POWER QUALITY

Presenting by:
V.KRUPAKARA CHARY
15011D4905
 What is Power Quality??
 A utility may define power quality as reliability and show statistics
demonstrating that its system is 99.9 percent reliable

 A manufacturer of load equipment may define power quality as those

characteristics of the power supply that enable the equipment to work
properly

 Power quality is ultimately a consumer-driven issue

PQ mainly deals with
1.Continuity of the supply
2.Quality of the voltage

POWER QUALITY ISSUE

“Any power problem manifested in voltage, current, or frequency
deviations that results in failure or misoperation of customer
equipment”
 SCOPE

 For economic operation of power systems

 Power system design
 Future growth
 For optimization and reliable operation
 To meet the growing needs for standardization
and performance criteria
 Power Quality Events
 Voltage surges
 Harmonic distortion
 Voltage spikes
 Noise
 Voltage sag
 Short interruptions
 Voltage swell
 Long interruptions
 Voltage fluctuations
&flickering
 VOLTAGE SURGES
It is a voltage rise that endangers the insulation of electric
equipment.
Causes:
• Shutdown of heavily loaded circuits.
• Switching events such as the connection or disconnection of a
current and short-circuiting to ground.

Effects:
• Computers and other sensitive electronic equipment can seriously
be damaged by such an over-voltage surge.
• Temporal fluctuations produce parity errors and interrupts
protection systems.
 VOLTAGE SPIKES
In electrical engineering, spikes are fast, short duration
electrical transients in voltage.
Causes:
• Lightning strikes
• Power outages
• Tripped circuit breakers
• Short circuits
Effects:
voltage spikes may be created by a rapid buildup or decay of a
magnetic field, which may be induced into another circuit.
• Malfunction of microprocessor-based
control systems that may lead to a process
stoppage
 VOLTAGE SAG (DIP)
The decrease of nominal voltage level between 10-90
percent of the nominal rms voltage for the duration of
0.5 cycles to 1 minute.
Causes:
• Faults in the transmission or
distribution network
• Connection of heavy loads and
start-up of large motors
Effects:
• Tripping of contactors and electro-magnetic relays
• Disconnection and loss of efficiency in electric rotating
machines
 VOLTAGE SWELL
Momentary increase of the voltage, at the power frequency,
outside the normal tolerances, with the duration of more
than one cycle and typically less than few seconds.
Causes:
Start/stop of heavy loads, badly dimensioned power sources,
badly regulated transformers (mainly during off-peak hours).
Effects:
Data loss, flickering of lighting and screens, stoppage or
damage of sensitive equipment, if the voltage values are too
high.
 VOLTAGE FLUCTUATION & FLICKERING
Fluctuation is oscillation of voltage value. And flickering is a
visible change in brightness of lamp
Causes:
Arc furnaces, frequent start/
stop of electric motors,
oscillating loads. 

Effects:
• Most consequences are common
to under-voltages.
• Filament of can be damaged.
•  Reduction in life of electrical equipment
 VOLTAGE FLUCTUATIONS

• Max Permissible Voltage Variation - 1.5%.

NOMINAL SYSTEM VOLTAGE (KV RMS) MAXIMUM

(KV RMS)
MINIMUM (KV
RMS)

765 800 728

400 420 380
220 245 198
132 145 122
110 121 99
66 72 60
33 36 30
OVER VOLTAGES

• “Increase in the RMS ac voltage greater than 110

percent at the power frequency for a duration longer
than 1min”

• CAUSE
– Switching off a large load
– Energizing a capacitor bank
 UNDER VOLTAGE

• “Decrease in the RMS ac voltage less than 90 percent

at the power frequency for a duration longer than 1
min”
• CAUSE
– Switching ON a large load
– De-energizing a capacitor bank
 VOLTAGE UNBALANCE
A voltage variation in a three-phase system in which the
three voltage magnitudes or the phase angle differences
between them are not equal.
Causes:
Large single-phase loads
(induction furnaces, traction loads),
incorrect distribution of all
single-phase loads
(this may be also due to a fault).
Effects:
Unbalanced systems imply the existence of a negative
sequence that is harmful to all three phase loads. The most
affected loads are three-phase induction machines.
 HARMONIC DISTORTION
Voltage or current waveforms assume non-sinusoidal shape.
The waveform corresponds to the sum of different sine waves
with different magnitude and phase, having frequencies that
are multiples of power-system frequency.
Causes:
• Classic sources: arc furnaces,
welding machines, rectifiers and
DC brush motors.
• Modern sources: all non-linear loads
Effects:
Increased probability in occurrence of resonance, overheating
of all cables and equipment, loss of efficiency in electric
machines, electromagnetic interference with communication
systems.
 NOISE
Superimposing of high frequency signals on
the waveform of the power-system frequency.
Causes:
• Electromagnetic interferences.
• Improper grounding.
Effects:
Disturbances on sensitive electronic
equipment usually not destructive. May cause
data loss and data processing errors.
 NOTCHING
• “Periodic voltage disturbance caused by the normal
operation of power electronic devices”

CAUSE EFFECTS SOLUTION

• 3-phase power • Injects harmonics to • Isolation of sensitive

electronic the supply. devices.

converter. • Causes over heating

 SHORT INTERRUPTIONS
Interruption of electrical supply for a duration of few milli
seconds to one or two seconds.
Causes:
• Mainly due to opening and
automatic enclosure of
protection devices
• Insulation failure, lightning and
insulation flash-over
Effects:
• Tripping of protection devices, loss of information and
malfunction of data processing equipment.
• Stoppage of sensitive equipment, such as PCs, PLCs, if they
are not prepared to deal with this situation.
 LONG INTERRUPTIONS
Total interruption of electrical supply for
duration greater than 1 to 2 seconds.
Causes:
Equipment failure in the power system
network, storms and objects
striking lines or poles, fire,
human error, bad coordination
or failure of protection devices.
Effects:
Stoppage of all the equipment
MITIGATION TECHNIQUES
 MITIGATING DEVICES

Dynamic voltage restorer

Distribution static compensators
Static VAR compensators
Harmonic filters
Noise filters
Transient voltage suppressors
Unified power quality conditioning
DYNAMIC VOLTAGE RESTORER

2
 Distribution Static Compensators
Inject the pulses which are exactly 180 degrees
out of phase of the unwanted harmonics , thus
cancelling out the unwanted harmonics and yielding the
output wave, very close in nature to the fundamental
wave
 Static VAR Compensators

 Static VAR compensators (SVR) use a combination of capacitors

and reactors to regulate the voltage quickly.
 Solid-state switches control the insertion of the capacitors and
reactors at the right magnitude to prevent voltage from fluctuating.
 Transient Voltage Surgé suppressors (TVSS)

• Transient voltage surge

suppressors are used as interface
between the power source and
sensitive loads, so that the
transient voltage is clamped by
the TVSS before it reaches the
load.
• It has a component with a
nonlinear resistance that limits
excessive line voltage and
conduct any excess impulse
energy to ground.
Harmonic Filters
 Noise Filters

 Noise filters are used to avoid

unwanted frequency current or voltage
signals (noise) from reaching sensitive
equipment.
 This can be accomplished by using a
combination of capacitors and
inductances that creates a low
impedance path to the fundamental
frequency and high impedance to higher
frequencies, that is, a low-pass filter.
Unified Power Quality Conditioning

• It is the combination of DVR and DSTATCOM

•Shunt active filters eliminate the harmonics,
•Series active filters allow the passage of only the
fundamental wave.
IMPACT ON SOCIETY AND ENVIRONMENT
 The mitigation of all the power quality related issues leads to
the economic operation of the power system.
 A technically sound quality of power will be supplied to the
equipments, thereby leading to their smooth operation and
ensuring a long life for them.
 The elimination of harmonics and other issues leads to the
proper operation of the system, thereby eliminating the
unwanted vibrations and keeping the system stable.
 The reactive power is compensated at an acceptable and
affordable cost and thus, the system efficiency improves.
 The power factor is improved; this leads to a heavy savage in
the costs of electricity bills.

Above all, the problem of power pollution is eliminated. 

 Conclusion

• POWER QUALITY maintenance is an

important aspect for the economic operation
of a system.
• So, Proper mitigation devices can be used to
maintain the level of power quality as desired.