SYNCHRONOUS MOTOR

Instructor:
Prof. Dr. Md. Mortuza Ali
Contact:
01717137863
mmali.classroom@gmail.com
Office:
EEE Dept., RUET
Under excited, over excited
Power factor correction
Sync capacitor or condenser
Damper winding theory
Hunting effect (Thereja 38.20)
Magnetic phasor diagram
V curve
Procedure of motor starting by using damper winding
 Synchronous Motor

A synchronous motor is physically same as a generator, except the direction

of real power flow is reversed.

Synchronous motors are used to convert electric energy to mechanical energy.

Synchronous motors are used in generating stations and in substations connected

to the bus bars to improve the power factor. For this purpose they are run without
mechanical load on them and in over-excited condition.
Because of the higher efficiency compared to induction motors they can be
employed for loads which require constant speeds. Some of the typical
applications of high speed synchronous motors are such drives as fans, blowers,
dc generators, line shafts, centrifugal pumps, compressors, reciprocating pumps,
rubber and paper mills.

Synchronous motors are used to regulate the voltage at the end of transmission lines.

In textile and paper industries synchronous motors are employed to attain wide range
of speeds with variable frequency drive system.
 Synchronous motors-Principle of Operation
The field current IF of the motor produces a rotor magnet marked as N-S and a 3-
phase voltages applied to the stator produces a rotating magnetic magnet, named
as NS-SS, at stator which rotates at synchronous speed. The stator magnet takes T/2
sec to change its direction w.r.t rotor magnet.
The rotor magnet chases the rotating stator magnet, however, rotor cannot move
instantaneously due to its inertia. In the mean time stator magnet would quickly
change its polarity, so that the force between the fields change from attraction to
repulsion or vice versa in T/2 sec. The rotor thus continues to be stationary.
If, however, if the rotor is brought to near synchronous speed by some means, the
rotor poles get locked to unlike stator poles and the motor continues to run at the
synchronous speed.
 Starting synchronous motors
Three basic approaches can be used to safely start a synchronous motor:
1. Reduce the speed of the stator magnetic field to a low enough value that the
rotor can accelerate and two magnetic fields lock in during one half-cycle of
field rotation. This can be achieved by reducing the frequency of the applied
electric power.
2. Use an external prime mover to accelerate the synchronous motor up to
synchronous speed, go through the paralleling procedure, and bring the
machine on the line as a generator. Next, turning off the prime mover will
make the synchronous machine a motor.
3. Use damper windings or amortisseur windings – the most popular.
 Motor starting by amortisseur or damper windings
Amortisseur (damper) windings are special bars laid into notches
carved in the rotor face and then shorted out on each end by a large
shorting ring.
At the starting 3-phase voltage is applied to the stator winding and the rotor field is
left unexcited. Motor runs as a squirrel cage IM and while it reaches nearly 95% of
synchronous speed, the rotor field is excited. At this moment, the stator pole and
its opposite rotor pole get interlocked with each other and thus pull the rotor into
synchronous.

One problem is found in this starting procedure: a very high voltage is found to induce
in the rotor, at starting, by the rotating stator field. However, it can overcome by using
Low stator voltage at the starting using an autotransformer.

Once the two fields are interlocked, IM action stopped and the motor will run as a
synchronous motor.
 Synchronous motor equivalent circuit
A synchronous motor has the same equivalent circuit as synchronous generator,
except that the direction of power flow (and the direction of IA) is reversed. Per-
phase circuit is shown:

V  EA  jX S I A  RA I A

EA  V  jX S I A  RA I A
 Synchronous motor-Phasor diagram
Phasor diagram of a syn. motor for RA<<Xs operating at no load:

BR
Bnet
jIAXS
V
EA

IA

BS
 Synchronous motor-Phasor diagram
Phasor diagram of a syn. motor for RA<<Xs operating at lagging pf:

EAsin=XSIAcos
 Steady-state operation of motor
Input power to the motor converted into mechanical power:
3V E A sin 
 m m  3V I A cos  
Xs
3V E A sin  3V E A
 m    max 
m X s m X s

Normal full-load torques are much less than that (usually, about 3 times
smaller).

When the torque on the shaft of a synchronous motor exceeds the

maximum or pullout torque, the rotor can no longer remain locked to the
stator and it stops to work.
Effect of change in shaft load
 Effect of change in shaft load
(Explained from mechanical side)
Assuming that a synchronous motor operates initially with a lagging PF. The
supply voltage V and the field current and hence the back emf EA are
assumed constants.
Since the speed of the synchronous motor is constant its torque msin. If the
shaft load is increased, the rotor falls back so that  is increased. If the excitation is
not changed, increasing the shaft load causes the locus of EA phasor to follow a
circular path, thereby increasing IAXA with increasing shaft load. As the new IAXA
must be perpendicular to the new IA phasor, an increase in shaft load causes a
decrease in , resulting in an increase in PF.
If load is further increased, the torque angle  will be increased more and finally
the rotor fails to lock with stator field, i.e., motor will stop rotating.
 Effect of change in shaft load
(Explained from electrical side)
Assuming that a synchronous motor operates initially with a lagging PF
represented by the thick phasors.
The effect of increasing the shaft load to twice its initial value are represented by
the light lines. These are drawn in accordance to PIAcos and PEAsin. When
the shaft load is increased, both IAcos and EAsin are increased. If the excitation
is not changed, increasing the shaft load causes the locus of EA phasor to follow a
circular path, thereby increasing its torque angle  with increasing shaft load. As
the new IAXS must be perpendicular to the new IA phasor, an increase in shaft load
causes a decrease in , resulting in an increase in PF.
If load is further increased, the torque angle  will be increased more and finally
the rotor fails to lock with stator field, i.e., motor will stop rotating.
Effect of field current changes
 Effect of field current changes

Constant load requires the locus of the tip of EA phasor is a straight line parallel to
the supply voltage V and the locus of the tip of IA phasor is a line perpendicular to
the V phasor.

Notice that as EA increases with the increase in field current, the magnitude of the
armature current IA first decreases and then increases again. At low EA, the
armature current is lagging and the motor is an inductive load that consumes
reactive power Q. As the field current increases , IA eventually lines up with V,
and the motor is purely resistive. As the field current further increases, IA becomes
leading and the motor is a capacitive load that supplies reactive power Q to the
system (consumes –Q).
 Effect of field current changes
When the projection of the phasor EA onto
V (EAcos) is shorter than V, a
synchronous motor has a lagging current
and consumes Q. Since the field current is
small in this situation, the motor is said to
be under-excited.
When the projection of the phasor EA
onto V (EAcos) is longer than V, a
synchronous motor has a leading
current and supplies Q to the system.
Since the field current is large in this
situation, the motor is sais to be over-
excited.
 Effect of field current changes (V-Curve)
A plot of armature current vs. field current is
called a synchronous motor V curve. V curves for
different levels of real power have their minimum
at unity PF, when only real power is supplied to
the motor. For field currents less than the one
giving the minimum IA, the armature current is
lagging and the motor consumes reactive power.
For field currents greater than the one giving the
minimum IA, the armature current is leading and
the motor supplies reactive power to the system.

Therefore, by controlling the field current of a synchronous motor, the

reactive power consumed or supplied to the power system can be
controlled.
 IA IA
  V

 jIAXS jIAXS

IIAA
EA1
EA2
IAcos
 Steady-state operation of motor: power factor
correction
Assuming that a load contains a
synchronous motor (whose PF can
be adjusted) in addition to motors of
other types. What does the ability to
set the PF of one of the loads do for
the power system?

Let us consider a large power system operating at 480 V. Load 1 is an induction motor
consuming 100 kW at 0.78 PF lagging, and load 2 is an induction motor consuming 200 kW at
0.8 PF lagging. Load 3 is a synchronous motor whose real power consumption is 150 kW.
a. If the synchronous motor is adjusted to 0.85 PF lagging, what is the line current?
b. If the synchronous motor is adjusted to 0.85 PF leading, what is the line current?
c. Assuming that the line losses are PLL = 3IL2RL, how do these losses compare in the two
cases?
 Power factor correction P=VI cos
a. The real power of load 1 is 100 kW, and the reactive power of load 1 is Q=VI sin
Q1  P1 tan   100 tan  cos 1 0.78   80.2kVAR

The real power of load 2 is 200 kW, and the reactive power of load 2 is
Q2  P2 tan   200 tan  cos 1 0.8   150kVAR

The real power of load 3 is 150 kW, and the reactive power of load 3 is
Q3  P3 tan   150 tan  cos 1 0.85   93kVAR

The total real load is Ptot  P1  P2  P3  100  200  150450kW

The total reactive load is Qtot  Q1  Q2  Q3  80.2  150  93kVAR

 Power factor correction

The total real load is Ptot  P1  P2  P3  100  200  150450kW

The total reactive load is Qtot  Q1  Q2  Q3  80.2  150  93kVAR

The equivalent system PF is

 Q  1 323.2 
PF  cos   cos  tan 1   cos  tan   0.812lagging
 P  450 

Ptot 450000
The line current is IL    667 A
3VL cos  3  480  0.812
 Steady-state operation of motor: power factor
correction
b. The real and reactive powers of loads 1 and 2 are the same. The reactive power
of load 3 is
Q3  P3 tan   150 tan   cos 1 0.85   93kVAR

The total real load is Ptot  P1  P2  P3  100  200  150450kW

The total reactive load is Qtot  Q1  Q2  Q3  80.2  150  93kVAR

 Power factor correction

The equivalent system PF is

 Q  1 137.2 
PF  cos   cos  tan 1   cos  tan   0.957lagging
 P   450 

The line current is Ptot 450000

IL    566 A
3VL cos  3  480  0.957
 Power factor correction

c. The transmission line losses in the first case are

PLL  3I L2 RL  1344700RL

The transmission line losses in the second case are

PLL  3I L2 RL  96170RL

We notice that the transmission power losses are 28.53% less in the
second case, while the real power supplied to the loads is the same.
 Generator vs motor: Distinguishing Feature

1. The distinguishing characteristic of a synchronous

generator (supplying P) is that EA lies ahead of V while for
a motor EA lies behind V.

2. The distinguishing characteristic of a synchronous machine

supplying Q is that EA cos  > V regardless of whether the
machine is acting as a generator or as a motor. The
machine that is consuming reactive power Q has EA cos 
< V.