Unit 27

Three-Phase Circuits

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Objectives:
Discuss the differences between threephase and single-phase voltages.
Discuss the characteristics of delta and wye
connections.
Compute voltage and current values for
delta and wye connections.
Compute the amount of capacitance
needed to correct the power factor of a
three-phase motor.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-Phase Advantages
1. The horsepower rating of three-phase
motors and the kVA rating of three-phase
transformers are 150% greater than singlephase motors or transformers of similar
frame size.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-Phase Advantages
1. The power delivered by a single-phase
system pulsates and falls to zero. The
three-phase power never falls to zero. The
power delivered to the load in a threephase system is the same at any instant.
This produces superior operating
characteristics for three-phase motors.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-Phase Advantages
1. A three-phase system needs three
conductors; however, each conductor is
only 75% the size of the equivalent kVA
rated single-phase conductors.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-phase power never falls to zero.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-phase voltages with 120 degrees

of phase shift.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Basic Properties
Three-phase systems have either three or
four conductors.
There are three-phase conductors identified
as A, B, and C.
The three phases are 120 degrees out of
phase with each other (360 divided by 3).
There is sometimes a fourth conductor,
which is the neutral.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Wye Connections
The wye, or star, connection is made by
connecting one end of each of the phase
windings together in a common node.
Each phase winding has a voltage drop
known as the phase voltage.
The line voltage is measured from phase
conductor to a different phase conductor.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Wye Connections
In a wye system, the line voltage is
higher than the phase voltage by a factor
of the square root of 3 (1.732).
ELine = EPhase x 1.732

EPhase = ELine / 1.732

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Wye Connections
In a wye system, the line current is equal
to the phase current.
ILine = IPhase

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Line and phase voltages in a wye connection.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Line and phase currents in a wye connection.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Vector sum of typical wye system voltages.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Delta Connections
In a delta system, the line current is
higher than the phase current by a factor
of the square root of 3 (1.732).
ILine = IPhase x 1.732

IPhase = ILine / 1.732

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Delta Connections
In a delta system, the line current is
equal to the phase current.
ELine = EPhase

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Delta system voltage and current relationships.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Delta system division of currents.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-Phase Power
Three-phase power can be computed in
two ways, using line values or phase
values.
VA = 3 x ELine x ILine
VA = 3 x EPhase x IPhase
Note that this is the same on wye or
delta systems.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Three-Phase Power
Computing watts requires using the
power factor (PF).
P = 3 x ELine x ILine x PF

P = 3 x EPhase x IPhase x PF

Note that this is the same on wye or

delta systems.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Example #1 given values.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Example #2 given values.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Example #3 given values.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Example #4 given values.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Review:
1. The voltages of a three-phase system are
120 out of phase with each other.
2. The two types of three-phase connections
are wye and delta.
3. Wye connections are characterized by the
fact that one terminal of each of the
devices is connected together.

Unit 27 Three-Phase Circuits

Review:
1. In a wye connection, the phase voltage is
less than the line voltage by a factor of
1.732. The phase current and the line
current are the same.
2. In a delta connection, the phase voltage is
the same as the line voltage. The phase
current is less than the line current by a
factor of 1.732.