10

Science
Quarter 2 – Module 5:
 Simple Electric Motor and
Generator

What I Need to Know

During summer afternoons, what do you usually look for? You look for
the switch of a fan as you need to cool down. The moment you switch on the
fan, it starts rotating. Have you ever wondered why the fan is rotating? You
may say that it has a motor inside that makes it rotate. But what is going on
inside the motor that makes the fan rotate that way? In this module, we’ll try
to answer all these questions regarding how motor works and how it is made.

After going through this module, you are expected to attain the following
objective:

Learning Competency

• Explain the operation of a simple electric motor and generator.

(S10FE-IIj-54)
 Lesson
Simple Electric Motor and
1 Generator
What’s In

Directions: Do you still remember your lessons in Grade 9 about energy

transformation? You need to recall these energy sources and how they transform
energy to other forms of energy. This topic is very much related and helpful for you
to easily understand the topics on the generation and transformation of energy
between electric motor and generator. Below are examples of the sources of energy
paired with words having jumbled letters as clue for identifying them. Rearrange the
letters to form a word(s) that will best describe the pictures of the different sources
of energy. Use a separate sheet of paper for your answer.
 What’s New
“Electric Motor”

What you need:

Clean sheet of paper and ballpen

What you have to do:

1. Below are objects normally found at home. List down which has an electric
motor. Use a separate sheet of paper for your answer.

FLAT IRON
STAND FAN
WALL CLOCK

MOTORCYCLE

VASE WATER DISPENSER

PROJECTOR LAPTOP

GARBAGE BIN
 OVEN TOASTER

ADJUSTABLE WRENCH HELMET

Directions: On a separate sheet, answer the following questions based from the
activity on page 6.

1. What are those materials with electric motors?

______________________________________________________________________________
2. What are those materials which do not have electric motors?
______________________________________________________________________________
3. Describe the materials with electric motors.
______________________________________________________________________________
4. Describe the materials without electric motors.
______________________________________________________________________________
5. What do you think is the role of the electric motor in the
materials/appliances?
______________________________________________________________________________

What is It
Have fun in learning Simple Electric Motor and Generator…

You have probably experienced when at one moment you’re watching your
favorite program on TV and on the next minute you’re groping in the dark
because of power interruption. At such time, you may have wished you had a
candle or a flashlight so that you could see in the dark. How can you make a
steady flow of electricity?

What is a generator?

• A generator converts Mechanical Energy to Electrical Energy.

• It produces an electric current when a coil of wire is wrapped around
an iron core and rotated near a magnet.
How does a generator work?

• An electric generator is a device that converts mechanical energy

obtained from an external source into electrical energy as the output.

Principle of Electromagnetic Induction in Generator

• Modern generators can be attributed to

Michael Faraday’s principle of
ELECTROMAGNETIC INDUCTION.
Faraday discovered that when a conductor
moves in a magnetic field, electrical charges
could be created and directed to create a
flow of current.
Photograph of Michael Faraday by John
• At its most basic, an electrical generator is Watkins on commons.wikimedia.org
from https://tinyurl.com/MFaraday
nothing more than an electromagnet –
moving wire near a magnet to direct the flow of electricity. It’s similar to
how a pump pushes water through a pipe.

• It is important to understand that a generator does not actually “create”

electrical energy. Instead, it uses the mechanical energy supplied to it
to force the movement of electric charges present in the wire of its
windings through an external electric circuit.

• This flow of electric charges constitutes the output electric current

supplied by the generator. This mechanism can be understood by
considering the generator to be similar to a water pump, which causes
the flow of water but does not actually create the water flowing through
it.

How water, wind, and steam make electricity through generator?

1. Water – Hydropower plants capture the energy of falling water to

generate electricity. A turbine converts the kinetic energy of the falling water
into mechanical energy. Then a generator converts the mechanical energy
from the turbine into electrical energy.
2. Wind - The wind turns the blades of the windmill, known as the turbine,
which, in turn, spins the shaft that turns the coil inside the magnet, known
as the generator, and it produces the electricity.

3. Fossil Fuel/Steam/Heat - Oil is burned to heat water which makes

steam. Steam moves the turbine blades that turn a shaft inside the generator.
The shaft spins the coil of wire inside a magnet in the generator that produces
a current of electricity.
What are the main components of a DC generator?

A DC generator is an electrical machine which converts mechanical energy

into direct current electricity.
1. Stator - The main function of
the stator is to provide magnetic fields
where the coil spins. A stator includes
two magnets with opposite polarity
facing each other. These magnets are
located to fit in the region of the rotor.
2. Rotor - A rotor in a DC machine
includes slotted iron laminations with
slots that are stacked to shape a
cylindrical armature core. The
function of the lamination is to
decrease the loss caused due to “Eddy
Current”.
3. Commutator - A commutator
works like a rectifier that changes AC
voltage to DC voltage within the
armature winding. It is designed with
Hydraulic turbine and electrical generator,
a copper segment, and each copper cutaway view on commons.wikemedia.org from
segment is protected from each other https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Water
_turbine_(en_2).svg
with the help of mica sheets. It is
located on the shaft of the machine.

4. Brushes – The Brushes are in constant contact with the commutator

and are attached to the wires leading from the generator. The commutator
spins while the brushes remain stationary, transferring current from the
commutator.
5. Shaft – The shaft transfers mechanical energy to the generator and
turns the coil through the magnetic field. The shaft may be turned by a
turbine that operates with water, steam or air, or by other means.
Difference between the AC Generator and the DC Generator

• AC generator produces AC electrical power whereas DC generator

produces DC electrical power
• In DC generator the current flows in one direction whereas in the
AC generators current reverses periodically.
• In DC generator split rings are used they wear out quickly in AC
generator slip rings are used, so they have high efficiency.
• AC generators are used for small domestic applications whereas
DC generators used to power large motors.
What are the top Uses of Generator?

• Back -Up power for your house

• Stand-by power for businesses
• Temporary power in a construction site
• Permanent power to a farm
• Helping main source of electricity to supply the total power
required
• Pop concerts, events, and exhibitions
• Caravans/Camping in remote locations Outdoor catering
facilities

What is an electric motor?

Figure 1: “Electric Motor” illustrated by Richard C.

Paragas
ELECTRIC MOTOR

➢ Anything that changes electricity into motion, meaning electrical

energy into mechanical energy is called an
electric motor.

Basic Principles

➢ Danish physicist HANS CHRISTIAN

ØRSTED began a new scientific era when he
discovered that electricity and magnetism
are linked. He showed by experiment that an
H.C. Ørsted by Christoffer
electric current flowing through a wire could Wilhelm Eckersberg on
move a nearby magnet. commons.wikimedia.org from
https://tinyurl.com/HCOrsted

➢ The discovery of ELECTROMAGNETISM set the stage for the

eventual development of our modern technology-based world.
How do Electric Motors work?

➢ Motors work through the principles of ELECTROMAGNETISM. If

you run electricity through a wire, it creates a magnetic field. If you
coil the wire around a rod and run electricity through the wire, it
creates a magnetic field around the rod. One end of the rod will have
a north magnetic pole and the other will have a south pole. Opposite
poles attract one another, like poles repel. When you surround that
rod with other magnets, the rod will rotate from the attractive and
repulsive forces.

What are the parts of an electric

motor?

Electric motor designs can vary

quite a lot, though in general they have
three main parts: a rotor, a stator and a
commutator. These three parts use the
attractive and repulsive forces
of electromagnetism, causing the motor Figure 2: “Parts of the Electric Motor” illustrated by
to spin continually as long as it receives Richard C. Paragas

a steady flow of electric current.

A. THE STATOR

Every electric motor has two essential parts; one stationary, and one that
rotates. The stationary part is the stator. Though configurations vary, the
stator is most often a permanent magnet or row of magnets lining the edge of
the motor casing, which is usually a round plastic drum.

B. THE ROTOR

Inserted into the stator is the rotor, usually consisting of copper wire wound
into a coil around an axle. When electric current flows through the coil, the
resulting magnetic field pushes against the field created by the stator, and
makes the axle spin

C. THE COMMUTATOR

1. BASICS – An electric motor has another important component, the

commutator, which sits at one end of the coil. It is a metal ring divided into
two halves. It reverses the electrical current in the coil each time the coil
rotates half a turn. The commutator periodically reverses the current between
the rotor and the external circuit, or the battery. This ensures that the ends
of coils do not move in opposite directions, and ensures that the axle spins in
one direction.

2. MAGNETIC POLES – BRUSHES AND TERMINALS. At one end of the

motor are the brushes and the terminals. They are at the opposite end from
where the rotor exits the motor casing. The brushes send electrical current to
the commutator and are typically made of graphite. The terminals are the
locations where the battery attaches to the motor and sends the currents to
spin the rotor.

Difference between the AC Motor and the DC Motor

• In the AC Motor, the source of power is AC mains supply whereas in DC

motor power is obtained from batteries.
• In AC motors no commutators and brushes are used whereas in DC
motors these play an important part in their operation.
• In AC motors the armature is stationary and the magnetic field rotates
whereas in DC motors it is vice versa.
• AC motors are suitable for large industrial applications whereas DC
motors are suitable for domestic applications.

APPLICATIONS OF ELECTRIC MOTOR

Electric motors are extremely

important in modern-day life. They
are used in food processors, vacuum
cleaners, dishwashers,
computer printers, fax machines,
video recorders, machine tools,
printing presses, automobiles,
subway systems, sewage treatment
plants, and water pumping stations,
to mention only a few
applications. Figure 3: Example of the applications of
Electric motor in automobile and food processor/blender.

Comparison of Motor and Generator

A motor and generator perform opposite functions, but their fundamental

structure is the same. Their structure is a “coil mounted on an axle within
a magnetic field”. An electric motor is used to produce rotational motion
from electrical supply. In a motor, an electric current is passed through the
coil. The coil then creates a magnetic field that interacts with the already
existing magnetic field. This interaction forces the coil to rotate.
For a motor, the input energy is electrical energy and the useful output
energy is mechanical energy.

The generator is used to produce an electric current from rotational motion

(on large scale power stations a “turbine” is used to provide this rotation). In
a generator, the rotation causes the coil to rotate inside the magnetic field.
This induces an alternating current in the coil.

For generator the input energy is mechanical energy and the useful
output energy is electrical energy.
In power stations, it is usually the magnet which is attached to the axel and
rotates with the coils surrounding the magnet. However, the end result is the
same.

The motor and the generator are almost similar from the construction
point of view, as both have stator and rotor.
The differences between Motor and Generator are as follows:

• The motor converts electric energy into mechanical energy, whereas,

generator does the opposite.
• Electricity is used in the motor, but the generator produces the
electricity.
• An example of motor is an electric car or bike where electric current is
supplied to the machine or device and it gets converted to mechanical
motion and, as a result, the car or bike moves. The example of generator
is that in power stations, the turbine is used as a device which converts
mechanical energy from the force of water falling from the dam to
generate electric energy.