Name:Mohamed Tarek Talaat

Mail:mohamedeng0128@gmail.com

Course:power factor and harmonics

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 Power factor and harmonics
✓ Power factor correction and harmonic mitigation provide immediate benefit in terms of
reduced power losses, reduced electricity bill, and the possibility to use the total system
capacity
✓ Power factor correction benefits are:

• Reduction of electricity bill by 5 to 10% typically,

• Reduction of power losses – which helps to prevent transformers and panels from
overheating

• Reduction of cable size, bringing reduced cost and easier implementation

• Compliance with harmonic emission limits requested by utilities prior to connection

• Improvement in process quality. For example, spot welding for car body assembly is sensitive
to voltage fluctuations linked to poor power factor.

• Improvement of system availability and reliability. Harmonics can cause protection devices to
trip, disrupting production and causing nuisance

• Improvement in business performance: Optimized use of electricity, no disruption of

operation and longer equipment life expectation.
✓ Harmonics are superimposed waves, whose frequencies are multiples of the power
frequency. The multiplying factor is called "harmonic order"
✓ The presence of harmonics in electrical systems means that current and voltage are
distorted and deviate from sinusoidal waveforms
✓ The flow of harmonic currents through system impedances in turn creates voltage
harmonics, which distort the supply voltage.
✓ Non-leaniar load Examples are:
1-Industrial equipment (welding machines, arc and induction furnaces, battery chargers)
2- Variable Speed Drives for AC or DC motors
3- Uninterruptible Power Supplies
4- Office equipment (PCs, printers, servers),
5- Household appliances (TV sets, microwave ovens, fluorescent lighting, light dimmers).

✓ Voltage fluctuation is a systematic variation of the voltage waveform or a series of

random voltage changes of small dimensions, namely 95 to 105% of nominal at a low
frequency caused by motor start-up and spot welding a possible impact of voltage
fluctuation disturbances is a light flicker.

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✓ Voltage fluctuations are the consequences of variable voltage drop along the distribution
lines and across transformer windings. This voltage drop is mainly the consequence of
the circulation of reactive energy absorbed by loads such as motors
✓ For sinusoidal voltage and current with a phase angle, the Power Factor is equal to cos of
the angle, called Displacement Power Factor (DPF).
✓ Desktop personal computers present a nonlinear load to the AC supply. This is inherent
to the power supply design known as "capacitor input, switch mode power supply". In a
study done by PC Magazine, it was found that typical personal computer systems exhibit
a power factor of .65
✓ Information Technology equipment including servers, routers, hubs, and storage systems
almost universally use a different power supply design known as "Power Factor
Corrected.These devices present a very linear load to the AC supply and do not generate
harmonic currents
✓ Today all of these loads are subject to international regulation IEC 1000-3-2 which
require them to be made with the "Power Factor Corrected" design.
✓ When voltage and current are phase-shifted, the instantaneous power (P = V x I) is
negative when the signal signs are opposite. The average power is then reduced.
✓ With a distorted current, the instantaneous power is negative or close to zero during a
significant period of time. The average power is then also reduced
✓ When voltage and current are purely sinusoidal curves, but phase-shifted by an angle
phi. With displacement power factor (abbreviated to DPF) = cos phi = 0.7, the rms
current is equal to 1.43 x I, so it is increased by more than 40% for the same active
power
✓ When the current is distorted, such that the Total Harmonic Distortion (THDi) is equal to
100%. THDi is an indicator of the amount of distortion on the signal. Then, by using
calculations not detailed in this course, the resulting rms current is equal to 1.41 x I, so
again increased by more than 40% for the same active power
✓ The higher current means additional losses, more CO2 emissions, premature aging of
equipment, higher electricity cost, nuisance tripping of over-current detection relays,
higher equipment cost, and possible voltage fluctuations. The circulation of harmonic
currents through the system impedance creates voltage harmonics resulting in voltage
distortion.
✓ power factor correction (PFC) and proper harmonic mitigation contribute to improve
competitiveness of companies in different ways: • Reduced overloading on the electrical
system, thereby releasing useable capacity. This could avoid the installation of an
additional transformer in case of extension of the installation, • Reduced system losses
and demand power, • Reduced risks of outage, and • Extended equipment lifetime
✓ Benefits of power factor correction and harmonic mitigation are Reduced electricity bill;
Reduced power losses Low power factor and harmonics are responsible for increased
current for a given active power and for additional losses. • Reduced cable size so

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 reduced current means less expensive cables and easier-to-install cables; Improved
process quality or machine operation may be impaired by voltage fluctuations linked to
variations of reactive energy. The same problems may be produced by a high level of
distortion, producing disturbances of sensitive equipment (computer management
system, sensors); Improved business performance Capex is reduced by lower cost of
equipment such as transformer, cables, and switchgear. Opex is reduced by reduction of
power losses, reduction of subscribed power, and elimination of reactive energy
penalties. System availability and reliability are improved.
✓ Monitoring is the best diagnostics tool It provides: • An early warning of impending
problems which may appear after a change of circuit configuration • Determination of
the nature and origin of a disturbance. For example, monitoring can indicate whether
the disturbance originates inside or outside the installation • Validation of quality
contract compliance
✓ Some examples of Monitoring Equipment include: • Power monitors and circuit
monitors: PowerLogic PM, CM, and ION Series’ • Protection relays: Sepam • Trip units:
Micrologic
✓ solutions include: • Capacitor banks: Varset • Transient-free capacitor switching: Varset
Fast • Harmonic filters: Accusine, Sinewave • Fast reactive energy compensators:
Accusine, Sinewave
✓ Capacitor banks are the basic solution for power factor correction. The main objective is
to avoid reactive energy penalties charged by the utility. Equipment may be connected
at different levels in the installation: MV substation, LV main switchboard, LV secondary
switchboard, and machine terminals.
✓ Compensation of an installation is determined in 4 steps: 1. Calculation of reactive
power 2. Selection of compensation mode (global, by sector, local) 3. Selection of
compensation type (fixed, by steps, dynamic) 4. Consideration of harmonics
• global compensation, the capacitor bank is connected at the supply end of the
installation. This is ideal for stable and continuous loads.
• compensation by sectors, the capacitor bank is connected at the supply end of
the sector to be compensated. This is ideal for extended installations including
workshops with varying load systems.
• individual (or local) compensation, the capacitor bank is directly connected to
the terminals of the machine (generally motors). This is the best technical
solution because reactive energy is supplied where it is needed.
✓ The third step is selection of compensation type (fixed, automatic by steps, or dynamic)
Different types of compensation shall be adopted depending on the performance
requirements and complexity of control
✓ Fixed, by connection of a fixed-value capacitor bank, Automatic, by connection of
different number of steps, allowing the adjustment of the reactive energy to the
requested value, - Dynamic, for compensation of highly fluctuating loads.

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✓ For fixed compensation. This arrangement uses one or more capacitor(s) to provide a
constant level of compensation. Control may be either: • Manual: by circuit-breaker or
load-break switch, • Semi-automatic: by contactor, • Direct connection to an appliance
and switched with it.
These capacitors are applied: • At the terminals of inductive loads (mainly motors), • At
busbars supplying numerous small motors and inductive appliances for which individual
compensation would be too costly, in cases where the load factor is reasonably constant.

✓ Automatic compensation. This kind of compensation provides automatic control and

adapts the quantity of reactive power to the variations of the installation in order to
maintain the targeted cos phi. The equipment is applied at points in an installation
where the active power and/or reactive power variations are relatively large, for
example: • At the busbars of a main distribution switch-board, • At the terminals of a heavily-
loaded feeder cable
Where the kvar rating of the capacitors is less than, or equal to 15% of the supply
transformer rating, a fixed value of compensation is appropriate. Above the 15% level, it
is advisable to install an automaticallycontrolled bank of capacitors. Control is usually
provided by contactors. For compensation of highly fluctuating loads, fast and highly
repetitive connection of capacitors is necessary, and static switches must be used.

✓ Dynamic compensation. This kind of compensation is requested when fluctuating loads

are present, and voltage fluctuations should be avoided. The principle of dynamic
compensation is to associate a fixed capacitor bank and an electronic var compensator,
providing either leading or lagging reactive currents. The result is a continuously varying
and fast compensation, perfectly suitable for loads such as lifts, crushers, and spot
welding.
✓ In the presence of harmonics, two parameters shall be considered: Gh: Total power of
the nonlinear loads Sn: Rated power of the supply transformer
✓ Different types of equipment must be selected depending on the level of the network
harmonic emission. The selection is based on the value of the Gh/Sn ratio

Oversized capacitors must be selected when Gh/Sn exceeds 15% because harmonic
currents will be responsible for increased stress. When Gh/Sn exceeds 25%, a series
reactor is necessary to limit the circulation of harmonic currents, harmful to the
capacitors. This is called a detuned reactor because capacitors and reactor are set up in a
resonant circuit configuration, not tuned to the frequency of any harmonic order. Passive
filters are implemented when power factor correction is requested with a high level of
existing harmonic distortion. They consist of reactors and capacitors set up in a resonant
configuration, tuned to the frequency of the harmonic order to be eliminated.
A system may be composed of a number of filters to eliminate several harmonic orders

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✓ Methods to mitigate harmonics from the system we have active filters. Active filters are
systems employing power electronics, to provide the harmonic currents required by
nonlinear loads and thereby avoiding distortion on the power system. The active filter
injects, in opposite phase, the harmonics drawn by the load, such that the line current
remains sinusoidal.
✓ Then there are hybrid filters. Hybrid filters are systems including a passive filter and an
active filter in a single unit. They cumulate the advantages of both technologies,
providing a high performance and cost effective solution. Active or hybrid filters are also
capable of compensating the fluctuations of reactive energy. In this mode of operation,
they are also known as "Static Var Compensators" (SVC) or "Hybrid Var Compensators"
(HVC)
✓ Mitigating variable speed drive (VSD) power problems:Capacitor-less (C-less) technology,
combined with an advanced control algorithm, decreases the THDi by 50% compared to
traditional technology. This solution, which is dedicated to centrifugal pumps, fans and
HVAC machines.
✓ AC-Line or DC-link reactors (chokes) are commonly used with drives up to about 500 kW
unit power in order to smooth the line current and so reduce the distortion. When a
large number of drives are present within an installation, the use of AC-line or DC-link
chokes for each individual drive is recommended. This measure increases the lifetime of
the drives and enables use of cost effective mitigation solutions at installation level, such
as active filters for example.
✓ A special configuration called "Multi-pulse arrangement" is usually used for drives above
400 kW. Precondition is a dedicated transformer directly supplied from the MV network,
with a 3-winding arrangement. This limits the harmonic emission considerably and
usually no further mitigation is necessary. Multi-pulse solutions are the most efficient in
terms of power losses. Compliance to the most stringent of standards is also easily
achievable
✓ The best performing solution concerning harmonic mitigation with drives is an
electronically controlled circuitry, called "Active Front End" (AFE), limiting the THDi
below 5%. All the applicable standard requirements can be met. No detailed system
evaluation is necessary, making this solution the easiest to implement. In addition to
harmonic mitigation, power regeneration and power factor correction are inherent.

✓ appropriate design affects energy efficiency. In electrical installations three different

aspects should be considered: • Energy savings: reduction of energy consumption, •
Energy cost optimization: reduction of the cost of energy paid to the utility, and •
Availability and reliability: minimize the risk of outage, and also sustain an efficient
equipment operation.