AC Circuits

Three-Phase Circuits

Contents

What is a Three-Phase Circuit?

Balance Three-Phase Voltages
Balance Three-Phase Connection
Power in a Balanced System
Unbalanced Three-Phase Systems
Application Residential Wiring

Single-phase system
Sinusoidal voltage sources
A simple AC generators
When a conductor rotates in a constant magnetic field, a sinusoidal wave is generated.
More pole pieces? More
coils?

When the loop is moving perpendicular to the lines

of flux, the maximum voltage is induced.

Normal household:
Single-phase three-wire
When the conductor is moving parallel
with the lines of flux, no voltage is
induced.

Single-phase two-wire

neutral

Polyphase
Three-phase circuit:
A system produced by a generator consisting of three sources having the same
amplitude and frequency but out of phase with each other by 120.

Three sources
with 120 out
of phase
Four wired
system

Advantages of a three-phase circuit

Most of the electric power is generated and distributed
in three-phase:
Less/more than 3-phase requiredtaken from 3-phase

The instantaneous power in a three-phase system can

be constant (not pulsating):
uniform power transfer and less vibration of three-phase
machine

The amount of power, the three-phase system is more

economical that the single-phase.
In fact, the amount of wire required for a three-phase
system is less than that required for an equivalent
single-phase system.

Balance Three-Phase Voltages

A three-phase generator consists of a rotating magnet

(rotor) surrounded by a stationary winding (stator).
It can supply power to both singlephase and three-phase load

A three-phase generator

The generated voltages

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Balance Three-Phase Voltages

Two possible configurations:

Four wires

Three wires

Phase voltage

Three-phase voltage sources: (a) Y-connected ; (b) -connected

Balanced voltages:

Van Vbn Vcn 0

Van Vbn Vcn

Balance Three-Phase Voltages

Balanced phase voltages are equal in magnitude and are out of phase
with each other by 120.
Van V p

Van Vbn Vcn V p

2
3

4
3

Vbn V p e
Vcn V p e

abc/positive
sequence

Vpe

2
3

acb/negative
sequence

Van V p
Vcn V p e

2
3

4
3

Vbn V p e

Vpe

2
3

The phase sequence is the time order in which the voltages pass through
their respective maximum values.
abc/positive
sequence
acb/negative
sequence

A balanced load is one in which the phase impedances are equal in

magnitude and in phase
Transform:
Z 3Z Y

Z1 Z 2 Z 3 Z Y

Z a Zb Zc Z

Example
Example 1

Solution:

Determine the phase sequence

of the set of voltages.

The voltages can be expressed in

phasor form as

van 200 cos(t 10)

vbn 200 cos(t 230)
vcn 200 cos(t 110)

Van 20010 V
Vbn 200 230 V
Vcn 200 110 V

We notice that Van leads Vcn by

120 and Vcn in turn leads Vbn by
120.
Hence, we have an acb sequence.
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Balance Three-Phase Connection

Four possible connections

1. Y-Y connection (Y-connected source with a Yconnected load)

2. Y- connection (Y-connected source with a connected load)
3. - connection
4. -Y connection
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Balance Y-Y system

A balanced Y-Y system is a three-phase system with a balanced y-connected
source and a balanced y-connected load.

Z Y ZS Zl ZL

Line voltage:
Phasor diagram?

Vab Van Vnb Van Vbn V p V p e

VL 3V p , where

j
1
3
3
1
3Vp
3Vpe 6
Vp 1 j

j
2
2
2
2

Line current (KVL):

The same as
the phase
current in Y-Y

2
j
3

Ia

2
j
3

Van
V
V e
, I b bn an
ZY
ZY
ZY

Iae

2
j
3

I a I b I c 0, I n -I a I b I c 0,

, Ic Iae

V p Van Vbn Vcn

4
j
3

VnN 0

VL Vab Vbc Vca

Voltage across the neutral line is zero:
the neutral line can be removed (earth
acting as the neutral line).

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Balanced Y-Y connection

Example 2
Calculate the line currents in the three-wire Y-Y system
shown below:

Ans
I a 6.81 21.8 A
Ib 6.81 141.8 A
I c 6.8198.2 A
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Balance Y- Connection
A balanced Y- system is a three-phase system with a
balanced y-connected source and a balanced -connected load.
Line current

Line voltage = the voltage across the load

VAB Vab

Phase current I VAB

AB
Phase current

Line current

I a I AB I CA I AB I AB e

4
j
3

3I AB e

1
j
6

I L 3I p , where
I L I a Ib Ic
I p I AB I BC ICA
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Balance Y- Connection: Example

Example 3
A balanced abc-sequence Y-connected source with Van 10010 V is
connected to a -connected load (8+j4) per phase. Calculate the
phase and line currents.
Solution

Using single-phase analysis,

Ia

Van
10010

33.54 16.57 A
Z / 3 2.98126.57

Other line currents are obtained using the abc phase sequence

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Balance - Connection
A balanced - system is a three-phase system with a
balanced -connected source and a balanced -connected load.
Line voltage = the phase voltage

VAB Vab
Phase current

I AB

VAB Vab

Z
Z

Line current
I a I AB I CA I AB I AB e
3I AB e

4
j
3

1
j
6

I L 3I p
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Balance - Connection: Example

Example 4
A balanced -connected load having an impedance 20-j15 is connected to
a -connected positive-sequence generator having (Vab 3300 V ).
Calculate the phase currents of the load and the line currents.
Ans:
The phase currents

I AB 13.236.87 A; I BC 13.2 81.13 A; I AB 13.2156.87 A

The line currents

I a 22.866.87 A; Ib 22.86 113.13 A; I c 22.86126.87 A

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Balance -Y Connection
A balanced -Y system is a three-phase system with a
balanced Y-connected source and a balanced Y-connected load.

Can you work out the relationship between line current and phase current?
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Balance -Y Connection: Example

Example 5
A balanced Y-connected load with a phase impedance 40+j25 is
supplied by a balanced, positive-sequence -connected source with a
line voltage of 210 V. Calculate the phase currents. Use Vab as
reference.
Answer

The phase currents

I AN 2.57 62 A;
I BN 2.57 178 A;
ICN 2.5758 A;
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Balanced three-phase: Summary of phase and line V/I

Power in a Balanced System

Instantaneous power (Y-load, ZY = Z)

2
2

v AN 2V p cos t , vBN 2V p cos t

, vCN 2V p cos t

3
3

2
2

ia 2 I p cost , ib 2 I p cos t
, ic 2 I p cos t

3
3

p pa pb pc v AN ia vBN ib vCN ic 3V p I p cos

Time independent

For one phase : S P jQ Vp I*p , P V p I p cos , Q V p I p sin

Comparing the power loss in (a) a single-phase system, and (b) a three-phase system

PL2
P'loss 2 R 2 , single - phase
VL

PL2
P'loss R' 2 , three - phase
VL

If same power loss is tolerated in both system, three-phase system use

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only 75% of materials of a single-phase system

Unbalanced Three-Phase Systems

An unbalanced system is due to unbalanced voltage sources
or an unbalanced load.

Ia

VAN
V
V
, I b BN , I c CN ,
ZA
ZB
ZC

I n I a I b I c

To calculate power in an unbalanced three-phase system requires that

we find the power in each phase.
The total power is not simply three times the power in one phase but
the sum of the powers in the three phases.

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Unbalanced Three-Phase Systems: Example

Example 6
Determine the total average power, reactive power, and complex power
at the source and at the load

Ans
At the source:
Ss = -(2087 + j834.6) VA
Pa = -2087W
Pr = -834.6VAR
At the load:
SL = (1392 + j1113) VA
Pa = 1392W
Pr = 1113VAR

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Application Residential Wiring

A 120/240 household power system

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Application Residential Wiring (2)

Single-phase three-wire residential wiring

A typical wiring diagram of a room

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