What is a Buck-Boost transformer and why is it used?
Isolation transformers have separate primary and secondary windings, electrically insulated and isolated from one another. With a relatively high voltage primary (typically 120, 240 or 480 Volts) and a relatively low voltage secondary (typically 12, 16, 24, 32 or 48 Volts), buck-boost transformers are designed to be field connected as autotransformers. These are transformers with one continuous winding, a portion of which is jointly shared be tween the input and the output. No electrical isolation is present in an au totrans form er. Buck-Boost transformers have two major uses: • When field connected as an autotransformer, they can be used to Buck (lower) or Boost (raise) available line voltage in the range of 5 to 27% and at a KVA rating many times that listed on the transformer nameplate. • When left as an isolation transformer, they can be used to supply power to low voltage circuits at the name plate rating listed.
