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Objectives:

 To learn about voltage regulation of synchronous generator

 To learn about field voltage vs induced voltage.

Equipment:
 EMS Trainer
 Lab-Volt 8134 Transformer Trainer

Discussion:

Synchronous Generator:

“A synchronous generator is a synchronous machine which converts

mechanical power into AC electric power through the process of
electromagnetic induction.”

Synchronous generators are also referred to as alternators or AC generators. The

term "alternator" is used since it produces AC power. It is called synchronous
generator because it must be driven at synchronous speed to produce AC power of
the desired frequency. A synchronous generator can be either single-phase or
poly-phase (generally 3phase).

Construction of Synchronous Generator:

 Stator – The stator is the stationary part of the alternator. It carries the
armature winding in which the voltage is generated. The output of the
alternator is taken from the stator.

 Rotor – The rotor is the rotating part of the alternator. The rotor produces
the main field flux.

Stator Construction:

The stator frame may be made up of cast iron for small-size machines and
of welded steel for large-size machines. The stator core is assembled with
high-grade silicon content steel laminations. These silicon steel
laminations reduce the hysteresis and eddy-current losses in the stator
core. The slots are cut on the inner periphery of the stator core. A 3-phase
armature winding is put in these slots. The armature winding of the
alternator is star connected. The winding of each phase is distributed over
several slots. When current flows through the distributed armature
winding, it produces an essential sinusoidal space distribution of EMF.
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Figure 1:Stator

Rotor Construction:

The rotor of the alternator carries the field winding which is supplied with
direct current through two slip rings by a separate DC source (also called
exciter). The exciter is generally a small DC shunt generator mounted on
the shaft of the alternator.

For the alternator, there are two types of rotor constructions that are used
viz. the salient-pole type and the cylindrical rotor type.

Salient Pole Rotor:

The term salient means projecting. Hence, a salient pole rotor consists of poles
projecting out from the surface of the rotor core. This whole arrangement is fixed
to the shaft of the alternator as shown in the figure. The individual field pole
windings are connected in series such that when the field winding is energized by
the DC exciter, the adjacent poles have opposite polarities.

The salient pole type rotor is used in the low and medium speed (from 120 to 400
RPM) alternators such as those driven by the diesel engines or water turbines
because of the following reasons:

 The construction of salient pole type rotor cannot be made strong enough
to withstand the mechanical stresses to which they may be subjected at
higher speed.

 If the salient field pole type rotor is driven at high speed, then it would
cause windage loss and would tend to produce noise.

Low speed rotors of the alternators possess a large diameter to provide the
necessary space for the poles. As a result, the salient pole type rotors have large
diameter and short axial length.

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Figure 2: Salient Pole Rotor

Cylindrical Rotor:

The cylindrical rotors are made from solid forgings of high-grade nickel-chrome-
molybdenum steel. The construction of the cylindrical rotor is such that there are
no-physical poles to be seen as in the salient pole rotor. In about two-thirds of the
outer periphery of the cylindrical rotor, slots are cut at regular intervals and
parallel to the rotor shaft. The field windings are placed in these slots and are
excited by DC supply. The field winding is of distributed type. The unslotted
portion of the rotor forms the pole faces. It is clear from the figure of the
cylindrical rotor that the poles formed are non-salient, i.e., they do not project out
from the rotor surface.

Figure 3: Cylindrical Rotor

The cylindrical type of rotor construction is used in the high-speed (1500 to 3000
RPM) alternators such as those driven by steam turbines because of the following
reasons −

 The cylindrical type of rotor construction provides a greater mechanical

strength and permits more accurate dynamic balancing.

 It gives noiseless operation at high speeds because of the uniform air gap.
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 The flux distribution around the periphery of the rotor is nearly a sine
wave and hence a better EMF waveform is obtained.

A cylindrical rotor alternator has a comparatively small diameter and long axial
length. Cylindrical rotor alternators are called turbo-alternators or
turbogenerators. The alternator with cylindrical rotor always has horizontal
configuration installation.

Working Principle and Operation of Alternator:

A synchronous generator works on the principle of electromagnetic induction, i.e.,

when the flux linking a conductor changes, an EMF is induced in the conductor.
When the armature winding of alternator subjected to the rotating magnetic field,
the voltage will be generated in the armature winding.

When the rotor field winding of the alternator is energized from the DC exciter,
the alternate N and S poles are developed on the rotor. When the rotor is rotated
in the anticlockwise direction by a prime mover, the armature conductors placed
on the stator are cut by the magnetic field of the rotor poles. As a result, the EMF
is induced in the armature conductors due to electromagnetic induction. This
induced EMF is alternating one because the N and S poles of the rotor pass the
armature conductors alternatively.

The direction of the generated EMF can be determined by the Fleming’s right rule
and the frequency of it is given by,
N s∗P
f=
120
Where:

 N s is the synchronous speed.

 P is the number of rotor poles.

The magnitude of the generated voltage depends upon the speed of rotation of the
rotor and the DC field excitation current. For the balanced condition, the
generated voltage in each phase of the winding is the same but differs in phase by
120° electrical.

Field Voltage vs Generated Voltage:

The Internal Generated Voltage of a Synchronous Generator Voltage induced is

dependent upon flux and speed of rotation, hence from what we have learnt so far,

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the induced voltage can be found as follows: E a √ 2 N f , For simplicity, it may be

simplified to as follows:
Ea K

Increasing the field current or field voltage of a synchronous generator has a

direct impact on the generated voltage. As mentioned in the given context, the
induced voltage in a synchronous generator is dependent on flux and speed of
rotation. By increasing the field current or field voltage, the flux produced by the
rotor's magnetic field is strengthened. This increase in the flux, in turn, leads to a
higher induced voltage being generated in the armature winding of the stator. The
relationship between the generated voltage and field current or field voltage can
be described by the simplified equation given in the context: E a K . Therefore, by
increasing the field current or field voltage, the value of the constant K in this
equation remains the same, but the magnitude of the induced voltage Eₐ increases.

Voltage Regulation of Synchronous Generator:

The voltage regulation of an alternator or synchronous generator is defined as the

rise in the terminal voltage when the load is decreased from full-load rated value
to zero. The speed and field current of the alternator remain constant.

In other words, the voltage regulation of the alternator can be defined as the
change in terminal voltage from no-load to full load rated value divided by the
full-load rated voltage, i.e.
E a−V
VR %= ∗100 %
V

 𝐸𝑎 is the magnitude of generated voltage (or no-load voltage) per phase.

 𝑉 is the magnitude of full load rated terminal voltage per phase.

The voltage regulation is like the figure-of-merit of an alternator. The smaller the
value of the voltage regulation of a synchronous generator or alternator, the better
the performance of the alternator. For an ideal alternator, the value of the voltage
regulation is zero.

The voltage regulation of an alternator depends upon the power factor of the load,
i.e.,

 An alternator operating at a unity power factor has a small positive voltage

regulation.

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 An alternator operating at a lagging power factor has a large positive

voltage regulation.

 An alternator operating at lower leading power factors, the voltage rises

with increase of the load and hence, the voltage regulation is negative.

For a certain leading power factor, the full-load voltage regulation is zero. In this
case, both the full-load and no-load terminal voltages are the same.

Experiment:
Field Voltage vs Generated Voltage
Procedure:

 Adjust the Speed to 1500 RPM

 Now change the Voltage of the field by adjusting the knob on variable
power supply in interval and record the results.

Results:

Knob Field Generated

Position Voltage Voltage

0 0.350V 6.676V
10 24.00V 30.12V
20 58.00V 59.95V
30 84.55V 87.32V
40 110.7V 111.01V
50 136.0V 132.05V
60 161.0V 151.10V
70 187.0V 169.10V
80 214.0V 185.22V
90 241.0V 199.31V
100 272.0V 212.20V

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Figure 4: Field Voltage vs Generated Voltage

Voltage Regulation
Procedure:

 Adjust the exciting current IF of the synchronous generator so that the open-
circuit voltage E = 208V.

 Adjust the speed to 1510 RPM.

 While keeping the speed and the current I F constant, vary the resistive load
and record your results. Be sure to keep the load resistance balanced so that
all phases are equally loaded.

 Repeat the above procedure using an inductive load in place of the resistance
and record the results.

 Repeat the above procedure using a capacitive load and record the results.

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Results:

Load Type Equivalent No Load Full Load Voltage

Load Voltage Voltage Regulation
Resistive 628.5Ω 208.0V 182V 14.20%
Load
Capacitive 5.06µF 208.0V 248V -16.12%
Load
Inductive 2.00H 208.0V 168V 23.80%
Load

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the field current or field voltage of a synchronous generator plays a crucial
role in determining the generated voltage. Increasing the field current or field voltage
strengthens the flux produced by the rotor, resulting in a higher induced voltage in the
stator winding. This relationship is captured by the simplified equation, where the
constant K remains the same, and the magnitude of the induced voltage increases.

Voltage regulation, on the other hand, is a measure of how the terminal voltage of a
synchronous generator changes as the load varies. It is affected by factors such as power
factor and load conditions. A smaller voltage regulation indicates better performance, and
an ideal alternator has a voltage regulation of zero.

The experiment with field voltage vs. generated voltage demonstrates that increasing the
field voltage results in a corresponding increase in the generated voltage. The relationship
between field voltage and generated voltage can be observed in the results recorded.

Additionally, the experiment on voltage regulation shows how the terminal voltage of the
generator changes with different loads, including resistive, inductive, and capacitive
loads. The results highlight the voltage regulation percentages for each load type.

Overall, understanding the relationship between field current, field voltage, and generated
voltage, as well as the concept of voltage regulation, is important in analyzing and
optimizing the performance of synchronous generators.

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