Name of the teacher— Mrs.

Monika Sharma

Department of Physics and Electronics

Name of the course— B.Sc. (H) Physics

Semester- IV

Name of the paper—Electrical circuits and Network Skills

Paper code-32223903

Lecture Time-- Saturday (10:40 to 12:40)

Topic to be covered: Transformers and its operation

What is a transformer?

A transformer can be defined as a static device which helps in the transformation of electric
power in one circuit to electric power of the same frequency in another circuit. The voltage can
be raised or lowered in a circuit, but with a proportional increase or decrease in the current
ratings. In this article we will be learning about Transformer basics and working principle

Transformer – Working Principle

The main principle of operation of a transformer is mutual inductance between two circuits
which is linked by a common magnetic flux. A basic transformer consists of two coils that are
electrically separate and inductive, but are magnetically linked through a path of reluctance.
The working principle of the transformer can be understood from the figure below.
Transformer Working

As shown above the electrical transformer has primary and secondary windings. The core
laminations are joined in the form of strips in between the strips you can see that there are some
narrow gaps right through the cross-section of the core. These staggered joints are said to be
‘imbricated’. Both the coils have high mutual inductance. A mutual electro-motive force is
induced in the transformer from the alternating flux that is set up in the laminated core, due to
the coil that is connected to a source of alternating voltage. Most of the alternating flux
developed by this coil is linked with the other coil and thus produces the mutual induced
electro-motive force. The so produced electro-motive force can be explained with the help of
Faraday’s laws of Electromagnetic Induction as

e=M*dI/dt

If the second coil circuit is closed, a current flows in it and thus electrical energy is transferred
magnetically from the first to the second coil.

The alternating current supply is given to the first coil and hence it can be called as the primary
winding. The energy is drawn out from the second coil and thus can be called as the secondary
winding.

In short, a transformer carries the operations shown below:

1. Transfer of electric power from one circuit to another.

3. Transfer with the principle of electromagnetic induction.

4. The two electrical circuits are linked by mutual induction.

Transformer Construction

For the simple construction of a transformer, you must need two coils having mutual inductance
and a laminated steel core. The two coils are insulated from each other and from the steel core.
The device will also need some suitable container for the assembled core and windings, a
medium with which the core and its windings from its container can be insulated.

In order to insulate and to bring out the terminals of the winding from the tank, apt bushings
that are made from either porcelain or capacitor type must be used.

In all transformers that are used commercially, the core is made out of transformer sheet steel
laminations assembled to provide a continuous magnetic path with minimum of air-gap
included. The steel should have high permeability and low hysteresis loss. For this to happen,
the steel should be made of high silicon content and must also be heat treated. By effectively
laminating the core, the eddy-current losses can be reduced. The lamination can be done with
the help of a light coat of core plate varnish or lay an oxide layer on the surface. For a frequency
of 50 Hertz, the thickness of the lamination varies from 0.35mm to 0.5mm for a frequency of
25 Hertz.

Types of Transformers

Types by Design

The types of transformers differ in the manner in which the primary and secondary coils are
provided around the laminated steel core. According to the design, transformers can be
classified into two:

1. Core- Type Transformer

In core-type transformer, the windings are given to a considerable part of the core. The coils
used for this transformer are form-wound and are of cylindrical type. Such a type of transformer
can be applicable for small sized and large sized transformers. In the small sized type, the core
will be rectangular in shape and the coils used are cylindrical. The figure below shows the large
sized type. You can see that the round or cylindrical coils are wound in such a way as to fit
over a cruciform core section. In the case of circular cylindrical coils, they have a fair advantage
of having good mechanical strength. The cylindrical coils will have different layers and each
layer will be insulated from the other with the help of materials like paper, cloth, micarta board
and so on. The general arrangement of the core-type transformer with respect to the core is
shown below. Both low-voltage (LV) and high voltage (HV) windings are shown.

The low voltage windings are placed nearer to the core as it is the easiest to insulate. The
effective core area of the transformer can be reduced with the use of laminations and insulation.

2. Shell-Type Transformer

In shell-type transformers, the core surrounds a considerable portion of the windings. The
comparison is shown in the figure below.
The coils are form-wound but are multi-layer disc type usually wound in the form of pancakes.
Paper is used to insulate the different layers of the multi-layer discs. The whole winding
consists of discs stacked with insulation spaces between the coils. These insulation spaces form
the horizontal cooling and insulating ducts. Such a transformer may have the shape of a simple
rectangle or may also have a distributed form. Both designs are shown in the figure below:
A strong rigid mechanical bracing must be given to the cores and coils of the transformers.
This will help in minimizing the movement of the device and also prevents the device from
getting any insulation damage. A transformer with good bracing will not produce any humming
noise during its working and will also reduce vibration.

A special housing platform must be provided for transformers. Usually, the device is placed in
tightly-fitted sheet-metal tanks filled with special insulating oil. This oil is needed to circulate
through the device and cool the coils. It is also responsible for providing the additional
insulation for the device when it is left in the air.
There may be cases when the smooth tank surface will not be able to provide the needed cooling
area. In such cases, the sides of the tank are corrugated or assembled with radiators on the sides
of the device. The oil used for cooling purpose must be absolutely free from alkalis, sulphur
and most importantly moisture. Even a small amount of moistures in the oil will cause a
significant change in the insulating property of the device, as it lessens the dielectric strength
of the oil to a great extent.

Mathematically speaking, the presence of about 8 parts of water in 1 million reduces the
insulating quality of the oil to a value that is not considered standard for use. Thus, the tanks
are protected by sealing them air-tight in smaller units. When large transformers are used, the
airtight method is practically difficult to implement. In such cases, chambers are provided for
the oil to expand and contract as its temperature increases and decreases.

These breathers form a barrier and resist the atmospheric moisture from contact with oil.
Special care must also be taken to avoid sledging. Sledging occurs when oil decomposes due
to overexposure to oxygen during heating. It results in the formation of large deposits of dark
and heavy matter that clogs the cooling ducts in the transformer.

The quality, durability and handling of these insulating materials decide the life of the
transformer. All the transformer leads are brought out of their cases through suitable bushings.
There are many designs of these, their size and construction depending on the voltage of the
leads. Porcelain bushings may be used to insulate the leads, for transformers that are used in
moderate voltages. Oil-filled or capacitive-type bushings are used for high voltage
transformers.

The selection between the core and shell type is made by comparing the cost because similar
characteristics can be obtained from both types. Most manufacturers prefer to use shell-type
transformers for high-voltage applications or for multi-winding design. When compared to a
core type, the shell type has a longer mean length of coil turn. Other parameters that are
compared for the selection of transformer type are voltage rating, kilo-volt ampere rating,
weight, insulation stress, heat distribution and so on.

Discussion in the next lecture: Classification of transformer on different basis.