Chapter 11

Balanced Three-Phase
Circuits (4 Jan 2023)

11.1-2 Three-Phase Systems

3. Analysis of the Y-Y Circuit
4. Analysis of the Y- Circuit
5. Power Calculations in Balanced
Three-Phase Circuits
6. Measuring Average Power in Three-
Phase Circuits

1
Overview
 An electric power distribution system looks like:

where the power transmission uses “balanced

three-phase” configuration.
2
Why three-phase?

 Three-phase generators can be driven by

constant force or torque (to be discussed).
 Industrial applications, such as high-power
motors, welding equipments, have constant
power output if they are three-phase systems
(to be discussed).

3
Key points

 What is a three-phase circuit (source, line, load)?

 Why a balanced three-phase circuit can be
analyzed by an equivalent one-phase circuit?
 How to get all the unknowns (e.g. line voltage of
the load) by the result of one-phase circuit
analysis?
 Why the total instantaneous power of a
balanced three-phase circuit is a constant?
4
Section 11.1, 11.2
Three-Phase Systems

1. Three-phase sources
2. Three-phase systems

5
Ideal Y- and -connected voltage sources

Neutral

8
Real Y- and -connected voltage sources
 Internal impedance of a generator is usually
inductive (due to the use of coils).

9
Balanced three-phase voltages

 Three sinusoidal voltages of the same

amplitude, frequency, but differing by 120
phase difference with one another.
 There are two possible sequences:
1. abc (positive) sequence:
vb(t) lags va(t) by 120.
2. acb (negative) sequence:
vb(t) leads va(t) by 120.

10
abc sequence

 vb(t) lags va(t) by 120 or T/3.

 Va  Vm 0 ,b V m V   120 c, V 
∘
∘ m V   ∘

120 .

11
Three-phase systems

(Y or ) (Y or )

 Source-load can be connected in four

configurations: Y-Y, Y-, -Y, -
 It is sufficient to analyze Y-Y, while the others
can be treated by -Y and Y- transformations.
12
PLEASE READ 11.1 TO 11.2
OF YOUR TEXT
Section 11.3
Analysis of the Y-Y Circuit

1. Equivalent one-phase circuit for

balanced Y-Y circuit
2. Line currents, phase and line
voltages

14
General Y-Y circuit model

The only
Ref. essential
node.

15
Unknowns to be solved
 Line (line-to-line) Line current

voltage VAB: voltage

Line voltage Phase
across any pair of current
lines.
 Phase (line-to-
neutral) voltage
VAN: voltage
Phase voltage
across a single
phase.
 For Y-connected load, line current equals phase
current. 16
Solution to general three-phase circuit

 A balanced or imbalanced three- phase circuit,

KCL leads to one equation:
I0  IaA  IbB  IcC , 
VN   VN  VN
 Van  Vbn  Vcn …(1),
V
Z0N  ZA  ZB  Z1c  ZC
Z ga  Z1a Z gb  Z1b Z gc
Impedance Total
of neutral Total
impedance Total
impedance impedance
line. along line aA. along line bB. along line cC.

which is sufficient to solve VN (thus the entire

circuit).
16
Solution to “balanced” three-phase circuit

 For balanced three-phase circuits,

1. {Va'n, Vb'n, Vc'n} have equal magnitude and 120
relative phases;
2. {Zga = Zgb = Zgc}, {Z1a = Z1b = Z1c}, {ZA = ZB = ZC};
 total impedance along any line is the same
Zga + Z1a + ZA =… = Z.
 VN  VN 
 Eq. (1) becomes: Van Vbn Vcn
VN Z0  ZV  Z  Z
N
,
 1  3  Van  Vbn  Vcn  0, V  0.
 VN   Z
N
 Z 0 Z  
 
18
Meaning of the solution
 VN = 0 means no voltage difference between
nodes n and N in the presence of Z0.  Neutral
line is both short (v = 0) and open (i = 0).
 The three-phase circuit can be separated into 3
one-phase circuits (open), while each of them
has a short between nodes n and N.

19
Equivalent one-phase circuit

Phase Phase
voltage voltage
Line current
of source of load

Inn =0  IaA

 Directly giving the line current & phase voltages:

I   N
, V AN  I aAZ A , Van  IaA Z1a  Z A
V an
Z ga  Z1a V Z A 
aA

Z

.
 Unknowns of phases b, c can be determined by
the fixed (abc or acb) sequence relation.
20
The 3 line and phase currents in abc sequence

 Given IaA  Van Z , the other 2 line currents

are:
I bB Vbn  I aA   I cC  Vcn  I aA 120∘ ,
 Z Z
 120∘ ,

which still
follow the abc
sequence
relation.
IcC
IaA

IbB
21
The phase & line voltages of the load in abc seq.

ZA ZB  V 120∘.
, VBN  V  V   120∘ ,
VAN  Van Z V bn Z AN CN
AN


Line
 VBN (abc sequence) voltage
VAB  VAN
 VAN  VAN   120∘
 ∘ 3VAN  

30 ,
VBC ?

VCA  ?

22
POP QUIZ 4 Jan 2024

Please work in a group of three to

show the steps in obtaining the
answer of VBC and VCA if

VBN = VAN ∠-120∘ and VCN = VAN ∠120∘

15 minutes
The phase & line voltages of the load in abc seq.

ZA ZB  V 120∘.
, VBN  V  V   120∘ ,
VAN  Van Z V bn Z AN CN
AN


Line
 VBN (abc sequence) voltage
VAB  VAN
 VAN  VAN   120∘
 ∘ 3VAN  

30 ,
 VAN   120  AN
∘ V   120∘
VBC

Phase

  3VAN  
voltage

 ,VAN   120∘ 
90 ∘
VCA AN
V  3V  
AN
150∘. 24
The phase & line voltages of the load in acb seq.

 VBN (acb
VAB  VAN
 V   120∘
sequence)
V

AN
3V  
AN AN Phase
 ,VAN   120∘  V
VBC 30
∘

AN   120 ∘ voltage

  3VAN  
 ,V   120∘ 
90 ∘
VCA AN AN Line
V  3V   voltage
AN
150 .
∘

 Line voltages are 3 times bigger, leading (abc)

or lagging (acb) the phase voltages by 30.
25
EXAMPLE 11.1
Example 11.1 (1)

 Q: What are the line currents, phase and line

voltages of the load and source, respectively?

Zga Z1a

Phase voltages ZA
(abc sequence)

Z = Zga + Z1a + ZA = 40 + j30 .

27
Example 11.1 (2)

 The 3 line currents (of both load & source) are:

∘
 2.4  36.87∘
V
I aA  an 
Z ga 1200
Z1a  Z A 40  j30
I bB ∘

 IaA   120  2.4  156.87
A,∘

cCA, aA
 I   120 ∘
 2.4  83.13 ∘


I A.
The 3 phase voltages of the load are:
VAN  IaA Z A  2.4  36.87∘ 39  j28  115.22 
V BN  V.
1.19 ∘ V
AN   120 ∘
  115.22  121.19 ∘

V,CN AN
V  V   120 ∘
 115.22  118.81 ∘

28
Example 11.1 (3)

 The 3 line voltages of the load are:

VAB  330 ∘
AN

  330 115.22  1.19

V
∘ ∘


VBC  V199.58
AB    28.81∘ V,
120∘  199.58  91.19∘ V,

VCA  VAB  
120∘  199.58  148.81∘ V.

29
Example 11.1 (4)
 The 3 phase voltages of the source are:
Van  Va n  aAZ ga  120  2.4  36.87∘ 0.2 
I  118.9  0.32 V,
∘ 
j0.5
Vbn  Van   120∘∘  118.9  120.32 V,
Vcn  Van   120∘  118.9  119.68∘ V.
 The three line voltages of the source are:
Vab     
30∘ Van  330∘ 118.9 
3  205.94 V,
0.32   29.68 ∘
∘

Vbc  Vab   120∘∘  205.94  90.32

V  V   120∘  205.94  149.68∘
V,ca ab 26
TAKE HOME

Repeat 11.1 example but using

negative phase sequence (acb
sequence - read 11.1 paragraph 2)
Section 11.5
Power Calculations in
Balanced Three-Phase
Circuits
1. Complex powers of one-phase and
the entire Y-Load
2. The total instantaneous power

37
Average power of balanced Y-Load

 The average power delivered to ZA is:

PA  V I cos ,
 VL 3,
V  VAN I , (rms value)
 I   aA L
I
  V  I  ZA .

 The total power delivered to the Y-Load is:
Ptot  3PA  3V I cos  3VL I L
38
Complex power of a balanced Y-Load

 The reactive powers of one phase and the

entire Y-Load are:

Q  V I sin ,

Qott  3V I sin  3VL I L
 sin . powers of one phase and the
The complex
entire Y-Load are:
 S  P  jQ  V I ej  V
 I* ; j
 j
S tot  3S  3V I e  3VL I L 
.
 e 39
One-phase instantaneous powers

 The instantaneous power of load ZA is:

pA (t)  vAN (t)iaA (t)  Vm Im cost cos(t 
 ).
 The instantaneous
(abc sequence) pB (t)  vof
powers BN (t)i
ZB,bBZ(t)
C are:

 Vm Im cos t  120∘
 
cos t    120∘
p (t) V, I cost  120
C m m
∘

 cost    120

∘

40
Total instantaneous power

 The instantaneous power of the entire Y-Load

is a constant independent of time!
ptot (t)  pA (t)  pB (t)  pC (t)  1.5Vm I m cos

 1.5  2V 
 
2I  cos  3V I

cos .
 The torque developed at the shaft of a 3-phase
motor is constant,  less vibration in
machinery powered by 3-phase motors.
 The torque required to empower a 3-phase 41
Example 11.5 (1)

 The equivalent one-phase circuit in Y-Y

configuration is:

Z1a

S

(rms value)

44
Key points

 What is a three-phase circuit (source, line, load)?

 Why a balanced three-phase circuit can be
analyzed by an equivalent one-phase circuit?
 How to get all the unknowns (e.g. line voltage of
the load) by the result of one-phase circuit
analysis?
 Why the total instantaneous power of a
balanced three-phase circuit is a constant?
50