Power factor correction

BSRIA Power quality guide (AG 2/2000) was written by C C Pearson and V Uthayanan and published by BSRIA in July 2000. It states:

Power factor correction is often an important consideration for industrial facilities. Harmonic concerns should always be evaluated as part of a power factor correction evaluation, regardless of whether or not the facility has harmonic-producing loads.

Power factor correction basically involves reducing the reactive power losses, thus reducing the apparent power (i.e. bringing the power factor towards unity).

From the above expressions, the capacitor value for the compensation can be found. This will bring the phase angle ø between voltage and current to zero, so that the displacement factor to unity. Since the displacement factor is the PF for linear loads, it can be improved to unity using capacitor compensation. But for the non-linear loads, the distortion factor should be improved to unity as well as the displacement factor in order to bring the PF to unity. To do that, we need to eliminate all the harmonics using harmonic filters.

--BSRIA

[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings

• Alternating current and direct current
• Ampere.
• BSRIA articles on Designing Buildings.
• BSRIA definitions.
• BSRIA.
• DC offset.
• Harmonics.
• Interharmonics.
• Notching.
• Power.
• Voltage.
• Watt.