You are on page 1of 17

Chapter 1: Power Transformers

Earthing and safety. Mains voltage. Transformer operation. Transformer losses. Types of transformers. Transformer ratings. Testing transformers. At the heart of a linear power supply is the transformer, or power transformer as it is usually known. This takes the AC mains (wall) supply voltage and converts it into one or more AC voltages that are more convenient for our needs. For a valve amp this usually means a low voltage for the heaters and a high voltage for the anode supply, at the very least. However, the reader might well ask: what is to prevent us from devising a clever way to run the whole circuit directly from the mains, and not bother with the expensive transformer?

Earthing and safety:


In the 1960s it was quite normal to design equipment according to the half-wave rectifier arrangement in fig. 1.1. The heaters for all valves in the set were connected in series and powered directly from the mains via a dropping resistor, and the U series of valves were manufactured specially for this type of operation. The chassis was connected to the neutral wire (which is bonded to earth at the junction box), so in theory it should be at roughly zero volts. The chassis was also connected to a local earth via a small capacitor to bypass radio frequency interference more effectively.

Fig. 1.1: Typical transformerless power supply used in old mains wireless sets. Such an arrangement is dangerous and is now illegal.

Unfortunately, it is the chassis-to-neutral connection that is the main problem. If an old-fashioned reversible mains plug is used, or if the mains plug happens to be wired incorrectly, the chassis can become live, and the chances are that the user will come into contact with the chassis sooner or later! Unsurprisingly, this is now considered to be astonishingly dangerous and, needless to say, is illegal. Any appliance which is built into a metal chassis, and can be touched by the user, must have that chassis connected to earth for safety, and this is called a Class I appliance. However, it is also illegal to connect a circuit between live and earth, so in fig. 1.1 we cannot simply replace the neutral wire with the earth wire. Some appliances are double insulated, which is to say that there are at least two layers of insulation between the user and any electrical connections. If a metal chassis is used then one of these layers will be a plastic casing which completely covers the metal, so it cannot be touched. Such products do not need an earth connection to be safe, and these are called Class II appliances. The trouble with an audio amplifier is that even though we could try to make it double insulated, by building it into a plastic enclosure, we still ultimately need to

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers connect it to the outside world via audio cables. Ultimately then, the user will come into electrical contact with the circuit when he handles the cables. In the case of a guitar amp, the guitar strings themselves are connected to the circuit ground, so the guitarist is always in contact with the amplifier circuit as long as he is touching the strings! It is for this reason that a conventional audio amplifier will always need a power transformer, not just to provide different AC voltages, but to safely isolate the audio circuit from the mains supply, which in turn allows the chassis to be earthed. Where the mains cable enters the chassis, usually via an IEC inlet, a heavygauge wire should be soldered to the mains earth connection (do not use a push-fit connector for this), and the other end is connected to the chassis with a solder tag, as shown in fig. 1.2. The chassis area should be cleaned with emery paper before hand to ensure a good electrical connection. The wire should be short and should have the same colour scheme as the local mains supply. The earth wire is green-and-yellow striped in Europe, and green in the US. Where this wire is bolted to chassis is known as the earth bond, and it should be a dedicated screw/bolt, not a screw which is used to fix some other piece of hardware which might become loose over time. A nyloc nut should be used, or else a shake-proof or star washer should be used, with two ordinary nuts, well tightened. This wire is the most important connection in the amplifier and is legally required, and it must be completely sound.

Fig. 1.2: The earth bond should be made to a dedicated screw, close to the mains inlet.

Mains voltage:
The mains frequency is 50Hz in most of the world, and 60Hz in the US/Canada. In developed countries the mains frequency is closely regulated to better than 1%. Since 2008 the official mains voltage in the UK has been 230V 10%, in keeping with the rest of Europe, but in most parts of Great Britain it is still rare to receive anything outside the old range of 240V 5%. All standard domestic sockets are three conductor (earthed), and all mains plugs contain an internal fuse. The official mains voltage in the US/Canada is 120V (60Hz), and most populous areas receive this to within 5%. However, in various regions the voltage has been as low as 110V in the past, and older equipment often suffers from over-voltage problems when used on the modern 120V supply. The use of two-conductor (no earth) sockets is still quite common, but must be avoided with equipment that is not double insulated, as the chassis must be connected to earth. Most US mains plugs have no internal fuse.

Power Transformers

Transformer operation:
Now that the reader appreciates the need for a transformer, he might remark that to design a power supply we dont really need to know how a transformer works, only what it does. However, knowing the basic principles of how something works will make the limitations of the device more obvious and more intuitive, and hopefully make the designer more sympathetic of the job that it has to do. Since the power transformer is the main limiting factor in the whole power supply (as well as the most expensive and most dangerous!), a fairly detailed understanding of its functioning is well deserved. From elementary physics we know that when a DC current passes through a wire, a permanent magnetic field is generated around the wire, as illustrated in fig. 1.3. If, on the other hand, the current is AC, then the direction of the magnetic flux will continually change direction in sympathy with the changes in direction of current.

Whenever the magnetic flux is forced to change (e.g., due to a change in current) an electro-motive force or EMF is generated across the conductor, in opposition to the current which caused the initial change. We might imagine that the magnetic field does not want to change, so it produces an opposing EMF in an attempt to keep the current the same, and this EMF is proportional to the rate of change of flux. The EMF induced in the wire due to such a change in current, multiplied by the rate of change of current, is called the self inductance or simply inductance, and is measured in henrys. di L=E dt Where: L = self inductance in henrys. E = EMF in volts. di = change in current, in amperes. dt = period of time, in seconds.
This inductance is given a value of 1H when a rate of change of current of 1A per second induces an EMF of 1V. If the wire is wound in a tight coil then the magnetic field around each turn of wire is forced to exist in the same physical space as the fields around the adjacent turns, and so the magnetic flux is concentrated, or we can say the flux density is greater. Therefore, a small change in current will cause a much larger change in magnetic flux around any given length of wire than if the wire were straight, so the self

Fig. 1.3: Direction of the selfinduced magnetic flux, generated around a conductor.

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers inductance is increased. However, the field around any individual turn will not completely link with all the other turns, at least, not very effectively. Ferromagnetic materials like iron have a sort of multiplying effect on flux, and this is known as relative permeability and is given the symbol . If a coil is wound around a ferromagnetic core material of high permeability then, not only will more flux be generated, but nearly all of it will be contained or concentrated within the core. Since most of the flux now flows inside the core, it is forced to link equally with all of the turns of wire as illustrated in fig. 1.4, so the self inductance is increased. Any remaining flux which does not exist in the core is known as the leakage flux, and forms a magnetic leakage field around the whole thing. This leakage flux can induce hum and noise into audio circuits, which is why chokes and transformers are often shielded with a metal can, and why sensitive circuitry should be placed far away from them. Fig. 1.4: Winding a coil around a ferromagnetic core causes almost all the flux to link equally with all the turns, which increases the self inductance. The process of induction works in reverse too; if we place a wire in a constantly changing magnetic field an EMF will be produced across the wire, and this EMF will be proportional to the rate of change of flux. If the wire is a complete loop (i.e., a circuit) then this EMF will generate a current. This is the principle of a transformer, and also the moving-magnet phono cartridge or guitar pickup, for example. A transformer is essentially two or more inductors wound very closely together on the same core, so that flux generated in the core by one coil is completely linked with the other coil/s. The coil which we drive is called the primary, and the other coils which we draw upon are called secondaries. The effect that one coil can exert on another via the flux it generates is called the mutual inductance, also measured in henrys: di pri M = E sec dt Where: M = mutual inductance in henrys. Esec = EMF induced in the secondary winding, in volts. dipri = change in current in the primary winding, in amperes. dt = period of time, in seconds.
M is given a value of 1H when a rate of change of current of 1A per second in one coil causes an EMF of 1V to be induced in another.

Power Transformers Magnetic flux , measured in volt-seconds or webers (Wb),* can be imagined to be like electrical current in a conductor. The force which causes the flux to flow is called the magneto-motive force, MMF, measured in amp-turns (AN), and this is analogous to voltage. Flux and MMF are related by the magnetic reluctance of the material in which the field is set up, measured in amp-turns per weber (ANWb-1), and this is analogous to electrical resistance. The three are related by the following equation: MMF = This could be described as the magnetic equivalent of Ohms law, V = IR.
The MMF in a coil is proportional to the current, I, in the coil, and to the number of turns N: MMF = NI When the mains voltage (which is assumed to be sinusoidal) is applied across the primary of a transformer, a current will be set up in that coil which in turn generates an MMF, and this forces flux to flow around the core. This flux in turn produces Fig. 1.5: Phase relationships between applied a back-EMF which voltage, magnetising current and magnetic field for opposes the applied the primary winding of an ideal transformer. voltage and prevents the current from growing indefinitely. This back-EMF limits the current to a steady value known as the magnetising current. The more turns are applied around a given core material or in other words, the greater the self inductance the smaller the magnetising current required. Fig. 1.5 shows the phase relationship between these quantities; the flux and magnetising current lag the applied voltage by 90. At the same time, the flux which is also linked with the secondary coil/s will generate an EMF across them too, in proportion to the ratio of the number of turns on the primary to the number of turns on the secondary, which is known as the turns ratio of the transformer. Thus if the primary voltage is Vpri, the voltage generated across a secondary coil Vsec will be: Vpri V sec = n Where: n = the primary-to-secondary turns ratio = Npri/Nsec.
*

Older texts may use lines of flux as the unit of measurement.

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers Since the induced EMF is proportional to the rate of change of flux, which is itself 90 out of phase with the applied (mains) voltage, the secondary voltage will be in phase with the mains voltage (or 180 out of phase, depending on which way round we connect the voltmeter!). If we then connect a resistive load to the secondary then current will flow around the secondary circuit, and this will also be in phase with the secondary voltage. This secondary current itself generates an MMF in the secondary coil, but this does not cause additional flux in the core because that would imply a back EMF that is greater than the secondary EMF that we already have, which is impossible. Instead, an equal-but-opposite MMF is generated in the primary coil, which counters the one in the secondary, so the core flux density remains unchanged, even if the secondary is a short circuit! This opposing MMF is produced by additional current flowing in the primary, and this is called the working current, and is in phase with the primary voltage. The total primary current is therefore the vector sum of the magnetising current and the working current, and the phase shift between the primary current and the primary voltage will tend towards zero (i.e., in phase) as more load current is demanded, or in other words as the working current starts to swamp the magnetising current, which is only small. In this way the power supplied from the mains is not dissipated in the transformer core, instead it is cleverly passed on or transformed to the load. For readers who prefer vector diagrams, suppose we have an ideal transformer with 2000 turns on the primary, and 55 turns on the secondary. This is a turns ratio of: 2000/55 = 36. Therefore, whatever voltage we apply to the primary, we should expect the voltage appearing at the secondary to be 1/36 times as great, provided no energy is lost along the way. Let us suppose that we apply 230Vac to the primary, and that the magnetising current is 50mA, and that no current is drawn from the secondary. The magnetising current Imag lags the primary voltage Vpri by 90, so ideally no power is dissipated in the primary. The magnetising current is held at this steady value by an opposing EMF, Epri, which is equal-but-opposite to Vpri, as shown in fig. 1.6a. An EMF is also generated across the secondary coil according to the turns ratio: Epri 230 E sec = = = 6.3V n 36 Fig. 1.6: Vector diagrams for an ideal transformer. a. No secondary load current (off-load). b. With secondary load current.

Power Transformers (This has been drawn in phase with Epri but it could as easily be drawn in phase with Vpri if the transformer leads were reversed.) Since the secondary voltage is less than the primary voltage we say that is has been stepped down, or that we have a step-down transformer. We can of course apply more turns to the secondary than to the primary, so that the secondary voltage is stepped up instead. Now suppose that we draw 1.5A of current from the secondary (for an EL34 heater for example). This amounts to: 6.3 1.5 = 9.45W of power being consumed. Since we do not wish to defy the laws of physics, an equal amount of power must be supplied to the primary, meaning the working current Iw in the primary is: 9.45 / 230 = 41mA , and is in phase with the applied voltage.
However, from fig. 1.6b it can be seen that the total current Ipri flowing in the primary is now the vector sum of the working current and the magnetizing current: Ipri = Iw + Imag =
2
2

41 + 50 = 65mA and lags the applied voltage by:


2 2

tan

( 50 / 41) = 51 .
D

From this we see that the when voltages are stepped down, currents are stepped up by the same proportion (and vice versa), and that the power supplied will always be somewhat more than the power consumed by the secondary. In practice transformers are not perfect, so the primary current will usually be somewhat higher than calculated here, and the phase lag will probably be less, because the coils actually have some resistance, so the power supplied will be even greater. Using the previous example we can also calculate from Ohms law that the load resistance on the secondary was 6.3/1.5 = 4.2, but the resistance or more accurately the impedance of the primary winding was 230/0.065 = 3538, so we can also describe the transformer as an impedance transformer. An impedance placed on a secondary winding does not look like the same impedance when viewed from the primary, and vice versa. In fact, an ideal transformer will step an impedance up or down by a factor equal to the square of the turns ratio:
Z pri

Vpri = Zsec Vsec

Where: Zpri = The impedance of the primary. Zsec = The impedance placed on the secondary. In the previous example we could have predicted the primary impedance to be:
2

230 4.2 = 5598 6.3

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers In fact, it did not attain this ideal figure because of the additional magnetising current, which the previous formula does not take into account. Valve amplifiers often use an output transformer to step-up the low impedance of a loud speaker to a higher value, which can be more easily driven by the power valves. Such transformers are built with very high primary inductance which, among other things, ensures that the magnetising current does not seriously reduce the ideal primary impedance.

Transformer losses:
A practical transformer cannot be 100% efficient, due to various losses. Nevertheless, a typical EI power transformer might be around 85% to 90% efficient, while a toroidal transformer will usually achieve better than 90% efficiency, which is remarkably good for Victorian technology. Some energy will be lost due to the fact that the iron core itself looks like shorted turn as far as the (leakage) magnetic field is concerned, and so electrical currents are set up in the core, which of course demand power from the primary. These are called eddy currents, and in the case of ordinary EI transformers are minimised by using silicon steel (which has high electrical resistance) and by separating the core into thin sheets or laminations, each of which is given a chemical coating to insulate it from its neighbours. Energy is also lost in forcing the magnetic dipoles in the core material to change direction with every current cycle, and this is called hysterisis. The greatest transformer loss is due to heating of the copper windings by the current passing through them, since they do not have zero resistance as we would like. Transformers with small cores only have a small amount of space available to fit the windings into, so they must necessarily use thin wire. Therefore the resistance of the windings will be higher than those of a large transformer using thick wire so, for a given current, the power dissipated in the transformer through heating of the copper will be greater in a small transformer than in a larger one. This is what ultimately determines how much power the transformer can handle, and the larger transformer will obviously have the greater power rating. Ordinary mains transformers are usually limited to a maximum average coil temperature of about 100C. Above this the winding insulation cannot be guaranteed. The losses which are associated with the core are collectively referred to as the core losses or iron losses; they will be relatively small for modern power transformers using silicon steel. Losses due to the heating of the copper windings are generally called the copper losses or I2R losses. Modern power transformers use very similar materials and construction techniques to one another, so transformers with similar power ratings will usually be very similar in physical size. With a little experience, and by comparison with known transformers, it is usually possible to estimate the power rating of an unknown transformer, quite accurately.

Power Transformers Saturation: For a given type of core material and core design, there is a limit to the amount of flux which the core can hold, which is called its saturation limit. This is analogous to a wire having a limited current capacity before it fuses. If the saturation limit is exceeded then the transformer will begin to leak flux very badly, and we might imagine that it is so full up with flux that it overflows. This leads to increased primary (magnetising) current and eddy currents, so the transformer will heat up. If the heating is sustained then the copper wire may fuse or the insulation may break down. Also, the heavy leakage flux may induce extra noise into nearby circuits. Obviously then, saturation is something to be avoided. Fig. 1.7 shows in a simplified manner how flux density B (measured in tesla, T, which are webers per square metre) varies with magnetic field strength H (measured in amp-turns per metre ), for a typical transformer core material. This is usually called a BH-curve. On the other hand, if we take the graph as representing a single transformer with a given primary inductance then it can also be reckoned in terms of the magnetising current rather than field strength. Mains transformers are so designed that when the rated mains voltage (at mains frequency) is applied, the primary inductance is such that the resulting magnetising current is just enough to cause the flux density to reach the knee of the graph, usually around 1.5T for silicon steel, as indicated by the typical operating point. However, if the mains voltage is increased, or if its frequency is reduced, the magnetising current will increase and the operating point will move to the right, towards saturation. As saturation is approached the permeability of the core rapidly drops and with it the primary inductance, so it requires disproportionately more magnetising current to produce a given increase in field strength than when operating on the straight portion of the graph. In other words, very heavy current will flow during saturation, with consequent heating. A transformer designed for 50Hz mains use can therefore be used with 60Hz mains quite safely, but possibly not the other way round. However, practically all off-the-shelf Fig. 1.7: Simplified graph of flux density transformers are designed to against field strength or, in the case of a work equally well at 50Hz and known transformer, magnetising current. 60Hz.

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers The upper image in fig. 1.8 is an oscillogram of the secondary voltage produced by a small 6V transformer (unloaded), when the primary voltage is the correct rated value (the clipped wave tops were already present on the mains supply). The lower image shows how the waveform changes when the primary voltage is increased by a further 50%. The peaks of the primary voltage drive the core into saturation but, since the magnetising current is 90 out of phase, it is at the zerocrossings where the primary inductance rapidly drops. This causes disproportionately more current to flow at the zero crossings of the voltage waveform, which in turn results in a voltage drop across the primary resistance, so the waveform develops a kind of crossover distortion, as seen in the oscillogram. Since the transformer was unloaded during the test, this is also an accurate image of the current waveform flowing in the primary. The asymmetry of the waveform is due to asymmetry in the BH characteristics of the core material. Incidentally, the transformer quickly became hot when performing this test! The upper image actually shows a hint of crossover distortion too, indicating that the transformer has been designed so that the normal operating point is close to saturation, as shown in fig. 1.7 previously. This observation can be used as a diagnostic tool when testing transformers (see later). Load current, it should be remembered, does not cause any increase in flux, so does not lead to saturation even if the secondary is a short circuit. In fact, the extra working current in the primary will tend to cause the primary voltage to drop slightly due to wire resistance, which will actually pull the transformer away from saturation. Therefore, if we view the secondary voltage waveform of a power transformer, it will usually show slight crossover distortion when unloaded, just like the upper image in fig. 1.8, but this will gradually disappear as the load is increased. The exception to this is when a net DC current is allowed to flow in a coil (such as when a half-wave rectifier is used, see chapter 2). Any DC current in the secondary of course demands DC current in the primary, and this pushes the operating point further towards saturation. Whats worse, direct and alternating magnetising current combined result in lower effective permeability than AC alone, which reduces

Fig. 1.8: Upper: Normal, unloaded secondary waveform. Lower: Unloaded secondary waveform during core saturation, due to the primary voltage being 50% higher than its nominal value.

10

Power Transformers the primary inductances and leads to yet more AC magnetising current! So, even a few tens of milliamps of DC can be enough to cause a transformer to saturate, if it is not specially designed to handle it.

Types of transformers:
Cheap transformers are usually of the EI type, where the core is made from a stack of E and I-shaped laminations with the coils wound on a central bobbin. The laminations are usually made from silicon-steel, and in modern transformers the grain or crystalline structure is orientated in a particular direction, and this is known as grain-orientated silicon steel or GOSS. This increases the permeability of the steel and reduces core losses since the flux can flow along the grain most of the time. Fig. 1.9: An EI transformer However, where the flux does have to flow will leak flux where the it across the grain, leakage will increase, so EI has to cross grain transformers leak the most at their corners and boundaries. out of the middle of the ends of the core, as illustrated in fig. 1.9. If the transformer is overdriven then it is also at these weak spots that the core will saturate first and leakage flux will spew out, followed by the other parts of the core as the flux density increases. In this way, EI transformers tend to saturate in a gradual or progressive manner. EI transformers come in a variety of mountings, as illustrated in fig. 1.10. Shrouded/shielded transformers like the one shown in a. are fairly common in the US, but are comparatively rare in the UK. Transformers can also be wound on a continuous ring or toroid, as seen in fig. 1.10d. This is usually made from ceramic with an irondust centre. Using dust is even better than using thin laminations for the core, because it leaves almost no paths in which eddy currents can be set up. Also, because

Fig. 1.10: Typical power transformers. a: EI with foot-mounted shroud. b: EI with end frames. c: EI with U-clamp. d: Toroidal.

11

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers there are no corners or breaks in the toroid, the flux can flow continuously without crossing any grain boundaries. Leakage flux around the toroid is therefore quite low. However, practical toroidal transformers do leak around the lead-out wires, where the windings cannot be kept perfectly parallel. Therefore this part of the transformer should always be orientated so that it points away from sensitive circuitry. Additionally, because the toroidal core is quite homogeneous, all of it will reach saturation at more-or-less the same time, so it can be safely operated much closer to its saturation limit than an EI type. This allows the use of a lower primary inductance, meaning less copper and reduced copper losses, which all leads to toroidals being physically much smaller than an EI types for a given power rating and, if operated at their full capacity, they may feel hotter to the touch than similar EI types. As a note of caution, a toroidal transformer should be mounted as shown in fig. 1.11a. It is very important never to let both ends of the central mounting bolt come into electrical contact, as this would create a shorted turn that will lead to the immediate destruction of the transformer (fig. 1.11b). Very high quality transformers are sometimes Fig. 1.11: a. Proper mounting of a toroidal wound on a C-core. This is transformer. b. Any conductive path around the similar to an EI transformer transformer constitutes a shorted turn, and will except that the core is made lead to the rapid destruction of the transformer! from a continuous coil of GOSS. It is then cut into two C shapes so that the windings can be put on, and then the core halves are then clamped together. This again allows the flux to flow around the core without having to cross the grain, reducing leakage. This method of construction is fairly uncommon nowadays.

Transformer ratings:
Modern transformers are usually advertised with a voltage rating and a VA (power) rating. A current rating is not usually given, but it can be quickly calculated from the power rating divided by the voltage rating. The voltage rating is the RMS voltage that will be measured across the secondary winding under full load. The voltage we would measure when no load is attached will be somewhat higher due to transformer regulation (see next section).

12

Power Transformers The VA rating is the average power that that can be safely demanded from the transformer, and if only one figure is quoted then it is for the whole transformer. If there are several secondary windings then the total core power is divided among them. The power rating is given in volt-amps, rather than watts, because it takes into account the fact that the load current might not be in phase with the secondary voltage. This is usually the case when a rectifier is used, so the power that the transformer actually has to handle (in VA) is more than the actual power the circuit consumes (in watts), so the transformer VA rating will need to be greater than the circuit power for safe operation. This is explained in more detail in the next chapter. Transformers which have several different secondary windings might give the ratings of each winding in the above manner, but it is also common for them to be given a voltage and a current rating. This is normally the case for valve transformers. The VA rating for each winding can be calculated from the voltage rating multiplied by the current rating, of course. The sum of all these VA ratings is the VA rating of the whole transformer. As a further note, valve transformers occasionally use a more old fashioned ratings system, where the high-voltage winding is given a DC current rating, while the heater windings have conventional AC ratings. The DC rating is the maximum permitted load current assuming a standard full-wave rectifier and a typical power factor, whatever that may be! Thankfully, this vague ratings system is rarely used now. Transformer regulation: The secondary voltage measured offload will be higher than the voltage measured across the winding at full load, because there is a voltage drop across the impedance of the secondary winding (there are other losses within the transformer too, but these can usually be ignored). The degree by which the voltage falls under load is called the transformer regulation (something of a misnomer), and is given as a percentage: V Vfull load % regulation = no load 100 Vno load

Power rating (VA or watts)

Regulation (%)

6 25 12 12 20 10 50 9 100 8 200 7 Table 1.1: Typical regulation figures for power transformers.

Low-power transformers are normally worse than high-power transformers due to their necessarily-high winding resistance. Table 1.1 gives some typical figures. Usually, however, the regulation figures given on transformer data sheets are approximate, not exact, and serve only as a rough indication of how much the secondary voltage is likely to vary between no-load and full load. It is really an

13

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers indirect (and old fashioned) way of alluding to the off-load voltage and the secondary winding impedance and, indeed, it would be more useful if manufacturers actually gave these numbers instead of a regulation figure. Nevertheless, if we are given a reasonably accurate regulation percentage then we can find the no-load secondary voltage: 100 Vfull load Vno load = % regulation 100
And from this also impedance of the secondary winding: V Vfull load Zsec = no load Isec Where Isec is the full-load secondary current rating.

Testing transformers:
Most hobbyists will use second-hand transformers from time to time, and over the years the self respecting electronics enthusiast will probably build up an impressive collection of transformers, rescued from discarded equipment (and failed projects!). Sometimes we will have little or no information on the voltages and power capability of these transformers, but they can be estimated to a reasonable degree using the following methods. It should go without saying, however, that we should be conservative in our design when using unknown transformers. Putting preused transformers into light retirement service should ensure reliable performance and longevity. Most of the following tests are performed on the fly using mains voltage, and higher voltages may also exist on some windings, so the utmost care must be taken to avoid electric shock.

Voltages: The DC resistance between each transformer connection can be measured, and a diagram or map of the transformer built up this way. Of course, the DC resistance of each coil tells us very little about what voltages the transformer will produce, but it should indicate which is the primary and which are the secondaries. This may also be suggested by the thickness of the wire used, if this is visible (e.g., step-down transformers will be expected to have thicker wire on the secondaries).
With valve transformers the primary and the high-voltage secondary may be of similar resistance of course, but often the primary connections will be on one side of the transformer and the secondaries on the other, or else the lead-out wires may have a familiar colour scheme.

14

Power Transformers Once the primary has been identified, we can apply mains voltage (taking great care against electric shock of course)* and measure the secondary voltages. We must remember that these voltages will be around 10% higher than those measured under load, which are the voltages that would be advertised by the manufacturer. Therefore, if we suspect one winding is rated for 12V, for example, we should not be surprised if it measures around 13V to 15V, off load. Sometimes we may be uncertain of the correct primary voltage, perhaps because the transformer is foreign, or because it is so old that it may have been designed for some other (usually lower) voltage. One method of determining the correct primary voltage is to use a variac to increase the mains voltage gradually, while viewing the secondary voltage on an oscilloscope (with no load attached). When the secondary voltage starts to show signs of crossover distortion, like the upper image in fig. 1.8, then the transformer is approaching saturation, and at this point the mains voltage is likely to be correct or just slightly higher than correct. Alternatively, if we are not sure of the primary but we are sure of one of the secondary voltages, then we can use another transformer to drive the secondary winding with the correct voltage (in other words, use the transformer backwards) and then measure the voltage appearing on the primary. Phasing: Knowing the relative phases of the windings is important if we wish to connect them in series or parallel. Phase can be very easily determined with a dualchannel oscilloscope of course, by simply viewing the waveforms on the different windings. Phasing can also be determined with a voltmeter and a little care. Firstly, draw a diagram of the transformer windings and include the known voltages. Next, connect two secondary windings in series, apply the mains voltage, and measure the voltage across the series-connected windings as in fig. 1.12 (no load attached!). If the two ends which have been connected (or alternatively the two free ends) are out of phase then the measured voltage will be the sum of the two individual windings, as shown in a. If the two ends are in phase then the
*

Fig. 1.12: Testing phasing by noting whether winding voltages add or subtract.

If the integrity of the transformer is in doubt then it is advisable to apply a lower voltage at first, via a variac for example, with very conservative fusing. Alternatively a low-wattage filament lamp in series with the mains supply can be used as a simple current limiter.

15

Designing Power Supplies for Valve Amplifiers voltages will subtract, as in b. The ends can then be marked with dots on the diagram to indicate the relative phases. If the transformer has dual primary windings, and we need to know their phase, then similar methods can be used. The first is simply to connect the transformer backwards as mentioned earlier, by driving one of the secondaries instead, and then do the same phasing test shown in fig. 1.12, but on the primaries.

Fig. 1.13: Testing phasing of dual primary windings.

The second method is to connect the two windings in series and apply the appropriate voltage (e.g., 120V) to one of them. Then measure the voltage across the pair of windings as in fig. 1.13. Again, if the two joined ends are out of phase then the measured voltage will be the double the applied voltage, otherwise they will subtract and we would measure close to zero volts (assuming the two windings are identical). The diagram can then be marked with dots as appropriate. This method can also be used to determine the phase of a secondary winding relative to the primary. Power and current capability: The overall power handling (VA rating) of a transformer can be reasonably estimated from the size of its core, by comparing it with a known transformer. If it has several identical secondaries then it is reasonable to assume that the total power is shared equally among them, so the current capacity of each winding can be estimated to be the power allocated to a winding divided by the voltage of that winding. The thickness of the secondary wire (if it can be seen) will give an idea of whether the calculated figure is reasonable. If the transformer has several different secondaries then more common sense (and indeed guesswork) is needed. If it was taken from a known piece of equipment then it may be possible to estimate the capacity of each winding by looking at what it powered in the original circuit. Looking at the wire thickness and comparing it with similar, known transformers, will also serve as a guide. It should also be noted that if one winding is run at less than its advertised rating, other windings can be run in excess of their published ratings, within reason, provided the total VA rating of the core is not exceeded, so we may guess at several possible loading arrangements. Once we have estimated the capacity of the windings then we will have to test it. As a first approximation, when a transformer is fully loaded so that it is handling its maximum safe power level it will (eventually) feel hot to the touch, but it should not

16

Power Transformers be so hot that you cannot keep your hand on it permanently.* This simple observation can be combined with a more reliable test of the internal core temperature (which will be hotter than the surface of course): First measure the resistance of the primary winding at room temperature. Then load every winding to its full capacity and run the transformer for some time, say an hour at least (unless it shows obvious signs of distress of course!). Ordinary light bulbs, and the heater windings of unwanted valves, are particularly useful for load tests. Then switch off and measure the resistance of the primary again, before it cools down. The temperature of a wire can be closely estimated from: R R0 T= + T0 R0 Where: T = hot wire temperature T0 = initial temperature. R = hot wire resistance. R0 = initial wire resistance. = temperature coefficient of resistance (0.0039/C for copper)
If we take R0 (ambient temperature) to be 25C, then if the resistance has increased by not more than about 30% this implies a core temperature of not more than 100C, which is the maximum safe limit for most transformers. If the resistance increases by more than 30% then the transformer is probably overloaded, but hopefully you will not let the test go that far before noticing the unusually hot surface temperature!

Inductance: Although rarely needed, the total primary inductance can be measured with an inductance meter with the secondaries open circuit; see fig. 1.14a.
The leakage inductance is measured with all secondaries shorted as in b. This shorts out the mutual inductance, so any remaining inductance is leakage. Fig. 1.14: a: Test for primary inductance. b: Test for leakage inductance.

Some transformers are designed to run noticeably hotter than this, and use special materials to do so. This is unusual, however, and we should not assume such operation from an unknown transformer.

17

You might also like