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10 - Chapter 3 PDF
10 - Chapter 3 PDF
Page No
3.1 Introduction 58
3.2.1 Stator 60
3.2.2 Rotor 60
3.2.5 Slip 65
3.4 Conclusion 71
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CHAPTER 3
3.1 Introduction
This chapter describes the construction, principal of operation, start up consideration
most commonly used type of motor in industrial applications. In particular, the squirrel-Cage
induction motors are widely used electric motor in home and industrial applications, because
these machines are very economical, rugged and reliable. They are available in the ranges of
Fractional Horse Power (FHP) to multi-megawatt capacity. Fractional Horse Power motors
are used most often in variable-speed drives where the torque requirement is more.
rotates because of magnetic force exerted between a stationary electromagnet called the stator
and rotating electromagnet called the rotor. The current in stator side creates an
electromagnetic field which interacts with the secondary to produce a resultant torque,
transforming electrical energy into mechanical energy. The cross sectional view of induction
motor and its various parts [4] are as shown in Fig 3.1
Construction:
In this section, the construction details of induction motor are discussed. A three
phase induction motor mainly consists of two parts, stator and rotor. Stator is the stationary
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part while the rotor is the rotating part of the motor and they are separated by a small air gap
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3.2.1 Stator
The stator is as shown in Fig 3.2, which consists of a steel frame which encloses a
hollow cylindrical core made up of thin laminations of silicon steel to reduce eddy current
and hysteresis loss. A large number of uniform slots are cut on the inner periphery of the
core. The stator conductors are placed in these slots which are insulated from one another and
also from the slots. These conductors are connected as a balanced three phase star or delta
winding. The windings are wound for a definite number of poles depending on the
requirement of speed. It is wound for more number of poles, if speed required is less and vice
Ns = 120f / P - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - (3.1)
When a three phase supply is given to stator winding a magnetic field of constant
magnitude and rotating at synchronous speed is produced. This rotating magnetic field is
mainly responsible for producing the torque in the rotor, so that it can rotate at the rated
speed.
3.2.2 Rotor
The rotor is the rotating part of the induction motor and is mounted on the shaft of the
motor to which any mechanical load can be connected. Based on the construction of the
rotor, induction motors are broadly classified in two categories; squirrel cage motors and slip
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Squirrel cage motors:
cage motor has a simple and rugged construction. Fig 3.3 shows the squirrel cage type rotor,
it consists of cylindrical laminated core with axially placed parallel slots for carrying rotor
conductors. The rotor conductors are heavy bars of copper or aluminium. Each slot carries a
copper, aluminium or alloy bar. If the slots are semi closed, then these bars are inserted from
the ends. These rotor bars are permanently short-circuited at both ends by means of the end
rings, thus short circuiting themselves at both the ends. As rotor bars are short circuited on
themselves, it is not possible to add any external resistance in series with rotor circuit during
starting. The slots are slightly skewed, which helps in two ways i.e.
It reduces noise due to magnetic hum and makes motor run quietly.
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2. Maintenance cost is low.
In the slip ring motor, the windings on the rotor are terminated to three insulated slip
rings mounted on the shaft with brushes resting on them. This allows an introduction of an
external resistor to the rotor winding. The external resistor can be used to boost the starting
torque of the motor and change the speed-torque characteristic. When running under normal
conditions, the slip rings are short-circuited, using an external metal collar, which is pushed
along the shaft to connect the rings. In normal conditions, the slip ring motor functions like a
When a three phase supply is given to the three phase stator winding, a magnetic field
magnetic field sweeps across the rotor conductors and hence an electromagnetic force (EMF)
is induced in rotor conductors. As the rotor conductors are short circuited on themselves the
induced EMF sets up a current in the rotor conductors in such a direction as to produce a
torque, which rotates the rotor in same direction as magnetic field so that relative speed
decreases. The speed of rotor gradually increases and tries to catch up with the speed of
rotating magnetic field, but it fails to reach synchronous speed, because if it catches up with
speed of magnetic field, relative speed becomes zero and hence no EMF will be induced in
the rotor conductors, the torque becomes zero. Hence, rotor will not be able to catch up with
the speed of magnetic field but rotates at a speed Nr which is slightly less than the
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3.2.4 Equivalent Circuit
The equivalent circuit [3] is as shown in Fig. 3.4. From the equivalent circuit diagram the
Since the output power is the product of developed torque T e and speed ωm, Te can be
expressed as
Te =
Te = Rr ( ) =3 ------------- (3.8)
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From the equivalent circuit, the approximate equivalent circuit can be obtained as
shown in Fig 3.5, where the core loss resistor Rm has been dropped and the magnetizing
inductance Lm has been shifted to the input. This approximation is easily justified for an
The performance prediction by the simplified circuit typically varies within 5 percent
Ir = ---------------- (3.9)
Te = 3 ---------------- (3.10)
A further simplification of the equivalent circuit of Fig 3.4 can be made by neglecting
the stator parameters Rs and Lls. This assumption is not unreasonable for an integral
horsepower machine, particularly if the speed is typically above 10 percent. Then, the
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Te = 3 ) ------------------ (3.11)
---------------- (3.12)
Te = 3 ------------------ (3.13)
3.2.5 Slip
The slip can be defined as the difference between the synchronous speed and actual
speed of the machine. It can be expressed in the percentage. Based on this slip speed, the
voltage induced in the rotor winding changes, which in turn changes the rotor current and
also the torque. As slip increases, the rotor current and the torque also increases. The rotor
moves in the same direction as that of the rotating magnetic field to reduce the induced
current (Lenz’s law). The slip can be expressed as given below [1][2]:
---------------- (3.14)
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Therefore equation 3.16 becomes,
Thus, the speed of an induction motor depends on slip ‘S’, stator frequency ‘f’ and the
From equation 3.18, the speed of IM can be varied by varying the slip ‘S’ or number
of poles ‘p’ or frequency of supply. The different methods of speed control of induction
motor can be broadly classified in to scalar and vector control methods. In this work, scalar
control methods are used. Hence only details of scalar methods are discussed here. The
explanation of vector control method is beyond the scope of this thesis. The scalar methods
Frequency control
The first three methods are the basic methods of speed control and are explained in
detail as follows:
A very simple and economical method of speed control is to vary the stator voltage at
constant supply frequency. The three-phase stator voltage at line frequency can be controlled
by controlling the switches in the inverter. As seen from the equation (3.10) the developed
torque is proportional to the square of the stator supply voltage and a reduction in stator
voltage will produce a reduction in speed. Therefore, continuous speed control may be
obtained by adjustment of the stator voltage without any alteration in the stator frequency.
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Te = 3
---------- (3.19)
The Torque speed curves with variable stator voltage [3] control are shown in Fig 3.6.
pumps, etc.
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3.3.2 Frequency control method
The torque and speed of induction motors can be controlled by changing the supply
frequency but keeping the voltage constant. If the frequency is decreased keeping voltage
constant, then saturation of air-gap flux takes place. At low frequency, the reactance will
decrease and the motor current may be too high. If the frequency is increased above its rated
value, then the air gap flux and rotor current decreases correspondingly, the developed torque
also decreases. Due to these reasons this method of control is rarely used.
The torque speed characteristics with frequency control [3] are shown in Fig.3.7.
The constant V/F control method is the most popular method of Scalar control. If an
attempt is made to reduce the supply frequency at the rated supply voltage, the air gap flux
Ψm will tend to saturate, causing excessive stator current and distortion of flux wave.
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Therefore, the region below the base or rated frequency should be accompanied by the
proportional reduction of stator voltage so as to maintain the air gap flux constant. If the ratio
of voltage to frequency is kept constant, the flux remains constant. By varying the voltage
and frequency the torque and speed can be varied. The torque is normally maintained
constant while the speed is varied. This arrangement is widely used in the locomotives and
industrial applications. The purpose of the volts hertz control scheme is to maintain the air-
gap flux of AC Induction motor constant in order to achieve higher run-time efficiency. The
magnitude of stator flux is proportional to the ratio of stator voltage & the frequency. If ratio
is kept constant the stator flux remains constant & motor torque will only depends upon slip
usually has low slip characteristics (i.e low rotor resistance), giving high efficiency. In spite
of the low inherent starting torque for base frequency operation, the machine can always be
started at maximum torque as indicated in Fig 3.8.The absence of high in-rush starting current
in a direct-start drive reduces stress and therefore improves the effective life of the machine.
Fig 3.8 shows the torque-speed characteristics [3] of the machine with constant V/F
control method.
Other than the variation in speed, the torque-speed characteristics of the V/F control
The stable operating region of the motor is increased. Instead of simply running at its
base/ rated speed (NB), the motor can be run typically from 5% of the synchronous
speed (NS) up to the base speed. The torque generated by the motor can be kept
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Since almost constant rated torque is available over the entire operating range, the
speed range of the motor becomes wider. User can set the speed as per the load
One of the most advantages is soft start capability in which motors are ramped up to
speed instead of being abruptly thrown on line. This useful feature reduces
mechanical stresses on the motor and leads to lower maintenance cost as well as a
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3.4 Conclusion
The construction, different parts of induction motor i.e stator and rotor, different
induction motor, the working principle, equivalent circuit of induction motor, various power
expressions, slip, the different speed control methods of induction motor and the speed v/s
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