Evaluation of line loss under load unbalance using

the complex unbalance factor

T.-H. Chen

Indexing terms: Complex unbalance factor, Line loss, Unbalance, Unrransposed transmission line

Abstract: The paper introduces simple criteria to

evaluate the line loss under load unbalance by
using the complex unbalance factor. The definitions of voltage and current unbalance factors
have been extended from the conventional real
values to the corresponding values. The complexvalued unbalance factor is composed of a magnitude and an argument portion. The magnitude
portion is commonly used to evaluate the effects
of load unbalance. In contrast, the argument
portion is always neglected. The latter is considerable when the system configuration is asymmetrical or the phase load is unbalanced. The
conventional approach which considers only the
magnitude portion may therefore distort the
explanation of the calculated results and lead to
incorrect conclusions. The paper explores the
effects of the argument portion as well as magnitude portion on line loss. Examples are given to
demonstrate the effects of the phase load unbalance and the significance of the argument portion
on the line loss.

Introduction

A three-phase AC power system is designed to be balanced to perfect the utilisation of three-phase components and loads. However, intrinsic asymmetry in the
configuration of power-system components such as
untransposed transmission lines, open wye and open
delta transformers make the system unbalanced [l-31.
The predominant cause of unbalance is unbalanced
single-phase loads. Important single-phase loads include
AC railway supplies and single-phase furnaces. These
large single-phase loads, especially the high-speed railway
traction motors which draw considerable unbalanced
currents from the power-supply system, lead to the
system voltage and current being unbalanced [4, 51.
Currently, some high-speed railways are under construction and are in the planning stage. We expect that
more high-speed railroads will appear in the world in the
near future. The additional losses of components in
power-supply systems due to the large single-phase traction loads should be accurately evaluated to confirm the
feasibility of these high-speed railway projects. UnbalQ IEE, 1995
Paper 1708C (P9), first received 20th April 1994 and in revised form
27th October 1994
The author is with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Technology, National Taiwan Institute of Technology, Taipei, Taiwan 106,
Republic of China

I E E Proc.-Gener. Transm. Distrih., Vol. 142, No. 2, March 1995

anced loads also result in the system components becoming derated [6, 71.
In this paper, the complex unbalance factor is adopted
for rigorous evaluation of line loss due to load unbalance.
The definition of complex unbalance factor is therefore
introduced first. An analytic method is then proposed to
evaluate the power loss of transmission or distribution
lines operating in an unbalanced condition. Examples are
then given to demonstrate the effect of load unbalance on
the line loss.
2

Complex unbalance factors

The degree of unbalance is usually defined, using the

method of symmetrical components, by the ratio of the
negative-sequence (or zero-sequence) component to the
positive-sequence component [8, 91. The amount of
voltage unbalance is expressed in symmetrical components as:
voltage unbalance factor

- negative-sequence voltage
positive-sequence voltage

(1)

This is the most precise and meaningful definition of

voltage unbalance. However, it is difficult to measure and
calculate these sequence components without special
instrumentation. Some utilities instead use an approximate expression. The voltage unbalance is calculated
approximately as follows [8,9] :
voltage unbalance

- maximum deviation from average voltage

average voltage

(2)

where voltages are measured from phase to neutral, and

average voltage is defined to be the average of the magnitudes of the three-phase to neutral voltages. This is the
simplest method of expressing the voltage unbalance.
Although the voltage unbalance with the approximate
expression can be easily obtained, a considerable error
will be incurred using this approximate definition in
some studies. For the purposes of this paper, the precise
definition of current unbalance is adopted. Therefore, the
power losses of transmission lines and distribution
feeders can be rigorously evaluated and the effects of load
unbalance on the transmission line loss become obvious.
The negative-sequence (or zero-sequence) voltages in a
network mainly result from the negative-sequence (or
zero-sequence) currents of unbalanced loads flowing in
the network. Evaluate the power loss in transmission
lines and distribution feeders, applying the sequence currents is more straightforward than using the sequence
voltages. The current unbalance factors therefore are
173

required. The current unbalance factors are defined in a

similar way as the voltage unbalance factors as follows:

2.1 Negative sequence

(3)
where

M,

m2LB2 is the complex unbalance factor for

negative-sequence current
I , = j I, I LS, is the negative-sequence current
I , = I I, I ~ 6 is,the positive-sequence current
=

and

LB2 = L 6 ,

6,

power loss can be calculated using basic circuit theory

and will be discussed in detail in this paper.
The most accurate n-equivalent lumped circuit is
usually used when dealing with long transmission lines of
length greater than approximately 150 miles. For
medium-length lines, in the range of approximately 50 to
150 miles, the simpler nominal n-equivalent circuit may
be used instead. For a short line of 50 miles or under, the
shunt elements may be neglected, making the circuit even
simpler. However, attention is paid only to the power
losses of equivalent circuit series elements of the lines; the
shunt elements are thereby neglected for all transmission
lines in this paper.
The relationship between voltages and currents at the
terminals of the transmission line can be derived using
the three-phase model as follows:
AVabr

(5)

The magnitude of the complex unbalance factor, m 2 , is

usually used to indicate the degree of current unbalance.
Relatively little attention has been paid to the effects of
the argument portion, ~ 8 , . This paper represents a
detailed study into the effects of the argument portion as
well as the magnitude portion on the power loss of transmission lines and distribution feeders.

'obc

Iobc

- I/bbc

z: Z.1

t b r

[E:;

zab

Likewise, the zero-sequence version of the complex

current unbalance factor can be written as

Inbc = [I.
and
t b c

I,

where

M O = mo LBO is the complex unbalance factor for

=

zero-sequence current
I I , I ~6~ is the zero-sequence current

IJT

Vi

currents

= sending-end

(12)
voltages

V;]' = receiving-end voltages

(13)
(14)

Complex power loss of a transmission line can therefore

be represented as
S = AVTbcI,*,,
Substitution of eqn. 9 into eqn. 15 yields

and

(15)

= 'Tbbc ' T b c 'Zbbr

(16)
Transferring this to the symmetrical-components expression, using the transformation matrix T, yields

1101
m -O-1111

s =G12=G1*~:12
3

(11)

matrix

= load

[V, V, V,]'

Vbbc
= [Vi

(10)

zm

= series impedance

2.2 Zero sequence

Io

(9)

= Zabc

where

or

Power loss of a transmission line

Fig. 1 shows the circuit model of a transmission line. The

resistance of the transmission line is relatively small com-

zoo

s = [Io

Lz a a

1,

121[;;:

2::

20,

;][I

202

1:

XZk,LV

(17)

k = O 1=0

where

rl

v;
Fig. 1

pared with the inductive reactance. In calculating power

flows, bus voltages, and branch currents, the resistances
have a minor effect compared with the inductive reactances, especially in planning-type calculations. Hence, in
some calculations, they are neglected. However, in other
calculations they are of vital importance, examples of
which include the calculation of line thermal limits and
the problems of economic operation. Both are related to
the real power loss of the transmission line. The resistance is more important when performing these operatingtype calculations under three-phase load unbalance or
network configuration asymmetry conditions. The real
174

1i

Circuit model ofa transmission line

Because of the symmetry of the series impedance matrix,

eqn. 11 can be rewritten as

;1: z: z:j
'0,

Znbc

'ab

'CO

(21)

I E E Proc.-Gener. Transm. Distrib., Vol. 142, N o . 2, March 1995

Therefore, Z o 1 2can be found from eqn. 20:

zoo

z,,, = [ Z O 2
zo,

zo,

ZO,

Zl,

Z12]

ZZl

222

(22)

in which
Z O O = i(zcw

+ zbb +

zll

= z22 = f(zaa

z O 1

&zoo

zO2

&zaa

z l 2

= i(Z.0

z 2 1

Zcc)

+ f ( z & + z b , + z&7)

+ Z b b + zcc)

-i(zob

+ zbc

+ Zm)

+ a 2 Z b b + a z c c ) - ;(azo, + + a 2 z c n )
+ a z b b + a 2 z < c )- ;(a2Z,b + + a z c o )
+ a 2 Z b b + aZ,-,) + #(azab+ z b , + a 2 z c o )
+ a Z b b + aZZ,,)+
+ z b , + a&,)
zb,

zb,

Eqn. 29 indicates the minimum loss which occurs at

8, =tan-'(-)

$(a2z&

(23)
The perfectly transposed transmission line is

z,, = z,, = z,, = z,

z,, = Zb, = z,, = z ,

(24)

Therefore

z,, = z,, = z , , = Z Z 1= 0
and

Z,, =Z, - Z ,

I , = I I M o I , = IlM2
The effect of load power factor on the resulting unbalances can be neglected. However, the improvement of
power factor can reduce power costs, release electrical
capacity of the power-transmission system, raise the
voltage level, and reduce the line losses. It is generally
economical to improve the power factor to near 1.0 p.u.
to obtain these advantages.
4.1 Untransposed transmissionline

(30)
(31)

4.2 Completely transposed transmission line

For a completely transposed transmission line, Z O l 2 is a
diagonal matrix; that is, all the off-diagonal terms in the
matrix are zero. Hence, the power loss of a completely
transposed transmission line will be

(33)
P = I:[R,(l
mi)]
Eqns. 32 and 33 indicate that the power loss of a completely transposed transmission line depends only on the
magnitude of the complex unbalance factor. It is not
affected by the argument portion.
5

Case studies

A physical three-phase untransposed transmission line in

the Taipower system was used to demonstrate the effect
of load unbalance. This 60 Hz 345 kV single-circuit,
bundle-conductor line has two subconductors per bundle
at 18 in bundle spacing and is 13 km long. The series
impedance matrix of this line, as shown below, was
obtained by a field test carried out by the Taiwan Power
Company.

Ro,~:+Rl,(1 + m 3
+ WO, + RO2)Cm0cos (Bo)+ mom2 cos (8, - Boll
+ WO,- Xol)[mo sin (Bo) + mom2 sin (B2 - Boll
+(RI, +R21)mzcos(P2)+(X12-X~l)m2sin(B2)
x [
(28)
Eqn. 28 is a general form of the real power loss of an
untransposed transmission line. This equation indicates

+
+
+

0.8823 + j6.6458 0.6665 j2.6666

Zobc= 0.6665 + j2.6666 0.9133 j6.5022
0.6810 + j1.9113 0.6892 j2.4783

(27)
Taking the real part of eqn. 27 gives the real power loss
P = 1:

I E E Proc.-Gener. Transm. Distrib., Vol. 142, No. 2, March 1995

#O

z o o m : + Z I l ( 1 + m:) + ZOl(M0 + M2 MX)

Z o 2 ( M ; MOM:) Z , , M : Z 2 , M 2

+ R,,

8, = 2nn for RI, R,, = 0

in which n = 0, f 1. f2, . . . .

Substitution of eqn. 26 into eqn. 17 yields

for R I ,

Z , = negative-sequence impedance

In studying the effects of load unbalance, the positivesequence load current is usually assumed to be 1 per unit.
That is, the rated capacity (current) of the line. Also, the
power factor is assumed to be 1.0. That means the transmission line supplies the only real power to the load.
Hence
I , = 1.0 P.U.= I,,,,ed A
(25)
From eqns. 3 and 6

[+

+ RZl

Effects of load unbalance

= I:

RI,

(32)
P = I:[Rom:
Rl(l + m i ) ]
Eqn. 32 shows that for a balanced load the power loss
will be I:Rl, and for an unbalanced load, an additional
loss, I:[Romi
Rim:], will occur.
If no zero-sequence current exists,

Zoo = Z , 22, I Z , = zero-sequence impedance

Z , , = Z , - Z , 3 Z , = positive-sequence impedance
4

that the real power loss is a function of both negativeand zero-sequence unbalance factors. In addition, the
equation shows that the power loss is also affected by the
arguments of both negative- and zero-sequence complex
unbalance factors.
If any end of the transmission line is ungrounded, the
zero-sequence current is blocked. Hence, mo = 0. The
power loss equation, under this operating condition, can
be greatly simplified as

0.6810 +j1.9113
0.6892 + j2.4783 R
0.9573 + j6.2770

Therefore, the corresponding sequence impedance matrix

can be found by using eqn. 20 as follows:

Z,,,

2.2754 + j11.1791 0.2602 j0.0392

-0.3059 + j0.0054 0.2387 + j4.1229
0.2602 + j0.0392 0.3637 + j0.2073
-0.3059
-0.3784
0.2387

+ j0.0054
+ j0.2160

+ j4.1229

The positive-sequence current of the line is assumed to be

operating at 913 A (rated ampacity) for all cases.
175

5.1 Untransposed transmission line

5.1.1 m,
to

= 0: Assuming m2 = 0, eqn.

28 can be simplified

if the degree of unbalance is small (less than 10%).

However, if the degree of unbalance is great, significant
additional loss may incur. Fig. 6 shows the consequences
of large load unbalance.

203r
The effect of current (load) unbalance on the line loss can
therefore be easily calculated by eqn. 34. The results are
shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 2 shows the effects of the magnitude
as well as the argument portion on the line loss.

198l
-200

-.Fig. 4

100

200

-100

4,

Line losses ofan untransposed transmission line (when mo = 0)

mi =

-0-

1951
-200

0
t 00
200
BO
Line losses ofan untransposed transmission line (when m2 = 0)

Fig. 2

-1 00

270
4%
6%
8%
10%

-*-0-A-A-

-.m, =

2%

-x-

4%

-A-

-0-

6%
8%

-A-

10%

6124

In Fig. 2 the interesting portion is magnified for

clearer viewing. Fig. 3 shows the original size. The effect
of load unbalance on the line loss can also be recognised
from this Figure.
225

44

Fig. 5

-m-

01

Line losses ofan untransposed transmission line (when m,

= 0)

4%

-A-

8"A
10%

-1 00

100

404\-

-.-

2%

5.1.2 m, = 0: Assuming mo = 0, the effect of current

(load) unbalance on the line loss can be easily calculated
by eqn. 29. The results are shown in Figs. 4 and 5.
Fig. 4 shows that for a slightly unbalanced load the
total loss may less than that of the balanced load, but for
a greatly unbalanced load the loss will be much more
than that of the balanced case.
Figs. 3 and 5 show that the additional loss due to load
(current) unbalance is small compared with the total loss

.X-X-Y-x-xd-~X~~bX~~-~-x-x-x-x-x-x

4%

10%

Ln

--42$

-0-

Z 324
- -

Line losses ofan untransposed transmission line (when m2 = 0)

-A-

6%

200

m, =

6%
8%

2%

-*-

-0-A-

BO

-A-

2 00

-0-

-200

--x-

100

m, =

90-

Fig. 3

82.

180-

-$ 1 3 5 -

176

0,

2 16484 41
-200

-100

100

200

Az,
Fig. 6

-.-

Line losses ofan untransposed transmission line (when m,

= 0)

m, =
~

-x-

20%
40%

-A-

60%
80%

-0-

-A-

100%

I E E Proc.-Cener. Transm. Distrib., Vol. 142, N o . 2, March 1995

= 0 and /3, = 0: Assuming j3, = 0 and 8, = 0,

the effect of current (load) unbalance on the line loss can
therefore be easily calculated by the following equation:

5.1.33/,

The results are shown in Fig. 7.

5.2.3 MO# 0 and M, # 0 (actual load unbalances):

Total line loss for a completely transposed transmission
line where there are negative- and zero-sequence currents
at the same time is a function of rn, and m, as depicted in
eqn. 32. The results are shown in Fig. 10.
Figs. 8, 9 and 10 show that the power loss of a completely transposed transmission line is not affected by the
argument portion of the complex unbalance factor. It is
affected by the magnitude portion only.

x-x-x-xi(-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
I

100

200

BO
m2

Fig. 7 Line losses of an untransposed transmission line (when 8,

and & = 0)

Fig. 8

=0

-.-

Line losses of a transposed transmission line (when m2 = 0)

-.no =

-x-

20%

-A-

2%
4%
6%

8%

-A-

10%

-0-

40%
60%
80%

-0-

-A-A-

100%

In,

-x-

5.1.4MO# 0 and M, # 0 (actual load unbalances):

For unbalances reported for lines feeding actual loads,
the total line loss where there are negative- and zerosequence currents at the same time, that is M O # 0 and
M , # 0, is a function of m, , m, , j3,, and 8, as depicted in
eqn. 28. The effect of load unbalance on the line loss can
be easily evaluated by using this equation.

lg7
1961
-200

5.2 Completely transposed transmissionline

For a completely transposed transmission line, all the offdiagonal terms will be zeros. The sequence impedance
matrix of the above Section will be modified by setting all
the off-diagonal terms to be zero to simulate the transposed effect. The sequence impedance matrix for the
sample transmission line which is completely transposed
is therefore
2.2754 + j11.1791
2012 =

[ :

5.2.1m2 = 0: Assuming m,

0
0.2387 +j4.1229
0

-.Fig. 9

"*

-100

100

I
2 00

b2,

Line losses o f a transposed transmission line (when m, = 0)

0%

-0-

-*-0-

2%
4%
6%

-A-

8%

-A-

IO"%

1.

0
0.2387 + j4.1229
= 0, eqn.

32 can be simplified

as
P = I:[R, mi + R , ]
(36)
The effect of current (load) unbalance on the line loss is
shown in Fig. 8.

5.2.2m, = 0: Assuming rn,

= 0, the effect of current

(load) unbalance on the line loss can be easily calculated
by eqn. 33. The results are shown in Fig. 9.

I E E Proc.-Gener. Transm. Distnb., Vol. 142, No. 2, March 1995

Fig. 10

Line losses o f a transposed line (when M O # 0 and M , # 0)

177

The investigated transmission line is a real line and

currently operated in the Taipower system. There are
some measured line losses reported. Unfortunately, the
magnitudes and phase angles of the corresponding three
individual phase currents were not recorded simultaneously. Hence, the measured losses cannot be directly
compared with the calculated losses presented here.
However, the measured values are, as expected, all within
the reasonable ranges that are evaluated by using the
theory presented here. The measured values would not
differ appreciably from the calculated values if applied
individual phase currents are the same.
6

Conclusions

Simple criteria to estimate the line loss due to load

unbalance have been presented in this paper. The
complex unbalance factor is used for evaluating the loss
in detail. This paper concludes that for an untransposed
transmission line the line loss is affected by the argument
as well as the magnitude portion of the complex unbalance factor. However, for a completely transposed line,
the line loss is only affected by the magnitude portion.
Furthermore, for a slightly unbalanced load, the total
loss may be less than that of the balanced load, but for a

178

greatly unbalanced load, the loss will be much more than

that of the balanced case.
7

References

1 HESSE, M.H., and SABATH, J.: EHV double-circuit untransposed

transmission line - analvsis and tests. IEEE Summer Power
Meeting and EHV Conference, Los Angeles, 1970, Paper 70 T P 644PWR, pp. 984-992
2 CLARKE, G.D., JONES, K.M., and HABIBOLLAHI, H.: Phase
unbalance and transmission line transposition on interconnected HV
transmission systems, in Sources and effects of power system disturbance. IEE conference publication 210, 1982, pp. 93-99
3 CHEN, T.H., and CHANG, J.D.: Open wye-open delta and open
delta-open delta transformer models for rigorous distribution system
analysis, IEE Proc. C , G e n a . Transm. Distrib.,1992, 139, (3), pp.
221-234
4 WASOWSKI, A.: Voltage asymmetry in a power system caused by
ARC furnaces, in Sources and effects of power system disturbance.
IEE conference publication 210, 1982, pp. 12-17
5 CHEN, T.H.: Criteria to estimate the voltage unbalances due to
high-speed railway demands. IEEEjPES 1994 Winter Meeting, 94
WM 234-5 PWRS
6 BERNDT, M.M., and SCHMITZ, N.L.: Derating of polyphase
induction operated with unbalanced line voltage, AIEE Trans., 1963,
81, pp. 680-686
7 WILLIAMS, J.E.: Operation of 3-phase induction motors on unbalanced voltages, AIEE Trans., 1954,73, pp. 125-133
8 IEC Standard 1000-2-1, 1990, p. 35
9 IEEE recommended practice for electric power distribution for
industrial plants. IEEE Std. 141, 1976, pp. 58-59

I E E Proc.-Gener. Transm. Distrib., Vol. 142, No. 2, Morch 1995