Three-phase induction motor operating from single-phase supply with an electronically controlled capacitor

In this paper the performance of a three-phase induction motor operating from single-phase supply with a new electronically controlled capacitor using an electronic switch in series with a fixed capacitor to achieve a minimum unbalance of the motor phase voltages at all loading conditions is proposed. No mechanical or centrifugal switch is used here. Basic system operation, theoretical analysis, simulated and experimental results in comparison with conventional operation using one and two fixed capacitors are presented in this paper. The optimum effective capacitor value can be on-line adjusted at any operating speed by periodically changing the duty cycle of the controlled switch to achieve minimum unbalance in phase voltages to improve the motor performance at different speeds. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.