Chapter 11

Balanced Three-Phase
Circuits

11.1-2 Three-Phase Systems

11.3 Analysis of the Y-Y Circuit
11.4 Analysis of the Y- Circuit
11.5 Power Calculations in Balanced
Three-Phase Circuits
11.6 Measuring Average Power in Three-
Phase Circuits

1
Overview
 An electric power distribution system looks like:

where the power transmission uses “balanced

three-phase” configuration.
2
Why three-phase?

 Three-phase generators can be driven by

constant force or torque (to be discussed).

 Industrial applications, such as high-power

motors, welding equipments, have constant
power output if they are three-phase systems
(to be discussed).

3
Key points

 What is a three-phase circuit (source, line, load)?

 Why a balanced three-phase circuit can be

analyzed by an equivalent one-phase circuit?

 How to get all the unknowns (e.g. line voltage of

the load) by the result of one-phase circuit
analysis?

 Why the total instantaneous power of a

balanced three-phase circuit is a constant?
4
Section 11.1, 11.2
Three-Phase Systems

1. Three-phase sources
2. Three-phase systems

5
One-phase voltage sources

 One-phase ac generator: static magnets, one

rotating coil, single output voltage v(t)=Vmcost.

(www.ac-motors.us)

6
Three-phase voltage sources

 Three static coils,

rotating magnets,
three output voltages
va(t), vb(t), vc(t).

7
Ideal Y- and -connected voltage sources

Neutral

8
Real Y- and -connected voltage sources

 Internal impedance of a generator is usually

inductive (due to the use of coils).

9
Balanced three-phase voltages

 Three sinusoidal voltages of the same

amplitude, frequency, but differing by 120
phase difference with one another.
 There are two possible sequences:
1. abc (positive) sequence: vb(t) lags va(t) by 120.
2. acb (negative) sequence: vb(t) leads va(t) by
120.

10
abc sequence

 vb(t) lags va(t) by 120 or T/3.

 Va  Vm0 , Vb  Vm  120 , Vc  Vm  120.

11
Three-phase systems

(Y or ) (Y or )

 Source-load can be connected in four

configurations: Y-Y, Y-, -Y, -
 It’s sufficient to analyze Y-Y, while the others
can be treated by -Y and Y- transformations.
12
Section 11.3
Analysis of the Y-Y Circuit

1. Equivalent one-phase circuit for

balanced Y-Y circuit
2. Line currents, phase and line voltages

13
General Y-Y circuit model

The only
Ref. essential
node.

14
Unknowns to be solved
 Line (line-to-line) Line current

voltage: voltage
Line voltage Phase
across any pair of current
lines.
 Phase (line-to-
neutral) voltage:
voltage across a
Phase voltage
single phase.

 For Y-connected load, line current equals phase

current.
15
Solution to general three-phase circuit

 No matter it’s balanced or imbalanced three-

phase circuit, KCL leads to one equation:
I 0  I aA  I bB  I cC , 
VN Van  VN Vbn  VN Vcn  VN
    (1),
Z 0 Z ga  Z1a  Z A Z gb  Z1b  Z B Z gc  Z1c  Z C

Impedance Total Total Total

of neutral impedance impedance impedance
line. along line aA. along line bB. along line cC.

which is sufficient to solve VN (thus the entire

circuit).
16
Solution to “balanced” three-phase circuit

 For balanced three-phase circuits,

1. {Va'n, Vb'n, Vc'n} have equal magnitude and 120
relative phases;
2. {Zga = Zgb = Zgc}, {Z1a = Z1b = Z1c}, {ZA = ZB = ZC};
 total impedance along any line is the same
Zga + Z1a + ZA =… = Z.
VN Van  VN Vbn  VN Vcn  VN
 Eq. (1) becomes:    ,
Z0 Z Z Z
 1 3  Van  Vbn  Vcn
 VN      0, VN  0.
Z Z  Z
 0  
17
Meaning of the solution
 VN = 0 means no voltage difference between
nodes n and N in the presence of Z0.  Neutral
line is both short (v = 0) and open (i = 0).
 The three-phase circuit can be separated into 3
one-phase circuits (open), while each of them
has a short between nodes n and N.

18
Equivalent one-phase circuit

Phase Phase
voltage voltage
Line current
of source of load

Inn = 0  IaA

 Directly giving the line current & phase voltages:

Van  VN
I aA  , VAN  I aA Z A , Van  I aA Z1a  Z A .
Z ga  Z1a  Z A   Z
 Unknowns of phases b, c can be determined by
the fixed (abc or acb) sequence relation.
19
The 3 line and phase currents in abc sequence

 Given I aA  Van Z , the other 2 line currents are:

Vbn Vcn
I bB   I aA  120 , I cC   I aA120 ,
Z Z
which still
follow the abc
sequence
relation.
I cC
I aA

I bB
20
The phase & line voltages of the load in abc seq.

ZA ZB
VAN  Van , VBN  Vbn  VAN   120 , VCN  VAN 120.
Z Z
Line
VAB  VAN  VBN (abc sequence) voltage

 VAN  VAN   120 

 3VAN   30 ,
VBC  VAN   120   VAN   120  Phase
voltage
 3VAN   90 ,
VCA  VAN   120   VAN
 3VAN   150.
21
The phase & line voltages of the load in acb seq.

VAB  VAN  VBN (acb

 VAN  VAN   120 

sequence)

 3VAN   30 ,
VBC  VAN   120   VAN   120 
Phase
voltage

 3VAN   90 ,
VCA  VAN   120   VAN Line
 3VAN   150. voltage

 Line voltages are 3 times bigger, leading (abc)

or lagging (acb) the phase voltages by 30.
22
Example 11.1 (1)

 Q: What are the line currents, phase and line

voltages of the load and source, respectively?

Zga Z1a

Phase voltages ZA
(abc sequence)

Z = Zga + Z1a + ZA = 40 + j30 .

23
Example 11.1 (2)

 The 3 line currents (of both load & source) are:

1200
 2.4  36.87  A,
Van
I aA  
Z ga  Z1a  Z A 40  j 30
I bB  I aA  120  2.4  156.87  A,
I cC  I aA  120  2.4  83.13  A.

 The 3 phase voltages of the load are:

VAN  I aA Z A  2.4  36.87 39  j 28  115.22  1.19  V.
VBN  VAN   120  115.22  121.19  V,
VCN  VAN   120  115.22  118.81  V.
24
Example 11.1 (3)

 The 3 line voltages of the load are:

VAB  
330 VAN
 330 115.22  1.19 
 

 199.58  28.81  V,
VBC  VAB  120
 199.58  91.19  V,
VCA  VAB  120
 199.58  148.81  V.

25
Example 11.1 (4)
 The 3 phase voltages of the source are:
Van  Va n  I aA Z ga  120  2.4  36.87  0.2  j 0.5
 118 .9  0.32   V,
Vbn  Van   120   118 .9  120 .32   V,
Vcn  Van   120   118 .9  119 .68  V.
 The three line voltages of the source are:
Vab   
330 Van   
330 118.9  0.32 
 205.94  29.68  V,
Vbc  Vab  120  205.94  90.32  V,
Vca  Vab  120  205.94  149.68  V.
26
Section 11.4
Analysis of the Y- Circuit

27
Load in  configuration

Line current

Phase current

Line voltage =
Phase voltage

28
-Y transformation for balanced 3-phase load

 The impedance of each leg in Y-configuration

(ZY) is one-third of that in -configuration (Z):
ZbZc
Z1  ,
Za  Zb  Zc
ZcZa
Z2  ,
Za  Zb  Zc
Za Zb
Z3  .
Za  Zb  Zc

ZZ Z
 ZY   .
3Z  3
29
Equivalent one-phase circuit

 The 1-phase equivalent circuit in Y-Y config.

continues to work if ZA is replaced by Z/3:

Line current Line-to-neutral

voltage 
Phase voltage
 Line voltage

Van
directly giving the line current: I aA  ,
Z ga  Z1a  Z A
and line-to-neutral voltage: VAN  I aA Z A .
30
The 3 phase currents of the load in abc seq.

 Can be solved by 3 node equations once the 3

line currents IaA, IbB, IcC are known:
I aA  I AB  ICA , IbB  I BC  I AB , I cC  ICA  I BC .
Line current
(abc
sequence)

Phase
Phase
current
current

Line current
31
Section 11.5
Power Calculations in
Balanced Three-Phase
Circuits
1. Complex powers of one-phase and
the entire Y-Load
2. The total instantaneous power

32
Average power of balanced Y-Load

 The average power delivered to ZA is:

PA  V I cos  ,
V  VAN  VL 3 ,
 (rms value)
 I  I aA  I L ,
  V  I  Z .
    A

 The total power delivered to the Y-Load is:

Ptot  3PA  3V I cos   3VL I L cos  .
33
Complex power of a balanced Y-Load

 The reactive powers of one phase and the

entire Y-Load are:
Q  V I sin  ,

Qtot  3V I sin   3VL I L sin  .

 The complex powers of one phase and the

entire Y-Load are:
 S  P  jQ  V I e j  V I* ;
 j j
 Stot  3S  3V I e  3VL I L e .
34
One-phase instantaneous powers

 The instantaneous power of load ZA is:

p A (t )  v AN (t )iaA (t )  Vm I m cos t cos(t   ).

 The instantaneous
powers of ZA, ZC are:
(abc sequence) pB (t )  vBN (t )ibB (t )
 Vm I m cost  120 
cost    120 ,
pC (t )  Vm I m cost  120 
cost    120 .
35
Total instantaneous power

 The instantaneous power of the entire Y-Load

is a constant independent of time!
ptot (t )  p A (t )  pB (t )  pC (t )  1.5Vm I m cos 

 1.5 2V  
2 I cos   3V I cos  .

 The torque developed at the shaft of a 3-phase

motor is constant,  less vibration in
machinery powered by 3-phase motors.
 The torque required to empower a 3-phase
generator is constant,  need steady input.
36
Example 11.5 (1)

 Q: What are the complex powers provided by

the source and dissipated by the line of a-phase?
 The equivalent one-phase circuit in Y-Y
configuration is:
Z1a

S

(rms value)

37
Example 11.5 (2)

 The line current of a-phase can be calculated by

the complex power is:
S  V I , 160  j12010 
* 3 600 *
I aA ,
3
 I aA  577.35  36.87  A.


 The a-phase voltage of the source is:

Van  VAN  I aA Z1a
 600 3  577.35  36.87  0.005  j 0.025
 357.511.57  V.
38
Example 11.5 (3)

 The complex power provided by the source of a-

phase is:
San  Van I*aA  357.511.57 577.3536.87 
 206.4138.44  kVA.

 The complex power dissipated by the line of a-

phase is:
SaA  I aA Z1a  577.35 0.005  j 0.025
2 2

 8.5078.66  kVA.
39
Key points

 What is a three-phase circuit (source, line, load)?

 Why a balanced three-phase circuit can be

analyzed by an equivalent one-phase circuit?

 How to get all the unknowns (e.g. line voltage of

the load) by the result of one-phase circuit
analysis?

 Why the total instantaneous power of a

balanced three-phase circuit is a constant?
40