PED 10EE6117

POWER QUALITY ISSUES

&
REMEDIAL MEASURES

8/12/2016 1
 Voltage imbalance
A variation in the amplitude of the three phase voltages
relative to one another
Causes
• Blown fuses in one phase of a three phase system
• Single phasing of machines
• Large single-phase loads (induction furnaces, traction
loads)
• Incorrect distribution of single-phase loads by the three
phases of the system (this may be also due to a fault).

8/12/2016 2
 Voltage imbalance

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.
8/12/2016 3
 Waveform Distortion

8/12/2016 4
______________________________________________________________________________
 Wave form distortion
Steady state deviation from an ideal sine wave,
principally characterized by its spectral content
Causes:
Classic sources : Electric machines working above
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.
8/12/2016 5
 Wave form distortion
Consequences:
• Increased probability of 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.
8/12/2016 6
 Types of Wave form distortion

– DC offset
– Harmonics
– Inter harmonics
– Notching
– Noise

8/12/2016 7
 DC offset
• Presence of a DC voltage or current in an AC system
Caused by
• Geomagnetic disturbance or asymmetry of electronic
power converters
Effects
• Saturation of transformer cores during normal operation
• Additional heating & loss of transformer life
• Electrolytic erosion of grounding electrodes and other
connectors

8/12/2016 8
 DC offset
V V

8/12/2016 9
 Harmonics
• Sinusoidal voltages or currents having frequencies
that are integer multiples of supply frequency

8/12/2016 10
8/12/2016 11
 Inter harmonics
• Voltages or currents having frequency components
that are not integer multiples of fundamental
frequency. They can appear as discrete frequencies
or as a wide band spectrum
Sources
• Static frequency converters, cyclo converters,
induction furnaces & arcing devices

8/12/2016 12
 Inter harmonics

8/12/2016 13
 Inter harmonics

• Not often constant but varies with load

• Can excite severe resonances on the power system
• Affects power line carrier signaling
• Induces flicker in fluorescent & other arc lighting
devices.

8/12/2016 14
 Notching
• It is a periodic voltage disturbance cause by normal
operation of power electronic devices when current is
commuted from one phase to the other,
• Momentary short circuit between the two phases
• Adds undesirable harmonics to the load voltage
• Reduces the average value of voltage

8/12/2016 15
 Notching

8/12/2016 16
 Noise
• The electrical noise that is caused by a low-voltage, high-
frequency (but lower than 200-Hz) signal superimposed on
the 50-Hz fundamental waveform.

8/12/2016 17
 Noise

This type of electrical noise may be transmitted

through the air or wires.
High voltage lines, arcing from operating disconnect
switches, start-up of large motors, radio and TV
stations, switched mode power supplies, loads with
solid-state rectifiers, fluorescent lights, and power
electronic devices can all cause this type of noise

8/12/2016 18
 Noise
Causes:
– Caused by PE devices, control circuits, arcing
equipment, loads with SS rectifiers and switching
power supplies
– Aggravated by improper grounding that fails to
conduct the noise away from PS.

Consequences:
Disturbances on sensitive electronic equipment, usually
not destructive. May cause data loss and data
processing errors.Can be minimized by using filters ,
isolation transformers and line conditioners
8/12/2016 19
 Voltage fluctuations
Systematic variations of the voltage waveform envelope, or a
series of random voltage changes, the magnitude of which falls
between the voltage limits 0.1% to 7% of nominal voltage with
frequencies less than 25 Hz .
Causes:
• Frequent start/stop of electric motors (eg elevators),
oscillating loads
• Cyclo-converters, arc furnaces, static frequency converters,
rolling mill drives etc.
• Capacitor switching, transformer on load tap changers, step
voltage regulators etc
8/12/2016 20
8/12/2016 21
 Flicker
• Voltage fluctuations can result in variations in the
lighting intensity due to an effect known as “flicker”
which is visible to the end user
• Can cause personal fatigue and lower work concentration
and affect production
• Voltage fluctuation is an electromagnetic phenomenon
while flicker is an undesirable effect of the voltage
fluctuations in some loads.
• Can cause nuisance tripping due to mal operation of
relays, unwanted triggering of UPS units, increase in
losses and premature wear & tear of motors
8/12/2016 22
 Power frequency variations
• Deviations of the power supply fundamental frequency from
its specified normal value
• Directly related to the rotational speed of the generators
supplying the system
• Size of frequency shift & its duration depends on the load
characteristics and the response of the control systems to
load changes
Caused by
– Faults on bulk transmission systems
– Large load being disconnected
– Large source of generation going off line
8/12/2016 23
 24

8/12/2016
 25

8/12/2016