Three phase systems
Three Phase System Definition:
The system which has three phases,
i.e., the current will pass through the
three wires, and there will be one
neutral wire for passing the fault current
to the earth is known as the three phase
system.
Three Phase System
The system which has three phases, i.e., the current
will pass through the three wires, and there will be
one neutral wire for passing the fault current to the
earth is known as the three phase system.
In other words, the system which uses three wires for
generation, transmission and distribution is known as
the three phase system.
The three phase system is also used as a
single phase system if one of their phase
and the neutral wire is taken out from it.
The sum of the line currents in the 3-
phase system is equal to zero, and their
phases are differentiated at an angle of
120º
The three-phase system has four wire, i.e., the
three current carrying conductors and the one
neutral.
The cross section area of the neutral conductor is
half of the live wire.
The current in the neutral wire is equal to the
sum of the line current of the three wires and
consequently equal to √3 times the zero phase
sequence components of current.
The three-phase system has several
advantages like it requires fewer conductors
as compared to the single phase system. It
also gives the continuous supply to the load.
The three-phase system has higher
efficiency and minimum losses.
The three phase system induces in the generator
which gives the three phase voltage of equal
magnitude and frequency. It provides an
uninterruptible power, i.e., if one phase of the
system is disturbed, then the remaining two
phases of the system continue supplies the
power.
The magnitude of the current in one phase is
equal to the sum of the current in the other two
phases of the system.
The 120º phase difference of the three phases is must for the
proper working of the system. Otherwise, the system
becomes damaged
Types of Connections in Three-Phase
System
Thethree-phase systems are connected in two
ways, i.e., the star connection and the delta
connection. Their detail explanation is shown
below.
Star Connection
The star connection requires four wires in which
there are three phase conductors and one neutral
conductor. Such type of connection is mainly used
for long distance transmission because it has a
neutral point. The neutral point passes the
unbalanced current to the earth and hence make
the system balance.
Star Connection… The star connected
three phase systems
gives two different
voltages, i.e., the 230
V and 440V.
The voltage between
the single phase and
the neutral is 230V,
and the voltage
between the two
phases is equal to the
440V.
Delta Connection The delta connection
has three wires, and
there is a no neutral
point. The delta
connection is shown
in the figure.
The line voltage of
the delta connection
is equal to the phase
voltage.
Connection of Loads in Three Phase System
The loads in the three-phase system may also connect
in the star or delta. The three phase loads connected
in the delta and star is shown in the figure below.
➢ The three phase load may
be balanced or unbalanced.
➢ If the three loads
(impedances) Z1, Z2 and
Z3 has the same magnitude
and phase angle then the
three phase load is said to
be a balanced load.
Under balance condition, all the phases and the line
voltages are equal in magnitude.
Circuit Analysis of 3 Phase System –
Balanced Condition
Theelectrical system is of two types i.e., the single-
phase system and the three-phase system. The single-
phase system has only one phase wire and one return
wire thus it is used for low power transmission.
The three-phase system has three live wire and
one returns the path. The three-phase system is
used for transmitting a large amount of power.
The 3 phase system is divided mainly into two
types.
One is a balanced three-phase system and another
one is an unbalanced three-phase system.
Balance and Unbalanced system
The balance system is one in which the load are
equally distributed in all the three phases of the
system. The magnitude of voltage remains same in
all the three phases and it is separated by an angle
of 120º.
In the unbalance system the magnitude of voltage in
all the three phases becomes different
Analysis of Balanced 3 Phase Circuit
Itis always better to solve the balanced three-
phase circuits on the basis of each phase. When
the three-phase supply voltage is given without
reference to the line or phase value, then it is
the line voltage which is taken into
consideration.
Steps to solve balanced three-phase
circuits
The following steps are given below to solve the balanced
three-phase circuits.
Step 1 – First of all draw the circuit diagram.
Step 2 – Determine XLP = XL/phase = 2πfL.
Step 3 – Determine XCP = XC/phase = 1/2πfC.
Step 4 – Determine XP = X/ phase = XL – XC
Step 5 – Determine ZP = Z/phase = √(R2P + X2P)
Step
6 – Determine cosϕ = RP/ZP; the power factor is lagging
when XLP > XCP and it is leading when XCP > XLP.
Step 7 – Determine the V phase.
For star connection VP = VL/√3 and for delta connection VP = VL
Step 8 – Determine IP = VP/ZP.
Step 9 – Now, determine the line current IL.
For star connection IL = IP and for delta connection IL = √3 IP
Step 10 – Determine the Active, Reactive and Apparent power.
Analysis of Unbalanced 3 Phase Circuit
The analysis of the 3 Phase unbalanced system is
slightly difficult, and the load is connected either as
Star or Delta.
The topic is discussed in detail in the article named
as Star to Delta and Delta to Star Conversion.
Y-Δ transform
The Y-Δ transform, also written wye-delta
and also known by many other names, is a
mathematical technique to simplify the
analysis of an electrical network.
The name derives from the shapes of the
circuit diagrams, which look respectively
like the letter Y and the Greek capital
letter Δ
