Capacitance

Capacitance
● The capacitance between conductors in a medium with
constant permittivity can be obtained by determining the
following:
– Electric field strength E, from Gauss’s law
– Voltage between conductors
– Capacitance from charge per unit volt C = q/V

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 Capacitance
● We first compute the electric
field of a uniformly charged
with q C/m, solid cylindrical
conductor and the voltage
between two points outside
the conductor.
● We also compute the voltage
between two conductors in
an array of charged
conductors.

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 Capacitance
● Gauss’s law states that the total electric flux leaving a closed
surface equals the total charge within the volume enclosed by
the surface. That is, the normal component of electric flux
density integrated over a closed surface equals the charge
enclosed:

● From Gauss’s law, electric charge is a source of electric fields.

Electric field lines originate from positive charges and terminate
at negative charges.

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 Capacitance
● sufficiently long that end
effects are negligible ρ

● a perfect conductor (that is,

zero resistivity).
● Inside the perfect conductor,
Ohm’s law
Einternal=ρ J=0

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 Capacitance
● Outside the conductor, select
the cylinder with radius x>r ρ
and with 1-meter length
● Electric field strength Ex is
constant on the cylinder.

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 Capacitance
● Concentric cylinders surrounding
the conductor are constant potential
surfaces. ρ

● The potential difference between

two concentric cylinders at distances
D1 and D2 from the conductor
center is

● If q is positive and D2 is greater than

D1 , as shown in the figure, then V12
is positive; that is, P1 is at a higher
potential than P2 and vice versa.

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 Capacitance
● Now apply this result to the array of M solid
cylindrical conductors shown
● Assume that each conductor m has charge qm
C/m uniformly distributed along the
conductor.
● Voltage Vkim between conductors k and i due
to the charge qm acting alone is

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 Capacitance: Single Phase Two-wire Line
● Assume that the conductors are energized by
a voltage source such that conductor x has a
uniform charge q C/m
● Conservation of charge, conductor y has an
equal quantity of negative charge q.

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 Capacitance: Single Phase Two-wire Line

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 Capacitance: Single Phase Two-wire Line
● If the two-wire line is supplied by a transformer with a
grounded center tap,

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 Capacitance: Three Phase TL
● We shall neglect the effect of earth and
neutral conductors here.
● Assume positive-sequence charges qa ,
qb , qc such that qa + qb + qc = 0 .

conductors a and b lie on a

constant potential cylinder
for the electric feld due to
qc.

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 Capacitance: Three Phase TL
● Similarly

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 Capacitance: Three Phase TL

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 Error due to non-zero resistivity
● Electric field inside these conductors is NOT zero: small internal
electric field.
● External electric field is NOT perfectly perpendicular to the
conductor surfaces: slightly altered near the conductor surface

However, it is normal practice when calculating line capacitance

to replace a stranded conductor by a perfectly conducting solid
cylindrical conductor whose radius equals the outside radius of
the stranded conductor. The resulting error in capacitance is
small since only the electric field near the conductor surfaces is
affected.

Saddam H. Razo EEE 351 @ EEE, CUET 15

 Error due to non-uniform charge
distribution
● Conductor charge distribution is nonuniform in the presence
of other charged conductors.

However, the non-uniformity of conductor charge distribution

can be shown to have a negligible effect on line capacitance.

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 Capacitance: Three Phase TL with unequal spacing
● Unbalanced line-to-neutral voltages
● Unequal phase-to-neutral capacitances
● Phase a→ 1, Phase b→ 2, Phase c → 3

● Phase a→ 2, Phase b→ 3, Phase c → 1

● Phase a→ 3, Phase b→ 1, Phase c → 2

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 Capacitance: Three Phase TL with unequal spacing
● The average voltage between conductors a and b, assuming the
same charge on a conductor regardless of its position in the
transposition cycle, is

● Similarly,

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 Capacitance: Three Phase TL with unequal spacing
●

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 Effect of Earth on Capacitance of 3φ TL

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Saddam H. Razo EEE 351 @ EEE, CUET 21
 Effect of Earth on Capacitance of 3φ TL

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 Capacitance of bundled conductors

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 Capacitance of bundled conductors

for a transposed line,

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