Fault Calculation - Symmetrical Components

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For unbalance conditions the calculation of fault currents is more complex. One method of dealing with this is symmetrical components. Using symmetrical components, the unbalance system is broken down in to three separate symmetrical systems:...Read More..

By Steven McFadyen on Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Hazardous Areas – IEC and NEC/CEC Comparison

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Depending where in the world you work, you are likely following one of two standards International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) National Electrical Code/Canadian Electrical Code (NEC/CEC) The different nature of the two systems make a direct comparison almost impossible. If you do need to work with......Read More..

By Steven McFadyen on Friday, March 9, 2012

Maxwell's Equations - Gauss's Electric Field Law

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Gauss's Electrical law defines the relation between charge ("Positive" & "Negative") and electric field.  The law was initially formulated by Carl Friedrich Gauss in 1835. In Gauss's law, the electric field is the electrostatic field.  The law shows how the electrostatic field behaves and varies depending on the charge......Read More..

By Steven McFadyen on Wednesday, September 4, 2013

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Multimeter

Multimeters are undoubtedly the most common item of electrical test equipment in use.  Often it is the first piece of equipment people will turn to when...

How to measure power supply quality

If your are ever called out to troubleshoot something on your electrical system, one of the first things consider is the supply voltage. You want to ensure...

Capacitor Theory

Capacitors are widely used in electrical engineering for functions such as energy storage, power factor correction, voltage compensation and many others...

Control Theory

Control theory looks at how systems work and are controlled from a mathematical view.  This note gives a brief introduction to some of the concepts – more...

Lighting - Lamps

Lamps are the essential part of any luminaire. These are the light generating components. Since the advent of electrical lighting in the middle of the...

Paths of Flight

GE have put together a time-lapse video shown flight take-off and landings at some airports. An interesting view:

DC Component of Asymmetrical Faults

The image (reproduced from IEC 60909) shows a typical fault in an ac system.  From the illustration it can seen that there is an initial dc component ...

What is a rectifier transformer?

I've recently come across this question a couple times browsing the internet. Decided to give a quick answer here. A rectifier transformer is a transformer...

Understanding Motor Duty Rating

One of the comments on my Motor Starting Series was asking for something on duty cycles. Here it is. As a purchaser of a motor, you have responsibility...

Periodic Electrical Installation Inspection – What to Inspect?

This is the second post in a series of two on periodic electrical inspections. In the first post, I discussed how often inspections should be carried out...