Chapter Three

Three phase Induction Motors

 Introduction
• Three-phase induction motors are the most common
and frequently encountered machines in industry
– simple design, rugged, low-price, easy maintenance
– wide range of power ratings: fractional horsepower to 10
MW
– run essentially as constant speed from no-load to full load
– Its speed depends on the frequency of the power source
• not easy to have variable speed control
• requires a variable-frequency power-electronic drive for optimal
speed control
 Construction
• An induction motor has two main parts
– a stationary stator
• consisting of a steel frame that supports a hollow,
cylindrical core
• core, constructed from stacked laminations (why?),
having a number of evenly spaced slots, providing the
space for the stator winding

Stator of IM
 Construction
– a revolving rotor
• composed of punched laminations, stacked to create a series of rotor
slots, providing space for the rotor winding
• one of two types of rotor windings
• conventional 3-phase windings made of insulated wire (wound-rotor) »
similar to the winding on the stator
• aluminum bus bars shorted together at the ends by two aluminum rings,
forming a squirrel-cage shaped circuit (squirrel-cage)
• Two basic design types depending on the rotor design
– squirrel-cage: conducting bars laid into slots and shorted at both
ends by shorting rings.
– wound-rotor: complete set of three-phase windings exactly as the
stator. Usually Y-connected, the ends of the three rotor wires are
connected to 3 slip rings on the rotor shaft. In this way, the rotor
circuit is accessible.
 Construction
Squirrel cage rotor

Wound rotor

Notice the
slip rings
 Construction
Slip rings

Cutaway in a
typical wound-
rotor IM.
Notice the
brushes and the
slip rings

Brushes
 Rotating Magnetic Field
• Balanced three phase windings, i.e.
mechanically displaced 120 degrees
form each other, fed by balanced three
phase source
• A rotating magnetic field with constant
magnitude is produced, rotating with a
speed
120 f e
nsync  rpm
P
Where fe is the supply frequency and
P is the no. of poles and nsync is called the
synchronous speed in rpm (revolutions
per minute)
 Synchronous speed
P 50 Hz 60 Hz
2 3000 3600
4 1500 1800
6 1000 1200
8 750 900
10 600 720
12 500 600
Rotating Magnetic Field
Rotating Magnetic Field
Rotating Magnetic Field
 Principle of operation
• This rotating magnetic field cuts the rotor windings and produces
an induced voltage in the rotor windings
• Due to the fact that the rotor windings are short circuited, for both
squirrel cage and wound-rotor, and induced current flows in the
rotor windings
• The rotor current produces another magnetic field. Animation
• A torque is produced as a result of the interaction of those two
magnetic fields

 ind  kBR  Bs
Where ind is the induced torque and BR and BS are the magnetic flux
densities of the rotor and the stator respectively
 Induction motor speed
• At what speed will the IM run?
– Can the IM run at the synchronous speed, why?
– If rotor runs at the synchronous speed, which is the
same speed of the rotating magnetic field, then the
rotor will appear stationary to the rotating magnetic
field and the rotating magnetic field will not cut the
rotor. So, no induced current will flow in the rotor and
no rotor magnetic flux will be produced so no torque
is generated and the rotor speed will fall below the
synchronous speed
– When the speed falls, the rotating magnetic field will
cut the rotor windings and a torque is produced
 Induction motor speed
• So, the IM will always run at a speed lower than
the synchronous speed
• The difference between the motor speed and the
synchronous speed is called the Slip
nslip  nsync  nm

Where nslip= slip speed

nsync= speed of the magnetic field
nm = mechanical shaft speed of the motor
 The Slip
nsync  nm
s
nsync
Where s is the slip
Notice that : if the rotor runs at synchronous speed
s=0
if the rotor is stationary
s=1
Slip may be expressed as a percentage by multiplying the above
eq. by 100, notice that the slip is a ratio and doesn’t have units
 Induction Motors and
Transformers
• Both IM and transformer works on the principle of
induced voltage
– Transformer: voltage applied to the primary windings
produce an induced voltage in the secondary windings
– Induction motor: voltage applied to the stator windings
produce an induced voltage in the rotor windings
– The difference is that, in the case of the induction motor,
the secondary windings can move
– Due to the rotation of the rotor (the secondary winding of
the IM), the induced voltage in it does not have the same
frequency of the stator (the primary) voltage
 Frequency
• The frequency of the voltage induced in the
rotor is given by Pn
fr 
120
Where fr = the rotor frequency (Hz)
P = number of stator poles
n = slip speed (rpm)
P  (ns  nm )
fr 
120
P  sns
  sf e
120
 Frequency
• What would be the frequency of the rotor’s
induced voltage at any speed nm?

fr  s fe
• When the rotor is blocked (s=1) , the frequency
of the induced voltage is equal to the supply
frequency
• On the other hand, if the rotor runs at
synchronous speed (s = 0), the frequency will be
zero
 Torque
• While the input to the induction motor is
electrical power, its output is mechanical power
and for that we should know some terms and
quantities related to mechanical power
• Any mechanical load applied to the motor shaft
will introduce a Torque on the motor shaft. This
torque is related to the motor output power and
the rotor speed
Pout 2 nm
 load  N .m m  rad / s
m and 60
 Horse power
• Another unit used to measure mechanical
power is the horse power
• It is used to refer to the mechanical output
power of the motor
• Since we, as an electromechanical engineers,
deal with watts as a unit to measure electrical
power, there hp is arelation between horse
746 watts
power and watts
 Equivalent Circuit
• The induction motor is similar to the transformer with
the exception that its secondary windings are free to
rotate

As we noticed in the transformer, it is easier if we can combine

these two circuits in one circuit but there are some
difficulties
 Equivalent Circuit
• When the rotor is locked (or blocked), i.e. s =1,
the largest voltage and rotor frequency are
induced in the rotor, Why?
• On the other side, if the rotor rotates at
synchronous speed, i.e. s = 0, the induced
voltage and frequency in the rotor will be equal
to zero, Why?
ER  sER 0

Where ER0 is the largest value of the rotor’s induced

voltage obtained at s = 1(locked rotor)
 Equivalent Circuit
• The same is true for the frequency, i.e.
f rr  s f ee
• It is known that
X   L  2 f L
• So, as the frequency of the induced voltage in the
rotor changes, the reactance of the rotor circuit
also changes X   L  2 f L
r r r r r
Where Xr0 is the rotor reactance
at the supply frequency  2 sf e Lr
(at blocked rotor)
 sX r 0
 Equivalent Circuit
• Then, we can draw the rotor equivalent circuit as
follows

Where ER is the induced voltage in the rotor and RR is the

rotor resistance
 Equivalent Circuit
• Now we can calculate the
E rotor current as
IR  R
( RR  jX R )
sER 0

( RR  jsX R 0 )
• Dividing both the numerator and denominator by s
so nothing changes we get I R  ER 0
R
RR
(  jX R 0 )
s

Where ER0 is the induced voltage and XR0 is the rotor

reactance at blocked rotor condition (s = 1)
 Equivalent Circuit
• Now we can have the rotor equivalent circuit
 Equivalent Circuit
• Now as we managed to solve the induced
voltage and different frequency problems, we
can combine the stator and rotor circuits in
one equivalent circuit
X 2  aeff
2
X R0
Where
R a 2
RR
2 eff

IR
I2 
aeff
E1  aeff ER 0
NS
aeff 
NR
 Power losses in Induction machines
• Copper losses
– Copper loss in the stator (PSCL) = I12R1
– Copper loss in the rotor (PRCL) = I22R2
• Core loss (Pcore)
• Mechanical power loss due to friction and
windage
• How this power flow in the motor?
Power flow in induction motor
 Power relations
Pin  3 VL I L cos   3 V ph I ph cos 
PSCL  3 I12 R1

PAG  Pin  ( PSCL  Pcore )

PRCL  3I 22 R2
Pconv  PAG  PRCL
Pconv
Pout  Pconv  ( Pf  w  Pstray )  ind 
m
 Equivalent Circuit
• We can rearrange the equivalent circuit as
follows

Resistance
Actual rotor
equivalent to
resistance
mechanical load
 Power relations
Pin  3 VL I L cos   3 V ph I ph cos 
PSCL  3 I12 R1
R2 PRCL
PAG  Pin  ( PSCL  Pcore )  Pconv  PRCL  3I 2
2 
s s
PRCL  3I 22 R2
PRCL (1  s)
Pconv  PAG  PRCL  3I 22 R2 (1  s) 
s s
Pconv  (1  s ) PAG
Pconv (1  s) PAG
Pout  Pconv  ( Pf  w  Pstray )  ind  
m (1  s)s
 Power relations
PAG Pconv
1 1-s

PRCL
s
PAG : PRCL : Pconv
1 : s : 1-s
Torque, power and Thevenin’s Theorem

• Thevenin’s theorem can be used to transform

the network to the left of points ‘a’ and ‘b’
into an equivalent voltage source VTH in series
with equivalent impedance RTH+jXTH
Torque, power and Thevenin’s Theorem

jX M XM
VTH  V | VTH || V |
R1  j ( X 1  X M ) R12  ( X 1  X M ) 2
RTH  jX TH  ( R1  jX 1 ) // jX M
Torque, power and Thevenin’s Theorem

• Since XM>>X1 and XM>>R1

XM
VTH  V
X1  X M

• Because XM>>X1 and XM+X1>>R1

2
 XM 
RTH  R1  
 X1  X M 
X TH  X 1
Torque, power and Thevenin’s Theorem
VTH VTH
I2  
ZT  R2 
2

R
 TH    ( X TH  X 2 ) 2

 s 
Then the power converted to mechanical (Pconv)
R2 (1  s )
Pconv  3I2
2
s
And the internal mechanical torque (Tconv)
2 R2
Pconv Pconv 3I
2
s PAG
 ind    
m (1  s )s s s
Torque, power and Thevenin’s Theorem
2
 
 
3  VTH   R2 
 ind     s 
s 
  
2
 R  R2   ( X  X ) 2
  TH s  TH 2 
 

2 R2 
3V  
TH
1  s 
 ind 
s  R2 
2

R
 TH    ( X TH  X 2 ) 2

 s 
Torque-speed characteristics

Typical torque-speed characteristics of induction motor

 Comments
1. The induced torque is zero at synchronous
speed. Discussed earlier.
2. The curve is nearly linear between no-load and
full load. In this range, the rotor resistance is
much greater than the reactance, so the rotor
current, torque increase linearly with the slip.
3. There is a maximum possible torque that can’t
be exceeded. This torque is called pullout torque
and is 2 to 3 times the rated full-load torque.
 Comments
4. The starting torque of the motor is slightly
higher than its full-load torque, so the motor
will start carrying any load it can supply at
full load.
5. The torque of the motor for a given slip
varies as the square of the applied voltage.
6. If the rotor is driven faster than synchronous
speed it will run as a generator, converting
mechanical power to electric power.
 Maximum torque
• Maximum torque occurs when the power
transferred to R2/s is maximum.
• This condition occurs when R2/s equals the
magnitude
R of the impedance R TH + j (XTH + X2)
2
 RTH  ( X TH  X 2 )
2 2

sTmax

R2
sTmax 
2
RTH  ( X TH  X 2 ) 2
 Maximum torque
• The corresponding maximum torque of an
induction motor equals

1  3VTH2 
 max   
2s  RTH  RTH
2
 ( X  X ) 2 
 TH 2 

The slip at maximum torque is directly proportional

to the rotor resistance R2

The maximum torque is independent of R2

 Maximum torque
• Rotor resistance can be increased by inserting
external resistance in the rotor of a wound-
rotor induction motor.
The
value of the maximum torque remains
unaffected

but
the speed at which it occurs can be controlled.
 Maximum torque

Effect of rotor resistance on torque-speed characteristic

 Example
A 460-V, 25-hp, 60-Hz, four-pole, Y-connected wound-
rotor induction motor has the following impedances
in ohms per phase referred to the stator circuit
R1= 0.641 R2= 0.332
X1= 1.106  X2= 0.464  XM= 26.3 
1. What is the maximum torque of this motor? At what
speed and slip does it occur?
2. What is the starting torque of this motor?
3. If the rotor resistance is doubled, what is the speed
at which the maximum torque now occur? What is
the new starting torque of the motor?
 Solution
XM
VTH  V
R12  ( X 1  X M ) 2
460
 26.3
 3  255.2 V
(0.641)  (1.106  26.3)
2 2

2
 XM 
RTH  R1  
X
 1  X M 
2
 26.3 
 (0.641)    0.590
 1.106  26.3 
X TH  X 1  1.106
 Solution
R2
sTmax 
1.
2
RTH  ( X TH  X 2 )2
0.332
  0.198
(0.590)  (1.106  0.464)
2 2

nm  (1  s )nsync  (1  0.198)  1800  1444 rpm

The corresponding speed is
 Solution
The torque at this speed is
1  3VTH2 
 max   
2s  R  R 2  ( X  X )2 
 TH TH TH 2 
3  (255.2) 2

2
2  (1800  )[0.590  (0.590) 2  (1.106  0.464)2 ]
60
 229 N.m
 Solution
2. The starting torque can be found from the
2  2 
R
3VTH s = 1
torque eqn. by1 substituting s  
 start   ind 
s 1
s  R2 
2

R
 TH    ( X TH  X 2 ) 2

 s  s 1

3VTH2 R2

s [ RTH  R2   ( X TH  X 2 ) 2 ]
2

3  (255.2) 2  (0.332)

2
1800   [(0.590  0.332) 2  (1.106  0.464) 2 ]
60
 104 N.m
 Solution
3. If the rotor resistance is doubled, then the slip at
maximum torque doubles too
R2
sTmax   0.396
2
R
TH  ( X TH  X 2 ) 2

The corresponding speed is

nm  (1  s)nsync  (1  0.396) 1800  1087 rpm

The maximum torque is still

max = 229 N.m
 Solution
The starting torque is now
3  (255.2) 2  (0.664)
 start 
2
1800   [(0.590  0.664) 2  (1.106  0.464)2 ]
60
 170 N.m
 Determination of motor parameters
• Due to the similarity between the induction
motor equivalent circuit and the transformer
equivalent circuit, same tests are used to
determine the values of the motor parameters.
– DC test: determine the stator resistance R1
– No-load test: determine the rotational losses and
magnetization current (similar to no-load test in
Transformers).
– Locked-rotor test: determine the rotor and stator
impedances (similar to short-circuit test in
Transformers).
 DC test
– The purpose of the DC test is to determine R1. A
variable DC voltage source is connected
between two stator terminals.
– The DC source is adjusted to provide
approximately rated stator current, and the
resistance between the two stator leads is
determined from the voltmeter and ammeter
readings.
 DC test
– then VDC
RDC 
I DC

– If the stator is Y-connected, the per phase stator

RDC
resistance is R1 
2

3
– If the stator is delta-connected, the per phase
R1  RDC
stator resistance is 2
 No-load test

1. The motor is allowed to spin freely

2. The only load on the motor is the friction and
windage losses, so all Pconv is consumed by
mechanical losses
3. The slip is very small
 No-load test

4. At this small slip

R2 (1  s) R 2 (1  s)
R2 & X 2
s s
The equivalent circuit reduces to…
 No-load test

5. Combining Rc & RF+W we get……

 No-load test
6. At the no-load conditions, the input power measured
by meters must equal the losses in the motor.
7. The PRCL is negligible because I2 is extremely small
because R2(1-s)/s is very large.
8. The input power equals
Pin  PSCL  Pcore  PF &W
 3I12 R1  Prot

Where Prot  Pcore  PF &W

 No-load test
9. The equivalent input impedance is thus
approximately V
Z eq   X1  X M
I1,nl

If X1 can be found, in some other fashion, the

magnetizing impedance XM will be known
 Blocked-rotor test
• In this test, the rotor is locked or blocked so
that it cannot move, a voltage is applied to
the motor, and the resulting voltage, current
and power are measured.
 Blocked-rotor test
• The AC voltage applied to the stator is
adjusted so that the current flow is
approximately full-load value.
• The locked-rotor power factor
Pin can be found as
PF  cos  
3Vl I l

• The magnitude of the V impedance

total
Z LR 
I
 Blocked-rotor test
Z LR  RLR  jX LR
'

 Z LR cos   j Z LR sin 

RLR  R1  R2
'
X LR  X 1'  X 2'

Where X’1 and X’R2 are

 R
the

stator and rotor
R
2 LR 1
reactances at the test frequency respectively
f rated '
X LR  X LR  X 1  X 2
f test
 Blocked-rotor test
X1 and X2 as function of XLR

Rotor Design X1 X2

Wound rotor 0.5 XLR 0.5 XLR

Design A 0.5 XLR 0.5 XLR

Design B 0.4 XLR 0.6 XLR

Design C 0.3 XLR 0.7 XLR

Design D 0.5 XLR 0.5 XLR