Power systems theory - generation, transmissions and distribution
Many questions sent in to the site are in connection with motor starting and in particular star-delta. For all but the simplest application, there is merit in performing a more detailed study.&... read more..
Traditionally substations have used circuit breakers, current transformers (CT), voltage transformers (VT) and protection relays all wired together using copper cables. With advances in digital... read more..
Modelica is an open source (free) software language for modelling complex systems. Having never used it before, I thought I would download a development platform and see how it stacked up. This... read more..
Within Europe the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) has standardised the both the designation and colour of cables. These are published in CENELEC document... read more..
A UPS is an uninterruptible power supply. It is a device which maintains a continuous supply of electrical power, even in the event of failure of the mains (utility) supply. A UPS is inst... read more..
Power cables can basically be classified into earthed and unearthed cables, where earthed and unearthed refer to the application for which the cable is used. Earthed system refers to a three phase syste... read more..
Photovoltaic (PV) cells (sometimes called solar cells) convert solar energy into electrical energy. Every year more and more PV systems are installed. With this growing application, it's ... read more..
Fire resistant and fire retardant cable sheaths are design to resist combustion and limit the propagation of flames. Low smokes cables have a sheath designed to limit the amount of smoke and toxic ha... read more..
Capacitors have numerous applications in electrical and electronic applications. This note examines the use of capacitors to store electrical energy. The sidebar shows details of a typical c... read more..
If two dissimilar metals are touching and an external conducting path exists, corrosion of one the metals can take place. Moisture or other materials acting as an electrolyte between the metals... read more..
While not as popular as it once was, frame leakage protection does still have some use in some circumstances. In essence frame leakage is an earth fault type protection. A current transfo... read more..
Ever wondered what kind of power an aircraft uses when parked at the airport stand.
Normally the aircraft generates it own power, but when parked with the engines switched off power provided ... read more..
When sizing cables nearly, everyone uses some form of software. This ranges from homespun spreadsheets to complex network analyses software. Each has its...
In an earlier note on the site [Photovoltaic (PV) - Electrical Calculations], the theory of solar (PV) cell calculations was introduced. In particular...
These lifts were first built in 1884 by J. E. Hall and called a paternoster ("Our Father", the first two words of the Lord's Prayer in Latin) due to its...
When selecting a generator, there are inherent limits on the active and reactive power which can be delivered. Generators are normally sized for a certain...
In a previous article I looked at the dc resistance of conductors and in this article we turn our attention to ac resistance. If you have not read the...
When selecting a cable, the performance of the cable under fault conditions is an important consideration. It is important that calculations be carried...
Electrical engineering is a field that covers a wide variety of sub-fields, including electricity and electronics. It is a field that goes back to the...
A lot of our members work in countries where PPE (personal protective equipment) is regulated or they work for companies/organizations which take employee...
Electric motors are one of the most widely used items of electrical equipment. Improving motor efficiency benefits include, reduced power demand, lower...
IEC 60228 is the International Electrotechnical Commission's international standard on conductors of insulated cables. Among other things, it defines a...
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