Solutions

Volume 6, Issue 3 Using Your POWERLOGIC System to

Improve Your Facility’s Power Quality
As the sensitivity of equipment to power quality events increases with
technological advances, so does the need for sophisticated monitoring devices
that can detect the events. The breadth of power quality issues that can impact
the user’s productivity and profitability is as vast as the types of equipment and
processes in use. The POWERLOGIC family of meters can put you in charge of
your power quality, helping you quickly locate potential problems. The result is
increased equipment life, improved system performance, decreased downtime,
and, ultimately, more profit.

Power Quality
IEEE Standard 1159-1995 classifies the power quality disturbances of general
concern into these seven categories:
• transients
• short-duration voltage variations
• long-duration voltage variations
• voltage unbalance
• waveform distortion
• voltage fluctuations
• frequency variations

Most facilities are unaware that they are exposed to one or more of these
power quality concerns on a routine basis. Factors such as location, magnitude,
and duration of the disturbance, type of event, and vulnerability of the loads
contribute significantly to the power quality issues that affect a facility. In some
cases, even the addition of a single piece of equipment to an electrical system can
create new problems. Understanding the different types of power quality issues
can considerably improve your ability to locate and correct your facility’s power
quality issues.

Transients
Electrical transient voltages can originate inside a facility or out on the utility’s
grid, and can propagate through various levels of electrical and data systems.
Sources of destructive transient voltages can range from the obvious—such as
a lightning stroke strike during a thunderstorm, to the subtle—such as static
PowerLogic Solutions discharge from a human finger.
is produced by
Square D Company’s Transient overvoltages that exceed insulation ratings can stress electrical
Power Management insulation, leading to abrupt or gradual breakdown of the dielectric. Industrial
Operation. Each facilities may experience many transients every hour, with voltage impulses
issue presents a exceeding 10 times the nominal system voltage. Reducing the magnitude and
common power
system problem, and
offers guidance on
how to solve it.
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Solutions
duration of voltage transients can extend the life of
equipment insulation.
The Series 4000 Circuit Monitor with a transient
voltage module (CVMT) gives you the ability to
detect, quantify, and alarm on voltage impulsive
transients as short as 1 microsecond in duration
(5MHz per channel). The high resolution of this
feature can help you troubleshoot the problem;
Circuit monitors such as the POWERLOGIC
Series 4000T with transient features, can capture
waveforms with over 83,000 data points per cycle
—showing the oscillatory nature of the transient that
most other meters miss
using data from the CVMT, you can determine the
source (type of device) and location (upstream or
downstream) of the generated transients. You can
also obtain a waveform capture of a voltage transient
event at a rate of 512 points per cycles (adjustable
from 4 to 28 cycles) and 83,333 points per cycle
(up to 2 milliseconds) concurrently.
Voltage Variations
Voltage sags are very common on power systems.
They can result in a range of problems, from
tripping equipment offline to damaged components.
Everyday operations—such as motor starts, which
result in voltage sags due to inrush currents of 6–10
times normal for a short period of time—can affect
the operation of other sensitive equipment located
on the same circuit. Voltage swells are less common
than voltage sags. However, when disconnecting
heavy loads from a circuit, equipment may
experience overvoltage alarms or nuisance trips due
to voltage swells.
Two important factors that determine the impact
of a voltage sag/swell event on a facility are the
magnitude and duration of the event. Another
dynamic that must be considered is the sensitivity
of specific components on the system to voltage
sag/swell events.
With the Series 3000 and 4000 Circuit Monitors (CM3000 and CM4000), it
is possible to develop historical profiles showing the effects of voltage sag/swell
events on various devices. These meters allow you to capture, store, display,
record, and alarm on voltage sag/swell events. You can also retrieve stored voltage
data for review and analysis (the current values can be captured as well) in both
rms and instantaneous viewing formats. You can display the voltage sag/swell
events on ITIC or SEMI graphs with a standard web browser to quantify the
event with respect to generally accepted industry standards. You can even create
custom web pages to display event information over the Internet.
Waveform Distortion (Harmonics)
Waveform distortion is a periodic condition caused by a load or device that has
a nonlinear voltage/current characteristic. As loads with nonlinear characteristics
draw harmonic currents through the electrical system’s impedance, a resulting
Waveforms can be captured with 83,333 samples/cycle,
providing you with the highest level of power quality
information
harmonic voltage occurs (due to Ohm’s Law). Because voltage is the least
common denominator in an electrical system, the potential exists for other loads
on the same bus to be affected.
The three major categories of loads that may be of concern are arcing loads
(arc lighting, arc furnaces, etc.), ferromagnetic loads (transformers), and power
electronic loads (inverters, rectifiers, etc.). Power electronic loads are the most
prevalent source of waveform distortion; they are generally the principal concern
among various harmonic-producing loads. Ironically, power electronics can also
be sensitive to harmonic distortion of the voltage waveform. Some effects that
can be attributed to harmonic voltage distortion include excessive equipment
heating and damage, metering inaccuracies, overloaded capacitors, neutral
conductor heating, and even telephone interference.
The CM3000 and CM4000 provide you with an arsenal of features to determine
your facility’s susceptibility to the damaging effects of harmonics. The CM3000
and CM4000 can measure the harmonic currents and voltages (magnitudes
and angles) to the 63rd and 255th components, respectively. If installed on
the main electrical bus, either of these meters will allow you to determine the
direction of harmonic real power and harmonic reactive power flow into and out
of your facility. These meters can measure other important parameters related to
harmonics problems; among them are voltage and current THD, K-Factor, crest
factor, and displacement vs. true power factor. Again, you can configure custom

alarms that annunciate when a prescribed threshold
is exceeded.
Voltage Unbalance
NEMA Standard Publication Number MG-1-1998
states “When line voltages applied to a polyphase
induction motor are not equal, unbalanced currents
in the stator winding will result.” The corresponding
unbalanced currents cause excessive heating of the
stator winding, which can lead to motor damage.
The percentage of voltage unbalance corresponds
to a proportionally larger percentage of current
unbalance. Consequently, the temperature rise
of a motor operating at a particular load and
percent of voltage unbalance will be greater than
the temperature rise of a motor operating under
the same conditions with balanced voltages. If the
voltages are unbalanced, you should derate the
motor to reduce the possibility of damage.
Because the majority of loads are motors, it is
important for you to consider the voltage balance
of your electrical system. Two factors that can
contribute to unbalanced voltages are unequal
distribution of loads between the three phases and
blown capacitor fuses. Facilities that are located
remotely from the utility’s substation are more
at risk for unbalanced voltages. In these remote
facilities, unbalanced voltages and excessive heating
in three-phase motor loads can be the result of:
• blown capacitor fuses
• misoperating load tap changers (LTCs) or other
voltage regulating equipment
• unbalanced circuits on the utility’s system
The CM3000 and CM4000 allow you to monitor
and alarm on voltage unbalance. You may configure
the trending and forecasting capabilities of either
meter to evaluate a circuit’s voltage balance profile.
An HTML page is also available to view the worst-
case voltage unbalance on a NEMA Standard
MG-1-1998 Motor Derating Curve via a standard
web browser. You can use this information to
make informed decisions about the effects voltage
unbalance may be having on your three-phase
induction motors.
Voltage Fluctuation (Flicker)
Voltage fluctuation, or flicker, is a term that is
often used improperly. The term “flicker” refers
to the changes in light intensity that we experience
when the electric light output fluctuates. Flicker
occurs when electric light fluctuates in response to
variation of line voltage at certain frequencies. The
line voltage variation that produces flicker is caused
by the interaction between varying loads and the
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impedance of the electrical distribution system.
Flicker can be a problem in a range of work environments; it may occur on
electrical circuits that serve large, cycling loads, and on circuits with smaller
loads including copy machines and laser printers. Depending on system
impedances, it is possible for one facility with large, fluctuating loads to affect
others on the same utility circuit. In this case, adjacent utility customers may
experience marked voltage fluctuations, causing the residential lights to flicker.
Using a CM4000 with a transient voltage module (CVMT), you can measure
the modulation of the source voltage that causes flicker (thus measuring flicker).
The circuit monitor detects and measures the flicker of an electrical system
based on the IEC Standard 61000-4-15. The three quantities measured by the
circuit monitor are instantaneous flicker level, short-term flicker, and long-term
flicker. You can define the short-term and long-term flicker, based on your
facility’s requirements; and you can display flicker for each individual phase or
all three phases concurrently. Again, the user can view a graphical time-trend of
flicker magnitude in a semi-logarithmic format on their web browser.
Frequency Variations
Frequency variations are a rare occurrence on utilities in the United States.
Utilities take great care to ensure that system frequency stays within a tight
tolerance around the nominal 60-Hertz frequency. Special billing rates are even
available to customers willing to be interrupted (with or without notification) to
ensure this tolerance. System frequency does vary slightly, but because end-use
devices depend on a constant 60-Hertz frequency, utilities endeavor to average
the 24-hour frequency to 60 Hertz.
Electrical systems that are isolated from the utility power grid can experience
a greater variance from 60 Hertz (some as much as ±5 Hertz). Some energy
users may generate their own power or buy power from local producers that are
not required to maintain a constant frequency. In this case, end-use equipment
that relies on the 60-Hertz frequency (as a reference for time or frequency)
may not operate properly. As an example, the output voltage of ferroresonant
transformers will increase or decrease as the nominal input frequency increases
or decreases, respectively.
The CM3000 and CM4000 allow you to configure alarms that notify you when
pre-configured frequency parameters are exceeded. The CM4000 has a high-
speed 100-millisecond alarm that is available for higher resolution notification
of frequency changes. Finally, a configurable waveshape alarm (WSA) on the
CM4000 will enable you to alarm on stepped phase shifts.
Conclusion
Understanding the source of your power quality problems will help you locate
and neutralize it. At Square D/Schneider Electric, we have the most complete,
most advanced, line of power monitoring products for any level of your
operation. Products like the award-winning POWERLOGIC Series 4000T
Circuit Monitor and the CM3000 will help keep you at the forefront of power
quality monitoring and control technology.
POWERLOGIC
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Power
Management
Operation
offers complete power quality
consulting services to ensure that
power problems do not impact
your operation. Contact our power
management experts for information
about the following:
• Power Quality Consulting
• Energy Management Consulting
• Harmonic Filters
• Power Factor Correction
• Power Management Training and
Technical Support
• Digital Simulation Studies
• Remote Monitoring Services
• Data Collection and Analysis

Our number is 1-888-797-5442

www.powerlogic.com
Document # 3000HO0207 December 2002 2002 Schneider Electric All Rights Reserved