https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronization_(alternating_current)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rectifier
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-arc_valve
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induction_motor
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inductance
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-vapor_lamp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc_lamp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotary_converter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_inverter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_engineering
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grid
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-phase_electric_power
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#History
The utility frequency, (power) line frequency (American English) or mains frequency (British English) is the nominal frequency of the oscillations of alternating current (AC) in a wide area synchronous grid transmitted from a power station to the end-user. In large parts of the world this is 50 Hz, although in the Americas and parts of Asia it is typically 60 Hz. Current usage by country or region is given in the list of mains electricity by country.
During the development of commercial electric power systems in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, many different frequencies (and voltages) had been used. Large investment in equipment at one frequency made standardization a slow process. However, as of the turn of the 21st century, places that now use the 50 Hz frequency tend to use 220–240 V, and those that now use 60 Hz tend to use 100–127 V. Both frequencies coexist today (Japan uses both) with no great technical reason to prefer one over the other[1] and no apparent desire for complete worldwide standardization.
In practice, the exact frequency of the grid varies around the nominal frequency, reducing when the grid is heavily loaded, and speeding up when lightly loaded. However, most utilities will adjust generation onto the grid over the course of the day to ensure a constant number of cycles occur.[2] This is used by some clocks to accurately maintain their time.
Operating factors
Several factors influence the choice of frequency in an AC system.[3] Lighting, motors, transformers, generators, and transmission lines all have characteristics which depend on the power frequency. All of these factors interact and make selection of a power frequency a matter of considerable importance. The best frequency is a compromise among competing requirements.
In the late 19th century, designers would pick a relatively high frequency for systems featuring transformers and arc lights, so as to economize on transformer materials and to reduce visible flickering of the lamps, but would pick a lower frequency for systems with long transmission lines or feeding primarily motor loads or rotary converters for producing direct current. When large central generating stations became practical, the choice of frequency was made based on the nature of the intended load. Eventually improvements in machine design allowed a single frequency to be used both for lighting and motor loads. A unified system improved the economics of electricity production, since system load was more uniform during the course of a day.
Lighting
The first applications of commercial electric power were incandescent lighting and commutator-type electric motors. Both devices operate well on DC, but DC could not be easily changed in voltage, and was generally only produced at the required utilization voltage.
If an incandescent lamp is operated on a low-frequency current, the filament cools on each half-cycle of the alternating current, leading to perceptible change in brightness and flicker of the lamps; the effect is more pronounced with arc lamps, and the later mercury-vapor lamps and fluorescent lamps. Open arc lamps made an audible buzz on alternating current, leading to experiments with high-frequency alternators to raise the sound above the range of human hearing.[citation needed]
Rotating machines
Commutator-type motors do not operate well on high-frequency AC, because the rapid changes of current are opposed by the inductance of the motor field. Though commutator-type universal motors are common in AC household appliances and power tools, they are small motors, less than 1 kW. The induction motor was found to work well on frequencies around 50 to 60 Hz, but with the materials available in the 1890s would not work well at a frequency of, say, 133 Hz. There is a fixed relationship between the number of magnetic poles in the induction motor field, the frequency of the alternating current, and the rotation speed; so, a given standard speed limits the choice of frequency (and the reverse). Once AC electric motors became common, it was important to standardize frequency for compatibility with the customer's equipment.
Generators operated by slow-speed reciprocating engines will produce lower frequencies, for a given number of poles, than those operated by, for example, a high-speed steam turbine. For very slow prime mover speeds, it would be costly to build a generator with enough poles to provide a high AC frequency. As well, synchronizing two generators to the same speed was found to be easier at lower speeds. While belt drives were common as a way to increase speed of slow engines, in very large ratings (thousands of kilowatts) these were expensive, inefficient, and unreliable. After about 1906, generators driven directly by steam turbines favored higher frequencies. The steadier rotation speed of high-speed machines allowed for satisfactory operation of commutators in rotary converters.[3] The synchronous speed N in RPM is calculated using the formula,
where f is the frequency in hertz and P is the number of poles.
| Poles | RPM at 1331⁄3 Hz | RPM at 60 Hz | RPM at 50 Hz | RPM at 40 Hz | RPM at 25 Hz | RPM at 162⁄3 Hz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 8,000 | 3,600 | 3,000 | 2,400 | 1,500 | 1,000 |
| 4 | 4,000 | 1,800 | 1,500 | 1,200 | 750 | 500 |
| 6 | 2,666.7 | 1,200 | 1,000 | 800 | 500 | 333.3 |
| 8 | 2,000 | 900 | 750 | 600 | 375 | 250 |
| 10 | 1,600 | 720 | 600 | 480 | 300 | 200 |
| 12 | 1,333.3 | 600 | 500 | 400 | 250 | 166.7 |
| 14 | 1142.9 | 514.3 | 428.6 | 342.8 | 214.3 | 142.9 |
| 16 | 1,000 | 450 | 375 | 300 | 187.5 | 125 |
| 18 | 888.9 | 400 | 3331⁄3 | 2662⁄3 | 1662⁄3 | 111.1 |
| 20 | 800 | 360 | 300 | 240 | 150 | 100 |
Direct-current power was not entirely displaced by alternating current and was useful in railway and electrochemical processes. Prior to the development of mercury arc valve rectifiers, rotary converters were used to produce DC power from AC. Like other commutator-type machines, these worked better with lower frequencies.
Transmission and transformers
With AC, transformers can be used to step down high transmission voltages to lower customer utilization voltage. The transformer is effectively a voltage conversion device with no moving parts and requiring little maintenance. The use of AC eliminated the need for spinning DC voltage conversion motor-generators that require regular maintenance and monitoring.
Since, for a given power level, the dimensions of a transformer are roughly inversely proportional to frequency, a system with many transformers would be more economical at a higher frequency.
Electric power transmission over long lines favors lower frequencies. The effects of the distributed capacitance and inductance of the line are less at low frequency.
System interconnection
Generators can only be interconnected to operate in parallel if they are of the same frequency and wave-shape. By standardizing the frequency used, generators in a geographic area can be interconnected in a grid, providing reliability and cost savings.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#History
Audible noise and interference
AC-powered appliances can give off a characteristic hum, often called "mains hum", at the multiples of the frequencies of AC power that they use (see Magnetostriction). It is usually produced by motor and transformer core laminations vibrating in time with the magnetic field. This hum can also appear in audio systems, where the power supply filter or signal shielding of an amplifier is not adequate.
Most countries chose their television vertical synchronization rate to be the same as the local mains supply frequency. This helped to prevent power line hum and magnetic interference from causing visible beat frequencies in the displayed picture of early analogue TV receivers particularly from the mains transformer. Although some distortion of the picture was present, it went mostly un-noticed because it was stationary. The elimination of transformers by the use of AC/DC receivers, and other changes to set design helped minimise the effect and some countries now use a vertical rate that is an approximation to the supply frequency (most notably 60 Hz areas).
Another use of this side effect is as a forensic tool. When a recording is made that captures audio near an AC appliance or socket, the hum is also incidentally recorded. The peaks of the hum repeat every AC cycle (every 20 ms for 50 Hz AC, or every 16.67 ms for 60 Hz AC). The exact frequency of the hum should match the frequency of a forensic recording of the hum at the exact date and time that the recording is alleged to have been made. Discontinuities in the frequency match or no match at all will betray the authenticity of the recording.[42]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#History
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_network_frequency_analysis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_watermarking
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mains_frequency&redirect=no
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AC/DC_receiver_design
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_television#Vertical_synchronization
Vertical synchronization
Vertical synchronization separates the video fields. In PAL and NTSC, the vertical sync pulse occurs within the vertical blanking interval. The vertical sync pulses are made by prolonging the length of horizontal sync pulses through almost the entire length of the scan line.
The vertical sync signal is a series of much longer pulses, indicating the start of a new field. The sync pulses occupy the whole line interval of a number of lines at the beginning and end of a scan; no picture information is transmitted during vertical retrace. The pulse sequence is designed to allow horizontal sync to continue during vertical retrace; it also indicates whether each field represents even or odd lines in interlaced systems (depending on whether it begins at the start of a horizontal line, or midway through).
The format of such a signal in 525-line NTSC is:
- pre-equalizing pulses (6 to start scanning odd lines, 5 to start scanning even lines)
- long-sync pulses (5 pulses)
- post-equalizing pulses (5 to start scanning odd lines, 4 to start scanning even lines)
Each pre- or post-equalizing pulse consists of half a scan line of black signal: 2 μs at 0 V, followed by 30 μs at 0.3 V. Each long sync pulse consists of an equalizing pulse with timings inverted: 30 μs at 0 V, followed by 2 μs at 0.3 V.
In video production and computer graphics, changes to the image are often performed during the vertical blanking interval to avoid visible discontinuity of the image. If this image in the framebuffer is updated with a new image while the display is being refreshed, the display shows a mishmash of both frames, producing page tearing partway down the image.
Horizontal and vertical hold
Analog television receivers and composite monitors often provide manual controls to adjust horizontal and vertical timing.
The sweep (or deflection) oscillators were designed to run without a signal from the television station (or VCR, computer, or other composite video source). This provides a blank canvas, similar to today's "CHECK SIGNAL CABLE" messages on monitors: it allows the television receiver to display a raster to confirm the basic operation of the set's most fundamental circuits, and to allow an image to be presented during antenna placement. With sufficient signal strength, the receiver's sync separator circuit would split timebase pulses from the incoming video and use them to reset the horizontal and vertical oscillators at the appropriate time to synchronize with the signal from the station.
The free-running oscillation of the horizontal circuit is especially critical, as the horizontal deflection circuits typically power the flyback transformer (which provides acceleration potential for the CRT) as well as the filaments for the high voltage rectifier tube and sometimes the filament(s) of the CRT itself. Without the operation of the horizontal oscillator and output stages, for virtually every analog television receiver since the 1940s, there will be absolutely no illumination of the CRT's face.
The lack of precision timing components in early television receivers meant that the timebase circuits occasionally needed manual adjustment. If their free-run frequencies were too far from the actual line and field rates, the circuits would not be able to follow the incoming sync signals. Loss of horizontal synchronization usually resulted in an unwatchable picture; loss of vertical synchronization would produce an image rolling up or down the screen.
The adjustment took the form of horizontal hold and vertical hold controls, usually on the front panel along with other common controls. These adjusted the free-run frequencies of the corresponding timebase oscillators.
Properly working, adjusting a horizontal or vertical hold should cause the picture to almost "snap" into place on the screen; this is called sync lock. A slowly rolling vertical picture demonstrates that the vertical oscillator is nearly synchronized with the television station but is not locking to it, often due to a weak signal or a failure in the sync separator stage not resetting the oscillator. Sometimes, the black interval bar will almost stop at the right place, again indicating a fault in sync separation is not properly resetting the vertical oscillator.
Horizontal sync errors cause the image to be torn diagonally and repeated across the screen as if it were wrapped around a screw or a barber's pole; the greater the error, the more "copies" of the image will be seen at once wrapped around the barber pole. Given the importance of the horizontal sync circuit as a power supply to many subcircuits in the receiver, they may begin to malfunction as well; and horizontal output components that were designed to work together in a resonant circuit may become damaged.
In the earliest electronic television receivers (1930s–1950s), the time base for the sweep oscillators was generally derived from RC circuits based on carbon resistors and paper capacitors. After turning on the receiver, the vacuum tubes in the set would warm up and the oscillators would begin to run, allowing a watchable picture. Resistors were generally simple pieces of carbon inside a Bakelite enclosure, and the capacitors were usually alternating layers of paper and aluminum foil inside cardboard tubes sealed with bee's wax. Moisture ingress (from ambient air humidity) as well as thermal instability of these components affected their electrical values. As the heat from the tubes and the electrical currents passing through the RC circuits warmed them up, the electrical properties of the RC timebase would shift, causing the oscillators to drift in frequency to a point that they could no longer be synchronized with the received pulses coming from the TV station via the sync separator circuit, causing tearing (horizontal) or rolling (vertical).
Hermetically sealed passive components and cooler-running semiconductors as active components gradually improved reliability to the point where the horizontal hold was moved to the rear of the set first, and the vertical hold control (due to the longer period in the RC constant) persisted as a front panel control well into the 1970s as the consistency of larger-value capacitors increased.
By the early 1980s the efficacy of the synchronization circuits, plus the inherent stability of the sets' oscillators, had been improved to the point where these controls were no longer necessary. Integrated Circuits which eliminated the horizontal hold control were starting to appear as early as 1969.[11]
The final generations of analog television receivers (most TV sets with internal on-screen displays to adjust brightness, color, tint, contrast) used "TV-set-on-a-chip" designs where the receiver's timebases were divided down from crystal oscillators, usually based on the 3.58 MHz NTSC colorburst reference. PAL and SECAM receivers were similar though operating at different frequencies. With these sets, adjustment of the free-running frequency of either sweep oscillator was either physically impossible (being derived inside the integrated circuit) or possibly through a hidden service mode typically offering only NTSC/PAL frequency switching, accessible through the On-Screen Display's menu system.
Horizontal and Vertical Hold controls were rarely used in CRT-based computer monitors, as the quality and consistency of components were quite high by the advent of the computer age, but might be found on some composite monitors used with the 1970s–1980s home or personal computers.
There is no equivalent in modern television systems.
Other technical information
Other technical information
Components of a television system
A typical analog monochrome television receiver is based around the block diagram shown below:
The tuner is the object which "plucks" the television signals out of the air, with the aid of an antenna. There are two types of tuners in analog television, VHF and UHF tuners. The VHF tuner selects the VHF television frequency. This consists of a 4 MHz video bandwidth and a 2 MHz audio bandwidth. It then amplifies the signal and converts it to a 45.75 MHz Intermediate Frequency (IF) amplitude-modulated picture and a 41.25 MHz IF frequency-modulated audio carrier.
The IF amplifiers are centered at 44 MHz for optimal frequency transference of the audio and frequency carriers. What centers this frequency is the IF transformer. They are designed for a certain amount of bandwidth to encompass the audio and video. It depends on the number of stages (the amplifier between the transformers). Most of the early television sets (1939–45) used 4 stages with specially designed video amplifier tubes (the type 1852/6AC7). In 1946 the RCA presented a new innovation in television; the RCA 630TS. Instead of using the 1852 octal tube, it uses the 6AG5 7-pin miniature tube. It still had 4 stages, but it was 1/2 the size. Soon all of the manufactures followed RCA and designed better IF stages. They developed higher amplification tubes, and lower stage counts with more amplification. When the tube era came to an end in the mid-70s, they had shrunk the IF stages down to 1-2 (depending on the set) and with the same amplification as the 4 stage, 1852 tube sets. Like radio, television has Automatic Gain Control (AGC). This controls the gain of the IF amplifier stages and the tuner. More of this will be discussed below.
The video amp and output amplifier consist of a low linear pentode or a high powered transistor. The video amp and output stage separate the 45.75 MHz from the 41.25 MHz. It simply uses a diode to detect the video signal. But the frequency-modulated audio is still in the video. Since the diode only detects AM signals, the FM audio signal is still in the video in the form of a 4.5 MHz signal. There are two ways to attach this problem, and both of them work. We can detect the signal before it enters into the video amplifier, or do it after the audio amplifier. Many television sets (1946 to late 1960s) used the after video amplification method, but of course, there is the occasional exception. Many of the later set late (1960s-now) use the before-the-video amplifier way. In some of the early television sets (1939–45) used its own separate tuner, so there was no need for a detection stage next to the amplifier. After the video detector, the video is amplified and sent to the sync separator and then to the picture tube.
The audio signal is detected by a 4.5 MHz traps coil/transformer. After that, it then goes to a 4.5 MHz amplifier. This amplifier prepares the signal for the 4.5Mhz detector. It then goes through a 4.5 MHz IF transformer to the detector. In television, there are 2 ways of detecting FM signals. One way is by the ratio detector. This is simple but very hard to align. The next is a relatively simple detector. This is the quadrature detector. It was invented in 1954. The first tube designed for this purpose was the 6BN6 type. It is easy to align and simple in circuitry. It was such a good design that it is still being used today in the Integrated circuit form. After the detector, it goes to the audio amplifier.
The next part is the sync separator/clipper. This also does more than what is in its name. It also forms the AGC voltage, as previously stated. This sync separator turns the video into a signal that the horizontal and vertical oscillators can use to keep in sync with the video.
The horizontal and vertical oscillators form the raster on the CRT. They are kept in sync by the sync separator. There are many ways to create these oscillators. The first one is the earliest of its kind is the thyratron oscillator. Although it is known to drift, it makes a perfect sawtooth wave. This sawtooth wave is so good that no linearity control is needed. This oscillator was for the electrostatic deflection CRTs. It found some purpose for the electromagnetically deflected CRTs. The next oscillator is the blocking oscillator. It uses a transformer to create a sawtooth wave. This was only used for a brief time period and never was very popular after the beginning. The next oscillator is the multivibrator. This oscillator was probably the most successful. It needed more adjustment than the other oscillators, but it is very simple and effective. This oscillator was so popular that it was used from the early 1950s until today.
The oscillator amplifier is sorted into two categories. The vertical amplifier directly drives the yoke. There is not much to this. It is similar to an audio amplifier. The horizontal oscillator is a different situation. The oscillator must supply the high voltage and the yoke power. This requires a high power flyback transformer, and a high powered tube or transistor. This is a problematic section for CRT televisions because it has to handle high power.
Sync separator
_and_line_(64%C2%B5s)_decoding.jpg)
Image synchronization is achieved by transmitting negative-going pulses; in a composite video signal of 1-volt amplitude, these are approximately 0.3 V below the "black level". The horizontal sync signal is a single short pulse which indicates the start of every line. Two-timing intervals are defined – the front porch between the end of the displayed video and the start of the sync pulse, and the back porch after the sync pulse and before the displayed video. These and the sync pulse itself are called the horizontal blanking (or retrace) interval and represent the time that the electron beam in the CRT is returning to the start of the next display line.
The vertical sync signal is a series of much longer pulses, indicating the start of a new field. The sync pulses occupy the whole of line interval of a number of lines at the beginning and end of a scan; no picture information is transmitted during vertical retrace. The pulse sequence is designed to allow horizontal sync to continue during vertical retrace; it also indicates whether each field represents even or odd lines in interlaced systems (depending on whether it begins at the start of a horizontal line, or midway through).
In the television receiver, a sync separator circuit detects the sync voltage levels and sorts the pulses into horizontal and vertical sync.
Loss of horizontal synchronization usually resulted in an unwatchable picture; loss of vertical synchronization would produce an image rolling up or down the screen.
Counting sync pulses, a video line selector picks a selected line from a TV signal, used for teletext, on-screen displays, station identification logos as well as in the industry when cameras were used as a sensor.
Timebase circuits
In an analog receiver with a CRT display sync pulses are fed to horizontal and vertical timebase circuits (commonly called "sweep circuits" in the United States), each consisting of an oscillator and an amplifier. These generate modified sawtooth and parabola current waveforms to scan the electron beam in a linear way. The waveform shapes are necessary to make up for the distance variations from the electron beam source and the screen surface. The oscillators are designed to free-run at frequencies very close to the field and line rates, but the sync pulses cause them to reset at the beginning of each scan line or field, resulting in the necessary synchronization of the beam sweep with the originating signal. The output waveforms from the timebase amplifiers are fed to the horizontal and vertical deflection coils wrapped around the CRT tube. These coils produce magnetic fields proportional to the changing current, and these deflect the electron beam across the screen.
In the 1950s, the power for these circuits was derived directly from the mains supply. A simple circuit consisted of a series voltage dropper resistance and a rectifier valve (tube) or semiconductor diode. This avoided the cost of a large high voltage mains supply (50 or 60 Hz) transformer. This type of circuit was used for the thermionic valve (vacuum tube) technology. It was inefficient and produced a lot of heat which led to premature failures in the circuitry. Although failure was common, it was easily repairable.
In the 1960s, semiconductor technology was introduced into timebase circuits. During the late 1960s in the UK, synchronous (with the scan line rate) power generation was introduced into solid state receiver designs.[12] These had very complex circuits in which faults were difficult to trace, but had very efficient use of power.
In the early 1970s AC mains (50 or 60 Hz), and line timebase (15,625 Hz), thyristor based switching circuits were introduced. In the UK use of the simple (50 Hz) types of power, circuits were discontinued. The reason for design changes arose from the electricity supply contamination problems arising from EMI,[13] and supply loading issues due to energy being taken from only the positive half cycle of the mains supply waveform.[14]
CRT flyback power supply
Most of the receiver's circuitry (at least in transistor- or IC-based designs) operates from a comparatively low-voltage DC power supply. However, the anode connection for a cathode-ray tube requires a very high voltage (typically 10–30 kV) for correct operation.
This voltage is not directly produced by the main power supply circuitry; instead, the receiver makes use of the circuitry used for horizontal scanning. Direct current (DC), is switched through the line output transformer, and alternating current (AC) is induced into the scan coils. At the end of each horizontal scan line the magnetic field, which has built up in both transformer and scan coils by the current, is a source of latent electromagnetic energy. This stored collapsing magnetic field energy can be captured. The reverse flow, short duration, (about 10% of the line scan time) current from both the line output transformer and the horizontal scan coil is discharged again into the primary winding of the flyback transformer by the use of a rectifier which blocks this negative reverse emf. A small value capacitor is connected across the scan switching device. This tunes the circuit inductances to resonate at a much higher frequency. This slows down (lengthens) the flyback time from the extremely rapid decay rate that would result if they were electrically isolated during this short period. One of the secondary windings on the flyback transformer then feeds this brief high voltage pulse to a Cockcroft–Walton generator design voltage multiplier. This produces the required EHT supply. A flyback converter is a power supply circuit operating on similar principles.
A typical modern design incorporates the flyback transformer and rectifier circuitry into a single unit with a captive output lead, (known as a diode split line output transformer or an Integrated High Voltage Transformer (IHVT)),[15] so that all high-voltage parts are enclosed. Earlier designs used a separate line output transformer and a well-insulated high voltage multiplier unit. The high frequency (15 kHz or so) of the horizontal scanning allows reasonably small components to be used.
Transition to digital
In many countries, over-the-air broadcast television of analog audio and analog video signals has been discontinued, to allow the re-use of the television broadcast radio spectrum for other services such as datacasting and subchannels.
The first country to make a wholesale switch to digital over-the-air (terrestrial television) broadcasting was Luxembourg in 2006, followed later in 2006 by the Netherlands; in 2007 by Finland, Andorra, Sweden and Switzerland; in 2008 by Belgium (Flanders) and Germany; in 2009 by the United States (high power stations), southern Canada, the Isle of Man, Norway, and Denmark. In 2010, Belgium (Wallonia), Spain, Wales, Latvia, Estonia, the Channel Islands, San Marino, Croatia, and Slovenia; in 2011 Israel, Austria, Monaco, Cyprus, Japan (excluding Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima prefectures), Malta and France; in 2012 the Czech Republic, Arab World, Taiwan, Portugal, Japan (including Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima prefectures), Serbia, Italy, Canada, Mauritius, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Gibraltar, and South Korea; in 2013, the Republic of Macedonia, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Australia, and New Zealand, completed the transition. The United Kingdom made the transition to digital television between 2008 and 2012, with the exception of Whitehaven, which made the switch over in 2007. The first digital TV-only area in the United Kingdom was Ferryside in Carmarthenshire.[citation needed]
The Digital television transition in the United States for high-powered transmission was completed on 12 June 2009, the date that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set. Almost two million households could no longer watch television because they had not prepared for the transition. The switchover had been delayed by the DTV Delay Act.[16] While the majority of the viewers of over-the-air broadcast television in the U.S. watch full-power stations (which number about 1800), there are three other categories of television stations in the U.S.: low-power broadcasting stations, class A stations, and television translator stations. They were given later deadlines. In broadcasting, whatever happens in the United States also influences southern Canada and northern Mexico because those areas are covered by television stations in the U.S.
In Japan, the switch to digital began in northeastern Ishikawa Prefecture on 24 July 2010 and ended in 43 of the country's 47 prefectures (including the rest of Ishikawa) on 24 July 2011, but in Fukushima, Iwate, and Miyagi prefectures, the conversion was delayed to 31 March 2012, due to complications from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and its related nuclear accidents.
In Canada, most of the larger cities turned off analog broadcasts on 31 August 2011.[17]
China had scheduled to end analog broadcasting between 2015 and 2018.[citation needed]
Brazil switched to digital television on 2 December 2007 in its major cities. It is now estimated that Brazil will end analog broadcasting in 2023.[18]
In Malaysia, the Malaysian Communications & Multimedia Commission (MCMC) advertised for tender bids to be submitted in the third quarter of 2009 for the 470 through 742 MHz UHF allocation, to enable Malaysia's broadcast system to move into DTV. The new broadcast band allocation would result in Malaysia's having to build an infrastructure for all broadcasters, using a single digital terrestrial transmission/television broadcast (DTTB) channel.[citation needed] Large portions of Malaysia are covered by television broadcasts from Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, and Indonesia (from Borneo and Batam). Starting from 1 November 2019, all regions in Malaysia were no longer using the analog system after the states of Sabah and Sarawak finally turned it off on 31 October 2019.[19]
In Singapore, digital television under DVB-T2 began on 16 December 2013. The switchover was delayed many times until analog TV was switched off at midnight on 2 January 2019.[20]
In the Philippines, the National Telecommunications Commission required all broadcasting companies to end analog broadcasting on 31 December 2015 at 11:59 p.m. Due to delay of the release of the implementing rules and regulations for digital television broadcast, the target date was moved to 2020. Full digital broadcast is expected in 2021 and all of the analog TV services should be shut down by the end of 2023.[21]
In the Russian Federation, the Russian Television and Radio Broadcasting Network (RTRS) disabled analog broadcasting of federal channels in five stages, shutting down broadcasting in multiple federal subjects at each stage. The first region to have analog broadcasting disabled was Tver Oblast on 3 December 2018, and the switchover was completed on 14 October 2019.[22] During the transition, DVB-T2 receivers and monetary compensations for purchasing of terrestrial or satellite digital TV reception equipment were provided to disabled people, World War II veterans, certain categories of retirees and households with income per member below living wage.[23]
See also
Magnetostriction (cf. electrostriction) is a property of magnetic materials that causes them to change their shape or dimensions during the process of magnetization. The variation of materials' magnetization due to the applied magnetic field changes the magnetostrictive strain until reaching its saturation value, λ. The effect was first identified in 1842 by James Joule when observing a sample of iron.[1]
This effect causes energy loss due to frictional heating in susceptible ferromagnetic cores. The effect is also responsible for the low-pitched humming sound that can be heard coming from transformers, where oscillating AC currents produce a changing magnetic field.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetostriction
Mains hum, electric hum, cycle hum, or power line hum is a sound associated with alternating current which is twice the frequency of the mains electricity. The fundamental frequency of this sound is usually double that of fundamental 50/60 Hz, i.e. 100/120 Hz, depending on the local power-line frequency. The sound often has heavy harmonic content above 50/60 Hz. Because of the presence of mains current in mains-powered audio equipment as well as ubiquitous AC electromagnetic fields from nearby appliances and wiring, 50/60 Hz electrical noise can get into audio systems, and is heard as mains hum from their speakers. Mains hum may also be heard coming from powerful electric power grid equipment such as utility transformers, caused by mechanical vibrations induced by magnetostriction in magnetic core. Onboard aircraft (or spacecraft) the frequency heard is often higher pitched, due to the use of 400 Hz AC power in these settings because 400 Hz transformers are much smaller and lighter.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mains_hum
Variable renewable energy (VRE) or intermittent renewable energy sources (IRES) are renewable energy sources that are not dispatchable due to their fluctuating nature, such as wind power and solar power, as opposed to controllable renewable energy sources, such as dammed hydroelectricity or biomass, or relatively constant sources, such as geothermal power.
The use of small amounts of intermittent power has little effect on grid operations. Using larger amounts of intermittent power may require upgrades or even a redesign of the grid infrastructure.[3][4] Options to absorb large shares of variable energy into the grid include using storage, improved interconnection between different variable sources to smooth out supply, using dispatchable energy sources such as hydroelectricity and having overcapacity, so that sufficient energy is produced even when weather is less favourable. More connections between the energy sector and the building, transport and industrial sectors may also help.[5]: 55
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variable_renewable_energy
In an alternating current (AC) electric power system, synchronization is the process of matching the frequency and phase and voltage of a generator or other source to an electrical grid in order to transfer power. If two unconnected segments of a grid are to be connected to each other, they cannot safely exchange AC power until they are synchronized.
A direct current (DC) generator can be connected to a power network simply by adjusting its open-circuit terminal voltage to match the network's voltage, by either adjusting its speed or its field excitation. The exact engine speed is not critical. However, an AC generator must additionally match its timing (frequency and phase) to the network voltage, which requires both speed and excitation to be systematically controlled for synchronization. This extra complexity was one of the arguments against AC operation during the war of currents in the 1880s. In modern grids, synchronization of generators is carried out by automatic systems.
Conditions
There are five conditions that must be met before the synchronization process takes place. The source (generator or sub-network) must have equal root-mean-square voltage, frequency, phase sequence, phase angle, and waveform to that of the system to which it is being synchronized.[1]
Waveform and phase sequence are fixed by the construction of the generator and its connections to the system. During installation of a generator, careful checks are made to ensure the generator terminals and all control wiring is correct so that the order of phases (phase sequence) matches the system. Connecting a generator with the wrong phase sequence will result in large, possibly damaging, currents as the system voltages are opposite to those of the generator terminal voltages.[2]
The voltage, frequency and phase angle must be controlled each time a generator is to be connected to a grid.[1]
Generating units for connection to a power grid have an inherent droop speed control that allows them to share load proportional to their rating. Some generator units, especially in isolated systems, operate with isochronous frequency control, maintaining constant system frequency independent of load.
Process
The sequence of events is similar for manual or automatic synchronization. The generator is brought up to approximate synchronous speed by supplying more energy to its shaft - for example, opening the valves on a steam turbine, opening the gates on a hydraulic turbine, or increasing the fuel rack setting on a diesel engine. The field of the generator is energized and the voltage at the terminals of the generator is observed and compared with the system. The voltage magnitude must be the same as the system voltage.
If one machine is slightly out of phase it will pull into step with the others but, if the phase difference is large, there will be heavy cross-currents which can cause voltage fluctuations and, in extreme cases, damage to the machines.
Synchronizing lamps
Formerly, three incandescent light bulbs were connected between the generator terminals and the system terminals (or more generally, to the terminals of instrument transformers connected to generator and system). As the generator speed changes, the lights will flicker at the beat frequency proportional to the difference between generator frequency and system frequency. When the voltage at the generator is opposite to the system voltage (either ahead or behind in phase), the lamps will be bright. When the voltage at the generator matches the system voltage, the lights will be dark. At that instant, the circuit breaker connecting the generator to the system may be closed and the generator will then stay in synchronism with the system.[3]
An alternative technique used a similar scheme to the above except that the connections of two of the lamps were swapped either at the generator terminals or the system terminals. In this scheme, when the generator was in synchronism with the system, one lamp would be dark, but the two with the swapped connections would be of equal brightness. Synchronizing on "dark" lamps was preferred over "bright" lamps because it was easier to discern the minimum brightness. However, a lamp burnout could give a false-positive for successful synchronization.
Synchroscope
Another manual method of synchronization relies on observing an instrument called a "synchroscope", which displays the relative frequencies of system and generator. The pointer of the synchroscope will indicate "fast" or "slow" speed of the generator with respect to the system. To minimize the transient current when the generator circuit breaker is closed, usual practice is to initiate the close as the needle slowly approaches the in-phase point. An error of a few electrical degrees between system and generator will result in a momentary inrush and abrupt speed change of the generator.
Synchronizing relays
Synchronizing relays allow unattended synchronization of a machine with a system. Today these are digital microprocessor instruments, but in the past electromechanical relay systems were applied. A synchronizing relay is useful to remove human reaction time from the process, or when a human is not available such as at a remote controlled generating plant. Synchroscopes or lamps are sometimes installed as a supplement to automatic relays, for possible manual use or for monitoring the generating unit.
Sometimes as a precaution against out-of-step connection of a machine to a system, a "synchro check" relay is installed that prevents closing the generator circuit breaker unless the machine is within a few electrical degrees of being in-phase with the system. Synchro check relays are also applied in places where several sources of supply may be connected and where it is important that out-of-step sources are not accidentally paralleled.
Synchronous operation
While the generator is synchronized, the frequency of the system will change depending on load and the average characteristics of all the generating units connected to the grid.[1] Large changes in system frequency can cause the generator to fall out of synchronism with the system. Protective devices on the generator will operate to disconnect it automatically.
Synchronous speeds
Synchronous speeds for synchronous motors and alternators depend on the number of poles on the machine and the frequency of the supply.
The relationship between the supply frequency, f, the number of poles, p, and the synchronous speed (speed of rotating field), ns is given by:
- .
In the following table, frequencies are shown in hertz (Hz) and rotational speeds in revolutions per minute (rpm):
| No. of poles | Speed (rpm) at 50 Hz | Speed (rpm) at 60 Hz |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 3,000 | 3,600 |
| 4 | 1,500 | 1,800 |
| 6 | 1,000 | 1,200 |
| 8 | 750 | 900 |
| 10 | 600 | 720 |
| 12 | 500 | 600 |
| 14 | 429 | 514 |
| 16 | 375 | 450 |
| 18 | 333 | 400 |
| 20 | 300 | 360 |
| 22 | 273 | 327 |
| 24 | 250 | 300 |
| 26 | 231 | 277 |
| 28 | 214 | 257 |
| 30 | 200 | 240 |
See also
- Phase synchronization
- High-voltage direct current: allows power transmission between AC transmission systems that are not synchronized
References
- Donald G. Fink and H. Wayne Beaty, Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers, Eleventh Edition, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1978, ISBN 0-07-020974-X pp. 3-64,3-65
Sources
- The Electrical Year Book 1937, published by Emmott and Company Limited, Manchester, England, pp 53–57 and 72
External links
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronization_(alternating_current)
This extra complexity was one of the arguments against AC operation during the war of currents in the 1880s. In modern grids, synchronization of generators is carried out by automatic systems.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronization_(alternating_current)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireless
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transformer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronization_(alternating_current)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rectifier
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-arc_valve
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turbine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steam
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Induction_motor
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inductance
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercury-vapor_lamp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arc_lamp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotary_converter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_inverter
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_engineering
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grid
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-phase_electric_power
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#History
The utility frequency, (power) line frequency (American English) or mains frequency (British English) is the nominal frequency of the oscillations of alternating current (AC) in a wide area synchronous grid transmitted from a power station to the end-user. In large parts of the world this is 50 Hz, although in the Americas and parts of Asia it is typically 60 Hz. Current usage by country or region is given in the list of mains electricity by country.
During the development of commercial electric power systems in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, many different frequencies (and voltages) had been used. Large investment in equipment at one frequency made standardization a slow process. However, as of the turn of the 21st century, places that now use the 50 Hz frequency tend to use 220–240 V, and those that now use 60 Hz tend to use 100–127 V. Both frequencies coexist today (Japan uses both) with no great technical reason to prefer one over the other[1] and no apparent desire for complete worldwide standardization.
In practice, the exact frequency of the grid varies around the nominal frequency, reducing when the grid is heavily loaded, and speeding up when lightly loaded. However, most utilities will adjust generation onto the grid over the course of the day to ensure a constant number of cycles occur.[2] This is used by some clocks to accurately maintain their time.
Operating factors
Several factors influence the choice of frequency in an AC system.[3] Lighting, motors, transformers, generators, and transmission lines all have characteristics which depend on the power frequency. All of these factors interact and make selection of a power frequency a matter of considerable importance. The best frequency is a compromise among competing requirements.
In the late 19th century, designers would pick a relatively high frequency for systems featuring transformers and arc lights, so as to economize on transformer materials and to reduce visible flickering of the lamps, but would pick a lower frequency for systems with long transmission lines or feeding primarily motor loads or rotary converters for producing direct current. When large central generating stations became practical, the choice of frequency was made based on the nature of the intended load. Eventually improvements in machine design allowed a single frequency to be used both for lighting and motor loads. A unified system improved the economics of electricity production, since system load was more uniform during the course of a day.
Lighting
The first applications of commercial electric power were incandescent lighting and commutator-type electric motors. Both devices operate well on DC, but DC could not be easily changed in voltage, and was generally only produced at the required utilization voltage.
If an incandescent lamp is operated on a low-frequency current, the filament cools on each half-cycle of the alternating current, leading to perceptible change in brightness and flicker of the lamps; the effect is more pronounced with arc lamps, and the later mercury-vapor lamps and fluorescent lamps. Open arc lamps made an audible buzz on alternating current, leading to experiments with high-frequency alternators to raise the sound above the range of human hearing.[citation needed]
Rotating machines
Commutator-type motors do not operate well on high-frequency AC, because the rapid changes of current are opposed by the inductance of the motor field. Though commutator-type universal motors are common in AC household appliances and power tools, they are small motors, less than 1 kW. The induction motor was found to work well on frequencies around 50 to 60 Hz, but with the materials available in the 1890s would not work well at a frequency of, say, 133 Hz. There is a fixed relationship between the number of magnetic poles in the induction motor field, the frequency of the alternating current, and the rotation speed; so, a given standard speed limits the choice of frequency (and the reverse). Once AC electric motors became common, it was important to standardize frequency for compatibility with the customer's equipment.
Generators operated by slow-speed reciprocating engines will produce lower frequencies, for a given number of poles, than those operated by, for example, a high-speed steam turbine. For very slow prime mover speeds, it would be costly to build a generator with enough poles to provide a high AC frequency. As well, synchronizing two generators to the same speed was found to be easier at lower speeds. While belt drives were common as a way to increase speed of slow engines, in very large ratings (thousands of kilowatts) these were expensive, inefficient, and unreliable. After about 1906, generators driven directly by steam turbines favored higher frequencies. The steadier rotation speed of high-speed machines allowed for satisfactory operation of commutators in rotary converters.[3] The synchronous speed N in RPM is calculated using the formula,
where f is the frequency in hertz and P is the number of poles.
| Poles | RPM at 1331⁄3 Hz | RPM at 60 Hz | RPM at 50 Hz | RPM at 40 Hz | RPM at 25 Hz | RPM at 162⁄3 Hz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 8,000 | 3,600 | 3,000 | 2,400 | 1,500 | 1,000 |
| 4 | 4,000 | 1,800 | 1,500 | 1,200 | 750 | 500 |
| 6 | 2,666.7 | 1,200 | 1,000 | 800 | 500 | 333.3 |
| 8 | 2,000 | 900 | 750 | 600 | 375 | 250 |
| 10 | 1,600 | 720 | 600 | 480 | 300 | 200 |
| 12 | 1,333.3 | 600 | 500 | 400 | 250 | 166.7 |
| 14 | 1142.9 | 514.3 | 428.6 | 342.8 | 214.3 | 142.9 |
| 16 | 1,000 | 450 | 375 | 300 | 187.5 | 125 |
| 18 | 888.9 | 400 | 3331⁄3 | 2662⁄3 | 1662⁄3 | 111.1 |
| 20 | 800 | 360 | 300 | 240 | 150 | 100 |
Direct-current power was not entirely displaced by alternating current and was useful in railway and electrochemical processes. Prior to the development of mercury arc valve rectifiers, rotary converters were used to produce DC power from AC. Like other commutator-type machines, these worked better with lower frequencies.
Transmission and transformers
With AC, transformers can be used to step down high transmission voltages to lower customer utilization voltage. The transformer is effectively a voltage conversion device with no moving parts and requiring little maintenance. The use of AC eliminated the need for spinning DC voltage conversion motor-generators that require regular maintenance and monitoring.
Since, for a given power level, the dimensions of a transformer are roughly inversely proportional to frequency, a system with many transformers would be more economical at a higher frequency.
Electric power transmission over long lines favors lower frequencies. The effects of the distributed capacitance and inductance of the line are less at low frequency.
System interconnection
Generators can only be interconnected to operate in parallel if they are of the same frequency and wave-shape. By standardizing the frequency used, generators in a geographic area can be interconnected in a grid, providing reliability and cost savings.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#History
Audible noise and interference
AC-powered appliances can give off a characteristic hum, often called "mains hum", at the multiples of the frequencies of AC power that they use (see Magnetostriction). It is usually produced by motor and transformer core laminations vibrating in time with the magnetic field. This hum can also appear in audio systems, where the power supply filter or signal shielding of an amplifier is not adequate.
Most countries chose their television vertical synchronization rate to be the same as the local mains supply frequency. This helped to prevent power line hum and magnetic interference from causing visible beat frequencies in the displayed picture of early analogue TV receivers particularly from the mains transformer. Although some distortion of the picture was present, it went mostly un-noticed because it was stationary. The elimination of transformers by the use of AC/DC receivers, and other changes to set design helped minimise the effect and some countries now use a vertical rate that is an approximation to the supply frequency (most notably 60 Hz areas).
Another use of this side effect is as a forensic tool. When a recording is made that captures audio near an AC appliance or socket, the hum is also incidentally recorded. The peaks of the hum repeat every AC cycle (every 20 ms for 50 Hz AC, or every 16.67 ms for 60 Hz AC). The exact frequency of the hum should match the frequency of a forensic recording of the hum at the exact date and time that the recording is alleged to have been made. Discontinuities in the frequency match or no match at all will betray the authenticity of the recording.[42]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency#History
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrical_network_frequency_analysis
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_watermarking
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utility_frequency
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mains_frequency&redirect=no
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AC/DC_receiver_design
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_television#Vertical_synchronization
Vertical synchronization
Vertical synchronization separates the video fields. In PAL and NTSC, the vertical sync pulse occurs within the vertical blanking interval. The vertical sync pulses are made by prolonging the length of horizontal sync pulses through almost the entire length of the scan line.
The vertical sync signal is a series of much longer pulses, indicating the start of a new field. The sync pulses occupy the whole line interval of a number of lines at the beginning and end of a scan; no picture information is transmitted during vertical retrace. The pulse sequence is designed to allow horizontal sync to continue during vertical retrace; it also indicates whether each field represents even or odd lines in interlaced systems (depending on whether it begins at the start of a horizontal line, or midway through).
The format of such a signal in 525-line NTSC is:
- pre-equalizing pulses (6 to start scanning odd lines, 5 to start scanning even lines)
- long-sync pulses (5 pulses)
- post-equalizing pulses (5 to start scanning odd lines, 4 to start scanning even lines)
Each pre- or post-equalizing pulse consists of half a scan line of black signal: 2 μs at 0 V, followed by 30 μs at 0.3 V. Each long sync pulse consists of an equalizing pulse with timings inverted: 30 μs at 0 V, followed by 2 μs at 0.3 V.
In video production and computer graphics, changes to the image are often performed during the vertical blanking interval to avoid visible discontinuity of the image. If this image in the framebuffer is updated with a new image while the display is being refreshed, the display shows a mishmash of both frames, producing page tearing partway down the image.
Horizontal and vertical hold
Analog television receivers and composite monitors often provide manual controls to adjust horizontal and vertical timing.
The sweep (or deflection) oscillators were designed to run without a signal from the television station (or VCR, computer, or other composite video source). This provides a blank canvas, similar to today's "CHECK SIGNAL CABLE" messages on monitors: it allows the television receiver to display a raster to confirm the basic operation of the set's most fundamental circuits, and to allow an image to be presented during antenna placement. With sufficient signal strength, the receiver's sync separator circuit would split timebase pulses from the incoming video and use them to reset the horizontal and vertical oscillators at the appropriate time to synchronize with the signal from the station.
The free-running oscillation of the horizontal circuit is especially critical, as the horizontal deflection circuits typically power the flyback transformer (which provides acceleration potential for the CRT) as well as the filaments for the high voltage rectifier tube and sometimes the filament(s) of the CRT itself. Without the operation of the horizontal oscillator and output stages, for virtually every analog television receiver since the 1940s, there will be absolutely no illumination of the CRT's face.
The lack of precision timing components in early television receivers meant that the timebase circuits occasionally needed manual adjustment. If their free-run frequencies were too far from the actual line and field rates, the circuits would not be able to follow the incoming sync signals. Loss of horizontal synchronization usually resulted in an unwatchable picture; loss of vertical synchronization would produce an image rolling up or down the screen.
The adjustment took the form of horizontal hold and vertical hold controls, usually on the front panel along with other common controls. These adjusted the free-run frequencies of the corresponding timebase oscillators.
Properly working, adjusting a horizontal or vertical hold should cause the picture to almost "snap" into place on the screen; this is called sync lock. A slowly rolling vertical picture demonstrates that the vertical oscillator is nearly synchronized with the television station but is not locking to it, often due to a weak signal or a failure in the sync separator stage not resetting the oscillator. Sometimes, the black interval bar will almost stop at the right place, again indicating a fault in sync separation is not properly resetting the vertical oscillator.
Horizontal sync errors cause the image to be torn diagonally and repeated across the screen as if it were wrapped around a screw or a barber's pole; the greater the error, the more "copies" of the image will be seen at once wrapped around the barber pole. Given the importance of the horizontal sync circuit as a power supply to many subcircuits in the receiver, they may begin to malfunction as well; and horizontal output components that were designed to work together in a resonant circuit may become damaged.
In the earliest electronic television receivers (1930s–1950s), the time base for the sweep oscillators was generally derived from RC circuits based on carbon resistors and paper capacitors. After turning on the receiver, the vacuum tubes in the set would warm up and the oscillators would begin to run, allowing a watchable picture. Resistors were generally simple pieces of carbon inside a Bakelite enclosure, and the capacitors were usually alternating layers of paper and aluminum foil inside cardboard tubes sealed with bee's wax. Moisture ingress (from ambient air humidity) as well as thermal instability of these components affected their electrical values. As the heat from the tubes and the electrical currents passing through the RC circuits warmed them up, the electrical properties of the RC timebase would shift, causing the oscillators to drift in frequency to a point that they could no longer be synchronized with the received pulses coming from the TV station via the sync separator circuit, causing tearing (horizontal) or rolling (vertical).
Hermetically sealed passive components and cooler-running semiconductors as active components gradually improved reliability to the point where the horizontal hold was moved to the rear of the set first, and the vertical hold control (due to the longer period in the RC constant) persisted as a front panel control well into the 1970s as the consistency of larger-value capacitors increased.
By the early 1980s the efficacy of the synchronization circuits, plus the inherent stability of the sets' oscillators, had been improved to the point where these controls were no longer necessary. Integrated Circuits which eliminated the horizontal hold control were starting to appear as early as 1969.[11]
The final generations of analog television receivers (most TV sets with internal on-screen displays to adjust brightness, color, tint, contrast) used "TV-set-on-a-chip" designs where the receiver's timebases were divided down from crystal oscillators, usually based on the 3.58 MHz NTSC colorburst reference. PAL and SECAM receivers were similar though operating at different frequencies. With these sets, adjustment of the free-running frequency of either sweep oscillator was either physically impossible (being derived inside the integrated circuit) or possibly through a hidden service mode typically offering only NTSC/PAL frequency switching, accessible through the On-Screen Display's menu system.
Horizontal and Vertical Hold controls were rarely used in CRT-based computer monitors, as the quality and consistency of components were quite high by the advent of the computer age, but might be found on some composite monitors used with the 1970s–1980s home or personal computers.
There is no equivalent in modern television systems.
Other technical information
Other technical information
Components of a television system
A typical analog monochrome television receiver is based around the block diagram shown below:
The tuner is the object which "plucks" the television signals out of the air, with the aid of an antenna. There are two types of tuners in analog television, VHF and UHF tuners. The VHF tuner selects the VHF television frequency. This consists of a 4 MHz video bandwidth and a 2 MHz audio bandwidth. It then amplifies the signal and converts it to a 45.75 MHz Intermediate Frequency (IF) amplitude-modulated picture and a 41.25 MHz IF frequency-modulated audio carrier.
The IF amplifiers are centered at 44 MHz for optimal frequency transference of the audio and frequency carriers. What centers this frequency is the IF transformer. They are designed for a certain amount of bandwidth to encompass the audio and video. It depends on the number of stages (the amplifier between the transformers). Most of the early television sets (1939–45) used 4 stages with specially designed video amplifier tubes (the type 1852/6AC7). In 1946 the RCA presented a new innovation in television; the RCA 630TS. Instead of using the 1852 octal tube, it uses the 6AG5 7-pin miniature tube. It still had 4 stages, but it was 1/2 the size. Soon all of the manufactures followed RCA and designed better IF stages. They developed higher amplification tubes, and lower stage counts with more amplification. When the tube era came to an end in the mid-70s, they had shrunk the IF stages down to 1-2 (depending on the set) and with the same amplification as the 4 stage, 1852 tube sets. Like radio, television has Automatic Gain Control (AGC). This controls the gain of the IF amplifier stages and the tuner. More of this will be discussed below.
The video amp and output amplifier consist of a low linear pentode or a high powered transistor. The video amp and output stage separate the 45.75 MHz from the 41.25 MHz. It simply uses a diode to detect the video signal. But the frequency-modulated audio is still in the video. Since the diode only detects AM signals, the FM audio signal is still in the video in the form of a 4.5 MHz signal. There are two ways to attach this problem, and both of them work. We can detect the signal before it enters into the video amplifier, or do it after the audio amplifier. Many television sets (1946 to late 1960s) used the after video amplification method, but of course, there is the occasional exception. Many of the later set late (1960s-now) use the before-the-video amplifier way. In some of the early television sets (1939–45) used its own separate tuner, so there was no need for a detection stage next to the amplifier. After the video detector, the video is amplified and sent to the sync separator and then to the picture tube.
The audio signal is detected by a 4.5 MHz traps coil/transformer. After that, it then goes to a 4.5 MHz amplifier. This amplifier prepares the signal for the 4.5Mhz detector. It then goes through a 4.5 MHz IF transformer to the detector. In television, there are 2 ways of detecting FM signals. One way is by the ratio detector. This is simple but very hard to align. The next is a relatively simple detector. This is the quadrature detector. It was invented in 1954. The first tube designed for this purpose was the 6BN6 type. It is easy to align and simple in circuitry. It was such a good design that it is still being used today in the Integrated circuit form. After the detector, it goes to the audio amplifier.
The next part is the sync separator/clipper. This also does more than what is in its name. It also forms the AGC voltage, as previously stated. This sync separator turns the video into a signal that the horizontal and vertical oscillators can use to keep in sync with the video.
The horizontal and vertical oscillators form the raster on the CRT. They are kept in sync by the sync separator. There are many ways to create these oscillators. The first one is the earliest of its kind is the thyratron oscillator. Although it is known to drift, it makes a perfect sawtooth wave. This sawtooth wave is so good that no linearity control is needed. This oscillator was for the electrostatic deflection CRTs. It found some purpose for the electromagnetically deflected CRTs. The next oscillator is the blocking oscillator. It uses a transformer to create a sawtooth wave. This was only used for a brief time period and never was very popular after the beginning. The next oscillator is the multivibrator. This oscillator was probably the most successful. It needed more adjustment than the other oscillators, but it is very simple and effective. This oscillator was so popular that it was used from the early 1950s until today.
The oscillator amplifier is sorted into two categories. The vertical amplifier directly drives the yoke. There is not much to this. It is similar to an audio amplifier. The horizontal oscillator is a different situation. The oscillator must supply the high voltage and the yoke power. This requires a high power flyback transformer, and a high powered tube or transistor. This is a problematic section for CRT televisions because it has to handle high power.
Sync separator
Image synchronization is achieved by transmitting negative-going pulses; in a composite video signal of 1-volt amplitude, these are approximately 0.3 V below the "black level". The horizontal sync signal is a single short pulse which indicates the start of every line. Two-timing intervals are defined – the front porch between the end of the displayed video and the start of the sync pulse, and the back porch after the sync pulse and before the displayed video. These and the sync pulse itself are called the horizontal blanking (or retrace) interval and represent the time that the electron beam in the CRT is returning to the start of the next display line.
The vertical sync signal is a series of much longer pulses, indicating the start of a new field. The sync pulses occupy the whole of line interval of a number of lines at the beginning and end of a scan; no picture information is transmitted during vertical retrace. The pulse sequence is designed to allow horizontal sync to continue during vertical retrace; it also indicates whether each field represents even or odd lines in interlaced systems (depending on whether it begins at the start of a horizontal line, or midway through).
In the television receiver, a sync separator circuit detects the sync voltage levels and sorts the pulses into horizontal and vertical sync.
Loss of horizontal synchronization usually resulted in an unwatchable picture; loss of vertical synchronization would produce an image rolling up or down the screen.
Counting sync pulses, a video line selector picks a selected line from a TV signal, used for teletext, on-screen displays, station identification logos as well as in the industry when cameras were used as a sensor.
Timebase circuits
In an analog receiver with a CRT display sync pulses are fed to horizontal and vertical timebase circuits (commonly called "sweep circuits" in the United States), each consisting of an oscillator and an amplifier. These generate modified sawtooth and parabola current waveforms to scan the electron beam in a linear way. The waveform shapes are necessary to make up for the distance variations from the electron beam source and the screen surface. The oscillators are designed to free-run at frequencies very close to the field and line rates, but the sync pulses cause them to reset at the beginning of each scan line or field, resulting in the necessary synchronization of the beam sweep with the originating signal. The output waveforms from the timebase amplifiers are fed to the horizontal and vertical deflection coils wrapped around the CRT tube. These coils produce magnetic fields proportional to the changing current, and these deflect the electron beam across the screen.
In the 1950s, the power for these circuits was derived directly from the mains supply. A simple circuit consisted of a series voltage dropper resistance and a rectifier valve (tube) or semiconductor diode. This avoided the cost of a large high voltage mains supply (50 or 60 Hz) transformer. This type of circuit was used for the thermionic valve (vacuum tube) technology. It was inefficient and produced a lot of heat which led to premature failures in the circuitry. Although failure was common, it was easily repairable.
In the 1960s, semiconductor technology was introduced into timebase circuits. During the late 1960s in the UK, synchronous (with the scan line rate) power generation was introduced into solid state receiver designs.[12] These had very complex circuits in which faults were difficult to trace, but had very efficient use of power.
In the early 1970s AC mains (50 or 60 Hz), and line timebase (15,625 Hz), thyristor based switching circuits were introduced. In the UK use of the simple (50 Hz) types of power, circuits were discontinued. The reason for design changes arose from the electricity supply contamination problems arising from EMI,[13] and supply loading issues due to energy being taken from only the positive half cycle of the mains supply waveform.[14]
CRT flyback power supply
Most of the receiver's circuitry (at least in transistor- or IC-based designs) operates from a comparatively low-voltage DC power supply. However, the anode connection for a cathode-ray tube requires a very high voltage (typically 10–30 kV) for correct operation.
This voltage is not directly produced by the main power supply circuitry; instead, the receiver makes use of the circuitry used for horizontal scanning. Direct current (DC), is switched through the line output transformer, and alternating current (AC) is induced into the scan coils. At the end of each horizontal scan line the magnetic field, which has built up in both transformer and scan coils by the current, is a source of latent electromagnetic energy. This stored collapsing magnetic field energy can be captured. The reverse flow, short duration, (about 10% of the line scan time) current from both the line output transformer and the horizontal scan coil is discharged again into the primary winding of the flyback transformer by the use of a rectifier which blocks this negative reverse emf. A small value capacitor is connected across the scan switching device. This tunes the circuit inductances to resonate at a much higher frequency. This slows down (lengthens) the flyback time from the extremely rapid decay rate that would result if they were electrically isolated during this short period. One of the secondary windings on the flyback transformer then feeds this brief high voltage pulse to a Cockcroft–Walton generator design voltage multiplier. This produces the required EHT supply. A flyback converter is a power supply circuit operating on similar principles.
A typical modern design incorporates the flyback transformer and rectifier circuitry into a single unit with a captive output lead, (known as a diode split line output transformer or an Integrated High Voltage Transformer (IHVT)),[15] so that all high-voltage parts are enclosed. Earlier designs used a separate line output transformer and a well-insulated high voltage multiplier unit. The high frequency (15 kHz or so) of the horizontal scanning allows reasonably small components to be used.
Transition to digital
In many countries, over-the-air broadcast television of analog audio and analog video signals has been discontinued, to allow the re-use of the television broadcast radio spectrum for other services such as datacasting and subchannels.
The first country to make a wholesale switch to digital over-the-air (terrestrial television) broadcasting was Luxembourg in 2006, followed later in 2006 by the Netherlands; in 2007 by Finland, Andorra, Sweden and Switzerland; in 2008 by Belgium (Flanders) and Germany; in 2009 by the United States (high power stations), southern Canada, the Isle of Man, Norway, and Denmark. In 2010, Belgium (Wallonia), Spain, Wales, Latvia, Estonia, the Channel Islands, San Marino, Croatia, and Slovenia; in 2011 Israel, Austria, Monaco, Cyprus, Japan (excluding Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima prefectures), Malta and France; in 2012 the Czech Republic, Arab World, Taiwan, Portugal, Japan (including Miyagi, Iwate, and Fukushima prefectures), Serbia, Italy, Canada, Mauritius, the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia, Gibraltar, and South Korea; in 2013, the Republic of Macedonia, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Australia, and New Zealand, completed the transition. The United Kingdom made the transition to digital television between 2008 and 2012, with the exception of Whitehaven, which made the switch over in 2007. The first digital TV-only area in the United Kingdom was Ferryside in Carmarthenshire.[citation needed]
The Digital television transition in the United States for high-powered transmission was completed on 12 June 2009, the date that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) set. Almost two million households could no longer watch television because they had not prepared for the transition. The switchover had been delayed by the DTV Delay Act.[16] While the majority of the viewers of over-the-air broadcast television in the U.S. watch full-power stations (which number about 1800), there are three other categories of television stations in the U.S.: low-power broadcasting stations, class A stations, and television translator stations. They were given later deadlines. In broadcasting, whatever happens in the United States also influences southern Canada and northern Mexico because those areas are covered by television stations in the U.S.
In Japan, the switch to digital began in northeastern Ishikawa Prefecture on 24 July 2010 and ended in 43 of the country's 47 prefectures (including the rest of Ishikawa) on 24 July 2011, but in Fukushima, Iwate, and Miyagi prefectures, the conversion was delayed to 31 March 2012, due to complications from the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and its related nuclear accidents.
In Canada, most of the larger cities turned off analog broadcasts on 31 August 2011.[17]
China had scheduled to end analog broadcasting between 2015 and 2018.[citation needed]
Brazil switched to digital television on 2 December 2007 in its major cities. It is now estimated that Brazil will end analog broadcasting in 2023.[18]
In Malaysia, the Malaysian Communications & Multimedia Commission (MCMC) advertised for tender bids to be submitted in the third quarter of 2009 for the 470 through 742 MHz UHF allocation, to enable Malaysia's broadcast system to move into DTV. The new broadcast band allocation would result in Malaysia's having to build an infrastructure for all broadcasters, using a single digital terrestrial transmission/television broadcast (DTTB) channel.[citation needed] Large portions of Malaysia are covered by television broadcasts from Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, and Indonesia (from Borneo and Batam). Starting from 1 November 2019, all regions in Malaysia were no longer using the analog system after the states of Sabah and Sarawak finally turned it off on 31 October 2019.[19]
In Singapore, digital television under DVB-T2 began on 16 December 2013. The switchover was delayed many times until analog TV was switched off at midnight on 2 January 2019.[20]
In the Philippines, the National Telecommunications Commission required all broadcasting companies to end analog broadcasting on 31 December 2015 at 11:59 p.m. Due to delay of the release of the implementing rules and regulations for digital television broadcast, the target date was moved to 2020. Full digital broadcast is expected in 2021 and all of the analog TV services should be shut down by the end of 2023.[21]
In the Russian Federation, the Russian Television and Radio Broadcasting Network (RTRS) disabled analog broadcasting of federal channels in five stages, shutting down broadcasting in multiple federal subjects at each stage. The first region to have analog broadcasting disabled was Tver Oblast on 3 December 2018, and the switchover was completed on 14 October 2019.[22] During the transition, DVB-T2 receivers and monetary compensations for purchasing of terrestrial or satellite digital TV reception equipment were provided to disabled people, World War II veterans, certain categories of retirees and households with income per member below living wage.[23]
See also
Magnetostriction (cf. electrostriction) is a property of magnetic materials that causes them to change their shape or dimensions during the process of magnetization. The variation of materials' magnetization due to the applied magnetic field changes the magnetostrictive strain until reaching its saturation value, λ. The effect was first identified in 1842 by James Joule when observing a sample of iron.[1]
This effect causes energy loss due to frictional heating in susceptible ferromagnetic cores. The effect is also responsible for the low-pitched humming sound that can be heard coming from transformers, where oscillating AC currents produce a changing magnetic field.[2]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetostriction
Mains hum, electric hum, cycle hum, or power line hum is a sound associated with alternating current which is twice the frequency of the mains electricity. The fundamental frequency of this sound is usually double that of fundamental 50/60 Hz, i.e. 100/120 Hz, depending on the local power-line frequency. The sound often has heavy harmonic content above 50/60 Hz. Because of the presence of mains current in mains-powered audio equipment as well as ubiquitous AC electromagnetic fields from nearby appliances and wiring, 50/60 Hz electrical noise can get into audio systems, and is heard as mains hum from their speakers. Mains hum may also be heard coming from powerful electric power grid equipment such as utility transformers, caused by mechanical vibrations induced by magnetostriction in magnetic core. Onboard aircraft (or spacecraft) the frequency heard is often higher pitched, due to the use of 400 Hz AC power in these settings because 400 Hz transformers are much smaller and lighter.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mains_hum
Variable renewable energy (VRE) or intermittent renewable energy sources (IRES) are renewable energy sources that are not dispatchable due to their fluctuating nature, such as wind power and solar power, as opposed to controllable renewable energy sources, such as dammed hydroelectricity or biomass, or relatively constant sources, such as geothermal power.
The use of small amounts of intermittent power has little effect on grid operations. Using larger amounts of intermittent power may require upgrades or even a redesign of the grid infrastructure.[3][4] Options to absorb large shares of variable energy into the grid include using storage, improved interconnection between different variable sources to smooth out supply, using dispatchable energy sources such as hydroelectricity and having overcapacity, so that sufficient energy is produced even when weather is less favourable. More connections between the energy sector and the building, transport and industrial sectors may also help.[5]: 55
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Variable_renewable_energy
In an alternating current (AC) electric power system, synchronization is the process of matching the frequency and phase and voltage of a generator or other source to an electrical grid in order to transfer power. If two unconnected segments of a grid are to be connected to each other, they cannot safely exchange AC power until they are synchronized.
A direct current (DC) generator can be connected to a power network simply by adjusting its open-circuit terminal voltage to match the network's voltage, by either adjusting its speed or its field excitation. The exact engine speed is not critical. However, an AC generator must additionally match its timing (frequency and phase) to the network voltage, which requires both speed and excitation to be systematically controlled for synchronization. This extra complexity was one of the arguments against AC operation during the war of currents in the 1880s. In modern grids, synchronization of generators is carried out by automatic systems.
Conditions
There are five conditions that must be met before the synchronization process takes place. The source (generator or sub-network) must have equal root-mean-square voltage, frequency, phase sequence, phase angle, and waveform to that of the system to which it is being synchronized.[1]
Waveform and phase sequence are fixed by the construction of the generator and its connections to the system. During installation of a generator, careful checks are made to ensure the generator terminals and all control wiring is correct so that the order of phases (phase sequence) matches the system. Connecting a generator with the wrong phase sequence will result in large, possibly damaging, currents as the system voltages are opposite to those of the generator terminal voltages.[2]
The voltage, frequency and phase angle must be controlled each time a generator is to be connected to a grid.[1]
Generating units for connection to a power grid have an inherent droop speed control that allows them to share load proportional to their rating. Some generator units, especially in isolated systems, operate with isochronous frequency control, maintaining constant system frequency independent of load.
Process
The sequence of events is similar for manual or automatic synchronization. The generator is brought up to approximate synchronous speed by supplying more energy to its shaft - for example, opening the valves on a steam turbine, opening the gates on a hydraulic turbine, or increasing the fuel rack setting on a diesel engine. The field of the generator is energized and the voltage at the terminals of the generator is observed and compared with the system. The voltage magnitude must be the same as the system voltage.
If one machine is slightly out of phase it will pull into step with the others but, if the phase difference is large, there will be heavy cross-currents which can cause voltage fluctuations and, in extreme cases, damage to the machines.
Synchronizing lamps
Formerly, three incandescent light bulbs were connected between the generator terminals and the system terminals (or more generally, to the terminals of instrument transformers connected to generator and system). As the generator speed changes, the lights will flicker at the beat frequency proportional to the difference between generator frequency and system frequency. When the voltage at the generator is opposite to the system voltage (either ahead or behind in phase), the lamps will be bright. When the voltage at the generator matches the system voltage, the lights will be dark. At that instant, the circuit breaker connecting the generator to the system may be closed and the generator will then stay in synchronism with the system.[3]
An alternative technique used a similar scheme to the above except that the connections of two of the lamps were swapped either at the generator terminals or the system terminals. In this scheme, when the generator was in synchronism with the system, one lamp would be dark, but the two with the swapped connections would be of equal brightness. Synchronizing on "dark" lamps was preferred over "bright" lamps because it was easier to discern the minimum brightness. However, a lamp burnout could give a false-positive for successful synchronization.
Synchroscope
Another manual method of synchronization relies on observing an instrument called a "synchroscope", which displays the relative frequencies of system and generator. The pointer of the synchroscope will indicate "fast" or "slow" speed of the generator with respect to the system. To minimize the transient current when the generator circuit breaker is closed, usual practice is to initiate the close as the needle slowly approaches the in-phase point. An error of a few electrical degrees between system and generator will result in a momentary inrush and abrupt speed change of the generator.
Synchronizing relays
Synchronizing relays allow unattended synchronization of a machine with a system. Today these are digital microprocessor instruments, but in the past electromechanical relay systems were applied. A synchronizing relay is useful to remove human reaction time from the process, or when a human is not available such as at a remote controlled generating plant. Synchroscopes or lamps are sometimes installed as a supplement to automatic relays, for possible manual use or for monitoring the generating unit.
Sometimes as a precaution against out-of-step connection of a machine to a system, a "synchro check" relay is installed that prevents closing the generator circuit breaker unless the machine is within a few electrical degrees of being in-phase with the system. Synchro check relays are also applied in places where several sources of supply may be connected and where it is important that out-of-step sources are not accidentally paralleled.
Synchronous operation
While the generator is synchronized, the frequency of the system will change depending on load and the average characteristics of all the generating units connected to the grid.[1] Large changes in system frequency can cause the generator to fall out of synchronism with the system. Protective devices on the generator will operate to disconnect it automatically.
Synchronous speeds
Synchronous speeds for synchronous motors and alternators depend on the number of poles on the machine and the frequency of the supply.
The relationship between the supply frequency, f, the number of poles, p, and the synchronous speed (speed of rotating field), ns is given by:
- .
In the following table, frequencies are shown in hertz (Hz) and rotational speeds in revolutions per minute (rpm):
| No. of poles | Speed (rpm) at 50 Hz | Speed (rpm) at 60 Hz |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 3,000 | 3,600 |
| 4 | 1,500 | 1,800 |
| 6 | 1,000 | 1,200 |
| 8 | 750 | 900 |
| 10 | 600 | 720 |
| 12 | 500 | 600 |
| 14 | 429 | 514 |
| 16 | 375 | 450 |
| 18 | 333 | 400 |
| 20 | 300 | 360 |
| 22 | 273 | 327 |
| 24 | 250 | 300 |
| 26 | 231 | 277 |
| 28 | 214 | 257 |
| 30 | 200 | 240 |
See also
- Phase synchronization
- High-voltage direct current: allows power transmission between AC transmission systems that are not synchronized
References
- Donald G. Fink and H. Wayne Beaty, Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers, Eleventh Edition, McGraw-Hill, New York, 1978, ISBN 0-07-020974-X pp. 3-64,3-65
Sources
- The Electrical Year Book 1937, published by Emmott and Company Limited, Manchester, England, pp 53–57 and 72
External links
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronization_(alternating_current)
A balancing authority (BA) is an entity in the US electric system (as well as in parts of Canada and Mexico) that is responsible for grid balancing: resource planning and unit commitment ahead of time, maintenance of the load-interchange-generation balance within a balancing authority area (also known as a control area) and support for real-time load-frequency control.[1] The balancing authorities are connected by metered high-voltage tie lines[2][3] and grouped into interconnections:[4][5]
- Eastern Interconnection consists of 31 balancing authorities in the US and 5 in Canada;
- Western Interconnection consists of 34 balancing authorities in the US, 2 in Canada, and 1 in Mexico;
- Electric Reliability Council of Texas includes a single balancing authority;
- Quebec Interconnection also with a single authority.
Implementation
A typical balancing authority is an electric utility with an added responsibility to maintain a fine balance between the production and consumption of electricity, including ensuring availability of sufficient on-line generation resources and managing the electricity transfers from (and to) other balancing authorities.[4]
Balancing authorities operation is guided by mandatory reliability standards created by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation and approved by the US (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) and Canadian regulators.[4] The enforcement authority is delegated to regional entities (8 in the US).[6] To coordinate activities across multiple BAs, a reliability coordinator entity (RC) is used that has the power to reduce or cancel the interchange transactions and adjust the dispatch plans.[7] Frequently the same utility plays multiple roles, for example, CAISO, in addition to being an independent system operator, is also operating under the name RC West as a reliability coordinator for 42 balancing authorities and transmission operators in the Western interconnection.[8] The interactions between the BAs and RCs can be compared to the ones between pilots and air traffic controllers.[3]
A meter on a tie-line is shared between the two BAs interconnected by this line.[9]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balancing_authority
In electrical engineering, a protective relay is a relay device designed to trip a circuit breaker when a fault is detected.[1]: 4 The first protective relays were electromagnetic devices, relying on coils operating on moving parts to provide detection of abnormal operating conditions such as over-current, overvoltage, reverse power flow, over-frequency, and under-frequency.[2]
Microprocessor-based solid-state digital protection relays now emulate the original devices, as well as providing types of protection and supervision impractical with electromechanical relays. Electromechanical relays provide only rudimentary indication of the location and origin of a fault.[3] In many cases a single microprocessor relay provides functions that would take two or more electromechanical devices. By combining several functions in one case, numerical relays also save capital cost and maintenance cost over electromechanical relays.[4] However, due to their very long life span, tens of thousands of these "silent sentinels"[5] are still protecting transmission lines and electrical apparatus all over the world. Important transmission lines and generators have cubicles dedicated to protection, with many individual electromechanical devices, or one or two microprocessor relays.
The theory and application of these protective devices is an important part of the education of a power engineer who specializes in power system protection. The need to act quickly to protect circuits and equipment often requires protective relays to respond and trip a breaker within a few thousandths of a second. In some instances these clearance times are prescribed in legislation or operating rules.[6] A maintenance or testing program is used to determine the performance and availability of protection systems.[7]
Based on the end application and applicable legislation, various standards such as ANSI C37.90, IEC255-4, IEC60255-3, and IAC govern the response time of the relay to the fault conditions that may occur.[8]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Protective_relay
Load shedding
When the loss of load happens (generation capacity falls below the load), utilities may impose load shedding (also known as emergency load reduction program,[23] ELRP) on service areas via targeted blackouts, rolling blackouts or by agreements with specific high-use industrial consumers to turn off equipment at times of system-wide peak demand.[24]
Incentives to shed loads
Energy consumers need some incentive to respond to such a request from a demand response provider. Demand response incentives can be formal or informal. The utility might create a tariff-based incentive by passing along short-term increases in the price of electricity, or they might impose mandatory cutbacks during a heat wave for selected high-volume users, who are compensated for their participation. Other users may receive a rebate or other incentive based on firm commitments to reduce power during periods of high demand,[25] sometimes referred to as negawatts[22] (the term was coined by Amory Lovins in 1985).[26] For example, California introduced its own ELRP, where upon an emergency declaration enrolled customers get a credit for lowering their electricity use ($1 per kWh in 2021, $2 in 2022).[27]
Commercial and industrial power users might impose load shedding on themselves, without a request from the utility. Some businesses generate their own power and wish to stay within their energy production capacity to avoid buying power from the grid. Some utilities have commercial tariff structures that set a customer's power costs for the month based on the customer's moment of highest use, or peak demand. This encourages users to flatten their demand for energy, known as energy demand management, which sometimes requires cutting back services temporarily.
Smart metering has been implemented in some jurisdictions to provide real-time pricing for all types of users, as opposed to fixed-rate pricing throughout the demand period. In this application, users have a direct incentive to reduce their use at high-demand, high-price periods. Many users may not be able to effectively reduce their demand at various times, or the peak prices may be lower than the level required to induce a change in demand during short time periods (users have low price sensitivity, or elasticity of demand is low). Automated control systems exist, which, although effective, may be too expensive to be feasible for some applications.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demand_response#Load_shedding
A photovoltaic power station, also known as a solar park, solar farm, or solar power plant, is a large-scale grid-connected photovoltaic power system (PV system) designed for the supply of merchant power. They are different from most building-mounted and other decentralized solar power because they supply power at the utility level, rather than to a local user or users. Utility-scale solar is sometimes used to describe this type of project.
This approach differs from concentrated solar power, the other major large-scale solar generation technology, which uses heat to drive a variety of conventional generator systems. Both approaches have their own advantages and disadvantages, but to date, for a variety of reasons, photovoltaic technology has seen much wider use. As of 2019, about 97% of utility-scale solar power capacity was PV.[1][2]
In some countries, the nameplate capacity of photovoltaic power stations is rated in megawatt-peak (MWp), which refers to the solar array's theoretical maximum DC power output. In other countries, the manufacturer states the surface and the efficiency. However, Canada, Japan, Spain, and the United States often specify using the converted lower nominal power output in MWAC, a measure more directly comparable to other forms of power generation. Most solar parks are developed at a scale of at least 1 MWp. As of 2018, the world's largest operating photovoltaic power stations surpassed 1 gigawatt. At the end of 2019, about 9,000 solar farms were larger than 4 MWAC (utility scale), with a combined capacity of over 220 GWAC.[1]
Most of the existing large-scale photovoltaic power stations are owned and operated by independent power producers, but the involvement of community and utility-owned projects is increasing.[3] Previously, almost all were supported at least in part by regulatory incentives such as feed-in tariffs or tax credits, but as levelized costs fell significantly in the 2010s and grid parity has been reached in most markets, external incentives are usually not needed.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Photovoltaic_power_station
In an electric power system, automatic generation control (AGC) is a system for adjusting the power output of multiple generators at different power plants, in response to changes in the load. Since a power grid requires that generation and load closely balance moment by moment, frequent adjustments to the output of generators are necessary. The balance can be judged by measuring the system frequency; if it is increasing, more power is being generated than used, which causes all the machines in the system to accelerate. If the system frequency is decreasing, more load is on the system than the instantaneous generation can provide, which causes all generators to slow down.
History
Before the use of automatic generation control, one generating unit in a system would be designated as the regulating unit and would be manually adjusted to control the balance between generation and load to maintain system frequency at the desired value. The remaining units would be controlled with speed droop to share the load in proportion to their ratings. With automatic systems, many units in a system can participate in regulation, reducing wear on a single unit's controls and improving overall system efficiency, stability, and economy.
Where the grid has tie interconnections to adjacent control areas, automatic generation control helps maintain the power interchanges over the tie lines at the scheduled levels. With computer-based control systems and multiple inputs, an automatic generation control system can take into account such matters as the most economical units to adjust, the coordination of thermal, hydroelectric, and other generation types, and even constraints related to the stability of the system and capacity of interconnections to other power grids.[1]
Types
Turbine-governor control
Turbine generators in a power system have stored kinetic energy due to their large rotating masses. All the kinetic energy stored in a power system in such rotating masses is a part of the grid inertia. When system load increases, grid inertia is initially used to supply the load. This, however, leads to a decrease in the stored kinetic energy of the turbine generators. Since the mechanical power of these turbines correlates with the delivered electrical power, the turbine generators have a decrease in angular velocity, which is directly proportional to a decrease in frequency in synchronous generators.
The purpose of the turbine-governor control (TGC) is to maintain the desired system frequency by adjusting the mechanical power output of the turbine.[2] These controllers have become automated and at steady state, the frequency-power relation for turbine-governor control is,
where,
is the change in turbine mechanical power output
is the change in a reference power setting
is the regulation constant which quantifies the sensitivity of the generator to a change in frequency
is the change in frequency.
For steam turbines, steam turbine governing adjusts the mechanical output of the turbine by increasing or decreasing the amount of steam entering the turbine via a throttle valve.
Load-frequency control
Load-frequency control (LFC) is employed to allow an area to first meet its own load demands, then to assist in returning the steady-state frequency of the system, Δf, to zero.[3] Load-frequency control operates with a response time of a few seconds to keep system frequency stable.
Economic dispatch
The goal of economic dispatch is to minimize total operating costs in an area by determining how the real power output of each generating unit will meet a given load.[4] Generating units have different costs to produce a unit of electrical energy, and incur different costs for the losses in transmitting energy to the load. An economic dispatch algorithm will run every few minutes to select the combination of generating unit power setpoints that minimizes overall cost, subject to the constraints of transmission limitation or security of the system against failures.[5] Further constraints may be imposed by the water supply of hydroelectric generation, or by the availability of sun and wind power.
See also
References
- Richard C. Dorf (ed.), Section 9.3 "Automatic Generation Control" in Electrical Engineering Handbook Taylor and Francis, 2006 ISBN 978-0-8493-2274-7
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_generation_control
The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) is a nonprofit corporation based in Atlanta, Georgia, and formed on March 28, 2006, as the successor to the North American Electric Reliability Council (also known as NERC). The original NERC was formed on June 1, 1968, by the electric utility industry to promote the reliability and adequacy of bulk power transmission in the electric utility systems of North America. NERC's mission states that it is to "ensure the reliability of the North American bulk power system."[4]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_Electric_Reliability_Corporation
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is the United States federal agency that regulates the transmission and wholesale sale of electricity and natural gas in interstate commerce and regulates the transportation of oil by pipeline in interstate commerce. FERC also reviews proposals to build interstate natural gas pipelines, natural gas storage projects, and liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals, in addition to licensing non-federal hydropower projects.
FERC is composed of five commissioners who are nominated by the U.S. president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. There may be no more than three commissioners of one political party serving on the commission at any given time.[1]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Energy_Regulatory_Commission
A traction power station is a power station that produces only traction current, that is, electric current used for railways, trams, trolleybuses or other conveyances. Pure traction power stations are rare and there are many more power stations that generate current for other purposes, such as standard three-phase alternating current (AC), in addition to traction current.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traction_powerstation
A power supply unit (PSU) converts mains AC to low-voltage regulated DC power for the internal components of a computer. Modern personal computers universally use switched-mode power supplies. Some power supplies have a manual switch for selecting input voltage, while others automatically adapt to the mains voltage.
Most modern desktop personal computer power supplies conform to the ATX specification, which includes form factor and voltage tolerances. While an ATX power supply is connected to the mains supply, it always provides a 5-volt standby (5VSB) power so that the standby functions on the computer and certain peripherals are powered. ATX power supplies are turned on and off by a signal from the motherboard. They also provide a signal to the motherboard to indicate when the DC voltages are in spec, so that the computer is able to safely power up and boot. The most recent ATX PSU standard is version 3.0 as of mid-2022.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_supply_unit_(computer)
A traction network or traction power network is an electricity grid for the supply of electrified rail networks. The installation of a separate traction network generally is done only if the railway in question uses alternating current (AC) with a frequency lower than that of the national grid, such as in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Alternatively, the three-phase alternating current of the power grid can be converted in substations by rotary transformers or static inverters into the voltage and type of current required by the trains. For railways which run on direct current (DC), this method is always used, as well as for railways which run on single-phase AC of decreased frequency, as in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony-Anhalt, Norway and Sweden. In these areas there are no traction current networks.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traction_power_network
This is a list of the power supply systems that are, or have been, used for railway electrification.
Note that the voltages are nominal and vary depending on load and distance from the substation.
As of 2023 many trams and trains use on-board solid-state electronics to convert these supplies to run three-phase AC traction motors.
Tram electrification systems are listed here.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_railway_electrification_systems
This extra complexity was one of the arguments against AC operation during the war of currents in the 1880s. In modern grids, synchronization of generators is carried out by automatic systems.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Synchronization_(alternating_current)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireless
05-14-2023-1606
- transformer, synchronization AC, rectifier, mercury-arc valve,
turbine, steam, induction motor, inductance, mercury vapor lamp, arc
lamp, rotary converter, power inverter, etc. (draft)
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