# Electronic – How to use a transformer as an inductor

ideasinductanceinductortransformer

Lp: Self inductance of the primary winding.
Ls: Self inductance of the secondary winding.
Lm: Mutual inductance between the primary and secondary windings.

Assume that I need an iron core inductor with large inductance to use under 50Hz or 60Hz.

How do I obtain an inductor from the given transformer in the image? I don't want to use any other circuit elements unless it is absolutely required. The dot convention of the transformer is given in the image; terminal connections must be done so that the inductance of the resulting inductor must be maximum (I think that happens when the fluxes generated by the primary and secondary windings happen to be in the same direction inside the transformer core).

I'm expecting an answer like "Connect \$P_2 \$ and \$S_2 \$ to together, \$P_1 \$ will be \$L_1 \$ and \$S_1 \$ will be \$L_2 \$ of the resulting inductor.".
I understand that I can use the primary and secondary windings separately by making the unused winding open, but I'm looking for a smart way of connecting the windings so that the resulting inductance will maximize.

What will be the inductance of the inducter in terms of \$L_p \$, \$L_s \$ and \$L_m \$ ?
What will be the frequency behavior of the resulting inductor? Will it have a good performance at frequencies other than the original transformer was rated to run in.

How do I obtain an inductor from the given transformer in the image? ... So that the inductance of the resulting inductor must be maximum.

• Connect the undotted end of one winding to the dotted end of the other.
eg P2 to S1 (or P1 to S2) and use the pair as if they were a single winding.
(As per example in diagram below)

• Using just one winding does NOT produce the required maximum inductance result.

• The resulting inductance is greater than the sum of the two individual inductances.
Call the resultant inductance Lt,

• Lt > Lp
• Lt > Ls
• Lt > (Lp + Ls) !!! <- this may not be intuitive
• \$L_t = ( \sqrt{L_p} + \sqrt{L_s}) ^ 2 \$ <- also unlikely to be intuitive.
• \$\dots = L_p + L_s + 2 \times \sqrt{L_p} \times \sqrt{L_s} \$

Note that IF the windings were NOT magnetically linked (eg were on two separate cores) then the two inductances simply add and Lsepsum = Ls + Lp.

What will be the frequency behavior of the resulting inductor? Will it have a good performance at frequencies other than the original transformer was rated to run in.

"Frequency behavior" of the final inductor is not a meaningful term without further explanation of what is meant by the question and depends on how the inductor is to be used.
Note that "frequency behavior" is a good term as it can mean more than the normal term "frequency response" in this case.
For example, applying mains voltage to a primary and secondary in series, where the primary is rated for mains voltage use in normal operation will have various implications depending on how the inductor is to be used.Impedance is higher so magnetising current is lower so core is less heavily saturated. Implications then depend on application - so interesting. Will need discussing.

Connecting the two windings together so that their magnetic fields support each other will give you the maximum inductance.

When this is done

• the field from current in winding P will now also affect winding S

• and the field in winding S will now also affect winding P

so the resultant inductance will be greater than the linear sum of the two inductances.

The requirement to get the inductances to add where there 2 or more windings is that the current flows into (or out of) all dotted winding ends at the same time.

• \$L_{effective} = L_{eff} = (\sqrt{L_p} + \sqrt{L_s})^2 \dots (1) \$

Because:

Where windings are mutually coupled on the same magnetic core so that all turns in either winding are linked by the same magnetic flux then when the windings are connected together they act like a single winding whose number of turns = the sum of the turns in the two windings.

ie \$N_{total} = N_t = N_p + N_s \dots (2) \$

Now: L is proportional to turns^2 = \$N^2 \$
So for constant of proportionality k,
\$L = k.N^2 \dots (3) \$
So \$N = \sqrt{\frac{L}{k}} \dots (4) \$

k can be set to 1 for this purpose as we have no exact values for L.

So

From (2) above: \$N_{total} = N_t = (N_p + N_s) \$

But : \$N_p = \sqrt{k.L_p} = \sqrt{Lp} \dots (5) \$
And : \$N_s = \sqrt{k.L_s} = \sqrt{L_s} \dots (6) \$

But \$L_t = (k.N_p + k.N_s)^2 = (N_p + N_s)^2 \dots (7) \$

So

\$\mathbf{L_t = (\sqrt{L_p} + \sqrt{L_s})^2} \dots (8) \$

Which expands to: \$L_t = L_p + L_s + 2 \times \sqrt{L_p} \times \sqrt{L_s} \$

In words:

The inductance of the two windings in series is the square of the sum of the square roots of their individual inductances.

Lm is not relevant to this calculation as a separate value - it is part of the above workings and is the effective gain from crosslinking the two magnetic fields.

[[Unlike Ghost Busters - In this case you are allowed to cross the beams.]].