitation
Rotor Constructions

 Salient Pole Rotors:

 Used in slow-speed applications.
 Common in marine diesel engines
 Cylindrical Rotors:
 Employed in high-speed generators.
 Commonly used for turbines

Excitation Methods

 Separately Excited Alternators:

 Configuration:
 A dedicated DC generator (exciter) supplies the field current.
 Requires additional components (e.g., a DC generator and associated
drives).

 Disadvantages:
 Lengthy design
 Extra losses due to DC generation
 Higher maintenance due to numerous components.
 Self-Excited (Compounded or Statically Excited) Alternators:


 Concept:
 Uses two sets of windings:
 Primary 1 sense and governs no-load voltage.
 Primary 2 senses and governs on-load voltage.
 The compounding effect (with reactor coils) brings these two
components together to regulate the voltage without the use of an

 Role of Reactors and Capacitors:

 Reactor coils cause a lag (90° delay) ensuring proper vector addition of
current components.
 Capacitors may be included either to compensate for temperature
variations in field resistance or to assist in voltage buildup at startup.

 Advantages:
 This generator responds very quickly to load variations as the excitor is
static.
 This system responds well to Lloyd’s requirement for AVR.
 Brushless Alternators:


 Advantages:
 No brushes (thus no carbon dust), leading to reduced
maintenance.
 Protection:
 Under short circuit conditions, the generator is required to provide up
to three times its rated current for 2 to 3 seconds to ensure CB’s trip
selectivity.
 Built-in surge suppression resistors and compounding CTs help protect
internal diodes from voltage surges.
 Failure Modes:
 An open diode may cause a slight voltage reduction, while a shorted
diode can lead to excessive exciter current and overheating.
 If one of the diodes were to fail and becomes an open circuit, the
remaining diodes will continue to function.
 In manual control the voltage would drop slightly
 While in automatic mode the exciter current would boost up in
order to maintain the correct voltage and the diodes will heat up
and may fail completely.
 When a diode is short circuited it will lead to a short circuit of the
exciter, and it will cause rapid overheating.
Lloyds requirement for AVR

Voltage regulation should not exceed +15% when 35% load at a power factor
of between 0 and 0.4 lagging.

The output voltage must be restored to within 2.5% of the rated voltage in 1.5
seconds.

Automatic Voltage Regulator (AVR)

 Purpose:
 A closed-loop (feedback) system that controls generator voltage.
 Two Phases in Voltage Control provided that the windings retain residual
magnetism when the generator started)

1. Voltage Build-Up:
 As the prime mover accelerates, the voltage gradually builds based on
Faraday’s Law:
Voltage is
Lⅆϕ
 ⅇ= V α ⅆt (because mag flux is constant)
⊥
ⅆt
 2. Voltage Regulation via Excitation:
 Once normal speed is reached, voltage is maintained by controlling the
excitation current.
 Vαϕ
 Key Components:
 External manual voltage trimmer (if fitted)
 Comparator, amplifier, and thyristor control within the AVR.

 Performance Note:
 AVR ensures voltage restoration (within ±2.5% of rated voltage) within 1.5
seconds under load variations (meeting Lloyd’s requirements).
3. AC Generator Operation and Parallel Running
Parallel Operation of Alternators

 Prerequisites for Synchronization:

1. Matching Voltage: The voltage of the incoming and running generators
must be within acceptable limits.
2. Matching Frequency: Frequencies must be close.
3. Same Phase Sequence: Phase rotation must be identical.
4. Phase Angle Alignment: At the moment of closing the incoming circuit
breaker, the phase angles must be closely aligned.
 Risks:

 A mismatch in phase angles or other parameters can cause large

circulating currents and severe mechanical and electrical stresses –
risk of fire and explosion.

Paralleling Methods

 Lamp Dark/ Bright Methods:

 Uses two lamps with brightness differences to indicate phase alignment –
ensures correct generator speed or frequency
 Lamp Dark Method – Net voltage zero when the generators are synchronized
 Problems with Lamp Dark Method are if the lamps are burnt out you will have
erroneous feedback
 Lamp Bright Method – Net voltage maximum when the generators are
synchronized
 Sequence Method:
 Involves using three lamps to verify proper phase sequence.
 Mixture of bright and dark lamp method
 Top lamp will be dark at the correct point of synchronization – connected R
to R phase
 Bottom two lamps will be bright at the correct point of synchronization –
connected Y to B and B to Y

 Voltmeter method
 Voltmeter must be analogue
 The voltmeter pointer will fluctuate between two ends
 Similar to lamp dark method
 Synchronization moment is when you see zero voltage
  Synchroscope Method:
 A small AC motor (the synchroscope) indicates whether the incoming
generator is running fast or slow relative to the bus.
 Synchroscope is a small AC motor.
 The stator is connected to the incoming generator in two phases.
 The rotor is connected to the Bus Bar same two phases.
 The Rotor coil is connected to a resistor and an inductor.
 The inductor has the characteristic of delaying the current through the coil
by 90° with respect to the current through the resistor.
 This gives two-phase rotating magnetic field in the rotor windings.
 The stator has an alternating magnetic field, and this will react with the rotor
field and will make the rotor turn in either direction depending on whether
the incomer is faster or slower than the Bus Bar.
 It is designed in such a way for the rotor to turn in a clockwise direction if the
incomer is fast and vice-versa. Also, it is designed to synchronise at the 12
o’clock position. Zero Phase Difference

Parallel operation of generators:

 Sharing of kW load depends on the speed regulation of the prime movers

 Division of kVAr load between generators depend on voltage regulation of the
generators

If the generators are NOT synchronized when the breaker of the incoming generator is
closed the result will be a black out.
At the instant of closing the breaker, the voltage phase difference will cause a large
circulating current between the machines, this produces a large magnetic force to pull
the generators into synchronism.
This causes one rotor to accelerate and the other to decelerate which will result in
physical damage.
Load Sharing and Regulation

 Sharing kW Loads (Real Power):

 When the generator is on no load the governor setpoint is manually adjusted
to set the frequency. The AVR is adjusted to set the voltage.
 Determined by the speed regulation governed by generator prime mover
(governor characteristics).
 The kW load creates a proportional increase in the stator's current.
 This increased stator current strengthens the magnetic field interaction
between the stator and rotor.
 The enhanced magnetic interaction results in greater electromagnetic torque
opposing the rotor's mechanical motion. This torque acts as a braking force,
effectively trying to slow down the rotor
 The governor compensates by increasing fuel to maintain speed of the rotor
 Therefore, kW load proportional to fuel

 Sharing kVAr Loads (Reactive Power):

 When a kVAr load is applied on the alternator, there is no power demand on
the prime mover – this is due to the back-and-forth flow of energy between
the generator and the load.
 Controlled by the voltage regulation (AVR).
 A kVAr load does not create additional mechanical torque
 It causes a voltage drop – it does this by reducing the magnetic flux of the
rotor.
 This reduction is caused by a kVAr load that produces a stator current and in
turn a rotating magnetic field in the opposite direction that reduces the MF of
the rotor.
 This drop in magnetic flux is rectified by the AVR, which increases the
excitation to restore the magnetic flux
 kVAr proportional to excitation

 Governor Droop:
 The function of reduction of speed from 0% load to 100% load. Speed of
generator will reduce as the load increases.
 Typically 2-4% from no-load to full load.
 Essential for proportional load sharing among generators.

 Isochronous Generator:
 A generator is said to be isochronous when it maintains speed regardless of
load.
 When the generators are isochronous - it is impossible to synchronise
generators because the load would swing from one generator to another.
 At full load it is likely one generator will trip off the bus
 Important Points to Remember
 When two or more generators are in parallel, they act as one. If fuel is
increased for one generator, then the system characteristics will change i.e.
system frequency will increase
 If the generators have different droop characteristics, they will not behave
the same way. This means an increase in fuel means an increase in load for
that particular generator, while the other will remain at its present load. The
second generator will NOT reduce its load unless the governor droop
characteristic at that point permits it to do so.
 The same relationships exist for voltage and excitation.
 Balance of KW or power sharing is dictated by governor droop setting.
 Balance of kVAr sharing is dictated by AVR droop setting.

 Generator synchronising

4. Generator Maintenance and Protection
Types of maintenance:
1. IR Testing
2. Visual Inspections
3. Cleaning

Insulation Resistance (IR) Testing

 The strength of insulation required for a conductor depends upon the voltage
applied to that conductor.

 A method to measure the strength of the insulation is by measuring the resistance

between the winding conductor and the body. This is done by an IR tester.

 It sends a voltage higher than the designed voltage and measures the resulting
current in milli-amperes or microamperes, which is inversely proportional to the
resistance in the particular circuit. Measuring resistance between two points is
actually measuring the current between the points when you create a temporary
circuit.

 This is done here by creating a circuit between the conductor in an electrical

appliance and its body by applying a voltage. The resulting current is inversely
proportional to the resistance between the two points. In this case, the insulation
resistance between the conductor and the body of the electrical appliance.

 Principle:
 Determines the robustness of insulation between the winding conductors and
the metal frame.
 An IR tester (megger) applies a voltage higher than the rated operating
voltage and measures the leakage current.
 High insulation resistance (IR) indicates good insulation; low current implies
high resistance.

 Acceptable IR Values:
 General rule: Approximately 2 MΩ per 1Kilo Volt.
 For a 440 V generator, an IR value around 1 MΩ is considered satisfactory.

 Testing Precautions:
 Sensitive electronic components (transistors, ICs) must be removed or the
cables short-circuited with fuse wire to prevent damage – i.e. remove AVR
 Testing should be done with cables disconnected at both ends.
  Example – Brushless Generator IR Testing:
 Main Alternator (3-phase Stator):
 Test between phases (e.g., R-S, S-T, T-R) and from each phase to
Earth.
 Main Alternator DC Rotor:
 Test winding-to-Earth continuity using an appropriate test voltage.
 Exciter Alternator:
 Test both the DC (field) and AC (rotor) sections similarly.

Generator Protection Measures

 Common types of protection

 OCIT Inverse Time
 OC (Instantaneous)
 Reverse Power
 OV/ UV
 OF/UF
 NPS
 EL
 DIFF

 Overcurrent Protection (OC):

 Each generator circuit must be fitted with an OC relay.
 An inverse time /current characteristic is normally employed.
 Lloyd’s regulations state that the generator should be capable of
withstanding 50% excess current for 15 seconds.
 OC (INST) - Instantaneous trip is for short circuit conditions, time delay is 0.1
to 1 seconds.
 How to Test
  Generally tested by specialists during dry dock after which a certificate
is issued.
 The authorised technicians use ‘current injectors’ to calibrate the
‘Over Current’ relays in ACB – basically all sensors are operating on
lower voltages using CTs etc – you can inject the trigger voltage and
induce a trip.

 Preference Tripping of Non-Essentials:

 Set for 110% overload condition to disconnect non-critical circuits quickly.
 Should not effect bridge, navigation and propulsion systems – only non
essentials will be removed automatically.
 How to test
 Can be tested with only one generator running – ensure non essentials
are okay to be disconnected – note down which non essentials are
running.
 We test this trip my manually adjusting the trip limit (normally 110%)
 If for example if you gradually reduce the trip limit – non essentials will
normally trip systematically in a staged set up ( there will be groups
that will trip off the bus as it is triggered )
 Under Voltage/Over Voltage (UV/OV) Protection:
 Operates if a severe voltage dip occurs.
 Back up protection to short circuit protection.
 Also, to prevent closing of a CB when the generator can be paralleled with
other generators, with its terminal voltage less than 70%.

 Reverse Power (RP) Protection:

 Monitors the direction of power flow between generator and bus bars
 Generators intended to run in parallel should have RP protection.
 If the prime mover is diesel, 5-15% reverse power for 0.5 to 3 seconds is
normal.
 If the prime mover is a turbine, 2-3% for 0.5 to 3 seconds.
 Testing of reverse power
 The Reverse Power protection can be checked when you are changing
over a generator.
 Make sure there is enough capacity in the running gen sets.
 The load on the alternator where the reverse power trip is to be tested
can be reduced below zero load by the governor control while the CB is
still closed.
 At the pre-set value (negative) the alternator circuit breaker should
trip.
 How to test:
 Two generators in parallel
 Put generator to be tested in manual
 Lower the load on that generator until you reach the tripping point
 Note that some time has to elapse that that trip point before the trip is
triggered

 Frequency Protection:
  Under Frequency and Over Frequency protection to ensure system stability.
 Usually plus or minus 5 hertz

 Negative Phase Sequence (NPS) Protection:

 If the stator 3 phases have unequal currents, it leads to high stator and rotor
temperatures. NPS current setting of 0.2% will trigger an alarm in order to
prevent overheating of stator and rotor.

 DIFF
 Current measurement for the diff at each end of stator phase
winding – used to detect internal fault in stator windings.
 Low current setting as it is a serious fault

 Earth Leakage Protection

 Detects earth fault current returning through earth neutral
connection.

 Generator Circuit Breakers (GCB)

 Normally Air Circuit Breakers (ACB) for medium voltage installations
 Protect generators from faults mentioned above such as OC, UV/OV, UF/OF,
RP
 Normally tested in the “Test Position”
 Main & Auxiliary contacts to be inspected periodically.
 During disconnection main contactor will disconnect first and then the arc
contactor
 During connection the arc contactor will connect first and then the main
contactor
 Main contacts are made of platinum – arcing contacts made of copper which
is replacable

Under voltage protection

 Reverse power protection

Special Note: If a new ACB is installed for some reason, still the shore
technicians are called to re-calibrate the ACB and issue the certificate.

Passive Alternator Testing:

 In case of an alternator that is water cooled – the leakage sensors on

either side can me manually tested by filling the leakage pot with
water until the alarm is triggered.
 There are winding high temperature alarms that can be simulated
digitally.
 Alternator space low temperature alarms issue warnings over possible
conditions that will allow moisture to accumulate – can be simulated
digitally.
Generator Engine Trip Testing:

Trips we test onboard are:

1. Engine overspeed
a. There are normally two overspeed sensors fitted onto a generator. The
reading from one will trigger a trip at 113% while the other will trip at 115%
the rated speed.
b. To activate the first alarm you have to manually increase the speed via
governor until the generator trips.
c. Before testing the second limit trip you have to disconnect the first sensor
and increase the speed to trigger the trip.
d. Alternatively – there will normally be a test button in the control system for
the generator – this is a digital simulation.
2. Both Tacho Fail
a. Engine must be running.
b. Disconnect the tacho sensors one after the other – when both are
disconnected the generator will shut down
3. Engine HT Trip
a. Tested by removing the HT trip thermostat and placing it in a dry block
temperature calibrator.
b. The temperature of the calibrator is gradually increased until it reaches the
trip temperature at which moment the engine will shut down.
c. Normally 95 Degrees
4. Engine LO Low Trip
a. Tested using a pressure calibration pump.
b. Can be tested by running the generator with the pressure calibration tool
connected to the pressure switch chamber via check valve.
c. While the generator is on standby – connect the calibration pump and purge
it.
d. Close the bleed valve and start the generator.
e. Isolate the sensor chamber from the system when the generator is running
at rated speed.
f. Bleed the oil from the calibration pump by opening the bleed valves –
monitor the drop in pressure and if the sensor functions correctly the engine
will trip at the prescribed pressure.
g. Normally 3 Bar
5. Engine Oil Mist Alarm
a. Tested by feeding simulation smoke into the detector via testing check valve
b. Detector system must trip the engine – normally test to be carried out for all
detectors.
6. Emergency Stop
a. Emergency stop can me local on the engine
b. From local panel near generator
c. From ACB
d. From ER Control Console
5. Shaft Generators
Overview

 Function:
 Use the main engine as the prime mover to generate electrical power,
reducing the need for diesel generator operation during long voyages, saving
fuel, and reducing engine room noise.

Types of Shaft Generators

 Conventional Type
 FPP system – Shaft gen can be engaged only in full speed.
 CPP system – Shaft generator can be connected regardless of propeller
pitch.
 Output from the Shaft Generator is directly connected to Bus Bars.
 Designed frequency range 59 – 61 Hz (CPP) and 55 – 61 Hz (FPP)
 Rough sea tolerance +/- 2Hz – Cannot be used in very rough seas

 Constant Frequency Type

 If the frequency variation is unacceptable, the generator can be either direct
or gear coupled to the M/E.
 First AC is generated (varying frequency) then rectified to DC, and then
inverted back to fixed frequency AC.
 Thyristor Inverter system
 Motor Generator system

 Synchronous Compensator/Condenser
 The Rectifier / Inverter unit of a shaft generator cannot supply Reactive
Power for the ship’s system.
 This is provided by a large synchronous motor, or an auxiliary generator
declutched from its engine and running as a motor.
 This synchronous compensator is run on no load at a leading power factor
and operates as a PF correction component.
 The shaft generator provides the kWs at unity PF and the Compensator
provides the kVArs.

 Various Features
 A DC link inductor coil is inserted between rectifier and inverter
 smooths the normal current flow
 Acts as a current limiter in the event of a short circuit.
 Most systems can provide full power output down to 75% or 80% of rated
speed and reduced power down to approximately 50% rated speed.