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An American Rotary Phase Converter with a Transformer. A phase converter is a device that converts electric power provided as single phase to multiple phase or vice versa. The majority of phase converters are used to produce three-phase electric power from a single-phase source, thus allowing the operation of three-phase equipment at a site that only has single-phase electrical service.
A three-phase induction motor that is spinning under single-phase power applied to terminals L1 and L2 will generate an electric potential (voltage) across terminal L3 in respect with L1 and L2. However, L1 to L3 and L2 to L3 will be 120 degrees out of phase with the input voltage, thus creating three-phase power.
As compared to a single-phase AC power supply that uses two current-carrying conductors (phase and neutral), a three-phase supply with no neutral and the same phase-to-ground voltage and current capacity per phase can transmit three times as much power by using just 1.5 times as many wires (i.e., three instead of two).
When three-phase is needed but only single-phase is readily available from the electricity supplier, a phase converter can be used to generate three-phase power from the single phase supply. A motor–generator is often used in factory industrial applications.
One voltage cycle of a three-phase system. A polyphase system (the term coined by Silvanus Thompson) is a means of distributing alternating-current (AC) electrical power that utilizes more than one AC phase, which refers to the phase offset value (in degrees) between AC in multiple conducting wires; phases may also refer to the corresponding terminals and conductors, as in color codes.
Current practice is to give separate services for single-phase and three-phase loads, e.g., 120 V split-phase (lighting etc.) and 240 V to 600 V three-phase (for large motors). However, many jurisdictions forbid more than one class for a premises' service, and the choice may come down to 120/240 V split-phase, 208 V single-phase or three-phase ...
A split-phase or single-phase three-wire system is a type of single-phase electric power distribution. It is the alternating current (AC) equivalent of the original Edison Machine Works three-wire direct-current system. Its primary advantage is that, for a given capacity of a distribution system, it saves conductor material over a single-ended ...
The appliances found in residential settings, for example, will typically be single-phase operating at 50 or 60 Hz with a voltage between 110 and 260 volts (depending on national standards). An exception exists for larger centralized air conditioning systems as these are now often three-phase because this allows them to operate more efficiently.