NAME: EVANSON THAIRU KAMAU
REG NO: CPE/3111/24
DEPMNT: CHEMICAL AND PROCESSING ENGINEERING
COURSE TITLE : ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
COURSE CODE: ECE 220
DATE: 30/06/25
SIGN:
INTRODUCTION
The DC series motor is widely used in applications requiring high starting
torque, such as traction and cranes. Its unique designwhere the field coils are
in series with the armature, results in a speed that inversely varies with the
applied load. This experiment seeks to characterize the operational
performance of a DC series motor.
OVERVIEW
This investigation will focus on measuring key performance parameters of the
DC series motor (Assembly 18) under various load conditions. We will explore
its torque-speed characteristics, confirming that torque is proportional to flux
and current, and speed is inversely proportional to flux. Crucially, the
experiment will also observe the motor's behavior at no-load, emphasizing the
safety limit of 30V to prevent potentially dangerous "run-away" speeds.
COMPONENTS REQUIRED
1- Base unit
2- 1 - Commutator/Slipring
2 - Brushes and brushholders
2 - L9 coils
2 – L3 coils
2 - L2 coils
2 - Field poles
1 - Rotor core
4 - Rotor poles
Supplies and Instruments
0-20V, 5A, DC supply for no-load tests, or operationY
0-100V, 5A, DC supply for load tests
0-150V, DC Voltmeter
0-5A, DC Ammeter
Band brake or other dynamometer: 0-1 Newton-metres at 1500rev/min
Hand Tachometer: 0-3000rev/min
PROCEDURE
Fix the armature and commutator to the shaft as shown in Basic
Assembly 1 of Section 2 and fit the shaft into its bearings. Before finally
tightening the screws holding the bearing housing to the baseplate
check that the shaft rotates freely and not axially against the pre-loading
washer.
Fit the L9 coils to the field poles and the poles to the barrel ring at the 3
o'clock and 9 o'clock positions.
Fit the brushes into their holders and attach these to the mounting block
positions on each side of the commutator. The brushes should move
freely in their holders under the action of the brush springs.
Make the connections shown in the wiring diagram fig 3, and if the
motor is to be run with no mechanical load, ensure that the supply
voltage is set to less than 30V.
If a band brake or other loading device is being used, fasten its frame to
the baseplate and adjust it to give zero load initially. Instructions for
mounting the Power Brake PB184 are given in Item 7 of the Basic
Assembly Instructions in Section
Motor unloaded
Switch on the d.c power supply. With an applied voltage of 15V, the
shaft speed on no-load will be approximately 900rev/min and the input
current 0.6 amp.
Motor on load
With no shaft load applied switch on the power supply to the motor and
adjust to 30 volts. The motor will have no tendency to race at this
voltage, but before taking any further increase apply a load to the drive
shaft.
Increase the applied voltage to 50V and maintain at this level
throughout the test. Take readings of armature current and shaft speed
for set values of brake load. Use these to plot the Speed/Torque and
Armature current/Torque characteristics. Typical characteristic curves
are given in fig 4.
OBSERVATION
Based on the experimental data, it was observed that while the supply voltage
was maintained constant at 50V, an increase in the applied mechanical torque
from 0.1 Nm to 0.6 Nm directly corresponded to a rise in the motor's current
draw from 1.2 A to 2.8 A. Concurrently, this increase in torque resulted in a
significant decrease in the motor's speed, dropping from 900 RPM at the
lowest load to 400 RPM at the highest, clearly illustrating the inverse
relationship between speed and load, and the direct relationship between
current and load, characteristic of a DC series motor.
RESULTS
Torque Voltage (v) Current (I) Speed
0.1 50 1.2 900
0.2 50 1.6 800
0.3 50 1.8 700
0.4 50 2.0 600
0.5 50 2.2 500
0.6 50 2.8 400
QUESTIONS
Q.1 Why is it necessary to keep the supply voltage constant at 50V during the
test?
Keeping the supply voltage constant at 50V isolates the effect of varying mechanical load on
the DC series motor's performance. This ensures that changes in speed and current are solely
due to the load, allowing for a clear and accurate characterization of the motor's inherent
speed-torque and current-torque relationships.
For each value of torque in your results, calculate the output power as
2 PINT
60
watts and the input power as VIa watts. Hence find the efficiency =
OUTPUT POWER
×100%
INPUT POWER
Torque Torque Current Speed Input Output Efficiency
power power (%)
0.1 0.1 1.2 900 60 9.42 15.71
0.2 0.2 1.6 800 80 16.76 20.94
0.3 0.3 1.8 700 90 21.99 24.43
0.4 0.4 2.0 600 100 25.13 25.13
0.5 0.5 2.2 500 110 26.18 23.80
0.6 0.6 2.8 400 140 25.13 17.95
Plot output power and efficiency versus torque on your graph.
A graph of output power and efficiency versus
torque on your graph.
30 30
25 25
20 20
Output power
Efficiency (%)
15 15
10 10
5 5
0 0
1 2 3 4 5 6
Torque*10^-1
Output power Efficiency (%)
Q.2 What is the maximum output horsepower (1 hp=746W) and at what
armature current does it occur?
To find the maximum output power, we first calculate the output power in watts for each data
point using the formula Pout=602πNT.
At T = 0.6 Nm and N = 400 RPM, the output power is:Pout=602π×400×0.6=25.13 W
This is the maximum output power recorded in the provided data set.
Now, we convert this value to horsepower:
Maximum Power (hp) = 746 W/hp25.13 W=0.034 hp
From the results table, the armature current corresponding to this maximum output power is
2.8 A.
Therefore, the maximum output horsepower is approximately 0.034 hp, and it occurs at an
armature current of 2.8 A.
Q.3 a) What is the maximum efficiency achieved? If you have studied the shunt
motor of Assembly 12, compare the maximum efficiencies of the two.
Based on the calculations from the provided data, the maximum efficiency achieved by the
DC series motor is approximately 25.13%, occurring at a torque of 0.4 Nm.
b) Which is greater?
A shunt motor will exhibit a higher maximum efficiency than a series motor, especially when
operating at or near its rated load.
c) Can you explain the difference qualitatively?
Shunt motors generally achieve higher maximum efficiencies because their field flux is
nearly constant, leading to more stable operation and more predictable losses. In contrast,
series motors have a highly variable field flux dependent on armature current. This causes
significant losses in both the armature and series field windings to rise sharply with load,
limiting their peak efficiency and making them less efficient over a broad operating range
compared to shunt motors.
Q.4 At what speed would you expect the motor to run, if ALL load were
removed?
If all mechanical load were removed from a DC series motor while it is operating at its
typical supply voltage , you would theoretically expect its speed to increase to an extremely
high, potentially infinite, and dangerous "run-away" speed.