2018 Electrical Insulation Conference (EIC), San Antonio, TX, USA, 17-20 June 2018
The Art and Science of
Transformer Ratio Measurement
Oleh W. Iwanusiw, P.Eng.
Mikro-Kod Consulting Ltd.
on behalf of Megger Corporation.
Abstract - The principle which allows one to measure voltage
ratio and convert this reading to transformer turns ratio sounds
very simple. In practice, however, the conversion is influenced by
practical issues, such as cores whose permeability and loss changes
with applied voltage and causes conversion errors. This is
especially troublesome when testing three-phase transformers
using single-phase excitation. Three-phase transformers use cores
more efficiently than do single-phase transformers, thus the loss
and permeability effects are reduced, provided three-phase
excitation is employed.
The advantages of using three-phase excitation for ratio
measurement of three-phase transformers include:
* reduced dependence on test voltage.
* ability to identify transformer’s configuration.
* ability to measure directly the ratio and phase shift of
phase shifting transformers.
* ability to provide additional information regarding the
balance of the phases, shorted turns and excessive core
loss.
Keywords – transformer, turns ratio, single-phase excitation,
three-phase excitation, ratio error, phase error.
ȱ. INTRODUCTION
The measurement of turns ratios is used as a tool during
manufacturing as well as planned maintenance procedures for
identifying problems with power and distribution transformers.
Changes in ratios can be indicative of problems within the
transformer such as turn-to-turn insulation failure, interwinding
insulation failure, or core structure insulation failure. To
identify such failures, it is important to measure transformer
turns ratios consistently and accurately.
Traditionally, transformer turns ratios were measured using
transformer ratio-arm bridges such as the H&B Trafo-
Ubersetzungsmesser, METK-3, which was measuring the ratio
in the traditional European “Step-Down” connection, or
perhaps the Biddle “TTR” Transformer Turns Ratio Test Set,
which was measuring the ratio in the traditional American
“Step-Up” connection. These manual instruments would be
using a phase sensitive null detector which allows for an easy
way to balance the ratio dials. No phase reading was provided
by these original instruments.
As practice would show that phase readings are just as
important in identifying problems with transformers as are ratio
readings, thus subsequent instruments would provide a phase
978-1-5386-4178-1/18/$31.00
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reading. One of the first such instruments was the Olman TR700
Ratiometer. All current instruments provide a phase as well as
ratio reading.
The next step in the evolution of the transformer ratiometer
or transformer turns ratiometer is three-phase excitation for the
measurement of turns ratios of three-phase transformers. Such
instruments provide improved tools for identifying problems on
three-phase transformers. These tools are more sensitive,
excitation voltage independent and are not available for single-
phase excitation test equipment.
The discussion in this paper deals with errors of determining
turns ratio based on the measurement of voltage ratio. Such
errors may be introduced by the characteristics of the test
specimen and by its configuration or connection to the
measuring instrument. These errors can be viewed as
“systematic errors” and will be present in addition to any errors
that the test set itself may introduce.
ȱȱ. THE BASIC PRINCIPE AND CONNECTION.
The basis for transformer turns ratio measurement is the
assumption that all of the magnetic flux within the transformer
will be linking the windings being measured. Using this
assumption, one can show that the transformer turns ratio will
be equal to the voltage ratio as measured on the windings in
question.
As the above assumption is in error due to leakage flux, only
an approximate turns ratio of a transformer can be determined
by exciting the core of the transformer and measuring the
voltages of the two windings. Such a measurement will be in
error that is inversely proportional to the coupling coefficient
between the windings. Also, such a measurement assumes that
the windings are not loaded, that is – carry no current.
Practical measuring circuits require the core to be excited.
Such excitation may be provided by applying excitation to any
winding on the transformer. The excited winding may be the
high voltage winding, in which case the circuit works in a
“Step-Down” mode. If the excited winding is the low voltage
winding, then the circuit works in the “Step-Up” mode. Such
practical connections may present loading on the winding. The
effect of various connections will be examined below.
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A. HV Excitation Connection.
This is the “Step-Down” connection. The excitation is
applied to the HV winding and the turns ratio is determined
from the voltage ratio as measured on the HV and the LV
winding.
As the HV winding carries magnetizing current, there will
be an error in the measurement. The error is proportional to the
excitation current multiplied by the HV winding resistance. The
in-phase component of the excitation current will cause a
positive ratio error, while the quadrature component will cause
a negative phase error.
The other important factor is the coupling coefficient. As
the coefficient is always less then 1, it will case a positive ratio
error.
The last item to be concerned about here, are the eddy
currents within the core or shorted turns on the core. These will
cause a negative phase error.
B. LV Excitation Connection.
This is the “Step-Up” connection. The excitation is applied
to the LV winding and the turns ratio is determined from the
voltage ratio as measured on the HV and the LV winding.
As the LV winding carries magnetizing current, there will
be an error in the measurement. The error is proportional to the
excitation current multiplied by the LV winding resistance. The
in-phase component of the excitation current will cause a
negative ratio error, while the quadrature component will cause
a negative phase error.
The other important factor is the coupling coefficient. The
coupling coefficient between the HV and LV windings is not
the same as between the LV and HV windings. As the
coefficient is always less then 1, it will case a negative ratio
error.
The last item to be concerned about here, are the eddy
currents within the core or shorted turns on the core. These will
cause a negative phase error.
C. Excitation Voltage and Frequency.
The standards specify the use of a voltage no higher than the
rated voltage and a frequency no lower than the rated frequency
of the test specimen. There is no mention as to the wave shape
of the excitation signal.
Practice has shown that using a frequency higher than the
rated frequency is advantageous as it typically reduces
excitation losses and improves coupling between the windings
thus reducing errors. There is also no real reason for limiting
the excitation to a sinusoidal voltage, other wave shapes will
work equally well especially a square wave. If good accuracy
in ratio and phase departure are desired, excitation other than a
sine wave require signal processing in order for the results to be
responsive only to the fundamental of the excitation voltage.
High accuracy turns ratio measurements requires tight
coupling between windings, and tight coupling depends, in part,
on the permeability of the core. As the permeability of the core
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increases with an increase with excitation voltage, there is a
tendency to use a higher test voltage for determining the turns
ratio from the voltage ratio.
D. Discussion on Single-Phase Ratio Measurements.
As the ratio errors due to excitation and coupling discussed
above are positive for HV excitation and negative for LV
excitation, one might conclude that these would cancel if the
HV excited reading was averaged with the LV excited reading.
Unfortunately, this cancellation is only partially effective.
Cancellation is only partial because the HV excitation losses
may not be the same as the LV excitation losses. Also, the
coefficient of coupling between the HV and the LV winding is
not the same as the coupling between LV and the HV windings.
This is due to the different positioning of the windings with
respect to the core.
As mentioned above, the voltage ratio errors due to
excitation losses are influenced by the test voltage. For
efficient transformers, such as those meeting the DOE Standard
Efficiency Levels (2007), the errors due to excitation losses are
estimated at ~0.005% at rated voltage, increasing to ~0.02% at
1% of rated voltage, and ~0.04% at 0.1% of rated voltage.
What is more important than the influence of excitation
losses on turns ratio accuracy is the influence of the coupling
coefficient on the accuracy of the voltage ratio measurement.
The coupling coefficient depends on the geometry of the
windings and the permeability of the core. As the permeability
of the core decreases with a reduction in the excitation voltage,
so does the coupling coefficient. The coupling coefficient is
also smaller for high voltage transformers due to the
requirement of providing adequate space for insulation.
Measurements have shown that the ratio error for power
transformers typically increases by ~0.03% when testing at 1%
of rated voltage, and by ~0.06% when tested at 0.1% of rated
voltage as compared to a test at rated voltage. Combining the
two effects that depend on excitation voltage one can expect the
ratio error to increase by ~0.05% when testing at 1% of rated
voltage and ~0.1% when testing at 0.1% of rated voltage. A
word of caution, there are transformers that are labelled “high
impedance”. These are usually high voltage transformers used
on power networks to limit short circuit currents. These
transformers have a lower coefficient of coupling and will
exhibit larger ratio error influences due to excitation voltage.
Knowing the rating of the transformer under test one can readily
apply corrections to improve the accuracy of the voltage ratio
measurement being converted to the transformer turns ratio.
As pointed out above, in addition to the phase error caused
by excitation loss, there may be additional phase error present
in the ratio determination. These additional phase errors are due
to the eddy currents within the core. The better the core, the
lower the eddy currents, the lower the phase shift. Typically,
this phase shift is in the range of 0.03 to 0.10 degrees. The
phase shift may also be caused by other eddy currents within
the assembly. Being sensitive to shorted turns, grounded core-
bolts, and similar, the phase shift is a good indicator of
problems within a transformer.
 III. SINGLE-PHASE MEASUREMENTS OF THREE-PHASE
TRANSFORMERS.
Three-phase power transformers present numerous turns
ratio measuring challenges. The main challenge being that there
are a variety of transformer configurations, namely Y, Yn, D,
Z, Zn and various combinations between them. Not all of these
configurations are used on a power system, but the
combinations of the above amount to 25 distinct configurations.
In addition to this, there are the transformers with tertiary
windings which present a challenge of their own. Each
configuration has an OPTIMAL or correct method that should
be used to measure their turns ratio.
Until recently, the turns ratio of all of these transformers
were measured using single phase excitation. Due to their very
nature, some of the configurations can have their turns ratio
measured using only one connection, while other
configurations can have their turns measured using two
different connections. The latter results in two different answers
and presents a problem of deciding which of them is the correct
one. To illustrate the problems of single phase excitation
measurements, the measurements of the more popular
configurations are analysed below.
A. Yy Transformers.
When measuring the ratio of a three-phase transformer, the
normal idea is to pick a connection that energizes one phase of
the transformer and then measure the voltage ratio of the turns
associated with that phase. For example, this is rather easy to
accomplish on a Ynyn configuration. One could pick the phase-
to-neutral connection of each winding to be measured. Such a
connection would provide a ratio for each phase - A, B, C.
There is also the possibility of measuring the ratio using the
line-to-line connection of each winding, which would provide
a ratio for a combination of phases, namely - AB, BC, CA.
The difference in ratio readings between these connections is
typically not very large and is due to the differences in the
excitation losses and coupling between all the windings. When
connected phase-to-neutral the test set energises only one leg of
the core assembly at 100%, while the other two legs are
energized at approximately 50% each. This can be compared to
the line-to-line excitation, where two of the phases are
energized at 100%, with the third phase sitting idle at ~0%. The
voltage ratio measurement using the line-to-line excitation
provides a more accurate representation of the turns ratio and is
less sensitive to excitation voltage than the line-to-neutral
excitation connection.
B. Yd Transformers.
When one encounters a Ynd transformer, this presents a
more serious challenge. The challenge is due to the Delta
connection which will carry current when the transformer is
excited single-phase, be it line-to-neutral or line-to-line. This
condition breaks one of the rules for determining the proper
turns ratio by measuring the voltage ratio – the winding is
loaded. Examining the line-to-neutral excitation situation
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closer, we find that the single excited winding within the delta
is supplying excitation to the other two windings. The situation
is different with line-to-line excitation, where two of the delta
windings are supplying excitation to the third winding. As there
is current circulating within the delta, this causes loading and
therefore errors due to loading. The loading with the line-to-
line excitation is considerably less than the loading with line-
to-neutral excitation, thus the line-to-line excitation provides a
more accurate voltage ratio reading. It should also be pointed
out that the loading on the delta winding make the connections
more sensitive to excitation voltage, with the line-to-neutral
excitation being considerably more sensitive.
The alternative to dealing with the “loaded delta”
connection, would be to test the transformer using the “Step-
Up” connection, namely treat the Yd transformer as a Dy
transformer. As explained later on, this connection does not
load the delta, thus its accuracy is not influenced as much by
the excitation voltage.
Summarising, when encountering a Yd transformer, one
should test it as a Dy transformer in the “Step-U” connection
for accurate voltage ratio measurement. Alternatively, the line-
to-line excitation, with a line-to-line short, of the transformer
should be used. The line-to-neutral excitation should not be
used as it loads the delta winding, and as a result is rather
excitation voltage dependent.
C. Yz Transformers.
When one encounters a Ynzn, Yzn transformer, the problem
of turns ratio measurement is similar to that of the Ynd
connection. As each phase of the Z winding consists of
components from two phases, one can not test its ratio using
line-to-neutral excitation, line-to-line excitation is a necessity.
Thus, exciting the transformer line-to-line, automatically
excites two phases similarly to that of a Yy transformer. The
voltage ratio in this connection is an accurate measure of the
turns ratio, very similar to the voltage ratio of a Yy transformer
connected line-to-line.
During manufacturing, there is a need to measure separately
each of the windings of a Z connection. This again can be
accomplished by using the line-to-neutral connection, or the
line-to-line connection with a line-to-line short. Similarly to
other connections, the line-to-line connection is preferred as it
excites two limbs of the transformer under test and is much less
voltage dependent.
D. Dy and Dz Transformers.
Measuring turns ratio on Delta high voltage transformers,
be they Dy, Dyn, or Dzn, presents only one choice when
exciting the transformer, that is line-to-line excitation with line-
to-line shorting. The shorting can be also applied on the
secondary side, but this should be avoided, as shorting on the
secondary side presents a load on the measured winding, thus
affecting the accuracy of the measurement. It should be noted
that with the delta being on the high side, and using the step-
down connection, the delta is not loaded and good accuracy
between the voltage ratio and the turns ratio can be obtained.
E. Tertiary Delta Windings.
The primary function of the tertiary delta winding is to
improve the symmetry of the three-phase system, that is to
reduce amount of negative sequence component. The negative
sequence component is typically caused by single-phase loads
and unequal impedances of line conductors. In practice, all
transmission lines are transposed so that all line conductors will
have the same impedance, resulting in little or no negative
sequence component being generated.
The problem with tertiary delta windings is that they are of
reduced capacity, typically 20-30% of the transformer. When
testing the Yd ratio on a typical Ynynd transformer, the tertiary
acts like a normal delta connection. The tertiary is thus loaded
and being under-powered (presenting a higher impedance),
causes larger errors. In fact, it can be shown that a measurement
of the Yd ratio on a tertiary winding, with a 20% rating, will
have a five times larger test voltage influence than the influence
on a regular Yd transformer. Therefore, it is imperative that
such tertiary windings be tested using three-phase or line-to-
line excitation as this connection presents the least loading on
the delta. Here again, the preferred connection to measure the
turns ratio would be the “Step-Up” configuration, which
presents no loading on the delta winding.
A problem with ratio testing of tertiary delta windings may
crop up when the delta is loaded with another transformer
(typically Zy) to provide station service load. When internally
connected to the delta winding, the service transformer draws
excitation current from the delta winding when the HV winding
is excited for ratio measurement. This causes excessive
measurement errors. The only proper connection for ratio
measurement here is to excite the delta for the Yd ratio
measurement in the step-up configuration and at the same time
the Zy ratio in the step-down configuration.
TABLE 1 at the end of the paper presents approximate
values of ratio errors as a function of test voltage for different
connections of three-phase transformers. One can readily see
the reduction in voltage influence for transformers excited two-
phase and three-phase.
F. Rules for Single-Phase Measurements of Three-Phase
transformers.
The accuracy of turns ratio determination based on voltage
ratio measurements is subject to influences and connections as
discussed above. Based on all of this information, one can
make up a table of voltage influences on different connections.
This allows one to select the connection for the most accurate
measurement.
For best accuracy of turns ratio determination based
on the voltage ratio measurement, one should adhere to the
conditions listed below.
* Excite test specimen three-phase or line-to-line.
* If required, apply shorts on the excited winding.
* Measure transformers with delta connected secondary
windings in the “Step-Up” configuration.
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IV. THREE-PHASE TESTING.
In the discussion on single-phase testing of three-phase
transformers, we have seen how the different connections
provide voltage ratios that are very close to the turns ratios,
some with larger errors and some with smaller errors. Analysis
and practice indicates that any voltage ratio measurement which
excites only one phase of a three-phase transformer is subject
to larger errors and is more sensitive to excitation voltage than
a voltage ratio measurement that excites two phases of the
transformer. This information leads one to conclude that a
voltage ratio measurement that excites all three-phases should
provide even more accurate turns ratio based on the voltage
ratio and that such a measurement should have the smallest
excitation voltage influence.
One reason for this improvement is that, in the case of single
phase excitation, the one excited phase has to supply the
excitation losses for the whole core, while in the case of two-
phase excitation, the loss is shared by the two phases. The
situation is further improved with three-phase excitation, where
each phase supplies its share of the excitation loss. Another
reason for the improvement is that the voltage ratio depends not
only on the excitation and coupling between the windings of
one phase. but also on the excitation and coupling between all
of the windings on all of the phases of the transformer.
In practice, it is more practical to use a three-wire three-
phase source for exciting test specimen, as such a source is
equally applicable to windings with or without a neutral
connection. As it turns out, it is also easier to generate a well
balanced three-wire source, something that is desirable in a
three-phase arrangement that involves comparing voltages of
different phases.
A three-phase, three-wire, excitation system, when
combined with a multi-channel measuring system that is
capable of measuring line-to-line and line-to-neutral voltages,
as well as a handful of software, makes a fine three-phase
transformer ratiometer. Such a system can excite any Delta,
Wye, or Zig-zag transformer and measure all voltages and
determine their phase positions with high accuracy. This allows
the instrument to identify any of the many three-phase
connections used on three-phase power transformers.
Something that is not readily evident or appreciated, is that
such a system can perform any of the appropriate single-phase
measurements while being excited three-phase. The system,
therefore, not only determines the ratios of the various phases,
but also provides a very accurate on-line comparison between
the various phases.
Measurements on a variety of transformer configurations,
and sizes, indicated that the measurements are not only
accurate, but also less sensitive to excitation voltage than any
single-phase excitation connections of a three-phase
transformer. In addition to all of the above, the three-phase
measurement system is ideal for measuring the ratio and phase
shift of phase-shifting transformers or of transformers with
variable phase shifts. The precise ratios and phase shifts are
measured quickly and directly.
A. Symmetrical components. V. CONCLUSIONS.

Analyzing readings on a number of three-phase
transformers, it was realized that the three-phase measurement
system is capable of providing valuable additional information
pertaining to the health and operation of the transformer under
test. Whereas the single-phase excitation tests would provide
three ratios and three phase angle errors, the three-phase
system, in addition to three ratios and phase angle errors,
provides three primary voltages associated with their phase
angles, as well as three secondary voltages associated with their
phase angles. This information allows one to determine the
symmetrical components of the transformer’s excitation
voltage as well as that of the transformer’s response.
Once symmetrical components are determined, the “ratio of
the transformer” is calculated from the ratio of the positive (+)
sequence components and the phase error is determined from
the difference between the phases of the positive (+) sequence
components.
Continuing, with the transformer being a linear device, it
should transform voltage and current linearly according to the
laws of physics, all of which are well know. As all of these laws
apply equally to the symmetrical components, a comparison of
the symmetrical components on the secondary side with the
components on the primary side provides valuable information
as to the proper functioning of the transformer. Analysis of
three-phase transformers shows that an incorrect number of
turns on any of the windings (incorrect turns ratio) or excessive
core loss on one of the phases will result in symmetrical
distortion, generation negative (-) sequence on the secondary
winding. As it turns out, the generation of negative sequence is
much more sensitive and accurate to ratio unbalances than the
comparison of individual ratios and phase errors. This provides
the tester with additional valuable information that pertains to
the health of the transformer.
The study of ratio measurements on three-phase power
transformers indicates that three-phase excitation is a
prerequisite to conducting accurate ratio measurements on such
transformers. Three-phase excitation provides designed core
excitation for proper operation of the transformer and thus is
most suitable for test applications. As accurate ratio
measurements depend not only on the excitation of the phase
being tested, but also on the coupling between all of the
windings on a transformer assembly, three-phase excitation
assures the same inter-winding coupling during ratio
measurements as would be encountered during service
conditions.
There-phase excitation can be used to excite the Hi-side
windings of the transformer for step-down measurements, or to
excite the Lo-side windings for the step-up measurements. In
either case, the measurements will provide:
• The three-phase ratio and phase shift.
• Per-phase ratio and phase shift.
• Degree of negative sequence distortion.
The above measurements provides better information that
relates to the health of the transformer then any single-phase
ratio measurements conducted using sing-phase excitation.
As for single-phase ratio measurements using single-phase
excitation, such measurements should be conducted only using
the line-to-line connection which excites two phases.
Single-phase ratio measurements using the line-to-neutral
connection, which excites only one phase, should be used with
cation, as these measurements are test voltage depended.
Single-phase ratio measurements using the line-to-neutral
connection, which excite only one phase, with a delta secondary
test winding should be avoided. Such measurements are quite
test voltage depended as the delta winding is loaded and no
longer qualifies for ratio measurements.

TABLE 1. RATIO ERROR (%) AS A FUNCTION OF EXCITATION VOLTGE.

V (%) 1Ɏ-1Ɏ 3Ɏ-3Ɏ 2Ɏ-3Ɏ 1Ɏ-3Ɏ 3Ɏ-D 2Ɏ-D 1Ɏ-D
100 0.006 0.004 0.005 0.01 0.01 0.02-0.03 0.04-0.06
10 0.012 0.008 0.01 0.02 0.02 0.04-0.06 0.08-0.12
1 0.024 0.016 0.02 0.04 0.04 0.08-0.12 0.16-0.24
0.1 0.048 0.032 0.04 0.08 0.08 0.16-0.24 0.32-0.48
0.01 0.096 0.064 0.08 0.16 0.16 0.32-0.48 0.64-0.96
0.001 0.192 0.128 0.16 0.32 0.32 0.64-0.48 1.28-1.92
The above table was assembled from measurements using different instruments operating at different voltages and measuring a
variety of transformers.

Legend. V (%) = Excitation voltage in % of rated voltage.

1Ɏ-1Ɏ = Single-phase excitation of a single-phase transformer.
3Ɏ-3Ɏ = Three-phase excitation of a three-phase transformer.
2Ɏ-3Ɏ = Two-phase excitation of a three-phase transformer.
1Ɏ-3Ɏ = Single-phase excitation of a three-phase transformer.
3Ɏ-D = Three-phase excitation of a three-phase transformer with a tertiary delta.
2Ɏ-D = Two-phase excitation of a three-phase transformer with a tertiary delta.
1Ɏ-D = Single-phase excitation of a three-phase transformer with a tertiary delta.

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