Three Phase System

Basic Principles
 Outline
• Three-Phase (3-) Circuits
– Concept
– Positive & Negative sequence
– Wye (Y) and delta () connections
– Balanced systems
– Per Phase Analysis
 Three Phase Circuit Concept
• The basic structure of a three phase system consists of voltage source,
transformers, transmission line and connected loads.

Why three phase?

 Balanced Three Phase Circuits
• The source line-to-neutral voltages are labeled Van, Vbn and Vcn
• The source is balanced when these voltages have equal magnitudes and an equal
120o –phase difference between any two phases.
• The standard practice is to name those phases by a, b and c and use phase a as
reference.
• Neutral is actually unnecessary in a balanced three-phase system (but is provided
since circumstances may change)
• If the three loads are equal (or balanced) what will the return current be in the
common neutral?

Y-Y connected system

 Positive Sequence Voltages
• The phase sequence is called positive sequence or abc
sequence when Van leads Vbn by 120o and Vbn leads Vcn by
120o.
In phasor notation we
represent the set of
balanced positive sequence
voltage as:

Van = V p 0
Reference
Vbn = V p  − 120 = V p  + 240
Vcn = V p  − 240 = V p  + 120

• Sum the phasor voltages is equal to zero

• If the phase sequence is known and one of the voltages of the balanced set
is known then the entire set becomes known.
 Negative Sequence Voltages
• The phase sequence is called negative sequence or acb
sequence when Van leads Vcn by 120o and Vcn leads Vbn by
120o.
In phasor notation we
represent the set of
balanced negative sequence
voltage as:
Van = V p 0
Reference
Vbn = V p  + 120
Vcn = V p  + 240
 Example 1
• Define the phase sequence for this first set voltages:

Solution:
• The relevant phasors are:

• Therefore the sequence is:

 Example 2
• Define the phase sequence for this second set voltages:

Solution:
• The relevant phasors are:

• Therefore the sequence is:

 Three Phase Connections
• Both the three phase source and the three phase load can be
connected either Y (Wye) or  (DELTA).
➢ We have 4 possible connection types.
• Y-Y connection
• Y-Δ connection
• Δ-Δ connection
• Δ-Y connection
➢ Balanced Δ connected load is more common.
➢ Y connected sources are more common.
Balanced Three Phase Source
Voltages have the same amplitudes and frequency.

Neutral Wire

Wye Connected Source Delta Connected Source

 Balanced Three Phase Loads
➢ A Balanced load has equal impedances on all the phases

Wye-connected load Delta-connected load

Balanced Impedance Conversion:

Conversion of Delta circuit to Wye or Wye to Delta.
ZY = Z1 = Z 2 = Z 3
Z  = Z a = Zb = Zc

1
Z = 3ZY ZY = Z 
3
 Balanced Wye-wye Connection
• A balanced Y-Y system, showing the source, line and load impedances.

Line Impedance
Source
Impedance Load
Impedance
 Balanced Wye-wye Connection
Line current In add up to zero.
Neutral current is zero:
In= -(Ia+ Ib+ Ic)= 0
Looking at Source side:
• Phase voltages are: Van, Vbn and
Vcn.
• The three conductors connected
from a to A, b to B and c to C are
called LINES
• The voltage from one line to
another is called a LINE voltage
• Line voltages are: Vab, Vbc and Vca
• Magnitude of line voltages is √3
times the magnitude of phase
voltages. VL= √3 Vp
 Balanced Wye-wye Connection

Vab lead Van by

30o and has a
magnitude of √3
times that Van

Looking at Source side:

Van = V p 0, Vbn = V p  − 120, Vcn = V p  + 120
Vab = Van + Vnb = Van − Vbn = 3V p 30
Balanced VL = 3V p 30o
Line-to-
Line
Vbc = Vbn − Vcn = 3V p  − 90
Voltages
Vca = Vcn − Van = 3V p  − 210
 Balanced Wye-wye Connection
From figure looking at Load side:
phase current:
• Line current are: Ia, Ib and Ic.
• Phase current are: IAN, IBN and ICN
• In Y connection, line current is also
the phase current:

IL = IP
VAN
Ia = = I p  −
ZY where
V VAN 0o Z Y   is the impedance phase angle
I b = BN = I p  − 120 − 
ZY VBN  − 120o
V
I c = CN = I p  − 240 −  VCN  − 240o
ZY
 Balanced Wye-delta connection
• Three phase sources are Wye connected and three phase loads are
Delta connected.
Looking at Load side:
• Line current are: Ia, Ib and Ic.
• Phase current are: IAB, IBC and ICA
• Magnitude of line current is √3 times
the magnitude of phase current IL= √3 Ip
I L = 3I P  − 30o

I AB
V
= AB
I AB = I P 0o I BC = I P  − 120o I CA =  − 240o
Z
V I a = I AB − I CA = 3I AB  − 30
I BC = BC
Z I b = I BC − I AB = 3I BC  −-150
30
VCA
I CA = I c = I CA − I BC = 3I CA −+90
30
Z
 Relationship…

Y connection load

∆ connection load
Balanced Delta-delta connection

VAB V V
I AB = , I BC = BC , I CA = CA
Z Z Z

I a = I AB − ICA , Ib = I BC − I AB , I c = ICA − I BC
Balanced Delta-wye connection

Transforming a Delta connected source

to an equivalent Wye connection:
 Methods to solve 3 phase problems

• Per phase analysis / Single phase equivalent

• Per unit system
• One line diagram
 Per-phase Analysis
 If we know the solution for 1 phase of a balanced system, we know the
solution for all three phase.
 The current in the neutral of the balanced Y-connected loads shown in the
figure:
I n = I a + Ib + Ic = 0
 Since neutral carries no current, a neutral wire of any impedance may be
replaced by any other impedance, including short circuit and an open
circuit.
Per-phase Analysis
If the Neutral points are
actually the same point,
Figure above can be redrawn
as shown in Figure below.

The phase currents depends

only on the source in the
corresponding loop. In other
words,

Ia = Va / ( Zline + ZY) ,
Ib = Vb / ( Zline + ZY) , and
Ic = Vc / ( Zline + ZY)
 Per-phase Analysis
• Recall that in balanced set of variables, once we know one variable, the
other two can be found by simply adding or subtracting 120o.
• Thus, we only need to consider and solve one loop of the previous figure

• Usually the one line that is considered is the "a" phase. The "b" phase
quantities are then found by subtracting 120o, and the "c" phase
quantities are found by adding 120o.
 Per-phase Analysis (4 Steps)
• Step 1: Convert all Δ−connected sources and loads to
equivalent Y-connections.

• Step 2: Solve for desired phase a variables using the phase a

circuit.

• Step 3: Determine phase b and c variables from Step 2:

• Step 4: Convert back to Δ values if necessary.

 Three Phase Power-Wye connection
• A balanced circuit - each phase has the same power
• The 3-phase power of a circuit is simply the sum of the power in the three
individual phases. Thus for a Wye circuit, the equation is

P3 = 3P1
= 3 | VP || I P | cos 
V 
= 3 L (I L ) cos 
 3
= 3 | VL || I L | cos 

Vp and I p are the magnitude of the rms phase voltage and current
Three Phase Power- connection

P3 = 3P1
= 3 | VP || I P | cos 
 IL 
= 3(VL )  cos 
 3
= 3 | VL || I L | cos 

Note:
In balanced systems, all the single phase and the three phase have
the same power factor (pf) and thus the same power factor angle =
impedance angle = .
 Three Phase Power:  and Y connection

• Active Power:
P3 = 3 | VP || I P | cos  = 3 | VL || I L | cos 

• Reactive Power:
Q3 = 3 | VP || I P | sin θ = 3 | VL || I L | sin 

• Apparent power: S3 = P3 + jQ3

S3 = 3VP I P* = 3VL I L
 Example 3

Van = 12030o

abc sequence

Calculate all line voltages (Vab Vbc, Vca )and all line currents
Solution 3
Solution 3
Exercise
End