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Electrical Transformers

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  • The Use of Gravel to Manage Spills

    When oil spills, gravel can be friend or foe to those doing the cleanup. Much depends on the quantity of oil spilled, how it's been spilled and how the gravel is laid out on the ground. In general, gravel is defined as a loose aggregate of small stones or pebbles. But gravel may also be even smaller, in the form of a gritty, gravelly substance, such as kitty litter.

  • How to Landscape Around Electrical Transformers

    Every home landscape is a mix of the necessary and the beautiful. Electrical transformer boxes are definitely in the necessary category. These big square boxes, so often just plopped down on the front corner of the property, are awkward eyesores. With some careful planning and thoughtful plant choices, though, you can turn the area around your electrical transformer box into a beautiful, integral part of the landscape. Your choice of planting material depends on your location, but the process of designing around the box is universal.

  • How to Hook Up a Buck-Boost Electrical Transformer

    A buck-boost transformer is installed to raise or lower the voltage of a power source by small amounts. This maybe necessary to get the voltage to the right level for a particular device. It is used in tanning beds, computer uninterpretable power supplies (UPSs) and electrical power distribution systems. Hooking up a buck-booster requires connecting the electrical wires in the right terminals. Turning off the power at the source is the most important step for your safety.

  • Flyback Transformer Symptoms

    The flyback transformer is located inside your television. The purpose of this little device is to alter the flow and voltage of electricity as necessary to be sure that all the parts of your TV work properly. If your flyback transformer begins to break down or develop problems, you'll see certain symptoms in your television set's daily performance.

  • Trees Are Growing Close to an Electrical Transformer Box

    Transformers are an integral part of the electrical grid that convert the high voltage electricity in your power lines to the lower voltages used in household appliances. There are two basic types of transformer box that serve power lines above and below the ground. Transformers for unburied lines are contained in gray or black barrels located at intervals along the power line. Transformers for buried power lines are housed in metal boxes resting on concrete pads along the length of the line. Trees planted close to these transformers often cause damage or make maintenance difficult.

  • How to Prevent a Transformer Circulating Current

    Transformers play an important role in electrical circuits. Engineers use them to increase or decrease the input voltage fed to the primary winding. However, in the case of an over-current condition, due to a short circuit or inadvertent transient (a temporary spike in current), the transformer must be prevented from circulating or transferring the current downstream to other circuits. For this reason, engineers size and install circuit breakers on the primary and secondary side of the transformer.

  • How to Size a Transformer KVA

    A transformer is an electrical device used to convert power from the source, usually a utility company, to the power required by the load. The load can be a house, building or any other electrical system or appliance. The transformer consists of a primary and secondary winding where, when input power is supplied to the primary winding, the transformer converts it and sends the power on to the load via the outputs leads of the secondary winding. Transformers are rated or sized in terms of KVA, the power level in kilovolt-amperes.

  • Difference Between Current Transformer & Voltage Transformer

    Transformers are devices that change the voltage and current of alternating current electricity. Though they vary widely in size and power-handling capabilities, most consist of a pair of wire coils that share a common iron frame, called a "core." A voltage transformer changes the voltage of incoming electricity to run equipment; a current transformer changes current for the purpose of measuring it.

  • How to Calculate the Difference in Step Down Transformer Potential

    A step-down transformer is an electrical device that is used to reduce AC voltage while maintaining the same total power. The voltage differential -- or "potential" -- that is applied to the transformer's primary windings is converted into a transient electromagnetic field. This field passes through the transformer core, and is reconstituted at the transformer secondary as a smaller voltage. The number of windings in a step-down transformer's primary is greater than the number of windings present in the transformer's secondary. The windings ratio between these two transformer sections determines how much the voltage is stepped down.

  • The Environmental Impacts of Electrical Transformers

    Electrical transformers transfer electrical energy from one circuit to another. Transformers can be small enough to fit inside a small microphone, or could weigh several hundred tons and connect power grids to one another. Pollution can be produced from running transformers, animal habitats can be lost, and it has been debated that electromagnetic fields emitted from them can cause health problems.

  • The Different Types of Transformer Cores

    Transformers are electrical devices used to block DC electrical power from passing through one side of a circuit to the other, or for altering the voltage of an input alternating-current (AC) signal. Transformers use electrical wire coiled around a core to convert an AC signal into transient electromagnetic fields. The fields travel from the input windings through the core; once these fields reach the output windings, they convert into an output AC signal.

  • How to Install an Electrical 50VA Transformer

    A 50 VA transformer supplies power to several different types of devices. The "VA" stands for "Volt/Amps" which means power or watts. A 50 VA transformer works only for low power applications with inputs of either 120 or 240 volts, depending on the country or application. Applications include low power lighting, HVAC control circuits, toilet flushing controls, security cameras and many others. Normal output voltages are 12 or 24 volts. You must understand the specific application to install an electrical 50 VA transformer. Many can be installed without tools.

  • Electrical Transformer Types

    An electrical transformer works from Faraday's Law, which states that a changing magnetic field can produce an electric current in a circuit. Because of this simple effect, transformers can manage alternating current (AC) electricity in many beneficial ways. They exploit this effect to increase or decrease the voltage in an electrical power system, to prevent shock hazards and to make better-sounding music.

  • How to Build an AC Transformer

    A transformer is an electrical device that can convert one AC voltage to another, or can isolate DC electrical power from one side of a circuit. An AC transformer is made up of two or more electrical wires coiled around a common core. A transformer converts an AC electrical signal into a variable electromagnetic field. When the electromagnetic field transfers from one coil to the other, it creates an electrical signal across the coil leads, thus transferring the AC signal.

  • Information on Wiring Up 3-Phase Induction Motors

    Three-phase induction motors use three-phase, alternating current (AC) -- three voltages, 120 degrees out of phase with each other -- and utilize the principle of electromagnetic induction for their operation. Three-phase AC flowing through the stationary part of the motor creates, on induces, a magnetic field in the rotating part.

  • How to Build a Simple Electrical Transformer for School

    A transformer is an electrical device that can be used for one of two functions. The first function of a transformer is to isolate one side of an electrical circuit from direct current electrical energy. Since a transformer works by converting electrical energy into a dynamic electromagnetic field, only alternating current will pass through a transformer. A transformer can also be used to change the voltage of an input AC signal. If the number of windings (also known as "wire turns") around a transformer core is greater at one side of the transformer than the other, the voltage will increase…

  • How to Take an AC Transformer & Make it a DC Output

    When converting electrical power from one voltage to another, a transformer is an important electrical component to have in your circuit. Since transformers isolate DC power from one side of the circuit, it is impossible to pass DC voltage through a transformer. To allow an AC transformer to produce DC electrical energy, it is necessary to rectify the AC signal coming from the transformer secondary. One way to accomplish this rectification is by using a rectifier pack.

  • How to Calculate Electrical Transformer Output

    A transformer is essentially a pair of coils wrapped around iron cores, which are called primary windings and secondary windings for input and output, respectively. When current passes through the primary coil, it creates a magnetic field which then acts as an inductor to create voltage in the second coil. Transformers can be used to increase voltage, and thereby reduce current, for long distance transmission, or they can decrease voltage and increase current. The ratio of input windings to output windings will determine the output of the transformer.

  • How to Build a Homemade Power Inverter

    Inverters, also known as power inverters, are generally used to invert direct voltage or electrical energy into alternating current electrical energy. By using an inverter, appliances and electrical devices that run on AC power can be run on a DC power supply. Two examplels of electrical appliances powered by an inverter are lights and fans during a power failure. Though purchasing an inverter can be costly, you can make your own homemade inverter much more economically.

  • Information on Home Inverters

    An inverter is a component of a grid tied solar power system. It takes the DC electricity generated by the home solar array and converts it into AC house current. The inverter integrates the home solar power with the power company's electrical grid.

  • How to Run a 3-Phase Motor With 1-Phase Power

    Most residential homes are only equipped with single-phase power. If you buy an item for your workshop such as a commercial air compressor, you may be disappointed. Most commercial motors are three-phase motors. Three-phase motors do not run well on only single-phase power as the motor only receives about two-thirds of its maximum horsepower when run on single-phase power. In order to get better usage of this type of motor, a single-phase to three-phase converter is needed.

  • How to Find the Full Load Voltage (FLV) of a Transformer

    The FLV (full load voltage) of a transformer is the voltage of the secondary coil when the maximum output current level is reached. The maximum current is limited by the wire size of the secondary coil. To find the full load voltage, the voltage regulation of the transformer is needed. This generally is found in data sheets that come with the transformer. The no-load voltage of the transformer also will have to be measured.

  • How do I Wire a Magnetek Transformer?

    Magnetek Corporation of Wisconsin divested its transformer manufacturing facilities to three different companies in 1996: Triad Magnetics for component transformers, Jefferson Electric for dry-type and distribution transformers and Waukesha Electric for liquid-filled power transformers. Jeffferson manufactures some smaller transformers for outdoor and low power lighting, but none are Magnetek. Triad manufactures smaller transformers for use in electronic equipment, but none are Magnetek. Waukesha only manufactures industrial transformers. A search for Magnetek on the Internet shows many neon lighting transformers for sale, but none are actually Magnetek. So if you have a transformer that says "Magnetek" you must have a description…

  • The Difference Between DX & FX

    DX and FX refer to the sensors used in Nikon digital cameras. The sensor captures the picture and transforms it into an electrical signal that is later transformed into a digital picture. The sensor contains millions of pixels that capture light. The number of pixels in the sensor corresponds to the megapixel label on the digital camera.

  • Electronic Transformers Explained

    Typically, a transformer uses coils of wire wrapped around an iron core to change one voltage to another for any of several applications. An electronic transformer adds features for some low voltage applications to improve performance.

  • How to Make an Electrical Step-Up Transformer from 12 Volt to 24 Volt

    A step-up transformer increases the voltage when electricity passes from one coil to another. The primary core receives electricity and transfers the power to the core. The core is made of magnetic material---usually iron---and transfers the electricity to the secondary coil through a process called electromagnetic induction. The secondary coil must have more turns than the primary core to increase the voltage.

  • Difference Between an Electrical Inverter & Transformer

    Electrical transformers and inverters perform similar functions. Transformers increase or decrease alternating current (AC) electricity from one voltage level to another. Inverters take direct current (DC) electricity as their input and produce AC electricity as their output. Inverters normally include a modified transformer in their design.

  • How to Double a Frequency

    An alternating current electrical source provides electrical energy that reverses current direction at a specified period. A frequency-doubling circuit may be connected to the power source to change the output frequency of the AC signal.

  • Homemade Power Inverter

    Many electronic devices -- such as laptop computers and cell phone chargers -- require alternating current electrical energy to operate. While alternating current electrical energy is available in nearly every type of building, an occasion may arise (such as in an automobile, or in a deserted area) where the only power available comes from a battery. A power inverter is an electronic device which is used to convert direct current electrical energy (such as is produced by a battery) into alternating current electrical energy. A simple power inverter can be constructed from a few electronic components.

  • Information on Electrical Transformers

    Michael Faraday performed some of the earliest experiments on transformers in the early 1800s. Consisting of two wire coils wrapped around a common iron piece, the transformer doesn't appear to do much---you input alternating current (AC) and get AC out---but among other things, it efficiently boosts or reduces voltage. This ability alone makes it an essential part of the electrical distribution system, both outside and inside the home.

  • Electrical Transformer Basics

    Transformers are a pair of coils or solenoids that are usually wrapped around an iron core. Their primary role is to increase or decrease AC voltages. They operate on the principle of induction, which means that a changing magnetic field generates voltages that cause current flow.

  • Safety Measures When Inspecting Electrical Transformers

    Power company transformers require periodic inspection to ensure proper operation and safety, not only for persons nearby, but also for the equipment itself and the environment. Electrocution is the most prevalent danger, but the environment of transformers may also cause injury. Oil spills can make slippery surfaces and sharp edges can cause cuts. Also other work going on in industrial areas can cause accidents, so always stay alert.

  • How to Size an Electrical Transformer for Load

    Transformer load means the amount of electricity the transformer distributes. Transformers change voltage from one level to another for a wide variety of purposes--from less than an amp for a cell phone charger up to thousands of watts for a power company transformer. Load can be sized by current in amps or by power in watts or in volt/amps (VA). The design of a transformer determines its load capacity. You can size a transformer above your load requirement but never below it.

  • How to Make a 9-Volt DC From a Transformer

    Tranformers are used to step alternating current electrical energy either up or down, depending upon the ratio of coil turns from the transformer primary to the transformer secondary. When used in conjunction with a rectifier, transformers can convert electrical energy from a wall outlet (110-120 VAC in North America) to a smaller DC voltage (such as 12 VDC). A voltage divider circuit can be used to reduce voltage even further (such as to 9 VDC).

  • Homemade Foam Cutter

    You can use foam blocks and sheets for a variety of home and craft projects. Foam-cutting products are available commercially, but with the right materials and some concentration you can make your own for a lower cost. The tool described here is ideal for making clean straight and angled cuts in foam of any thickness up to 6 inches. Wear safety gloves and handle the tools carefully.

  • How to Determine the Primary Current Transformers

    A transformer is an electrical circuit element that consists mostly of magnetizable material, It conveys electrical energy from a primary alternating current into another, secondary circuit. The voltage difference between the two AC circuits depends on how many times the two circuits each coil round the transformer. The currents in the two circuits are related by the formula n_1 x i_1 = n_2 x i_2, where n_1 and n_2 are the number of turns in the coils of the two circuits. The i's are the corresponding currents through the coils. As demonstrated in Halliday and Resnick's "Fundamentals of Physics," this…

  • How to Calculate the Number of Turns for a 110/12V Electrical Transformer

    Circuits on opposite sides of a transformer both have an extent of their wiring wrap several turns around the magnetizable material in the transformer. That way, the primary circuit, the one that delivers the electrical energy, can induce a magnetic field via its coil into the transformer, which in turn induces an electromotive force (emf) in the coil of the secondary circuit. The ratio of the voltage between the two circuits depends on the ratio between the number of turns in the two coils, as discuss in Halliday and Resnick’s “Fundamentals of Physics.”

  • Difference Between Potential Transformer & Current Transformer

    Many arbitrary ways of naming or labeling transformers apply to either their use, their method of manufacture or both. All transformers change both potential (or voltage) and current, but the more important change for the application influences the name.

  • What Is an Electric Transformer Used For?

    Electric transformers are used to change alternating current (AC) voltage or electrical current from one level to another. Other transformers work at lower frequencies for standard electric power distribution and at audio and radio frequencies to isolate signals.

  • Variable Transformer Advantages & Disadvantages

    A transformer is an electrical device that changes the voltage and current of an alternating current (AC) waveform. Transformers use a primary coil that creates a magnetic field and transfers its energy into a secondary coil. There is usually very little energy lost in this transformation. A variable transformer is one that allows adjustment of the number of turns in the coils that are connected so the output voltage can be set to a desired value.

  • Electrical Transformer Installation Procedures

    Electrical transformers come in a huge variety of sizes for even more uses. To install one, you may need a soldering iron and a few hand tools to install it in the power supply of your electronics project, or a crane and power tools to install it to the commercial power input to a building. The installation procedures require you to have the ability to select proper materials, depending on the transformer and its application.

  • How to Wind Step-Up Transformer Coils

    Transformers change the current and voltage passing from one circuit to another. The primary circuit is driven by an electromotive force, which is then transferred through a magnetizable material, or "core," to the secondary circuit. The primary circuit coils around the core so that its alternating current can induce magnetism in the core. The core's alternating magnetic field then induces a current in windings of the secondary circuit. The ratio between the primary and secondary windings around the core determine whether the transformer steps up voltage or steps it down.

  • How to Make an Electrical Step-Up Transformer

    Transformers change the current and voltage passing from one circuit to another. The transformer includes a magnetizable material, called a "core," that connects a primary circuit to a secondary circuit. The primary passes its energy to the secondary through the core by wrapping several times around the core. The secondary receives energy from the primary through its own coil around the core. A step-up transformer increases voltage while reducing current. Examples of the need for a step-up transformer are a cathode ray tube screen requiring thousands of volts while being plugged into a 110V socket or a European appliance (made…

  • Types of Electrical Transformers

    Transformers are used to change the voltage of an alternating circuit. They do this by connecting two circuits at a magnetic core (a magnetizable block of matter). The ratio of windings the two circuits make around the core determines how the voltage changes from the energy-input circuit to the energy-output circuit. Transformer use can be placed into two broad categories: power supply and signal matching.

  • Homemade Electrical Transformers

    An electrical transformer changes the current and voltage levels in an alternating circuit using magnetic induction. You can make a homemade transformer with simple tools. No need to have the sort of fancy, box-shaped iron core shown in science textbooks. Instead, you just need an alternating current to induce the magnetic field in magnetizable material between the primary and secondary circuits. The primary circuit provides the alternating current to the secondary circuit via the magnetizable material in between.

  • Electrical Transformers Basics

    A transformer changes voltage in an alternating circuit. Because power loss equals current-squared times resistance, this allows transmission of large amounts of electricity with high voltage to minimize current and, therefore, power loss as well.

  • About Electric Transformer Theory

    Transformers are a pair of coils that are usually wrapped around an iron core. Their primary role is to increase or decrease AC voltages. Transformers operate on the principle of induction, in which a rapidly changing magnetic field produces an induced EMF (electromotive force), or voltage. For this reason, they only work with alternating current.

  • Electrical Transformer Theory

    Electrical transformers allow the transmission of AC voltage from a primary coil to a secondary coil through magnetic induction. The primary and secondary coils are each insulated and isolated from each other so there is no DC connection between the coils and the circuits attached to the coils. Transformers are the first step in most power supplies, stepping commercial 110 VAC down to a lower voltage for rectification and filtering for DC circuits and equipment.

  • What Kinds of Energy Are Transformed Into Electricity?

    Modern civilization depends on electricity to light the streets, run the computers and power our endless gadgets. Electricity, however, isn't a natural resource; it has to be made. In 2009, we now have many sources of electricity, from batteries to wind farms to nuclear power plants, but only a handful of physical principles govern all of them. In each case, a basic form of energy is transformed into electricity.

  • What Are Electrical Transformers?

    It is a common problem in the world of electricity: the electronics on hand require an input of one voltage, and the only voltage source provides a different, second voltage. The electricity that comes from wall sockets in the U.S. comes out at 110 volts, while computers, televisions, game consoles and just about anything else with computer components requires voltages from 3 to 15 volts. The most common solution to the problem is to use an electrical transformer. These devices convert one voltage to another through the effects of magnetism.

  • How Does Capacitor Discharge Ignition Work?

    A capacitor discharge ignition is a type of ignition system used in both small and high-speed motors. They power motorcycles, lawnmowers, and some cars and aircraft. A capacitor discharge ignition uses a condenser, or capacitor, to discharge a quick jolt of electricity, which powers the spark plug and ignites the fuel in the cylinder.

  • About Transformers

    We use electricity on a daily basis and for multiple applications. From typing a report on a computer to switching on a night light at night, electricity is an inseparable part of modern life. Here we'll look at transformers, which play a huge role in the electricity that powers our lives.

  • What is the Purpose of a Transformer?

    The transformer is one of the key inventions fundamental creating to the electrified world. The very concept of AC electricity does not work without them, so in a world without transformers, many of our common devices. Modern civilization would be impossible without the technology of the transformer.

  • How Is a Transformer Constructed?

    A transformer is in essence a very large circuit that is required to transfer electricity over long distances. The most common transformers people think of are those connected on power lines. However, even larger models exist in relay stations you might notice on the side of the road from time to time. They are required because electrical wires have an inherent resistance in them. As electricity passes through these wires, the voltage slowly decreases as a result of this. Transformers convert household-use electricity, which is low voltage and high current, into high-voltage and low-current electricity--which travels without losing nearly as…

  • Why Do Transformers Explode?

    A transformer is a mechanism or device designed to transfer electrical energy from one circuit to another. This is done to increase electrical voltage as electricity travels through long distances of wires or cabling. Wires have a certain amount of electrical resistance in them. As electricity travels through the wires, some of the electricity is lost. The amount of electricity lost depends on the length of wire it passes through. From an electrical substation where power is routed to a person's home, the electricity is translated by a transformer into high voltage, with conversely a low current. This prevents energy…

  • How Electrical Transformers Work

    A transformer is a device for changing the voltage of electricity. In popular use, it refers to the type of transformer that steps high voltage electricity down to the level necessary for domestic use. If you have electrical feed wires on telephone poles in your neighborhood, look around. Transformers in America often appear as large cylinders perched atop a telephone pole, with three or four feed cables running into nearby houses.

  • How Does Chemical Energy Work?

    Chemical energy originates in the interactions of atoms and molecules. Generally, there is a rearrangement of electrons and protons, called a chemical reaction, which produce electric charges. The law of Conservation of Energy stipulates that energy can be transformed or converted but never destroyed. Therefore, a chemical reaction that decreases the energy in a system will contribute the energy lost to the environment, usually as heat or light. Alternately, a chemical reaction that increases the energy in a system will have taken this additional energy from the environment.

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