Energy Conversion II: Prof. S. Shahnawaz Ahmed

Energy Conversion II
Lectures prepared by
Prof. S. Shahnawaz Ahmed
Contents:
Parallel operation of generators: requirement of parallel operation,
conditions, synchronizing; synchronoscope, phase sequence indicator
load distribution of alternators in parallel, droop setting, frequency control,
voltage control, house diagrams
Effects of changing set point, excitation of a generator paralleled with large
grid
For subsequent materials assistance taken mainly from:
Stephen J. Chapman: Electric Machinery Fundamentals, McGraw Hill, 5th

Edition, 2012.
Parallel operation of synchronous generators:
Reasons for operating in parallel:
•Handling larger loads.

•Maintenance can be done without power disruption.
•Increasing system reliability.
•Increased efficiency. This means a single generator of
large size will be relatively inefficient if that is not
operated near full load. On the other hand a number of
small generators can be running in parallel to operate
near the respective full load and hence more efficiently.
Conditions for paralleling two generators:
generator
Paralleling 2 or more generators must be done carefully as to avoid damage to

generators or other system components. Conditions are as follows:
a) RMS line voltages must be equal.
b) The generators to be paralleled must have the same phase sequence. If

the phase sequence is different (as shown above), then even though one
pair of voltages (the a phase) is in phase, the other 2 pairs of voltages are
120° out of phase. If the generators were connected in this manner, there
would be no problem with phase a, but huge currents would flow in phases
b and c, damaging both machines.
c) Generator output phase angles must be the same.
d) The oncoming generator (the new generator) must have a slightly higher
operating frequency than that of the running generator or system.
 This is done so that the phase angles of the incoming machine will change
slowly with respect to the phase angles of the running system. This will then
allow observation of phase angles between corresponding voltages on an
oscilloscope and a closure of the switch exactly when the phase angle difference
becomes zero.
 Also due to having a slightly higher frequency the oncoming generator will
deliver power to the load i.e. not take power from the running generator or
system.
 Once paralleled, the oncoming generator will share the load with the running
generator at a common frequency.
common frequency
General Procedure for Paralleling Generators
(For smaller generators these steps are followed by the operators
manually)
1.Using Voltmeters, the field current of the oncoming
generator should be adjusted until its terminal voltage
is equal to the line voltage of the running system.
2.Check and verify phase sequence to be identical to

the system phase sequence. There are 2 methods to do
this:
i. Alternately connect a small induction motor to the

terminals of each of the 2 generators. If the motor
rotates in the same direction each time, then the
phase sequence is the same for both generators. If the
motor rotates in opposite directions, then the phase
sequences differ, and 2 of the conductors on the
incoming generator must be reversed.
ii. Another way is using the 3 light bulb method, where

the bulbs are stretched across the open terminals of
the switch connecting the generator to the system (as
shown in the figure above). As the phase changes
between the 2 systems, the light bulbs first get bright
(large phase difference) and then get dim (small phase
difference). If all 3 bulbs get bright and dark together,
then the systems have the same phase sequence. If the
bulbs brighten in succession, then the systems have
the opposite phase sequence, and one of the
sequences must be reversed.
3. Check if phase angles between two machines
corresponding voltages are the same using any
of the two methods.
i. In the three bulb method when all the three

bulbs get dark at the same time the phase
angles are same.
ii. Using a Synchroscope – a meter that

measures the difference in phase angles (it does
not check phase sequences but checks only one
phase’s angle). When the synchroscope needle
is in the vertical position, the voltages are in
phase.
4. Adjust oncoming generator frequency to be

slightly higher than the system frequency. This
is done by watching a frequency meter until the
frequencies are close.
5. Once the frequencies are nearly equal, the

voltages between two generators will change
phase with respect to each other very slowly.
The phase changes are observed as in step 3,
and when the phase angles are equal, the
switch connecting the oncoming generator is
closed.
Frequency-power, voltage-reactive power Frequency-power, voltage-reactive power
characteristics of an isolated generator characteristics of an infinite bus (large power
system or grid)
nnl  n fl
SD   100%
n fl
Typical values of SD (speed droop)
are 2% – 4%. NL speed can be varied using
set point adjusters of governors f vs. P curve
P  s p  f nl  f sys 
P = output power
fnl = no-load frequency of the generator
fsys = operating frequency of system
sP = slope of curve in kW/Hz or MW/Hz
so large system that f, V at the bus remains
constant regardless of how much real and
reactive power is drawn from or supplied to it.
terminal V vs. Q curve

In conclusion, for a single generator:
•Real and reactive power to be supplied should be equal
to the amount demanded by the load attached to the
generator.
•For any given real power, the governor set points control
the generator operating frequency.
•For any given reactive power, the field current controls
the generator’s terminal voltage.
So if the load (lagging) of an isolated generator

increases, its governor set point and the field current have
to be increased to maintain the original frequency and
terminal voltage else these will be falling with increase in
load.
Example
Figure below shows a generator supplying a load. A second load is to be connected in

parallel with the first one. The generator has a no-load frequency of 61.0 Hz and a slope sp
of 1 MW/Hz. Load 1 consumes a real power of 1000kW at 0.8 PF lagging, while load 2
consumes a real power of 800kW at 0.707 PF lagging.
a) Before the switch is closed, what is the operating frequency of the system?
b) After load 2 is connected, what is the operating frequency of the system?
c) After load 2 is connected, what action could an operator take to restore the system
frequency to 60Hz?
For a generator paralleled with an infinite bus:
Effects of changing governor set point i.e. to change Effects of changing field current at a fixed
no-load speed when excitation and speed are kept constant set point of the governor i.e. constant power
output from the generator
As If↑ Q gen ↑ Ea ↑ δ ↓ IA ↑ and becomes lagging while

f , V T and Pgen remains constant.
Hence, for a generator operating in parallel with an

infinite bus (large system):
• Frequency and terminal voltage of generator are
controlled by the large system.
•Changes in generator’s governor set points will
control real power to be supplied to the system.
As SP↑ Pgen ↑ Pbus↓ δ ↑ IA ↑ and becomes leading while •Changes in generator field current will control the
f , V T and Ea remains constant. If SP so increased that amount of reactive power to be supplied to the
Pgen > Pload then extra power flows into infinite bus.
system.
For a generator paralleled with another generator:
•In this system, the basic constraint is that the sum of the real
and reactive powers supplied by the two generators must
equal the P and Q demanded by the load.
•The system frequency is not constrained to be constant, and
neither is the power of a given generator constrained to be
constant.
The house diagram at the moment G2 is

paralleled with the system
Effects of changing governor set point

Effects of changing field current
As SP2↑ PG2 ↑ PG1↓ f ↑ As If2↑ QG2 ↑ QG1↓ VT ↑

Shifting power sharing without Shifting system frequency without
affecting system frequency while the affecting power sharing while the
total load remains constant total load remains constant
SP1 ↓ and SP2↑ together so that SP1 ↑ and SP2↑ together so that f ↑ but
PG1 ↓ PG2 ↑ and f remains unchanged PG1 and PG2 remain unchanged
Shifting reactive power sharing without Shifting terminal voltage without

affecting terminal voltage while the affecting reactive power sharing while
total reactive load remains constant the total reactive load remains constant
If1 ↓ and If2↑ together so that If1 ↑ and If2 ↑ together so that VT ↑ but
QG1 ↓ QG2 ↑ and VT remains unchanged QG1 and QG2 remain unchanged
NOTE: Any synchronous generator intended to operate in parallel with other machines
must have a drooping frequency-power characteristic
So, to ensure good control of power sharing between generators,

they should have speed droops in the range of 2-5%.
Example
G1 has a no-load frequency of 61.5 Hz and a slope sP1 of
1MW/Hz. G2 has a no-load frequency of 61Hz and a slope sP2 of
1MW/Hz. The 2 generators are supplying a real load totalling 2.5
MW at 0.8 PF lagging. The resulting system power-frequency or
house diagram is shown below.
61 Hz
a) At what frequency is this system operating, and how much power is supplied by
each of the 2 generators?
b) Suppose an additional 1-MW load were attached to this power system. What
would the new system frequency be, and how much power would G1 and G2
supply now?
c) With the system in the configuration described in part b, what will the system
frequency and generator powers be if the governor set points on G2 are
increased by 0.5 Hz?

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Energy Conversion II

Prof. S. Shahnawaz Ahmed

For subsequent materials assistance taken mainly from:

Stephen J. Chapman: Electric Machinery Fundamentals, McGraw Hill, 5th

•Handling larger loads.

Paralleling 2 or more generators must be done carefully as to avoid damage to

a) RMS line voltages must be equal.

b) The generators to be paralleled must have the same phase sequence. If

2.Check and verify phase sequence to be identical to

i. Alternately connect a small induction motor to the

ii. Another way is using the 3 light bulb method, where

i. In the three bulb method when all the three

ii. Using a Synchroscope – a meter that

4. Adjust oncoming generator frequency to be

5. Once the frequencies are nearly equal, the

terminal V vs. Q curve

So if the load (lagging) of an isolated generator

Figure below shows a generator supplying a load. A second load is to be connected in

As If↑ Q gen ↑ Ea ↑ δ ↓ IA ↑ and becomes lagging while

Hence, for a generator operating in parallel with an

The house diagram at the moment G2 is

Effects of changing governor set point

As SP2↑ PG2 ↑ PG1↓ f ↑ As If2↑ QG2 ↑ QG1↓ VT ↑

Shifting reactive power sharing without Shifting terminal voltage without

So, to ensure good control of power sharing between generators,

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