Electric Heating And Welding

Chapter - 1

Electric Heating

1.1 Introduction

When current is passed through a conductor, the conductor becomes hot. When a
magnetic material is brought in the vicinity of an alternating magnetic field, heat is
produced in the magnetic material.

Similarly it was found that when an electrically insulating material was subjected to
electrical stresses, it too underwent a temperature rise (Dielectric heating).

There are various method of heating a material but electric heating is considered to be far
superior for the following reasons:

(i) Cleanliness:

Due to complete elemination of dust and ash, the charges to maintain cleanliness are
minimum and the material to be heated does not get contaminated.

(ii) Ease of control:

With the help of manual or automatic devices, it is possible to control and regulate
the temperature of a furnace with great ease.

(iii) Uniform heating:

Whereas in other forms of heating a temperature gradient is set up from the outer
surface to the inner core.

The core being relatively cooler, in case of electric heating, the heat is uniformly
distributed and hence the charge is uniformly heated.

(iv) Low attention and maintenance cost:

 Electric heating equipments normally do not require much attention and
maintenance is also negligible.

Hence labour charges on these items are negligibly small as compared to alternative
methods of heating.

1.2 Requirement of Heating Material:

i) Low Temperature Coefficients of Resistance

Resistance of conducting element varies with the temperature, this variation should be
small in case of an element.

Otherwise when switched ON from room temperature to go upto say 1200C, the low
resistance at initial stage will draw excessively high currents at the same operating
voltage.

ii) Resistance coefficient Positive

If temperature is negative the element will draw more current when hot.

A higher current means more voltage, a higher temperature or a still lower resistance,
which can instability of operation.

iii) High Melting Point

Its melting point should be sufficiently higher than its operating temperature.
Otherwise a small rise in the operating voltage will destroy the element.

iv) High Specific Resistance

The resistivity of the material used for making element should be high.

v) High Oxidizing Temperature

Its oxidizing temperature should higher than its operating temperature.

vi) Mechanical Strength

 The material used should have sufficient mechanical strength of its own.

Chapter - 2

Classification of Methods of Electric Heating

2.1 Types of Electric Heating:

(i) Power Frequency Method:

Direct resistance heating, indirect resistance heating, direct arc heating, and indirect
arc heating.

(ii) High Frequency Heating:

Induction heating and dielectric heating.

2.2 Resistance Heating:

 This method is based upon the I 2R loss. Whenever current is passed through a
resistive material heat is produced because of I2 R loss.

There are two methods of resistance heating. They are

i) Direct Resistance Heating

ii) Indirect Resistance Heating

(i) Direct Resistance Heating:

In this method of heating the material or change to be heated is taken as a resistance

and current is passed through it.

The charge may be in the form of powder pieces or liquid. The two electrodes are
immersed in the charge and connected to the supply.

In case of D.C or single phase A.C two electrodes are required but there will be three
electrodes in case of three phase supply.

When metal pieces are to be heated a powder of high resistivity material is sprinkled
over the surface of the charge to avoid direct short circuit.

The current flows through the charge and heat is produced. This method has high
efficiency since heat is produced.

This method has high efficiency since heat is produced is charge itself. Though
automatic temperature control is not possible in this method.

But it gives uniform heat and high temperature. One of the major application of the
process is salt bath furnaces having an operating temperature between 500C to
1400C.

Advantages:

High efficiency.

It gives uniform heat and high temperature.

 Application:

It is mainly used in salt bath furnace and water heaters.

(ii) Indirect resistance heating

In this method the current is passed through a highly resistance element which is
either placed above or below the over depending upon the nature of the job to be
performed.

The heat proportional to I2R losses produced in heating element delivered to the
charge either by radiation or by convection.

Sometimes in case of industrial heating the resistance is placed in a cylinder which is

surrounded by the charge placed in the jackes as shown in figure3.29.

The arrangement provides as uniform temperature.

Automatic temperature control can be provided in this case.

Both A.C and D.C supplies can be used for this purpose at full mains voltage
depending upon the design of heating element.

Application:

This method is used in room heater, in bimetallic strip used in starters, immersion
water heaters and in various types of resistance ovens used in domestic and
commercial cooking.

2.3 Arc Furnaces:

There are two common types of arc furnaces: (1) Three-phase furnace and (2) Single
phase furnace.

Three phase furnaces are used in the production of alloy steels.

Single phase furnaces are used for the manufacture of gray iron casting also.
 Three phase furnaces are used for power ratings from 250KVA, 10,000KVA and
capacities upto 25 tonne.

Generally graphite electrodes are used. As they are subjected to volatilization, they
are to be replaced.

The arc temperature is between 3000 and 3500C, so that the process is carried out
between 1500C and 2500C.

The main components of a three phase furnace are:

(i) Variable ratio power transformer

(ii) Reactors

(iii) Automatic current regulator

(iv) Control panel

(v) Electric motor and tilting motor

(vi) Circuit breaker and connecting switches.

The chamber in which arc is struck is placed on a metal frame work. The chamber is
lined inside with a refractory linning, which is acidic or basic in nature.

(i) Direct arc furnace

The arc is struck directly with the charge, when a current flows through it and
produces intense heat, which results, in high temperature.

Although some furnaces up to 100 tonne are made, generally furnaces up to 25 tonne
are in general use.

Stirring action is automatic and gives a uniform product. It is used for alloy steel
manufacture and gives a purer product.

Merits:

When compared with cupola method,

It produces purer products

 It is very simple and easy to control the composistion of the final product during
refining process.

Demerits:

It is very costlier.

Eventhough it is used for both melting and refining but wherever electric energy is
expensive it is economical to use cupola for melting and arc furnace for refining.

Application:

The most common application of this type of furnace is to produce steel.

(ii) Indirect arc furnace

Electrodes are inserted from the sides and the heat produced is transmitted by
radiation to the charge.

As there is no inherent stirring action, the furnace should be rocked.

This furnace is used for only single phase supplies. Also the capacity of the furnace is
limited up to 100 tonne.

The furnace is rocked thoroughly to ensure, that the metal will cover the refactory
lining and prevent it from reaching high temperatures.

Melting of non-ferrous metals is mostly carried out in this type of furnace.

In both the type of furnaces, large quantities of electrodes are used.

The energy used is about 500-800kw/tone corresponding to maximum power input,

the power factor is 0.87 and efficiency 70%.

Application:

The main application of this type furnace is melting of non-ferrous metals.

2.4 Induction heating:

Induction heating processes make use of currents induced by electromagnetic action

in the material to be heated.

Induction heating is based on the principle of transformers. There is a primary

winding through which an a.c current is passed.

The coil is magnetically coupled with the metal to be heated which acts as secondary.

An electric current is induced in this metal when the a.c current is passed through the
primary coil.

The following are different types of induction furnaces

1. Core type and

2. Coreless type

Core type is classified into three types. They are

i) Direct core type

ii) Indirect core type

1. Core Type:

(i) Direct core type:

The direct core type induction furnace is shown ion fig.

It consist of an iron core, crucible and primary winding connected to an a.c supply.

The charge is kept in the cruicible, which forms a single turn short circuited
secondary circuit.

The current in the charge is very high in the order of several thousand amperes. The
charge is magnetically coupled to the primary winding.
 The change is melted because of high current induced in it. When there is no molten
metal, no current will flow in the secondary.

To start the furnace molten metal is poured in the oven from the previous charge.

This type of furnace has the following drawbacks.

The magnetic coupling between the primary and secondary is very weak, therefore the
leakage reactance is very high. This causes low power factor.

Low frequency supply is necessary because normal frequency causes turbulence of

the charge.

If current density exceeds about 5 amps/mm2 the electromagnetic force produced by

this current density causes interruption of secondary current.

Hence the heating of the metal is interrupted. It is called pinch effect.

The crucible for the charge id of odd shape and inconvenient from the metallurgical
point of view.

The furnace cannot function if the secondary circuit is open.

It must be closed. For starting the furnace either molten metal is poured into the
crucible or sufficient molten metal is allowed to remain in the crucible from the
previous operation.

Such furnace is not suitable for intermittent services.

(ii) Indirect core type induction furnace

Indirect core type induction furnace is shown in fig. I n this type of furnace induction
principle has been used for heating metals.

In such furnace an inductively heated element is made to transfer its heat to the
change by radiation.

It consists of an iron core linking with the primary winding and secondary. In this
case secondary consists of a metal container forming the walls of the furnace.
 When the primary winding is connected to the supply, current is induced in the
secondary of the metal container.

So heat is produced due to induced current. This heat is transmitted to the charge by
radiation.

The portion AB of the magnetic circuit is made up of a special alloy and is kept inside
the chamber of the furnace.

The special alloy will loss its magnetic properties at a particular temperature and the
magnetic properties are regained when the alloy will cooled.

As soon as the furnace attains the critical temperature the reluctance of the magnetic
circuit increases many times and the inductive effect correspondingly decreases
thereby cutting off the heat supply.

The bar AB is removable type and can be replaced by other, having different critical
temperature. Thus the temperature of the furnace can be controlled very effectively.

2. Coreless Type:

Coreless induction furnace:

Coreless induction furnace also operates on the principle of transformer. In this

furnace there is no core and thus the flux density will be low.

Hence for compensating the low flux density, the current supplied to the primary
should have sufficiently high frequency.

The flux set up by the primary winding produces eddy currents in the charge. The
heating effect of the eddy currents melts the charge.

Stirring of the metals takes place by the action of the electromagnetic forces. Coreless
furnace may be having conducting or non-conducting containers.

Fig shows a coreless induction furnace in which container is made up of conducting

material.
 The container acts as secondary winding and the charge can have either conducting or
non-conducting properties.

Thus the container forms a short circuited single turn secondary. Hence heavy current
induced in it and produce heat. This heat produced is transferred to the charge by
convection.

To prevent the primary winding from high temperature, refactory linings are provided
between primary and secondary windings.

Fig shows a coreless induction furnace in which the container is made of ceramic
material and the charge must necessarily have conducting properties.

The flux produced by the primary winding produces eddy currents in the charge. The
heating effects of the eddy currents melt the charge.

Stirring action in the metals takes place by the action of the electromagnetic forces.

Advantages:

Time taken to reach the melting temperature is less.

Accurate power control is possible.

Any shape of crucible can be used.

The eddy currents in the charge results in automatic stirring.

Absence of dirt, smoke, noise, etc.

Erection cost is less.

2.5 Dielectric heating:

Dielectric heating is also sometimes called as high frequency capacitance heating.

If non-metallic materials ie, insulators such as wood, plastics, china clay, glass,
ceramics etc are subjected to high voltage A.C current, their temperature will increase
in temperature is due to the conversion of dielectric loss into heat.
 The dielectric loss is dependent upon the frequency and high voltage. Therefore for
obtaining high heating effect high voltage at high frequency is usually employed.

The metal to be heated is placed between two sheet type electrodes which forms a
capacitor as shown in fig. The equivalent circuit and vector diagram is also shown in
fig.

When A.C supply is connected across the two electrodes, the current drawn by it is
leading the voltage exactly 90.

The angle between voltage and current is slightly less than 90, with the result that
there is a inphase component of the current (IR).

This current produces power loss in the dielectric of the capacitor. At normal supply
frequency the power loss may be small.

But at high frequencies, the loss becomes large, which is sufficient to heat the
dielectric.

Advantages:

Uniform heating is obtained.

Running cost is low.

Non conducting materials are heated within a short period.

Easy heat control.

Applications:

For food processing.

For wood processing.

For drying purpose in textile industry.

For electronic sewing.

Chapter - 3

Welding:

Welding is the process of joining two similar metals by heating. The metal parts are
heated to melting point. In some cases the pieces of metal to be joined are heated to
plastic stage and are fused together.

3.1 Electric welding:

In electric welding process, electric current is used to produce large heat, required for
joining two metal pieces. There are two methods by which electric welding can be
carried out. These are

1. Resistance welding and

2. Arc welding.

3.2 Types of electric welding:

1. Resistance welding

a) Butt welding

b) Spot welding

c) Seam welding

d) Projection welding

e) Flash welding

2. Arc welding

a) Carbon arc welding

b) Metal arc welding

c) Atomic hydrogen arc welding

d) Inert gas metal arc welding

 e) Submerged arc welding.

i) Resistance welding:

In resistance welding heavy current is passed through the metal pieces to be welded.
Heat will be developed by the resistance of the work piece to the flow of current.

The heat produced for welding is given by

H=I2Rt

Where,

H= Heat developed at the contact area.

I= Current in amperes.

R= Resistance in ohms.

t= time of flow of current.

The fundamental block diagram for resistance welding is shown in fig.

The A.C supply is given to the primary winding of the transformer through a
controlled contactor.

The welding transformer is a step down transformer. The secondary voltage is in the
order of 1 to 10 volts. But the current may range from 50 to 1000 amperes.

i) Butt welding:

In this process heat is generated by the contact resistance between two components.

In this type of welding the metal parts to be joined end to end as shown in fig.
Sufficient pressure is applied along the axial direction.

A heavy current is passed from the welding transformer which creates the necessary
heat at the joint due to high resistance of the contact area.
 Due to the pressure applied, the molten metal forced to produce a bulged joint.

This method is suitable for welding pipes, wires and rods.

ii) Spot welding:

Spot welding is usually employed for joining or fabricating sheet metal structure. This type of
joint only provides mechanical strength and is not air or water tight.

Spot welding arrangement is shown in fig. The plates to be welded are placed overlapping
each other between two electrodes, sufficient mechanical pressure is applied through the
electrodes. The welding current flows through electrodes tips producing a spot weld. The
welding current and period of current flow depend on the thickness of the plates.

ii) Arc welding:

An electric arc is the flow of electric current through gases.

An electric arc is struck by short circuiting two electrodes and then with drawing them
apart by small distance.

The current continue to flow across the small gap and give intense heat.

The heat developed by the arc is also used for cutting of metal.

a) Carbon arc welding:

In this process D.C is usually employed.

The electrode is made of carbon or graphite and is to be kept negative with respect of
the work.

The work piece is connected to positive wire as shown in fig. Flux and filler are also
used.

Filler is made up of similar metal as that of metal to be welded.

If the electrode is made positive then the carbon contents may flow into the weld and
cause brittleness.
 The heat from the arc forms a molten pool and the extra metal required to make the
weld is supplied by the filler rod.

This type of welding is used for welding copper and its alloy.

b) Metal arc welding:

In metal arc welding a metal rod of same material as being welded is used as an
electrode.

The electrode also serves the purpose of filler. For metal arc welding A.C or D.C can
be used.

Electric supply is connected between electrode and work piece.

The work piece is then suddenly touched by the electrode and then separated from it a
little. This results in an arc between the job and the electrode.

A little portion of the work and the tip of the electrode melts due to the heat generated
by the arc.

When the electrode is removed the metal cools and solidifies giving a strong welded
joint.

Chapter - 4

Electric Traction

The locomotive in which the driving or tractive force is obtained from electric motors
is called Electric traction.

Electric traction has many advantages as compared to other non-electrical systems of

traction including steam traction.

Electric traction is used in:

i) Electric trains
 ii) Trolley buses

iii) Tram cars

iv) Diesel-electric vehicles etc.,

4.1 Traction systems:

All traction systems, broadly speaking, can be classified as follows:

1. Non-electric traction systems: These systems do not use electrical energy

at some stage or the other.

Examples: (i) Steam engine drive used in railways

(ii) Internal combustion-engine-drive used for road

transport.

2. Electric traction systems: These systems involve the use of electric energy
at some stage or the other. These are further sub divided into the following
two groups:

a) Self contained vehicles or locomotives

Examples: i) Battery-electric drive

ii)Diesel-electric drive

b) Vehicles which receive electric power from a distribution network or

suitably placed sub-stations.

Examples: i) Railway electric locomotive fed from overhead A.C

supply;

ii) Tramways and trolley buses supplied with D.C.

supply.

4.2 Requirements of an ideal traction system:

 1. High adhesion coefficient, so that high tractive effort at the start is possible to
have rapid acceleration.

2. The locomotive or train unit should be self contained so that it can run on any
route.

3. Minimum wear on the track.

4. It should be possible to overload the equipment for short periods.

5. The equipment required should be minimum, of high efficiency and low initial
and maintenance cost.

6. It should be pollution free.

7. Speed control should be easy.

8. Braking should be such that minimum wear is caused on the brake shoes, and if
possible the energy should be regenerated and returned to the supply during
braking period.

9. There should be no interference to the communication lines running the track.

4.3 Different systems of traction:

The various systems of traction commonly used are,

i) Steam engine drive.

ii) Internal combustion engine drive.

iii) Internal combustion electric drive.

iv) Petro-electric traction.

v) Battery electric drive.

vi) Electric drive.

i) Steam engine drive:

 Steam engine drive, though losing ground gradually due to various reasons, it is
still the amply adopted means of propulsion of railway work in underdeveloped
countries.

In this type of drive, the reciprocating engine is invariably used for getting the
necessary motive power.

Advantages

Following are the advantages of steam engine drive:

Simplicity in design.

Simplified maintenance.

Easy speed control.

Simplicity of connections between the cylinders and the driving wheels.

No interference with communication network.

Low capital cost as track electrification is not required.

Disadvantages

Low thermal efficiency.

Due to the reason of low adhesion coefficient, power-weight ratio of steam

locomotive is low.

It has strictly limited overload capacity.

Steam locomotive cannot be put into service at any moment as time is required
for raising of steam.

Owing to high centre of gravity of steam locomotive, speed is limited.

Steam locomotive requires more repair and maintenance.

Extensive and costly auxiliary equipment.

 Since driving wheels are very close, hence more concentrated adhesive weight
is required.

Bigger sizes of running sheds and workshop are required.

ii) Internal combustion engine drive:

This drive is widely used for road transport.

The motive power is derived from petrol to diesel.

It has an efficiency of about 25 percent when operating at normal speed.

Various examples are buses, cars, trucks etc.,

Advantages

Low initial investment.

It is self-contained unit and, therefore, it is not tied to any route.

Easy speed control.

Very simple braking system.

It is cheap drive for the outer suburbs and country districts.

Disadvantages

Limited overload capacity.

A gear box is essential for speed control.

Higher running and maintenance costs.

Operation at any but the normal speed is uneconomical.

The life of propulsive equipment is much shorter than that of electrical

equipment of a tram car or a trolley bus.

iii) Internal combustion electric drive:

 In an I.C engine electric drive the reduction gear and gear box are eliminated
as the diesel as the diesel engine is to drive the D.C. generator coupled to it at
a constant speed.

This type of drive is finding considerable favour for railway work and
locomotives of this type are being widely used.

Advantages

Low initial investment.

No modification of existing tracks is required while converting from steam to

diesel electric traction.

As the locomotive and train is a self contained unit, therefore, it is not lied to
any route.

Can be put into service at any moment.

Loss of power in speed control is very low.

It is available for hauling for about 90% of its working days.

Overall efficiency is greater than that of steam locomotives.

Disadvantages

Limited overload capacity.

High running and maintenance cost.

Higher dead weight of locomotives; more axles required comparatively.

Comparatively costlier than steam or electric locomotives.

In such drives, regenerative braking cannot be used.

The life of the diesel engine is comparatively shorter.

 There is a necessity to provide special cooling system for the diesel engine in
addition to motor-generator set.

iv) Petrol-electric traction:

This system, due to electric conversion, provides a very fine and continuous
control which makes the vehicle capable of moving slowly at an imperceptible
speed and creeping up the steepest slope without throttling the engine.

Petrol-electric traction is employed in heavy lorries and buses.

v) Battery electric drive:

In this system the locomotive carries the secondary batteries which supply
power to D.C. motors employed for driving the vehicles.

This type of drive is well suited for frequently operated service such as for
local delivery of goods in large towns with maximum daily run of 50 to 60
km, shunting and traction in industrial works and mines.

Battery vehicles are started by series-parallel for starting and running at the
speed upto half maximum speed and in series for running at full maximum
speed.

Advantages

Battery driven vehicle is easy to control and very convenient to use.

Low maintenance cost.

Absence of fumes.

Disadvantages

The major disadvantages of this type of drive are the small capacity of
batteries and the necessity for frequent charging.

Limited speed range.

4.4 Speed time characteristics:

It is the curve drawn between speed of train in km/hour along y-axis and time in seconds
along x-axis.

The speed time curve gives complete information of the motion of the train.

This curve gives the speed at various times after the start and run directly.

The distance travelled by the train during a given interval of time can be obtained by
determining the area between the curve and the time axis corresponding to this interval.

A typical speed time curve for main line service is shown in fig. This curve consists of
five sections.

i) Notching up period (0 to t1)

During this period of run (0 to t 1), starting resistance is gradually cut so that the motor
current is limited to a certain value and the voltage across the motor is gradually
increased and the traction motor accelerates from rest.

To cut the starting resistance, the starter handle has to be moved from one notch to
another. Hence this period is called notching up period.

The acceleration is almost uniform during this period. Therefore speed- time curve is
a straight line (OA).

i) Acceleration period (t1 to t2)

When all the starting resistances are cut out, the full voltage is applied to the
motor.

Now the torque decreases and speed increases according to the speed torque
characteristics of the motor.

Now the acceleration gradually decreases with the increase in speed and
finally reaches the required torque for the movement of the train (at time t2).

ii) Free running period (t2 to t3).

 During this period i.e. t2 to t3 the power supplied to the motor is at full voltage
and speed of this period is constant, also during this period power drawn from
the supply is constant.

iii) Coasting period (t3 to t4)

At the end of free running period supply to the motor is cut off and the train is
allowed to run under its own kinetic energy.

Due to train resistance speed of the train gradually decreases.

The rate of decreasing of speed during this period is known as coasting

retardation.

iv) Braking or retardation period (t4 to t5)

At the end of coasting period the brakes are applied to bring the train to stop.

During this period speed decreases rapidly and finally reduces to zero.

There are three types of electric traction services.

1. Main line service

2. Sub-urban service

3. Urban service

i) For main line service:

The distance between two successive stations in main line service is

considerably more (more than 10 km).

In this service free run is longer duration. The duration of acceleration and
retardation is small.
Fig. Speed Time curve for Main service

ii) For suburban service:

In this type of service the distance between two successive stations is

in the range of 1.5 km to 8 km. Fig represents speed-time curve for
sub-urban service.

Acceleration and braking retardation required are high.

Free running period is not possible and coasting period will be

comparatively longer than urban service.

Fig. Speed Time curve for suburban service

 iii) For urban or city service:

In city service the distance between the two stations is very short i.e., between
0.75 to 1 km.

The time required for this run between the adjacent and retardation should be
sufficient high.

Fig shows the speed-time curve for urban or city service. It will be seen that
there will be no free running period.

Fig Speed Time curve for urban service

4.5 Braking:

Braking is very frequent in electric drives to stop a motor in a reasonably short time.

For example a plannar must quickly be stopped at the end of its stroke and sometimes
must quickly be stopped at the end of its stroke and sometimes it is necessary to stop the
motor in order to prevent accident.

The essential of a good braking system should be

i) Reliable and quick in its action.

ii) The braking force must be capable of being controlled.

 iii) Adequate means be provided for dissipating the stored energy that is kinetic energy of
the rotating parts.

iv) In case of a fault in any part of the braking system the whole system must come to
instantaneous rest or result in the application of the brakes.

There are two types of braking:

i) Mechanical braking

The motor in this case is stopped due to friction between the moving part of the motor
and the brake shoe that is stored energy is dissipated as heat by a brake shoe or brake
linning which rubs against a brake shoe or brake linning which rubs against a brake drum.

ii) Electric braking

In this method of braking, the kinetic energy of the moving parts that is motor is
converted into electrical energy which is consumed in a resistance as heat or
alternatively it is returned to the supply source.

Electric braking is superior to the friction braking as it is fast and cheap since
there is no cost of maintenance of the brake shoes or linning.

During braking operation a motor has to function as a generator.

The motor can be held at stand still. In other words the electric braking cannot
hold the motor at rest.

Thus it becomes essential to provide mechanical brakes in addition to electric

braking.

Various types of electrical braking are:

a) Plugging

b) Rheostatic braking

c) Regenerative braking
a) Plugging:

This is a simple method of electric braking and consists in reversing the connections
of the armature of the motor so as to reverse its direction of rotation which will
oppose the original direction of rotation of the motor and will bring it to zero speed
when mechanical brakes can be applied.

At the end of the braking period the supply to the motor is automatically cut off. This
method of braking can be applied to the following motors.

1) DC motors

2) Induction motors

3) Synchronous motors

Plugging applied to DC motors

To reverse a DC motors, it is necessary to reverse the connections of the

armature while the connections of the field are kept the same.

The direction of m.m.f remains the same even during braking periods.

Series motors:

The arrangements of connection before and after the braking are shown in
fig.

Shunt motors:

Total voltage of V+ Eb is available across the armature terminals which

causes a current I to flow around the circuit.

When Eb = V then the voltage across the armature is 2V and at the time of
braking twice the normal voltage is applied to the resistance in series with
the armature at this time in order to limit the current.
 While the motor is being braked, the current is still being drawn from the
supply.

This method requires energy from the supply for its action and not only the
kinetic energy of the motor is being wasted, but this energy is also being
dissipated.

Plugging applied to induction motors:

In the case of induction motor its speed can be reversed by inter changing any
of the two stator phases which reverses the direction of rotation of motor field.

Actually at the time of braking when the induction motor is running at near
synchronous speed.

The point Q represents the torque at the instant of plugging one can notice that
the torque increases gradually as one approaches the stand still speed.

Different values of rotor resistance give rise to different shapes of speed

torque curve in order to give any desired braking effect.

The rotor current I2 can be calculated during the braking period from the
following relation and is plotted as shown.

I2 = SE2 / [Re2 + (SX2)2] ------------------- (13)

Where E2 is the e.m.f. induced in rotor at standstill

R2 is the rotor resistance

X2 is the standstill reactance of the rotor and

S2 is the percentage slip

Plugging applied to synchronous motors:

 Plugging can be applied to the synchronous motors, with the only difference
that the field on the rotor will be rotating in opposite direction to that of the
rotating field on the stator with the synchronous speed and the relative velocity
between the two will be twice the synchronous speed.

This will meant that there is one synchronous motor torque but the same will
be produced by the induction in the starting winding.

Since most of the motors are equipped with starting winding, a synchronous
motor provides satisfactory braking.

ii) Rheostatic braking:

In this method of braking, the motor is disconnected from the supply and run as
generator driven by the remaining kinetic energy of the equipment that is the
energy stored in motor and load which are to be braked.

Dc motors

Shunt motor

In this type of motor, the armature is simply disconnected from the supply
and is connected to as resistance in series with it, the field, winding
remains connect to the supply as shown in fig.

The braking can be adjusted suitably by varying the resistance in the

armature circuit.

In the case of failure of the supply, there is no braking torque because of

absence of the field.

Series motor

In this case of the connections are made as shown is fig during braking
operation.
 The motor after disconnection from the supply in made to run as a DC
series generator.

The resistance inserted in the circuit must be less than the critical
resistance otherwise the generator will not be self exciting.

When the series motor is disconnected from the supply the direction of the
armature current is reversed.

Rheostatic braking is applied to induction motor:

In this case the stator is disconnected from the supply and is connected to DC
supply which excites the windings thereby producing a DC field.

The rotor is short-circuited across through resistance in each phase.

When the short circuited rotor moves it outs the steady flux produced in the air
gap due to DC current flowing in the stator produced in the air gap due to DC
current flowing in the stator and an e.m.f is induced in the rotor conductors.

The satisfactory application of this method is applicable only to the phase

wound inductor motor where external resistance can be inserted in each phase.

Rheostatic braking as applied to the synchronous motors:

Rheostatic braking in the synchronous motors is similar to the rheostatic

braking in induction motors.

In this case the stator is shorted across resistance in star or delta and the
machine works like an alternator supplying the current to the resistance, there
by dissipating in kinetic energy in the form of losses in the resistances.

iii) Regenerative braking:

In this type of braking the motor is not disconnected from the supply but
remains connected to it and its feeds back the braking energy or its kinetic
energy to the supply system.
 This method is better than the first and second methods of braking since no
energy is wasted and rather it is supplied back to the system.

This method is applicable to following motors:

(i) D.C motors

(ii) Induction motors

D.C motors

Shunt motor

In a DC machine where energy will be taken from the supply or delievered

to it depends upon the induced emf, if it in less than the line voltage the
machine will operate as motor and if it is more than the line voltage, the
machine will operate as generator.

The e.m.f induced in turn depends upon the speed and excitation that is
when the field current or the speed is increased the induced e.m.f exceeds
the line voltage and the energy will be field into the system.

This will quickly decrease the speed of the motor and will bring it to rest.

Series motor

In this case, complications arise due to fact that the reversal of the current
in the armature would cause a reversal of polarity of the series field and
hence back emf would be reversed.

Regenerative braking applied to induction motor:

In the case of induction motors, the regenerative braking is inherent, since

an induction motor act as a generator when running at speeds above
synchronous speeds and it feeds power back to the supply system.
 No extra auxiliaries are needed for this purpose. This method is however
very seldom used for braking but its application is very useful to lifts and
hoists for holding a descending load at a speed only slightly above the
synchronous speed.

4.6 Tramways:

The tramway is perhaps the cheapest type of transport available in very dense traffic.

It receives power through a bow collector or a grooved wheel from an overhead

conductor at about 600 V D.C., the running rail forming the return conductor.

It is provided with atleast two driving axles in order to secure necessary adhesion, start it
from either end and use two motors with series- parallel control.

Two drum-type controllers, one at each end used for controlling the tramcar.

Though these controllers are connected in parallel, they have suitable interlocking
arrangement to prevent their being used simultaneously.

The main frame of the car body is made from high tensile steel. Aluminium is extensively
used for bodywork.

The under frame is of rolled steel sections. Seats are either in transverse direction or a
combination of transverse and longitudinal arrangement is used.

The equipment is similar to that used in railways but the output is considerably smaller
and does not exceed 60 to 75 H.P.

For normal service rheostatic and mechanical braking are employed.

For mechanical braking, electro-mechanical drum brakes are used. Also magnetic tracks
brakes are used for giving better retardation.

This traction system is losing ground to trolley bus or internal combustion engine ominus
system due to the following reasons:

i) Lack of operational flexibility in areas of heavy congestion.

 ii) Undesirable effect of track on other road vehicles.

iii) It is an economical method of transportation only for large cities having dense
traffic.

4.7 Trolley-Bus:

Serious drawback of tramway is the lack of manoeuvrability in congested areas and noise;
this is overcome by the trolley-bus drive.

It is an electrically- operated pneumatic-tyred vehicle which needs no track in the

roadway. It receives its power at 600 V D.C. from two overhead contact wires. Since
adhesion between a rubber-tyred wheel and ground is sufficiently high, only a single
driving axle and, hence, a single motor is used. The trolley bus can manoeuvre through a
metre or two on each side of the centre line of the trolley wires.

A D.C compound motor of output of 50 to 100 kW is normally used.

Speed control is obtained by field weakening method. Foot operated master controllers
are used so that drive may have his hands free to steer the vehicle and apply hand brake.
One pedal controls the starting, speed control and regenerative braking, if any and second
pedal control rheostatic and compressed air brakes. Regenerative braking is usually not
employed in trolley-bus drive because of difficulty of ensuring that supply system is
always in a position to absorb the energy regenerated.

The lighting system in the car is low-voltage D.C supplied from a motor- generator set
connected in parallel with a battery. The vehicles are usually provided with secondary
batteries so that the vehicles can be manoeuvred in case of emergency.

Since the body of the car is insulated from earth on account of the rubber-tyred wheels, it
must be properly checked for adequate insulation resistance lest it leaks and causes
electric shocks to the passengers while boarding and alighting from the bus. The
insulation resistance is checked at the end of the day.

Trolley buses have more passenger carrying capacity, higher acceleration and braking
retardation than oil-engined buses. These are, therefore, used for medium traffic density
 as obtained in inner suburbs. Oil engine buses, on the other hand, are used for outer
suburbs and country side where there is low traffic density.

Chapter - 5

Electrolytic Processes

5.1 Introduction:

The processes based on the fact that electrical energy can produce chemical changes are
called Electrolytic processes. These processes are widely used for:

(i) Extraction of pure metals from their ores(e.g., copper, zinc, aluminium, magnesium
etc.);

(ii) Refining of metals (e.g., gold, silver, copper, nickel etc.);

(iii) Manufacturing of various chemicals (e.g., caustic soda, potassium

permagnate, chlorine etc.);

(iv)Electro-deposition of metals including electro-plating, electro-typing, electro-forming;

(v) Building up of worn parts in metallurgical, chemical and other industries.

All the processes mentioned above, though they appear differently in apparent detail, are
based on the principle of electrolysis.

5.2 The Basic Principle:

When a compound formed by electrovalent bond is dissolved in water which has high
dielectric constant results in the weakening of the electrostatic force of attraction
between the ionized atoms.
 This results in the charged ions to lead an independent existence. Consider the case of
a copper sulphate (CuSO4) dissolved in water.

It dissociates into positively-charged copper ions (Cu++) and negatively-charged

sulphate ions (SO4--) moving freely in the solution.

If two electrodes are placed in the electrolyte (i.e., CuSO 4 solution) and one of them is
made positive and the other negative, the positively-charged ions travel towards the
cathode and the negatively-charged ions travel towards the anode.

Each of the positively-charged copper ions (cations) reaching the cathode will take
two electrons from it and become a metallic atom of copper, and similary each of the
negative-charged sulphate ions (anions) reaching the anode will give up two electrons
to it and cease to be anion.

Thus the copper is deposited at the cathode as metal. The sulphate ions collect at the
anode and react with water giving out oxygen:

2H2O + 2SO4 = 2H2SO4 + O2

Oxygen is liberated as gas at the anode and H2SO4 is formed. If the cathode is made of
Cu, the sulphuric acid attacks it forming copper sulphate and liberating hydrogen:

H2SO4 + Cu = CuSO4 + H2

Thus the copper of the anode goes into solution and copper from copper sulphate is
deposited on the cathode.

During the process there is no accumulation of charge at any point in the circuit and
the mass of copper deposited at the cathode is exactly equal to that removed from the
anode.

The whole process described above is called electrolysis.

5.3 Faradays Laws Of Electrolysis:

Michael Faraday (an English scientist) formulated the laws governing the electrolytic
processes, which are stated below:
 Faradays First Law:

The mass of a substance liberated from an electrolyte in a given time is proportional

to the quantity of electricity passing through the electrolyte.

That is m Q It

m = Zit

where,

Z = A constant called the electrochemical equivalent,

I = the steady current in amperes, and

t = Time (second) for which current I flows through the electrolyte.

If I = 1A, t = 1s and Z = m

Thus electrochemical equivalent, Z, of a substance is defined as the amount of the

substance deposited on passing a steady electric current of 1A for one second through
its solution. The S.I. unit of Z is kilogram per coulomb (Kg/C).

Faradays Second Law:

When the same quantity of electricity is passed through several electrolytes, the
masses of the substances deposited are proportional to their respective chemical
equivalents or equivalent weights. From this law it follows that the constant of
proportional to the chemical equivalent.

5.4 Application of electrolysis:

The major applications of electrolysis are as under:

Electro-deposition

i. Electroplating

ii. Electro-deposition of rubber

 iii. Electro-metallisation

iv. Electro-typing

Manufacture of chemicals

Anodizing

Electropolishing

Electro-cleaning or pickling

Electro-parting or electro-stripping

i. Electro-extraction

ii. Electro-refining

Electro-deposition:

The process of depositing a coating of one metal over another metal or non-metal
electrically is called the electro-deposition.

It is used for protective, decorative and functional purposes and includes such
processes as electro-plating, electro-forming, electro-typing, electro-facing, electro-
metallisation etc.

5.5 Factors on which quality of electro-deposition depends:

Following are the factors on which the quality of electro-deposition depends:

Nature of electrolyte:

The electrolyte from which complex ions can be obtained provides a smooth deposit.

Current density:

The deposit of metal will be uniform and fine-grained if the current density is
used at a rate higher than at which the nuclei are formed. The deposit will be strong
and porous if the rate of nuclei formation is very high current density.
 Temperature:

A low temperature of the solution favours formation of small crystals of metal;

and a high temperature, large crystals.

Conductivity:

The solution of good conductivity provides economy in power consumption

and also reduces the tendency to form trees and rough deposits.

Electrolytic concentration:

By increasing the concentration of the electrolyte, higher current density can

be achieved, which is necessary to obtain uniform and fine-grain deposit.

Addition agents:

The addition of acid or other substances to the electrolyte reduces its

resistance. Addition agents like glue, gums, dextrose, dextrin etc.

Influence the nature of deposit. The crystal nuclei absorb the addition agent added in
the electrolyte; this prevents it to have large growth and thus deposition will be fine-
grained.

Throwing power

It is defined as the ability of the electrolyte to produce even irregular surfaces. Due to
irregular shape of the cathode the distance between the various portions of the cathode
and anode will be different. Due to unequal distance, the resistance of the current path
through the electrolyte for various portions of the cathode will be different but the
potential difference between the anode and any point on the article to be plate will be,
of course, be the same and the result will be that the current density will be more on
the portion nearer to anode and it will cause uneven deposit of the metal.\
 Polarization:

With the increase in the electroplating current density, rate of metal deposition is also
increased upto certain limit after which electrolyte surrounding the base metal becomes so
much depleted of metal ions that rate of deposition does not increase with increase in
current density. If current density more than this limit is employed, it will result in
electrolysis of water and hydrogen deposition on the cathode. This hydrogen evolved,
blankets the base metal which diminishes the rate of metal deposition. This phenomenon
is called polarization. Blanking effect can be reduced by agitating the electrolyte.

5.6 Electroplating:

Electroplating is an art of depositing a superior or a more noble metal on an inferior or a base

metal by means of electrolysis of an aqueous solution of a suitable electrolyte.

or

Electroplating is defined as the electro-deposition of metal upon metallic surfaces. It is done

to accomplish the following:

To protect the metals against corrosion.

To give a shiny appearance to articles.

To give reflecting properties reflectors.

To replace worn out material.

The electrolyte deposits are crystalline in nature. The crystals must be very fine in
order to get firm, coherent and uniform deposits. For this purpose, suitable
electrolytes should be used in the electrolytic bath and current density used should
have an appropriate value. The temperature should also be maintained at a proper
level.

The articles to be coated with nobler metals should be in as high a state of purity as
possible.
Operation involved in electroplating:

Various operations involved in electroplating are:

1. Cleaning operation

2. Deposition of metal

Cleaning operation:

In case the object to be electroplated is not cleaned, polished and degreased, the
deposit formed may not be well adherent to the base metal and is likely to peel off.

Cleaning operation includes the following:

Removal of oil, grease, or other organic material. To accomplish this, soaps, hot
alkali solutions, or organic solvents such as gasoline or carbon tetrachloride are
used.

Removal of rust, scale, oxides, or other inorganic coatings adhering to the base
metal/ work piece To accomplish this various acids, alkali and salt solutions are
employed.

Mechanical preparation of the surface of the metal to remove the deposited metal,
by polishing, buffing etc., To accomplish this mechanical abrasion and polishing
are used.

Deposition of metal:

In all types of metal deposition processes, article to be electroplated is made cathode, solution
is made up of salt of the metal to be deposited and anode is often of the same metal which is
to be deposited.