UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES

JOHN LIGUORI
CONSULTING ENGINEER
MSEE, PE

PRESENTED TO THE IEEE LONG ISLAND CONSULTANTS NETWORK

9/6/06

UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES

THIS PRESENTATION IS FOR INFORMATIONAL AND

EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. IT DOES NOT CONTAIN ALL
INFORMATION REQUIRED, AND IS NOT INTENDED TO BE
USED FOR THE SPECIFICATION OR DESIGN OF
UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES (UPS) OR UPS
SYSTEMS.

UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES

OUTLINE

INTRODUCTION
POWER DISTURBANCES
UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES
GENERAL DISCUSSION
SUMMARY
REFERENCES
QUESTIONS

INTRODUCTION

PURPOSE
WHAT IS AN UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLY?
WHY USE A UPS?

PURPOSE

THE PURPOSE OF THIS PRESENTATION IS TO DISCUSS THE DIFFERENT

TYPES OF UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLIES AVAILABLE, WHAT THE UPS
PROTECTS AGAINST, THE COMPONENTS OF A UPS, AND ISSUES REGARDING
SELECTION AND SIZING.

THE DIFFERENT TYPES AND CAUSES OF POWER DISTURBANCES ARE

DISCUSSED, AS WELL AS WHAT THE POWER UTILITY, THE ORIGINAL
EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER, AND YOU, CAN DO TO MINIMIZE THEIR EFFECT.

WHAT IS AN UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLY?

AN UNINTERRUPTIBLE POWER SUPPLY (UPS) IS A DEVICE

THAT HAS AN ALTERNATE SOURCE OF ENERGY THAT CAN
PROVIDE POWER WHEN THE PRIMARY POWER SOURCE IS
TEMPORARILY DISABLED

THE SWITCHOVER TIME MUST BE SMALL ENOUGH TO NOT

CAUSE A DISRUPTION IN THE OPERATION OF THE LOADS

WHY USE A UPS?

PROTECTS AGAINST MULTIPLE TYPES OF POWER

DISTURBANCES
ONLY DEVICE THAT PROTECTS AGAINST AN OUTAGE
OFFERS PROTECTION AGAINST
EQUIPMENT NOT OPERATING PROPERLY
COMPUTER AND EQUIPMENT DAMAGE
DATA LOSS
TIME AND EXPENSE TO RECOVER BACK TO WHERE
YOU WERE, IF EVEN POSSIBLE

POWER DISTURBANCES

CAUSES
TYPES
DURATION
RESULTING PROBLEMS
COMMENTS
WHAT THE POWER UTILITY CAN DO
WHAT THE ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER (OEM)
CAN DO
WHAT YOU CAN DO
PROTECTIVE DEVICES

CAUSES OF POWER DISTURBANCES

STORM ACTIVITY LIGHTNING, WIND, ICE

OBJECTS COMING IN CONTACT WITH POWER LINE AND
TRIPPING BREAKER TREE BRANCHES, ANIMALS, OTHER
UTILITY FAULT CLEARING
CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY
ACCIDENTS MOTOR VEHICLE, OTHER
EQUIPMENT FAILURE
OVERLOADING
LOAD SWITCHING
NON-LINEAR LOADS
POOR GROUNDING
ESD

TYPES OF POWER DISTURBANCES

INTERRUPTION
SAG, UNDER VOLTAGE
SURGE, OVER VOLTAGE
VOLTAGE FLUCTUATION
FREQUENCY VARIATION
SPIKES / TRANSIENTS
IMPULSIVE
OSCILLATORY

WAVEFORM DISTORTION

DC OFFSET
HARMONICS
INTERHARMONICS
NOTCHING
NOISE

VOLTAGE IMBALANCE
10

DURATION OF POWER DISTURBANCES

INSTANTANEOUS
MOMENTARY
TEMPORARY
SUSTAINED

CYCLE (8 1/3 ms) OR LESS

CYCLE TO 3 SEC
3 SEC TO 1 MIN
GREATER THAN 1 MINUTE

11

CLASSIFICATION OF PROBLEMS RESULTING FROM

POWER DISTURBANCES

DISRUPTIVE
EQUIPMENT DOES NOT OPERATE AS INTENDED

DISSIPATIVE
EQUIPMENT EXPERIENCES REPEATED STRESSES THAT LEAD TO FAILURE
LATER FOR NO APPARENT REASON

DESTRUCTIVE
EQUIPMENT FAILS AT THE INSTANT THE DISTURBANCE OCCURS

12

PROBLEMS RESULTING FROM

POWER DISTURBANCES

DATA ERRORS
DATA LOSS
BLOWN FUSES
TRIPPED BREAKERS
INTERFERENCE WITH CONTROL OF LOADS
OVERLOADED NEUTRAL CONDUCTORS
MOTORS

HEATING
SPEED VARIATION
STALLING
AUDIBLE NOISE
VIBRATION

TRANSFORMERS
HEATING
AUDIBLE NOISE
VIBRATION

13

POWER DISTURBANCES - COMMENTS

NOT ONLY IS MODERN EQUIPMENT MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO

POWER DISTURBANCES, BUT THE EQUIPMENT ITSELF
GENERATES MORE DISTURBANCES

ALL LOADS, FROM LARGE POWERFULL MOTORS AND

INDUSTRIAL EQUIPMENT TO SMALL, SENSITIVE ELECTRONIC
COMPONENTS, ARE CONNECTED TO THE SAME POWER GRID

14

WHAT THE POWER UTILITY CAN DO TO MINIMIZE

THE EFFECT OF POWER DISTURBANCES

INSTALL STORM RESISTANT WIRING

USE INFRA RED SCANNING TO DETECT WEAK SPOTS IN
POWER LINES
INSTALL REMOTE CONTROLLED RADIO SWITCHES TO
RESTORE POWER QUICKLY
CLEAR TREE LIMBS AWAY FROM POWER LINES

15

WHAT THE OEM CAN DO TO MINIMIZE THE EFFECT

OF POWER DISTURBANCES
BUILD EQUIPMENT CONTAINING ONE OR MORE INTERNAL
PROTECTIVE DEVICES

SURGE PROTECTIVE DEVICES

LINE FILTERS
ISOLATION TRANSFORMER
BATTERY OR CAPACITOR BACK UP TO INCREASE RIDE THROUGH TIME

16

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO MINIMIZE THE EFFECT OF

POWER DISTURBANCES

BUY EQUIPMENT THAT HAS INTERNAL PROTECTIVE DEVICES

FOR EXAMPLE, BATTERY BACK UP FOR ANY APPLIANCE THAT CONTAINS
A CLOCK

USE ONE OR MORE EXTERNAL PROTECTIVE DEVICES

SURGE PROTECTORS
LINE FILTERS
ISOLATION TRANSFORMER
VOLTAGE REGULATING LINE CONDITIONER
UPS

17

PROTECTIVE DEVICES OTHER THAN UPS

SURGE PROTECTIVE DEVICES SPDS

PROTECTS AGAINST SPIKES OF LIMITED ENERGY
METAL OXIDE VARISTORS MOV
DIODES
GAS TUBES
LCR FILTERS
HYBRIDS

LINE FILTERS
FILTERS OUT HARMONICS, TRANSIENTS AND NOISE

ISOLATION TRANSFORMER
ELIMINATES DC OFFSET AND NOISE

VOLTAGE REGULATING LINE CONDITIONER

AUTOMATICALLY ADJUSTS FOR UNDER AND OVER VOLTAGES
CONSTANT VOLTAGE TRANSFORMER - CVT
MOTORIZED VARIAC
18

POWER DISTURBANCES
AND
PROTECTIVE DEVICES

19

UPS

ARCHITECTURES
WAVEFORMS
INVERTER TECHNOLOGY
COMPONENTS
SWITCHOVER TIME
ADVANTAGES / DIS-ADVANTAGES
SIZING
BATTERY SAFETY

20

UPS ARCHITECTURES

LINE INTERACTIVE
ON-LINE

21

BLOCK DIAGRAM
LINE INTERACTIVE UPS

AUTOMATIC
SWITCH

AC SUPPLY
BATTERY
CHARGER

CRITICAL
LOAD
(AC)

INVERTER
DC TO AC

BATTERY

AC FAIL

22

BLOCK DIAGRAM
ON-LINE UPS

AUTOMATIC
SWITCH

AC SUPPLY
CONVERTER
AC TO DC

INVERTER
DC TO AC

CRITICAL
LOAD
(AC)

BATTERY

INVERTER FAIL

23

BLOCK DIAGRAM
LAPTOP COMPUTER POWER SUPPLY

CRITICAL
LOAD

AC SUPPLY
CONVERTER
AC TO DC

CONVERTER
DC TO DC

(DC)

BATTERY

24

UPS WAVEFORMS

TRUE SINEWAVE
MODIFIED SINEWAVE
SQUARE WAVE

25

UPS WAVEFORMS

26

INVERTER TECHNOLOGY FOR TRUE SINEWAVE

PULSE WIDTH MODULATION - PWM

LINEAR AMPLIFIER
RESONANT INVERTER

27

BLOCK DIAGRAM
PWM INVERTER
DC POWER

HIGH
FREQUENCY
GENERATOR

PULSE WIDTH
MODULATOR

BASE /
GATE
DRIVE

COMPARISON
AMPLIFIER

TRANSISTOR
BRIDGE

TRANSFORMER

FILTER

CRITICAL
LOAD
(AC)

REFERENCE
SINEWAVE
GENERATOR

28

BLOCK DIAGRAM
LINEAR AMPLIFER INVERTER
DC POWER

SINEWAVE
OSCILLATOR

TRANSFORMER

CRITICAL
LOAD
(AC)

OSCILLATOR
AMPLIFIER

COMPARISON
AMPLIFIER

POWER
AMPLIFIER

29

BLOCK DIAGRAM
RESONANT INVERTER
DC POWER

SQUARE
WAVE
GENERATOR

SWITCH
DRIVE

TRANSISTOR
SWITCHES

TRANSFORMER

LC RESONANT
TANK FILTER

CRITICAL
LOAD
(AC)

(OR FERRORESONANT)

30

UPS COMPONENTS

CONVERTER - AC TO DC
SPD - PROTECTS AGAINST SPIKES AND TRANSIENTS

BATTERY
STORED ENERGY DEVICE - PROTECTS AGAINST INTERRUPTIONS

INVERTER DC TO AC
WAVEFORM SYNTHESIS PROTECTS AGAINST DC OFFSET AND
INTERHARMONICS
FILTER PROTECTS AGAINST HARMONICS, NOTCHING AND NOISE
VOLTAGE REGULATOR PROTECTS AGAINST SAGS, SURGES AND
FLUCTUATIONS

MONITOR AND CONTROL HARDWARE / SOFTWARE

31

SWITCHOVER TIME

A TYPICAL SWITCHOVER TIME

2 4 ms

ONE QUARTER CYCLE OR LESS

FOR SOME EQUIPMENT THIS IS NOT TOLERABLE

32

ADVANTAGES / DIS-ADVANTAGES OF THE

DIFFERENT UPS ARCHITECTURES

LINE INTERACTIVE ADVANTAGES

AC TO DC CONVERTER / BATTERY CHARGER DOES NOT HAVE TO
PROVIDE FULL LOAD POWER (POTENTIALLY CHEAPER)
LESS STRESS ON DC TO AC INVERTER SINCE IT RUNS AT NO LOAD UNTIL
UPS SWITCHES TO BATTERY POWER (POTENTIALLY CHEAPER)

ON-LINE ADVANTAGES
ZERO SWITCHOVER TIME FROM MAIN LINE TO BATTERY POWER
ALWAYS ISOLATED FROM POWER DISTURBANCES ON THE MAIN LINE

33

SIZING THE UPS

EQUIPMENT RATINGS FOR LOADS
OBTAIN RATINGS FROM NAMEPLATE OR SPEC SHEET
ENERGY USAGE MAY BE SPECIFIED IN VOLT AMPS (VA) OR WATTS (W) AND
IN VALUES THAT ARE EITHER MAXIMUM OR NOMINAL
(VA) AND (W) ARE RELATED VIA THE POWER FACTOR

TOTAL UPS LOAD MUST NOT EXCEED THE UPS VOLT AMP (VA)
RATING
TOTAL UPS LOAD MUST NOT EXCEED THE UPS WATT (W)
RATING
OVERSIZE / DERATE TO ADD LIFE
RUNTIME CHARTS
34

UPS SIZING EXAMPLE SPREADSHEET

35

BATTERY SAFETY

MAINTENANCE
INSPECT PERIODICALLY
REPLACE AS NEEDED

RISKS

ACID
ELECTRIC SHOCK
BURN
FLYING, MOLTEN METAL (EYES)
INJURIES RESULTING FROM CARRYING HEAVY BATTERY PACKS

DISPOSAL
DISPOSE OF PROPERLY
RECYCLE WHENEVER POSSIBLE

36

GENERAL DISCUSSION

DOES A UPS OFFER COMPLETE PROTECTION?

DO YOU THINK POWER DISTURBANCES WONT HAPPEN TO
YOU ?
MISCELLANEOUS

37

DOES A UPS OFFER COMPLETE PROTECTION?

SOME POWER DISTURBANCES MAY EXCEED THE HANDLING

CAPABILITY OF THE UPS

UPS FAILURE

38

DO YOU THINK POWER DISTURBANCES WONT

HAPPEN TO YOU ?

POWER DISTURBANCES OCCUR FREQUENTLY, THOUGH

MANY ARE SMALL AND WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE

AN ON-LINE UPS CAN PROTECT AGAINST MORE SIGNIFICANT

POWER DISTURBANCES WHEN THEY DO OCCUR

THE COST OF NOT HAVING A UPS CAN EASILY EXCEED THE

COST OF A UPS

39

MISCELLANEOUS

MANY RETAIL UPS FOR COMPUTER APPLICATIONS ARE LINE

INTERACTIVE

MANUFACTURERS AND BUILDING CODES DO NOT ALLOW

EXTENSION CORDS OR SURGE SUPPRESSORS TO BE USED
WITH A UPS

40

SUMMARY
THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN SPECIFYING A UPS

POWER QUALITY
ARCHITECTURE - LINE INTERACTIVE OR ON-LINE
WAVEFORM - SQUARE, MODIFIED SINE, TRUE SINE
IMMUNITY TO DISTURBANCES OTHER THAN OUTAGE

RUN TIME WITH AN OUTAGE

RELIABILITY
AUDIBLE NOISE
MONITOR AND CONTROL HARDWARE / SOFTWARE
LOCAL / REMOTE CONTROL

INITIAL COST
MAINTENANCE COST
WARRANTY
41

REFERENCES

IEEE STANDARD 1100-2005

RECOMMENDED PRACTICE FOR POWERING AND GROUNDING SENSITIVE
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT

IEEE STANDARD 1159-1995

RECOMMENDED PRACTICE FOR MONITORING ELECTRICAL POWER QUALITY

42

QUESTIONS

43