Amorphous Alloys for Distribution Transformers: Design Considerations and Economic Impact

The use of amorphous ferromagnetic materials for the magnetic circuits of distribution transformers could reduce the losses associated with iron cores and result in substantial economic savings to utilities. The value of such savings obviously depends on the loss evaluation. Optimization calculations show that this value varies according to the transformer design. A comparative performance evaluation revealed the advantages and shortcomings of four different transformer designs and of different types of steel used to build the magnetic circuits. The paper finally gives a few design details of a pre-prototype distribution transformer, developed at IREQ, which has an amorphous-alloy magnetic circuit.