DE LA SALLE LIPA

COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL

DE LA SALLE LIPA

COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING

ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

EXPERIMENT NO.1

THE TRANSFORMER

NAME: INOCENO, IVYGEIL NICOLE N.

SECTION/YEAR: V4B – 4TH YR

ENGR. RODELIO CABRERA

INSTRUCTOR

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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL

I. OBJECTIVES

1. To study the voltage and current ratios of a transformer.

2. To learn about the effect of core saturation on the exciting current.
3. To determine the polarity of transformer windings.

II. DISCUSSION

The transformer is an electrical device used for steeping up or stepping down

voltage depending on which is desired. Transformers are employed for widely varied
purposes; e.g. to operate low voltage circuits (toys, transistor radios and calculating
machines) and to transmit power at high voltages for long distances. Transformers
change voltage through electromagnetic induction and without any moving parts. As
they change voltage, transformers also change current though the frequency remain
unchanged.
In a simple transformer, two windings of insulated wire surround the central portion
of the magnetic core that consist of thin sections or laminations of steel stacked side by
side. This is shown in Fig.1.1. An AC source is connected between terminal H1 and H2
of the winding having N1 turns. This cause the winding to become the primary. A
voltage is induced across terminals X1 and X2 of the other winding, having N2 turns
and known as the secondary. Assuming no losses, the voltage induced in each turn of
the secondary is equal to that in each turn of the primary. In equation form, N1 / N2 =
V1 / V2. The ratio N1 / N2 is called the turns ratio of the transformer.

If a load is connected across X1 and X2, current flows in it. The current I2 in the
secondary is related to the current I1 in the primary by the equation; N1 / N2 = I2 / I1.
When a transformer is in operation, an alternating magnetic field is set up in the
iron core by the current in its winding. Establishing a magnetic field requires reactive
power which is drawn from the power line. Hence, an exciting (magnetizing) current will
be drawn by the transformer. When the primary voltage is raised beyond its rated value,
the iron core begins to saturate and the exciting current increases rapidly.
Transformers are AC devices and their polarity would appear to be of minor
importance. However, when two or more windings are connected together, the relative
instantaneous polarities have a profound effect on the resultant voltage. When we
speak of the polarity of transformer windings, we are identifying all of the terminals that
are of the same polarity (positive or negative) at any instant of time. Polarity marks are
employed to identify these terminals.

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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL

III. INSTRUMENTS AND COMPONENTS

ITEM NO. DESCRIPTION QUANTITY

AC voltmeter 1
AC ammeter 1
Transformer (230V/115V) 1
DC Voltmeter 1
DC power supply 1
Variable AC power supply 1

IV. PROCEDURE

1. Connect the circuit shown in Figure 1.2.

2. Measure and record the current I1 and the output voltage E1 for each of the input
voltages listed in the table. The current I1 is the exciting current since the
transformer is not loaded.
3. Construct a graph of E1 against I1.
4. With the 115 turns winding placed around the 230 turns winding, connect the circuit
shown in Fig. 1.3.
5. Note the deflection of the DC voltmeter at the moment you close the switch. If the
voltmeter pointer momentarily deflects to the right, then terminals A and C have
the same polarity. Does A and C have the same polarity?
6. Connect the circuit shown in Fig. 1.4.
7. Measure and record V1, V2 and V. If A and C have the same polarity, then V= V1+
V2. Does the result agree with that of steps 4 and 5?

V. CIRCUIT DIAGRAMS

Fig. 1.1 Two winding transformer

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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL

Fig. 1.2 Experimental circuit: Effect of core saturation on exciting current

Fig 1.3. Experimental Circuit: Transformer polarity (1)

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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL

Fig 1.4 Experimental Circuit: Transformer Polarity (2)

VI. DATA AND RESULTS

Steps 1-3
E1 (V) 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 150
I1 (A) 17mA 22mA 24mA 27mA 30mA 32mA 37mA 40mA

Step 5: Answer: YES

Step 7: V1 = 230V , V2 = 115V ,V= 115V , Answer: YES/ADDITIVE

GRAPH: Effect of Core Saturation on Exciting Current

45

40

35

30

25
E1

20

15

10

0
0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160

I1
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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL
VII. PROBLEMS
1. Prove that the effective value of the secondary voltage of a transformer is
given by V2 = 4.44fN2Øm volts where N2 is the number of secondary
turns, Øm is the maximum value of the flux in Weber and f is the frequency.

As, shown in the fig., the flux rises

sinusoidally to its maximum value
Φm from 0. It reaches to the
maximum value in one quarter of
the cycle i.e in T/4 sec (where, T
is time period of the sin wave of
the supply = 1/f).
Therefore,

average rate of change of flux = Φm /(T/4) = Φm/(1/4f)

Therefore,
average rate of change of flux = 4f Φm ....... (Wb/s).
Now,
Induced emf per turn = rate of change of flux per turn

Therefore, average emf per turn = 4f Φm ..........(Volts).

Now, we know, Form factor = RMS value / average value
Therefore, RMS value of emf per turn = Form factor X average emf per
turn.

As, the flux Φ varies sinusoidally, form factor of a sine wave is 1.11

Therefore, RMS value of emf per turn = 1.11 x 4f Φm = 4.44f Φm.

RMS value of induced emf in whole primary winding (E1) = RMS value of
emf per turn X Number of turns in primary winding

E1 = 4.44f N1 Φm ............................. eq 1

Similarly, RMS induced emf in secondary winding (E2) can be given as

E2 = 4.44f N2 Φm. ............................ eq 2

from the above equations 1 and 2,

This is called the emf equation of
transformer, which shows, emf /
number of turns is same for both
primary and secondary winding.

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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL

2. What is the function of the core of a transformer?

- The role of the magnetic core in transformers is to increase and concentrate

the magnetic flux that links the primary and secondary coils. The amount or
magnitude of flux that can be transferred depends upon the material that is
used to make the core. So, the material used for magnetic core have a low
magnetic resistance, for example, it cannot be from wood or plastic even
copper. In fact, the role of core in transformer (or electrical machines) is like
the role of wire electrical conductor that has very low resistance) in electrical
circuits.

3. Why does the primary current increase as the impedance of the load
circuit connected to the secondary is decreased?

- In a transformer, alternating flux in the primary produces emf in the

secondary. It also induces a back emf in the primary in opposite direction
providing certain amount of opposition to the current flowing through the
primary especially to the change in current in the primary.

When the secondary terminals are connected to the load, alternating current
flows through the secondary. This current produce alternating flux in the
secondary, in a direction opposite to the primary flux. This results in
reduction in the back emf in the primary, reducing the impedance offered to
the source driving the primary. Hence, Primary current increases.

4. What would happen if you connect a transformer to a DC source?

- If the transformer is connected to a D.C supply, the primary will draw a

steady current and hence produce a constant flux. Consequently, no back
emf will be produced. The primary winding will draw excessive current due to
low resistance of the primary because inductive reactance is 0 due to the
inductive reactance formula where frequency of the DC is 0.

When a dc supply is provided to the transformer primary no self-induced emf

will be generated (no back emf). Therefore, heavy current will flow in the
transformer primary winding which may result in burning down the
transformer primary winding.

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COLLEGE OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND ENGINEERING
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ACAPDEV- AC APPARATUS AND DEVICES
LABORATORY EXPERIMENT MANUAL
VIII. CONCLUSION

- It is concluded by the given results of the experiment that as you increase

the voltage using the transformer trainer the given current output that can be
read using the AC ammeter will also increase slowly.

Magnetic saturation of a transformer core is normally caused by excessive

primary voltage, operation at a low of a frequency, or sometimes by the
presence of a DC current in any of the windings. Saturation may be
minimized or avoided by conservative design, which provides an adequate
margin of safety between peak magnetic flux density values and the
saturation limits of the core.

Transformers are normally connected in an additive polarity. Means that

there is one high voltage and one low voltage terminal unconnected to it.
When the transformer is excited, the resultant voltage appearing across a
voltmeter will be the sum of the high and low voltage windings.