> From: "Stephen A. Lawrence"> > > How can the system be _variable_?
It can't vary. Variances reduce the generator efficiency; but, the system *will* synchronize. During the strike of 1984, I ran the N. GA hydroelectric power system. When we brought the generators on line we had a phasor meter which compared the generator phase to the line phase prior to engaging the generator. You could miss it a bit, but when you missed it a lot, you tripped all sorts of safety systems. It took some anticipation for the 1908 vintage generators to hit it just right; but, our little 12 MWatt generators would instantly synchronize to the line. In the large plants with their 818 MWatt generators, it was all done by computers. Missing with one of those could take the grid down.
