Determination of the air-core reactance of transformers by analytical

formulae for different topological configurations and its comparison with

an electromagnetic 3D approach.
Michel Rioual, IEEE Senior M.,
Electricit De France R & D Division
1, avenue du Gnral de Gaulle
92141 Clamart (France)

Yves Guillot

Electricit De France R & D Division

1, avenue du Gnral de Gaulle
92141 Clamart (France)

Abstract This document describes the

determination of the saturated inductance of a
transformer, which is the slope of the saturation
curve (I) under highly saturated conditions.
This parameter, which has a strong impact on
the overvoltages when energizing a transformer,
has been determined from analytic formulae for
different transformer technologies.
A comparison with the values derived from an
electromagnetic 3D calculation is also given in
this paper.

Nomenclature
:

Laircore :
Lleakage :
Zr
Sr
Ur
(I)
N
Lt,i
Mt,ij

:
:
:
:
:
:
:

saturated inductance of a transformer

under highly saturated conditions
(H)
air-core inductance of a transformer (H)
leakage inductance of a transformer
winding
(H)
reference impedance
()
rated power
(VA)
rated voltage
(V)
saturation curve of a transformer (Wb)
number of turns of the winding
self-inductance of the turn i
(H)
mutual inductance between the two turns
i and j
(H)

Ni
Nl
ri
h

:
:
:
:

1.

radial thickness of the HV-MV windings

(m)
number of turns of the layer i
number of layers of the winding
radius of the layer i
(m)
average longitudinal height of a layer (m)

INTRODUCTION

The energization of power transformers may create

the saturation of the magnetic core and lead to high
overvoltages and inrush currents.
The magnitude of those stresses depends on the
following different parameters:
- closing times of the circuit-breaker poles,
- residual fluxes in the core,
- transformer parameters as the winding
connections, the hysteretic curve of the magnetic
core and the value of its air-core inductance.
This last parameter, which characterizes the slope
of the saturation curve (I) under highly saturated
conditions, has been determined in this paper for
different transformers (rated power, technology).

For a core-type transformer with layer-type

winding:
: self-inductance of the layer i
(H)
Ll,i
Ml,ij : mutual inductance between the two
layers i and j
(H)
C
: diameter of a limb of the magnetic core
(m)
E
: width of a window of the magnetic core
(m)
F
: length of a window of the magnetic core
(m)
D
: average diameter of the HV-MV
windings
(m)
H
: average longitudinal height of the HVMV windings
(m)

978-1-4244-4241-6/09/$25.00 2009 IEEE

Suplec
3, rue Joliot Curie
91192 Gif-Sur-Yvette

For a shell-type transformer with pancake-type

winding:
Ms,km : mutual inductance between the two sides
k and m
(H)
Ms,km(L,d): mutual inductance between the two
equal sides k and m, which length is L
and separated by the distance d
(H)
a
: width of a turn
(m)
b
: length of a turn
(m)
, : dimensions of the section of a conductor
(m)
: orthogonal distance between the
dij
pancakes i and j
(m)
: radial thickness of the pancake i
(m)
hi
: longitudinal thickness of the pancake i
ti
(m)
: number of turns of the pancake i
Ni

Keywords Energization, power transformer,

inrush currents, saturated inductance, air-core
reactance, air-core inductance, core-type, shelltype.

Lsat

Cyrille Crepy

Firstly, this paper describes the guiding principles

of the analytical formulae giving the air-core
reactances values, based on the determination of the
sum of self and mutual inductances.
Secondly, analytical formulae have been
determined, for two usual technologies: a core-type
1

transformer with layer-type windings and a shelltype transformer with pancake-type windings.
Thirdly, the saturated inductance has been
determined and applied to a 600 MVA, then a 96
MVA transformer, and compared to simulations
made with a 3D electromagnetic field program.

This approach describes the determination of the

air-core inductance based on the simplified
geometry of the winding, as shown in fig. 2 below,
in order to be able to have a quick estimation of the
air-core inductance; it is applied for transformers
having circular turns, and is used by several
manufacturers.

2.

GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF THE

ANALYTICAL CALCULATION OF THE AIRCORE REACTANCE
The calculation of the air-core reactance of a
transformer is mainly based on the calculation of
sums of self and mutual inductances, derived from
assumptions enabling those calculations.
From a theoretical point of view, it can be said that
the self-inductance of a winding, constituted by two
elements A and B in serie may be determined by
making the addition of the self inductances of A
and B, and also the double of the mutual inductance
between A and B; extending those assumptions to a
winding made of N turns, the air-core inductance
may be derived as follows:
N

Laircore =

i =1

Lt , i +

This approach is based on the fact that the winding

is formed by a uniform disposition of the turns in
the longitudinal and radial axes; it is especially
applicable for thin and long windings, where the
dimensions may satisfy:
H
T
(2)
0 . 65 et
0 .8

M
i =1

Fig. 2: Geometry considered for the Kalantarovs

and Tseitlins formula

t , ij

(1)

j =1
j 1

This is also described by the fig. 1 below:

The air-core inductance is then given by the

Kalantarovs and Tseitlins formula:
(3)
L aircore = N 2 D K 10 7
In that case, the parameter K can be read on
abacuses, and takes into account the ratios H/D and
T/D.
In must be noted that, if we consider a real
transformer, as for instance the 600 MVA
autotransformer (from Manufacturer 1) described in
3.1.2, the windings are divided into layers which
characteristics (thickness, height, space between
two layers) may vary from one layer to another one.

Fig. 1: Interaction between the two turns i and j,

for a core-type transformer.

The insulation between conductors has not been

taken into account in this paper.

The exact theoretical calculation of the mutual

between two circular turns has been described by
Maxwell [1], [2], and is based on elliptical integrals
derived from the Neumanns formula. Those
approaches are at the origin of those generally used
by manufacturers for the calculation of air-core
inductances.

3.1.2

DETERMINATION OF THE AIR-CORE

INDUCTANCE FROM ANALYTICAL FORMULAE
FOR A CORE-TYPE TRANSFORMER
Approach by the
Tseitlins formula

Kalantarovs

Application to a 600 MVA core-type

transformer

The transformer described in the fig. 3 is a 5 limbs

core-type transformer; the coupling between phases
is wye for the HVand MV windings and delta for
the LV winding.
The winding consists of a concentric arrangement
of layers made of joined circular turns rolled around
an insulating cylinder. The iron core and the
disposal of the HV (400 kV), MV (225 kV) and LV
(21 kV) windings are given by fig. 3 below:

3.

3.1

and

3.1.1 Principle and formula

without any assumptions on the value of Llosses, this

last value being derived either from the on-site
short-circuit tests, or from a 3D electromagnetic
field program.
3.2

Description of the multi-layer approach

3.2.1 Principle
In paragraph 3.1, a simplified geometry has only
been considered; in order to take into account the
real geometry of a transformer with layer-type
windings, a more precise analytical approach has to
be defined, which is given in the following
paragraphs.
This approach consists of dividing the winding in
appropriate elements, the layers in this case, for
which the self and mutual inductances can be
calculated by precise formulae, being validated
experimentally for simple geometries. The self and
mutual inductances are then summed-up in order to
obtain the total air-core inductance value.

Fig. 3: Description of the 600 MVA

autotransformer: 5 limbs magnetic core (a), zoom
on the disposal of the layers in a window of the
magnetic core (b).
For the determination of the air-core inductance, the
HV winding is usually the only one to be taken into
account, as in the case of a no-load energization
made from the HV side, others windings being left
open. However it must be noticed that in the
specific case of an autotransformer, the serial
connection of the HV and MV windings implies
that both have to be considered.
The LV winding is neglected, as the induced
current circulating because of the delta coupling has
an insignificant impact on the flux distribution.

3.2.2 Choice of the formulation

In that case, the self and mutual inductances are
determined from analytical formulae from two
reference books of GROVER, the first one having
been written in 1911 [3], and the second one being
a revised version written in 1973 [4].
The calculations described in those books are
originated from the publication of the National
Bureau of Standards, and give hundreds of
formulae of self and mutual inductances established
by different authors for very different simple
geometries.

The reference impedance Zr is required to express

the Laircore parameter in p.u. (per unit), and given
by:
Zr =

Ur 2
Sr

(4)

Laircore ( p.u.) =

Laircore
Zr

Specific formulae have been chosen:

- The Nagaokas formulation, which is the most
efficient in order to determine the selfinductance of a layer having circular turns.
- The Havelocks formulation, which can be
applied for the calculation of mutual
inductances between layers, when the layers are
not joined and have the same axis and close
longitudinal heights.
- An alternative method for the calculation of
mutual inductances is the Cohens formula,
which is more complex than the Havelocks
one, and provides almost identical results,
except in the case of joined layers, or layers of
very different longitudinal heights, for which
the accuracy is slightly better.

(5)

The geometrical parameters have been determined

from the plans given by the manufacturer. The
assumption made is that the thickness T, as seen
globally, is thus given by (Dext+Dint)/2 (see Fig. 3).
In that case the Kalantarovs and Tseitlins formula
(3) takes the following parameters as data inputs
and leads to the following value of Laircore :
N = 1336 , H = 1.526 , T = 0.287
D

Laircore = 1.07H = 1.23p.u.

In fact, the parameter which is important for

transient programs is Lsat, given by:
(6)
Lsat = Laircore Lleakage

The self-inductance of the layer i in the case of the

Nagaokas formula is given by:

where the Lleakage inductance represents the

magnetic losses in the considered winding. In this
paper, only the determination of Laircore is adressed,

Ll,i =

K (Ni ri )2 4 107
h

(7)

where the coefficient K is developed in Appendix 1;

Appendix 1 gives also the calculation of the mutual
inductance Ml,ij in the Havelocks formula; at a final
stage, the aircore reactance is given by:
Nl

Laircore =

Nl

Nl

L + M
l ,i

i =1

i =1

Magnetic circuit

(8)

l , ij

Pancake

j =1
j 1

3.2.3 Application in the case of a 600 MVA

autotransformer; comparison with the
value given by manufacturers.

Fig. 5: View of a shell-type transformer with

windings in pancakes
The proposed analytical approach consists in
subdivising the HV winding in well chosen parts so
that the self and mutual inductances could be
calculated with accurate formulae:
- The self-inductances of a pancake is obtained by
calculating, for each turn, the self-inductance
and the mutual inductances with the other turns,
and then by summing all those values. The
mutual inductance between two turns is
calculated from the sum of the different sides of
both rectangles.
- The mutual inductance between two pancakes is
obtained by summing all the mutual inductances
corresponding to each pair of turns belonging to
two different pancakes.
- The global self-induction is the sum of self and
mutual inductances of every pair of pancakes.

The Table 1 gives the air-core reactance value,

derived from two approaches, with respectively a
simplified representation of the winding or a
detailed representation of the layers:
Envelope of
the winding
Kalantarov &
Tseitlin

Real geometry (multi-layers)

Nagoaka &
Havelock
Laircore
= 0.97 H
(1.114 p.u.)

Nagaoka &
Cohen
Laircore
= 0.967 H
(1.110 p.u.)

Laircore
= 1.07 H
(1.23p.u.)
Table 1: Comparison between both approaches, by
a simplified representation of the winding or a
detailed representation of the layers.

The insulation and the rounded edges of the

pancakes are not taken into account in this
approach.

The Nagaoka+Cohen and Nagaoka+Havelock

formulae lead to almost identical values (variation
lower than 0.5%), which are 10% lower than the
value given by the Kalantarovs and Tseitlins
formula. A comparison with the results obtained
with an electromagnetic 3D field program is also
adressed in chapter 5, confirming the assumptions
and calculations performed.

The self-inductance Lt,i of a single turn i is given by

the following formula [4]:

a b

L t , i = 10 9 4 (a + b ) log 2
b log (b + d )

4. DETERMINATION OF THE AIR-CORE

with

REACTANCE FROM ANALYTICAL FORMULAE

FOR A SHELL-TYPE TRANSFORMER

4.1

a log (a + d )

a+b

+ 2 d + 0 .447 ( + )
2

d = a 2 + b2

(9 )

Description of the approach

The shell-type technology makes the calculation of

air-core inductance from analytical formulae more
complex, because of the rectangular form of the
turns, as described on fig. 4 below.

Fig. 6: Geometrical dimensions of a turn

Fig. 4: Magnetic
transformer

circuit

for

The mutual inductance between two orthogonal

sides is equal to zero. The mutual inductance Ms,nq
between two parallel sides separated by a distance d
(see parameters on fig. 7) is deduced from mutual
inductances, noted Ms,nq(L,d), between two parallel
equal sides of appropriate length L and separated by

shell-type

the distance d. The relationship is given by the

formulae (10) and (11), [4].

In that case, the calculated value of the air-core

inductance is 0.22 p.u., 17% under the value of
0.26 p.u. given by the manufacturer (see Table 2).
A comparison with an electromagnetic 3D software
is given in chapter 5.

Fig. 7: Parameters of the mutual inductance in the

following cases: two parallel equal sides (a), two
parallel unequal sides (b).

L
L2
+ 1+
d
d2

1+

d2
L2

Laircore = 1.157 H
(0.22 p.u.)

Laircore = 1.4 H
(0.26 p.u.)

The mutual inductances between pancakes

represent around 85% of the global air-core
inductance.

d
L

(10)
The mutual inductance between two parallel
unequal sides (case (b) in the fig. 7) n and q can be
deduced from the previous formula as follows:
(11)
M s, nq = M s, n ' q ' (m + p, d ) M s , n ' ' q ' ' ( p, d )

5.

VALIDATION OF THE ANALYTICAL

APPROACHES BY A FLUX3D CALCULATION
(SINGLE-PHASE
AND
THREE-PHASE
SIMULATIONS)

Considering geometrical symmetries, the mutual

inductance between two turns can be calculated
from the mutual inductances between the parallel
sides of the two rectangles [4], as follows:
(12)
M t , km = 2(M s ,15 M s ,17 + M s ,26 M s ,28 )

5.1

Description of the 3D approach

The results of the analytical approaches have been

compared to the simulations performed with the
electromagnetic 3D software FLUX3D [5]. It
enables, in particular, the calculation of the 3D
magnetic field developed in a transformer and
requires a 3D geometrical meshed model of the
transformer.
The FLUX3D approach was applied to the coretype transformer and the shell-type transformer
previously mentionned. The relative permeability r
is set to 1 in order to meet very high saturation
requirements faced during the energization. The
simulations were performed in steady state
conditions, first in a single-phase mode, secondly in
a three-phase mode, in order to evaluate the mutual
inductances between phases. The transformers were
supposed to be no-loaded, which is the case during
their energization.

Fig. 8: Parameters of inductive coupling between:

two turns (a), two pancakes (b).
4.2

Manufacturer value

Table 2: Comparison between the analytical

approach developed and the value given by the
manufacturer, for the 96 MVA transformer.

The mutual inductance between two parallel equal

sides (case (a) in the fig. 7) n and q of length L is
given by the following formula:
M s , nq ( L, d ) = 10 9 2 L ln

Analytical approach
for shell-type
transformers

Application to a 96 MVA auxiliary

transformer

Considering the results given by FLUX3D, the aircore inductance can thus be determined from three
equivalent ways: the calculation of the energy, the
determination of the impedance or the calculation
of the magnetic fluxes.

The previous formulae have been put together in an

algorithm which data are the geometrical
characteristics of each pancake.
This analytical approach was applied to a 96 MVA
auxiliary transformer (from Manufacturer 2) for a
thermal power plant. It consists of a 400 kV/6.8 kV
shell-type transformer, with pancakes winding
made of 960 turns.

5.2

Case of a single-phase simulation

The FLUX3D single-phase approach was applied to

the determination of the air-core reactance for the
core-type 600 MVA autotransformer. Its high

voltage and middle voltage windings are connected

in serie.
The three-phase coupling is a wye one for MV-HV
windings, a delta connection for the LV winding.
In the simulation, a single MV-HV phase was
energized, no matter which phase it was because of
the symmetry, and other windings were all left
open.
Fig. 11: Magnetic field lines for a saturated coretype 600 MVA transformer calculated by FLUX3D.
To take into account the mutual-induction between
phases and to estimate its influence on Laircore,
three-phase simulations have been performed on the
core-type 600 MVA autotransformer and on the
shell-type 96 MVA transformer, in steady state
conditions, with no-load conditions at the
secondary side and in the following conditions:
- three-phase power conditions,
- presence of the low voltage required, as its delta
coupling enables induced currents.

Fig. 9: 3D model of the core-type 600 MVA

transformer

HV_1

MV_1

LV_1

HV_2

MV_2

LV_2

HV_3

MV_3

LV_3

In the case of the 600 MVA transformer, the

method of the impedance has led to the results
displayed on table 3. The slight increase of Lsat, 1
to 2% compared to the single-phase case, is caused
by the mutual inductances between phases. The LV
windings have almost no influence, with induced
currents which are 50 times lower than the MV-HV
currents.
Analytical
approach
Singlephase

Fig. 10: Description of the FLUX3D circuit

involving the 600 MVA autotransformer

Three-phase
Phases 1 & 3

From the results given by FLUX3D, the three

methods (either energy, impedance, or flux) give
1.11 p.u. as value of the air-core inductance for the
600 MVA transformer (Manufacturer 1).
5.3

FLUX3D

Laircore

Laircore

= 0.967 H
(1.11 p.u.)

= 0.965 H
(1.11 p.u.)

Phase 2

Laircore

Laircore

= 0.976 H
(1.12 p.u.)

= 0.988 H
(1.135 p.u.)

Table 3: Comparison between the values of the aircore inductance calculated by FLUX3D and by the
analytical approach, for the 600 MVA tranformer.

Influence of the mutual inductances:

results of three-phase simulations for two
technologies

The air-core inductance for the middle phase is the

highest one, due to the geometrical proximity with
both windings for phases 1 and 3, which leads to
higher mutual induction coefficients.

As the energization of a transformer is a threephase operation, the inductive coupling between

phases slightly modifies the slope of the saturation
curve (i), compared to the single-phase case. The
coupling phenomena can be represented by mutual
inductances between phases.

In the case of the shell-type 96 MVA transformer,

the FLUX3D approach has led to a value of 1.219
H (0.23 p.u.) for phase 1. This value is 5% higher
than the value of 1.157 H (0.22 p.u.) calculated by
the analytical approach for shell-type transformers
presented in chapter 4. The value provided by the
manufacturer is equal to 0.26 p.u.
It must be noticed that the determination of the aircore reactance by the FLUX3D approach requires
6

several hours for the modeling of the transformer

and simulations to be performed. With the
analytical approaches developed, the calculation
time essentially depends on the number of turns and
the transformer technology. It remains less than:
- 1 s for a 1340 turns (per HV-MV phase) layertype winding of a core-type autotransformer;
- 5 mn for a 960 turns (per HV phase) pancaketype winding of a shell-type transformer
(simulations being performed with a ~2 GHz
processor).

Ll , i =

(13)

The coefficicent K can be calculated with an

excellent accuracy from the following formula:
K =1

4k
+ 2q + 12 q 2 + 44 q 3 + 116 q 4 + 260 q 5
3k '

+ 576 q 6 +

3760 7
q
3

(14)

q =

with:

4 ri

k =

6.

K (N i ri )2 4 10 7
h

4 ri + h

DISCUSSION

The air-core inductance is not, in most cases, a key

parameter for manufacturers, which are more
focused on short-circuit issues from the
specifications required by utilities. Yet they often
provide a value for the air-core reactance, generally
calculated by approximate formulae using a global
geometry of the transformer (envelope of the
winding), with a 10 to 20% accuracy.

L
L
L
+ 2 + 15
2
2
2

1 k'
; L=
;
1 + k'

h2

k'=

(15)

4 ri + h 2

Most of the time, considering that the selfinductances of the different layers only weight
around 10% in the global air-core inductance, the
expression of K can be simplified by the following
formula, with no difference on the final result:
(16)
100
K =

2 8

+ 11
h

For utilities, the Lsat value is highly critical for

certain studies, because a 10% surestimation of the
Lsat can lead to underestimate stresses during the
transformer energization by a factor of 30% [6].
The analytical approaches developed in this paper
enable an improvement in the Lsat determination,
with a better accurary than those given by more
simple approaches.

7.

Fig. 12: Parameters of Nagaokas and Havelocks

formulae

CONCLUSION

This document describes the determination of the

saturated inductance of a transformer, which is the
slope of the saturation curve (I) under highly
saturated conditions.
This parameter, which has a strong impact on the
overvoltages when energizing a transformer, has
been determined from analytic formulae for
different transformers technologies. More powerful
algorithms have been proposed, adapted to the
geometry of the windings (layers, pancakes, form
of the turns).
A comparison with the values derived from an
electromagnetic 3D calculation is also given in this
paper. Applied to a core-type 600 MVA
transformer and a shell-type 96 MVA transformer,
a good agreement between both approaches has
been obtained.

For the calculation of the mutual inductance

between layers, the Havelocks formula is given by
the following expression:
(17)
M l ,ij = 0 ri 2 ni n j (h 2r j )
with the coefficient approximated by the
following formula:
=

1 1 ri 2
1 ri 4
5 ri 6
35 ri 8 1 r j

2
4
6
2 16 r j
128 r j
2048 r j
32768 r j 8 4 h
3

r 2 r j
1
1 + i

16
r j 2 h

r2
r 4 r 6 r j
5
1 + 6 i + 6 i + i
256
rj 2
r j 4 r j 6 h

r 2 r 4 r j
1
1 + 3 i + i

32
r j 2 r j 4 h

(18)

Despite its complexity, the Cohens formula gives a

slightly more accurate value for windings either
being very compact or having layers of very
different longitudinal heights. The Cohens formula
consists in complex combinations of the elliptic
integrals defined in Maxwells theory:

APPENDIX 1: CALCULATION OF THE AIR-CORE

INDUCTANCE FOR A CORE-TYPE TRANSFORMER
WITH A LAYER-TYPE WINDING
The self-inductance of the cylindric layer i can be
expressed by the Nagaokas formula, as follows:
7

F (k , ) =

E (k , ) =

1
1 k 2 sin 2 (x )

dx

1 k 2 sin 2 ( x ) dx

frequency modeling, diagnosis

electromagnetic field calculation.

(19)
(20)

methods

and

Cyrille Crpy was born in Paris on June 30th, 1986.

He received the Engineering Diploma of the Ecole
Suprieure d'Electricit (Gif sur Yvette, France) in
2008. He gathered his first work experience during
interships at the nuclear power plant of St-Laurentdes-Eaux, and MBDA. He completed his studies by
a 6 months internship at EDF R&D where he
worked
on
stresses
during
transformers
energization.

(for further details about Cohens formula, see

Grovers book [3]).

REFERENCES
[1] J. C. Maxwell Treatise on Electricity and
Magnetism, Editions Jacques Gabay, 1887,
Paris.
[2] P. L. Kalantarov, L. A. Tseitlin, Calculation
of Inductance, Handbook, 3rd ed.,
Leningrad, Energoatomisdat, 1986, 488 p. [in
Russian].
[3] E. B. Rosa, F. W. Grover, Formulations and
tables for the calculation of mutual and selfinduction
[Revised],
Washington
Government Printing Office, 1911, from
Bulletin of the Bureau of Standards Vol. 8
N1.
[4] F. W. Grover, Inductance Calculations:
Working Formulas and Tables, 1946 &
1973, Dover Phoenix Edition, 2004.
[5] J. Coulomb, Y. Du Terrail, G. Meunier,
Flux3D, a finite element package for
magnetic computation, IEEE Transactions
on Magnetics, vol. 21, issue 6, pp. 2499-2502,
Nov. 1985.
[6] M. Rioual, C. Sicre, Energization of a noload transformer for power restoration
purposes: sensitivity to parameters PES
Summer Meeting, 2000, IEEE Volume 2, July
16-20, pages 892-895.
Michel Rioual was born in Toulon (France) on
May 25th, 1959. He received the Engineering
Diploma of the Ecole Suprieure d'Electricit
(Gif sur Yvette, France) in 1983. He joined the
EDF company (R&D Division) in 1984, working
on electromagnetic transients in networks until
1991. In 1992, he joined the Wound Equipment
Group as Project Manager on rotating machines. In
1997, he joined the Transformer Group, as Project
Manager on the transformers for nuclear plants. He
is a Senior of IEEE, belongs to CIGRE and to the
SEE (Society of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers in France).
Yves Guillot was born in Paris, France, on April
1st, 1967. He received his Electrical Engineering
diploma of the Ecole Suprieure d'Electricit
(Suplec) in 1990. Then he joined the research
center of EDF as a research engineer mainly
involved in modeling power transformers : high
8