3/8/2021 Power Factor - An overview

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Power Factor - An Overview

beer analogy power factor power factor calculation power factor
correction power triangle Dec 25, 2019

We often hear the term 'Power Factor' in electrical power systems. But,
how do we define 'Power Factor' in an electrical world?

In this article, we will be discussing power factor in detail including its

significance, adversity, calculations and a few methods for improving
power.

Power Factor:
Power Factor can be defined as the ratio between Real Power (Watts)
and Apparent Power (VA). In simpler words, it tells how effectively your
device utilizes electricity. We already know that the apparent power is
the combination of Real power (kW) and Reactive power (kVAR).

Beer Analogy:
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3/8/2021 Power Factor - An overview

A simple diagram can be illustrated to

understand Power Factor considering the following analogy. The
combination of drinkable beer(kW) and foam (kVAR) inside the mug
represents the Apparent Power (kVA). That said, Power Factor is simply
the ratio of Real Power (kW) to Apparent Power (kVA) and is represented
by the following formula: PF = kW / kVA. Using
our beer analogy, you can write the formula like this:

PF = Beer / Drinkable Beer + Foam

Power Triangle:
As Apparent Power is made up of two parts, the resistive power (the in-
phase power in watts) and the reactive power (the out-of-phase power in
volt-amperes), we can show the vector addition of these two power
components in the form of a power triangle.

A power triangle has four parts: P, Q, S and θ.

The three elements which make up power in an AC circuit can be

represented graphically by the three sides of a right-angled triangle as
the previous impedance triangle. The horizontal (adjacent) side
represents the circuits' real power (P), the vertical (opposite) side
represents the circuits reactive power (Q) and the hypotenuse represents
the resulting apparent power (S) of the power triangle as shown below.

Power Triangle of an AC Circuit:

Where:
P is the I2*R or Real Power that performs work measured in watts,
W
Q is the I2*X or Reactive Power measured in volt-amperes
reactive, VAr
S is the I2*Z or Apparent Power measured in volt-amperes, VA
Φ is the phase angle in degrees. The larger the phase angle, the
greater the reactive power
Cos(Φ) = P/S = W/VA = power factor, p.f
Sin(Φ) = Q/S = VAr/VA
Tan(Φ) = Q/P = VAr/W

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The power factor is calculated as the ratio of the Real Power to

the Apparent Power as the ratio equals cos(Φ).

Low Power Factor is majorly caused by the huge inductive load which
causes the reactive power to increase in magnitude, ultimately dropping
the power factor. As discussed above, the lower power factor doesn't
allow effective usage of electric power. From an industrial point of
view, this low power factor results in the following causes.

Hello there! On a related topic, we previously wrote a blog

about POWER FLOW ANALYSIS. If this peaks your interest, check
it out and let us know what you think

Causes of Low Power Factor:

The main cause of the low Power factor is Inductive Load. Current lags
90° from the voltage in a purely inductive circuit. This huge difference in
phase angle between current and voltage causes zero power factor.

All circuits having capacitance or inductance have a power factor due to

a difference of phase angle (θ) between current and voltage. An
exception to this rule are resonance circuits (also called tuned circuits),
where inductive reactance is equal to capacitive reactance (XL = Xc), so
the circuit becomes a resistive circuit.

Following are the causes of low Power factor:

1. Single phase and three phase induction motors. Usually, Induction

motor works at poor power factor i.e. at:

Full load, Pf = 0.8 -0.9

Small load, Pf = 0.2 -0.3

No Load, Pf may drop to Zero (0)

2. Varying Load in Power System (when the power system is lightly

loaded, the ratio of real power to reactive power is reduced, resulting in
a decreased power factor).

3. Industrial heating furnaces.

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4. Electrical discharge lamps (High-intensity discharge lighting) Arc lamps

(which operate at a very low power factor).

5. Transformers.

6. Harmonic Currents.

Power Factor Unit:

Since power factor is the ratio of active power and apparent power, it has
no unit. That said, it is the quantitative measure of how much effective
power is being used, without a unit.

Power Factor Calculations:

It is imperative to know that power factor is only calculated for AC
currents and circuits both for single phase and three phase. Following
are some of the helpful formulae which can help in calculating the power
factor of single and three phase circuit.

Single Phase Three Phase L- Three Phase L-

L N

Main PF = |cos φ| = PF = |cos φ| = PF = |cos φ| =

Calculation 1000 × P(kW) / 1000 × P(kW) / 1000 × P(kW) /
(V(V) × I(A)) (√3 × VL-L(V) × (3 × VL-N(V) ×
I(A)) I(A))

Apparent |S(kVA)| = V(V) × |S(kVA)| = √3 × |S(kVA)| = 3 ×

Power I(A) / 1000 VL-L(V) × I(A) / VL-N(V) × I(A) /
1000 1000

Real Power Q(kVAR) = Q(kVAR) = Q(kVAR) =

√(|S(kVA)|2 - √(|S(kVA)|2 - √(|S(kVA)|2 -
P(kW)2) P(kW)2) P(kW)2)

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Capacitor Scorrected (kVA) Qc (kVAR) = Qc (kVAR) =

Capacitance = P(kW) / Q(kVAR) - Q(kVAR) -
PFcorrected Qcorrected (kVAR) Qcorrected (kVAR)
Qcorrected (kVAR) C(F) = 1000 × C(F) = 1000 ×
= √(Scorrected Qc (kVAR) / Qc (kVAR) /
2- P(kW)2) (2πf(Hz)×VL- (3×2πf(Hz)×VL-
(kVA)
Qc (kVAR) = 2 2
L(V) ) N(V) )
Q(kVAR) -
Qcorrected (kVAR)
C(F) = 1000 ×
Qc (kVAR) /
(2πf(Hz)×V(V)2)

Power Factor Correction:

Power factor correction can be defined as the method of improving
power factor value to make it reach unity or nearby unity value, such that
the angle between voltage and current reduces. The following are the
factors to be considered when carrying out power factor correction in
three main conditions:

When you design an AC source, such as generator, you need to

make sure it will handle specified range of load power factors.
Alternatively, you may need to specify a minimum allowable PF of
the equipment powered from this source. For example, a capacitive
load can make an electric generator unstable.
When you design an AC-powered electronic power supply, you
may have to meet the PF and harmonic limits of the applicable
standards and/or specific requirements of the upstream source.
This is usually accomplished by introducing active or passive power
factor correction (PFC) circuit internal to the power supply.
When you deal with electrical system in an industrial or commercial
facility where the load properties are given, you may need to add
external components (such as PFC capacitors) to raise the PF to an
acceptable level to avoid surcharge or penalty fee.

Importance of Power Factor

Correction:
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Low Power Factor can be a problem for both consumers and generating
utilities/stations, thus its improvement is vital for both:

For Consumers: The consumer pays the bill based on two factors; first, is
his maximum demand in kVA and the units consumed. When the power
factor is low, it causes maximum demand of power (kVA) to
increase, resulting in an increased bill. That is why, Power Factor
correction is performed, to reduce the total bill amount and annual
saving.

For Generating Stations: The rating of generators is done in kVA but

only kW is a useful output. As station output is kW = kVA x cos Φ,Power
Factor determines the number of generated units. Power factor is desired
to be as high as possible for a high kilo-watt hour rating, since it
improves the cost and earing capacity of the station.

Principles of Balanced systems, how power factor affects the

performance of systems and techniques which we can employ to
improve the power factor. Check out Power System Analysis
Fundamentals Course in which we briefly discussed "Introduction to the
Power Factor".

Meeting the increased KW demand

in Power Stations:
The useful output of a power station is the kW output delivered by it to
the supply system. Sometimes, a power station is required to deliver
more kW to meet the increase in power demand. This can be achieved
by either of the following two methods:

1. By increasing the kVA capacity of the power station at the same

power factor (say cos Φ1). Obviously, extra cost will be incurred to
increase the kVA capacity of the station.
2. By improving the power factor of the station from cos Φ1 to cos
Φ2 without increasing the kVA capacity of the station. This will also
involve extra cost on account of power factor correction
equipment.

Knowing about power factor is very crucial for any electrical power
system as it tells the amount of power wasted (Reactive Power) and
consumed (Real Power) by it. Taking corrective measures will result in
reduced power losses, increased voltage stability and eventually result in
lowering the electric utility bills.
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