Introduction to Star-Delta motor

starter
Most induction motors are started directly on line, but when very large motors are
started that way, they cause a disturbance of voltage on the supply lines due to
large starting current surges.

Star-delta motor starter panel

To limit the starting current surge, large induction motors are started at reduced
voltage and then have full supply voltage reconnected when they run up to near
rotated speed.
 Star-delta starter panel

Two methods used for reduction of starting voltage are: Star delta
starting and Auto transformer starting.

Working Principle of Star-Delta

Starter
This is the reduced voltage starting method. Voltage reduction during star-delta
starting is achieved by physically reconfiguring the motor windings as illustrated
in the figure below. During starting the motor windings are connected in star
configuration and this reduces the voltage across each winding 3. This also
reduces the torque by a factor of three.

Scheme – Working Principle of Star-Delta Starter

After a period of time the winding are reconfigured as delta and the motor runs
normally. Star/Delta starters are probably the most common reduced voltage
starters. They are used in an attempt to reduce the start current applied to the
motor during start as a means of reducing the disturbances and interference on
the electrical supply.
Traditionally in many supply regions, there has been a requirement to fit a
reduced voltage starter on all motors greater than 5HP (4KW). The Star/Delta (or
Wye/Delta) starter is one of the lowest cost electromechanical reduced voltage
starters that can be applied.
The Star/Delta starter is manufactured from three contactors, a timer and a
thermal overload. The contactors are smaller than the single contactor used in a
Direct on Line starter as they are controlling winding currents only. The currents
through the winding are 1/root 3 (58%) of the current in the line.

There are two contactors that are close during run, often referred to as the main
contractor and the delta contactor. These are AC3 rated at 58% of the current
rating of the motor. The third contactor is the star contactor and that only carries
star current while the motor is connected in star.

The current in star is one third of the current in delta, so this contactor can be
AC3 rated at one third (33%) of the motor rating.

Star-delta Starter Consists following units

1. Contactors (Main, star and delta contactors) 3 No’s (For Open State Starter)
or 4 No’s (Close Transient Starter).
2. Time relay (pull-in delayed) 1 No.
3. Three-pole thermal overcurrent release 1 No.
4. Fuse elements or automatic cut-outs for the main circuit 3 Nos.
5. Fuse element or automatic cut-out for the control circuit 1No.

Power Circuit of Star Delta Starter

The main circuit breaker serves as the main power supply switch that supplies
electricity to the power circuit.

The main contactor connects the reference source voltage R, Y, B to the primary
terminal of the motor U1, V1, W1.

In operation, the Main Contactor (KM3) and the Star Contactor (KM1) are closed
initially, and then after a period of time, the star contactor is opened, and then the
delta contactor (KM2) is closed. The control of the contactors is by the timer (K1T)
built into the starter. The Star and Delta are electrically interlocked and preferably
mechanically interlocked as well.
Power circuit of Star-Delta starter

In effect, there are four states:

The star contactor serves to initially short the secondary terminal of the motor
U2, V2, W2 for the start sequence during the initial run of the motor from standstill.
This provides one third of DOL current to the motor, thus reducing the high inrush
current inherent with large capacity motors at startup.
Controlling the interchanging star connection and delta connection of an AC
induction motor is achieved by means of a star delta or wye delta control circuit.
The control circuit consists of push button switches, auxiliary contacts and a
timer.

Control Circuit of Star-Delta Starter

(Open Transition)

Scheme – Control Circuit of Star-Delta Starter (Open Transition)

The ON push button starts the circuit by initially energizing Star Contactor Coil
(KM1) of star circuit and Timer Coil (KT) circuit. When Star Contactor Coil (KM1)
energized, Star Main and Auxiliary contactor change its position from NO to NC.
When Star Auxiliary Contactor (1) (which is placed on Main Contactor coil circuit
) become NO to NC it’s complete The Circuit of Main contactor Coil (KM3) so
Main Contactor Coil energized and Main Contactor’s Main and Auxiliary
Contactor Change its Position from NO to NC. This sequence happens in a
friction of time.

After pushing the ON push button switch, the auxiliary contact of the main
contactor coil (2) which is connected in parallel across the ON push button will
become NO to NC, thereby providing a latch to hold the main contactor coil
activated which eventually maintains the control circuit active even after releasing
the ON push button switch.

When Star Main Contactor (KM1) close its connect Motor connects on STAR and
it’s connected in STAR until Time Delay Auxiliary contact KT (3) become NC to
NO.

Once the time delay is reached its specified Time, the timer’s auxiliary contacts
(KT)(3) in Star Coil circuit will change its position from NC to NO and at the Same
Time Auxiliary contactor (KT) in Delta Coil Circuit(4) change its Position from NO
To NC so Delta coil energized and Delta Main Contactor becomes NO To NC.
Now Motor terminal connection change from star to delta connection.

A normally close auxiliary contact from both star and delta contactors (5&6)are
also placed opposite of both star and delta contactor coils, these interlock
contacts serves as safety switches to prevent simultaneous activation of both star
and delta contactor coils, so that one cannot be activated without the other
deactivated first. Thus, the delta contactor coil cannot be active when the star
contactor coil is active, and similarly, the star contactor coil cannot also be active
while the delta contactor coil is active.

The control circuit above also provides two interrupting contacts to shutdown the
motor. The OFF push button switch break the control circuit and the motor when
necessary. The thermal overload contact is a protective device which
automatically opens the STOP Control circuit in case when motor overload
current is detected by the thermal overload relay, this is to prevent burning of the
motor in case of excessive load beyond the rated capacity of the motor is
detected by the thermal overload relay.

At some point during starting it is necessary to change from a star connected

winding to a delta connected winding. Power and control circuits can be arranged
to this in one of two ways – open transition or closed transition.
What is Open or Closed Transition Starting
1. Open Transition Starters
Discuss mention above is called open transition switching because there is an
open state between the star state and the delta state.

In open transition the power is disconnected from the motor while the winding are
reconfigured via external switching.

When a motor is driven by the supply, either at full speed or at part speed, there
is a rotating magnetic field in the stator. This field is rotating at line frequency.
The flux from the stator field induces a current in the rotor and this in turn results
in a rotor magnetic field.

When the motor is disconnected from the supply (open transition) there is a
spinning rotor within the stator and the rotor has a magnetic field. Due to the low
impedance of the rotor circuit, the time constant is quite long and the action of
the spinning rotor field within the stator is that of a generator which generates
voltage at a frequency determined by the speed of the rotor.

When the motor is reconnected to the supply, it is reclosing onto an

unsynchronized generator and this result in a very high current and torque
transient. The magnitude of the transient is dependent on the phase
relationship between the generated voltage and the line voltage at the point
of closure can be much higher than DOL current and torque and can result in
electrical and mechanical damage.
Open transition starting is the easiest to implement in terms or cost and circuitry
and if the timing of the changeover is good, this method can work well. In practice
though it is difficult to set the necessary timing to operate correctly and
disconnection/reconnection of the supply can cause significant voltage/current
transients.

In open transition there are four states:

1. OFF State: All Contactors are open.
2. Star State: The Main [KM3] and the Star [KM1] contactors are closed and the
delta [KM2] contactor is open. The motor is connected in star and will produce
one third of DOL torque at one third of DOL current.
3. Open State: This type of operation is called open transition switching because
there is an open state between the star state and the delta state. The Main
contractor is closed and the Delta and Star contactors are open. There is
 voltage on one end of the motor windings, but the other end is open so no
current can flow. The motor has a spinning rotor and behaves like a generator.
4. Delta State: The Main and the Delta contactors are closed. The Star contactor
is open. The motor is connected to full line voltage and full power and torque
are available

2. Closed Transition Star/Delta Starter

There is a technique to reduce the magnitude of the switching transients. This
requires the use of a fourth contactor and a set of three resistors. The resistors
must be sized such that considerable current is able to flow in the motor windings
while they are in circuit.

The auxiliary contactor and resistors are connected across the delta contactor.
In operation, just before the star contactor opens, the auxiliary contactor closes
resulting in current flow via the resistors into the star connection. Once the star
contactor opens, current is able to flow round through the motor windings to the
supply via the resistors. These resistors are then shorted by the delta contactor.

If the resistance of the resistors is too high, they will not swamp the voltage
generated by the motor and will serve no purpose.

In closed transition the power is maintained to the motor at all time.

This is achieved by introducing resistors to take up the current flow during the
winding changeover. A fourth contractor is required to place the resistor in circuit
before opening the star contactor and then removing the resistors once the delta
contactor is closed.

These resistors need to be sized to carry the motor current. In addition to

requiring more switching devices, the control circuit is more complicated due to
the need to carry out resistor switching

In close transition there are four states:

1. OFF State. All Contactors are open
2. Star State. The Main [KM3] and the Star [KM1] contactors are closed and the
delta [KM2] contactor is open. The motor is connected in star and will produce
one third of DOL torque at one third of DOL current.
3. Star Transition State. The motor is connected in star and the resistors are
connected across the delta contactor via the aux [KM4] contactor.
4. Closed Transition State. The Main [KM3] contactor is closed and the Delta
[KM2] and Star [KM1] contactors are open. Current flows through the motor
windings and the transition resistors via KM4.
5. Delta State. The Main and the Delta contactors are closed. The transition
resistors are shorted out. The Star contactor is open. The motor is connected
to full line voltage and full power and torque are available.

Effect of Transient in Starter (Open

Transient starter)
It is Important the pause between star contactor switch off and Delta contactor
switch is on correct. This is because Star contactor must be reliably disconnected
before Delta contactor is activated. It is also important that the switch over
pause is not too long.

For 415v Star Connection voltage is effectively reduced to 58% or 240v. The
equivalent of 33% that is obtained with Direct Online (DOL) starting.

If Star connection has sufficient torque to run up to 75% or %80 of full load speed,
then the motor can be connected in Delta mode.

When connected to Delta configuration the phase voltage increases by a ratio of

V3 or 173%. The phase currents increase by the same ratio. The line current
increases three times its value in star connection.

During transition period of switchover the motor must be free running with little
deceleration. While this is happening “Coasting” it may generate a voltage of its
own, and on connection to the supply this voltage can randomly add to or subtract
from the applied line voltage. This is known as transient current. Only lasting a
few milliseconds it causes voltage surges and spikes. Known as a changeover
transient.

Size of each part of Star-Delta starter

1. Size of Over Load Relay
For a star-delta starter there is a possibility to place the overload protection in
two positions, in the line or in the windings.
Overload Relay in Line:
In the line is the same as just putting the overload before the motor as with a DOL
starter.

The rating of Overload (In Line) = FLC of Motor.

Disadvantage: If the overload is set to FLC, then it is not protecting the motor
while it is in delta (setting is x1.732 too high).

Overload Relay in Winding:

In the windings means that the overload is placed after the point where the wiring
to the contactors are split into main and delta. The overload then always
measures the current inside the windings.

The setting of Overload Relay (In Winding) =0.58 X FLC (line current).

Disadvantage: We must use separate short circuit and overload protections.

2. Size of Main and Delta Contractor

There are two contactors that are close during run, often referred to as the main
contractor and the delta contactor. These are AC3 rated at 58% of the current
rating of the motor.

Size of Main Contactor= IFL x 0.58

3. Size of Star Contractor

The third contactor is the star contactor and that only carries star current while
the motor is connected in star. The current in star is 1/ √3= (58%) of the current
in delta, so this contactor can be AC3 rated at one third (33%) of the motor rating.

Size of Star Contactor= IFL x 0.33

Motor Starting Characteristics of
Star-Delta Starter
 Available starting current: 33% Full Load Current.
 Peak starting current: 1.3 to 2.6 Full Load Current.
 Peak starting torque: 33% Full Load Torque.

Advantages of Star-Delta starter

 The operation of the star-delta method is simple and rugged
 It is relatively cheap compared to other reduced voltage methods.
 Good Torque/Current Performance.
 It draws 2 times starting current of the full load ampere of the motor
connected

Disadvantages of Star-Delta starter

1. Low Starting Torque (Torque = (Square of Voltage) is also reduce).
2. Break In Supply – Possible Transients
3. Six Terminal Motor Required (Delta Connected).
4. It requires 2 set of cables from starter to motor.
.
5. It provides only 33% starting torque and if the load connected to the subject
motor requires higher starting torque at the time of starting than very heavy
transients and stresses are produced while changing from star to delta
connections, and because of these transients and stresses many electrical
and mechanical break-down occurs.
.
6. In this method of starting initially motor is connected in star and then after
change over the motor is connected in delta. The delta of motor is formed in
starter and not on motor terminals.
.
7. High transmission and current peaks: When starting up pumps and fans
for example, the load torque is low at the beginning of the start and increases
with the square of the speed. When reaching approx. 80-85 % of the motor
rated speed the load torque is equal to the motor torque and the acceleration
ceases. To reach the rated speed, a switch over to delta position is necessary,
and this will very often result in high transmission and current peaks. In some
 cases the current peak can reach a value that is even bigger than for a D.O.L
start.
.
8. Applications with a load torque higher than 50 % of the motor rated torque will
not be able to start using the start-delta starter.
.
9. Low Starting Torque: The star-delta (wye-delta) starting method controls
whether the lead connections from the motor are configured in a star or delta
electrical connection. The initial connection should be in the star pattern that
results in a reduction of the line voltage by a factor of 1/√3 (57.7%) to the
motor and the current is reduced to 1/3 of the current at full voltage, but the
starting torque is also reduced 1/3 to 1/5 of the DOL starting torque.
.
10. The transition from star to delta transition usually occurs once nominal
speed is reached, but is sometimes performed as low as 50% of nominal
speed which make transient Sparks.

Features of star-delta starting

1. For low- to high-power three-phase motors.
2. Reduced starting current
3. Six connection cables
4. Reduced starting torque
5. Current peak on changeover from star to delta
6. Mechanical load on changeover from star to delta

Application of Star-Delta Starter

The star-delta method is usually only applied to low to medium voltage and
light starting Torque motors.

The received starting current is about 30 % of the starting current during direct
on line start and the starting torque is reduced to about 25 % of the torque
available at a D.O.L start. This starting method only works when the application
is light loaded during the start.

If the motor is too heavily loaded, there will not be enough torque to accelerate
the motor up to speed before switching over to the delta position