Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
371-380 (2015)
DOI: 10.6180/jase.2015.18.4.08
Abstract
Classically, the aim of the electric power system is to generate electrical energy and to deliver
this energy to the end-user equipment at an acceptable voltage. As nonlinear loads draw harmonic and
reactive power components of current from ac mains, the quality of power deteriorates. This paper
presents a review of the main power quality (PQ) problems with their associated causes and solutions
with codes and standards. This paper concludes with some solutions to mitigate the Power Quality
problems are presented.
Key Words: IEEE 519, Total Harmonic Distortion, Point of Common Coupling, Total Demand
Distortion
1. Introduction
Power quality (PQ) related issues are of most concern nowadays. The widespread use of electronic equipment, such as information technology equipment, power
electronics such as adjustable speed drives (ASD), programmable logic controllers (PLC), energy-efficient lighting, led to a complete change of electric loads nature [13]. These loads are simultaneously the major causers and
the major victims of power quality problems. Due to their
non-linearity, all these loads cause disturbances in the
voltage waveform.
Although many efforts have been taken by utilities,
some consumers require a level of power quality higher
than the level provided by modern electric networks [4].
This implies that some measures must be taken in order
to achieve higher levels of power quality in Figure 1.
This paper provides an overview of major power
quality issues, solutions and related standards based on
an extensive number of publications. The referred publications are mainly extracted from IEEE transactions,
IEEE Magazines, IEEE Proceedings, IEE/IET (Institu*Corresponding author. E-mail: baluanujayen@gmail.com
tion of Electrical Engineers, currently Institution of Engineering and Technology) Proceedings as well as a few,
yet very important Conferences and patent documents on
power quality and power quality improvement modules.
The review will be particularly useful for: 1) power
system designers and researchers engaged in design, optimization, and quality-enhancement activities in todays
competitive environment; 2) practising engineers who
would like to enrich their educational background about
the system interaction aspects of power system for any
application; and 3) undergraduate and postgraduate
students who wish to integrate power quality issues and
solutions with modern computing practices.
The paper starts with a short introduction to power
quality issues (see section 2). In section 3, the solutions
reviewed from various sources for power quality are given.
A detailed literature review on codes and standards related to power quality are illustrated in sections 4. Finally,
section 5 presents the summary and conclusions.
372
Voltage sag
(or dip)
Description: A decrease of the normal voltage level between 10 and 90% of the nominal rms voltage at
the power frequency, for durations of 0, 5 cycle to 1 minute.
Causes: Faults on the transmission or distribution network (most of the times on parallel feeders).
Faults in consumers installation. Connection of heavy loads and start-up of large motors.
Consequences: Malfunction of information technology equipment, namely microprocessor-based
control systems (PCs, PLCs, ASDs, etc) that may lead to a process stoppage. Tripping of contactors and
electromechanical relays. Disconnection and loss of efficiency in electric rotating machines.
Very short
interruptions
Description: Total interruption of electrical supply for duration from few milliseconds to one or two
seconds.
Causes: Mainly due to the opening and automatic reclosure of protection devices to decommission a faulty
section of the network. The main fault causes are insulation failure, lightning and insulator flashover.
Consequences: Tripping of protection devices, loss of information and malfunction of data processing
equipment. Stoppage of sensitive equipment, such as ASDs, PCs, PLCs, if theyre not prepared to deal
with this situation.
Long
interruptions
Description: Total interruption of electrical supply for duration greater than 1 to 2 seconds.
Causes: Equipment failure in the power system network, storms and objects (trees, cars, etc) striking
lines or poles, fire, human error, bad coordination or failure of protection devices.
Consequences: Stoppage of all equipment.
Description: Very fast variation of the voltage value for durations from a several microseconds to few
milliseconds. These variations may reach thousands of volts, even in low voltage.
Voltage spike Causes: Lightning, switching of lines or power factor correction capacitors, disconnection of heavy loads.
Consequences: Destruction of components (particularly electronic components) and of insulation
materials, data processing errors or data loss, electromagnetic interference.
Description: Momentary increase of the voltage, at the power frequency, outside the normal tolerances,
with duration of more than one cycle and typically less than a few seconds.
Causes: Start/stop of heavy loads, badly dimensioned power sources, badly regulated transformers
Voltage swell
(mainly during off-peak hours).
Consequences: Data loss, flickering of lighting and screens, stoppage or damage of sensitive
equipment, if the voltage values are too high.
373
Table 1. Continued
Harmonic
distortion
Description: 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: electric machines working above the knee of the magnetization curve
(magnetic saturation), arc furnaces, welding machines, rectifiers, and DC brush motors. Modern
sources: all non-linear loads, such as power electronics equipment including ASDs, switched mode
power supplies, data processing equipment, high efficiency lighting.
Consequences: Increased probability in occurrence of resonance, neutral overload in 3-phase systems,
overheating of all cables and equipment, loss of efficiency in electric machines, electromagnetic
interference with communication systems, errors in measures when using average reading meters,
nuisance tripping of thermal protections.
Voltage
fluctuation
Description: Oscillation of voltage value, amplitude modulated by a signal with frequency of 0 to 30 Hz.
Causes: Arc furnaces, frequent start/stop of electric motors (for instance elevators), oscillating loads.
Consequences: Most consequences are common to under-voltages. The most perceptible consequence
is the flickering of lighting and screens, giving the impression of unsteadiness of visual perception.
Voltage
unbalance
Description: 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 by the three phases of the system (this may be also due to a fault).
Consequences: 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.
3.5 Super-capacitors
Super-capacitors (also known as ultra-capacitors)
are dc energy sources and must be interfaced to the electric grid with a static power conditioner, providing energy output at the grid frequency. A super-capacitor
374
in parallel may be necessary to eliminate several harmonic components [44]. If the system varies (change of harmonic components), passive filters may become ineffective and cause resonance.
Active filters analyse the current consumed by the
load and create a current that cancel the harmonic current
generated by the loads. Active filters were expensive in
the past, but they are now becoming cost effective compensating for unknown or changing harmonics [45].
Reactor for power quality improvement is a patented
technology [46-49]. The device is installed on a power
line, for removing noise that flows into the power line,
characterized by: a reactor having a first coil and a second coil wound on a core disposed between the input end
and the output ends of the power line, wherein in the reactor the first end of the first coil is connected to the input end of a first power line, the second end of the first
coil is connected to the output end of the first power line,
and the first end of the second coil is connected to the
output end of the second power line, and the second end
of the second coil is connected to the input end of the
second power line.
375
376
Individual
voltage
distortion (%)
Total harmonic
distortion
(THD %)
3
1.5
1
5
2.5
1.5
< 69 kV
69 < 161
161 above
< 11th
11 h < 17
17 h < 23
23 h < 35
35 h
TDD
04
07
10
12
15
2
3.5
4.5
5.5
7
1.5
2.5
4
5
6
0.6
1
1.5
2
2.5
0.3
0.5
0.7
1
1.4
05
08
12
15
20
H < 11
11 < h < 17
17 < h < 23
23 < h < 25
h > 35
TDD
< 50
> 50
2
3
1
1.5
0.75
1.15
.30
.45
.15
.22
2.50
3.75
power, virtually free of frequency excursions and voltage dips, surges, and transients.
377
378
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