Scott-T transformer

A Scott-T transformer (also called a Scott connection) is a type

of circuit used to produce two-phase electric power (  2  φ,
90 degree phase rotation)[1] from a three-phase ( 3 φ, 120 degree
phase rotation) source, or vice versa. The Scott connection
evenly distributes a balanced load between the phases of the
source. The Scott three-phase transformer was invented by a
Westinghouse engineer Charles F. Scott in the late 1890s to
bypass Thomas Edison's more expensive rotary converter and
thereby permit two-phase generator plants to drive three-phase Standard Scott Connection 3 φ to 2 φ
motors.[2]

Contents
Interconnection
Technical details
Unbalanced loads
Back to back arrangement
See also
References

Interconnection
At the time of the invention, two-phase motor loads also existed and the Scott connection allowed connecting
them to newer three-phase supplies with the currents equal on the three phases.[3] This was valuable for
getting equal voltage drop and thus feasible regulation of the voltage from the electric generator (the phases
cannot be varied separately in a three-phase machine). Nikola Tesla's original polyphase power system was
based on simple-to-build two-phase four-wire components. However, as transmission distances increased, the
more transmission-line efficient three-phase system became more common. (Three phase power can be
transmitted with only three wires, where the two-phase power systems required four wires, two per phase.)
Both 2 φ and 3 φ components coexisted for a number of years and the Scott-T transformer connection allowed
them to be interconnected.

Technical details
Assuming the desired voltage is the same on the two and three phase sides, the Scott-T transformer
connection (shown right) consists of a centre-tapped 1:1 ratio main transformer, T1, and a √3/2 (≈86.6%) ratio
teaser transformer, T2. The centre-tapped side of T1 is connected between two of the phases on the three-
phase side. Its centre tap then connects to one end of the lower turn count side of T2, the other end connects
to the remaining phase. The other side of the transformers then connect directly to the two pairs of a two-
phase four-wire system.

Unbalanced loads
Two-phase motors draw constant power,
just as three-phase motors do, so a
balanced two-phase load is converted to
a balanced three-phase load. However if
a two-phase load is not balanced (more
power drawn from one phase than the
other), no arrangement of transformers
(including the Scott-T transformers) can
restore balance: Unbalanced current on
the two-phase side causes unbalanced
current on the three-phase side. Since the
typical two-phase load was a motor, the
current in the two phases was presumed Standard Scott Connection 3 φ to 2 φ
inherently equal during the Scott-T
development.

In modern times people have tried to revive the Scott connection as a way to power single-phase electric
railways from three-phase Utility supplies. This will not result in balanced current on the three-phase side, as
it is unlikely that two different railway sections, each connected as two-phase, will at all times conform to the
Scott presumption of being equal. The instantaneous difference in loading on the two sections will be seen as
an imbalance in the three-phase supply; there is no way to smooth it out with transformers.[4]

Back to back arrangement

The Scott-T transformer connection may
be also be used in a back-to-back T-to-T
arrangement for a three-phase to three-
phase connection. This is a cost-saving in
the lower-power transformers due to the
two-coil T connected to a secondary two-
coil T instead of the traditional three-coil
primary to three-coil secondary
transformer. In this arrangement the X0
neutral tap is part way up on the Scott Connection 3 φ to 3 φ
secondary teaser transformer (see right).
The voltage stability of this T-to-T
arrangement as compared to the traditional three-coil primary to three-coil secondary transformer is
questioned, as the "per unit" impedance of the two windings (primary and secondary, respectively) are not
the same in a T-to-T configuration, whereas the three windings (primary and secondary, respectively) are the
same in a three transformer configuration, if the three transformers are identical.

Three-phase to three-phase (also called "T-connected") distribution transformers are seeing increasing
applications. The primary must be delta-connected (Δ), but the secondary may be either delta or “wye”-
connected (Y), at the customer's option, with X0 providing the neutral for the “wye” case. Taps for either case
are usually provided. The customary maximum capacity of such a distribution transformer is 333  kV  A (a
third of a megawatt).

See also
Alternating current
 Polyphase coil
Symmetrical components
High-leg delta

References
1. Distribution Transformer Manual, GET-2485T. Hickory, NC: General Electric Company. 1996. p. 64.
2. Passer, Harold C. (1953). The Electrical Manufacturers, 1875-1900. Harvard. p. 315.
3. "All About Circuits" (http://www.allaboutcircuits.com/vol_2/chpt_9/7.html). Retrieved 2014-08-04.
4. General Electric (Jan 1957). "(unknown)". AIEE Transactions: 432–445. The cited article is a GE paper which points
out that railway unbalance, even via Scott-T transformers, affects generators, the motors of other customers and
presumably delta connected transformers. Even small unbalances can cause heating. However, because electric
systems have grown larger over the 20th century, the paper suggests that the railways are now a tolerable load,
provided one has a confirming system analysis. Scott-T transformers may not even be relevant, since direct line-
to-line load connections may be sufficient. So this leaves a potential solution, but the single-phase load should
then be viewed as being tolerated, not balanced. Allowing it also raises the question: “What if other customers
asked for the same toleration?”

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This page was last edited on 30 March 2018, at 21:27 (UTC).

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