Comparative the effect of distribution transformer coil shape on electromagnetic forces and their distribution using the FEM

Abstract

Abstract During the normal life of the transformers, they are subjected to different electromagnetic stresses. One of these stresses is the electromagnetic forces resulting from the passage of short-circuit current in the transformer coils due to internal or external faults and may lead to the failure of the transformer when this electromagnetic force exceeds the threshold level. This work deals with the computation and analysis of leakage magnetic flux and electromagnetic forces when the worst-case fault (symmetrical short-circuit current) occurs in distribution transformer (DT) coils using the finite element method (FEM). The three types of DTs that were adopted in this work are similar in capacity and voltage transformation ratio (250 kVA and 11,000/416 V), but they are different in the shape of coils (oval, cylindrical, and rectangular coils). ANSYS software was used to build two-dimensional models of the three transformers, which were different in coil shapes and in the type of iron core. The objective of this work is to compare the effect of coil shape on the distribution of electromagnetic forces and their value, in order to find out which coil shape is the best to withstand electromagnetic forces when short-circuit current is passed in the coils. The results of the simulation of the finite element models were approximately equivalent to the results of the design calculations that depend on the classical method (the analytical method), but the FEM is more accurate, due to the accuracy of calculating the magnetic flux and its distribution, which cannot be calculated using the classical method. One of the most important contributions of this research is the analysis and calculation of electromagnetic forces for three types of DTs with different coils by applying the same design parameters to all the transformers. The research also contributed to determining the best coil shape by comparing simulation results, and it was found that transformers with cylindrical coils are the best to withstand electromagnetic forces due to the homogeneity of the cylindrical coil structure from all sides.