Introduction: The Requirement

For Compensation
In an ideal ac system, the main points of
consideration are:
 Voltage
 Frequency
 Power factor
 Consumer load
Objectives In Load Compensation
 Load compensation is the management of reactive
power to improve the quality of supply in ac power
systems.
 In load compensation there are three main objectives:
 Power factor correction
 Improvement of voltage regulation
 Load balancing
Power factor correction
Improvement of Voltage regulation
 Voltage regulation becomes an important and
sometimes critical issue in the presence of loads
which vary their demand for reactive power.
 The variation in demand for reactive power causes
variation in the voltage at the supply point.
 Compensating devices have a vital role to play in
maintaining supply voltages within the intended
limits.
 Two basic categories of voltage regulation are:
 line regulation

 load regulation

 The purpose of line regulation is to maintain a nearly

constant output voltage when the input voltage varies.
 The purpose of load regulation is to maintain a nearly
constant output voltage when the load varies.
Line regulation: A change in input (line) voltage does not
significantly affect the output voltage of a regulator (within certain
limits)
Load regulation: A change in load current (due to a varying RL)
has practically no effect on the output voltage of a regulator
(within certain limits)
Load Balancing
 Unbalanced operation gives rise to components of
current in the wrong phase-sequence (i.e., negative- and
zero-sequence components)
 Such components can have undesirable effects, including
additional losses in motors and generating units,
oscillating torque in ac machines, saturation of
transformers, and excessive neutral currents.
 The harmonic content in the voltage supply waveform is
an important parameter in the quality of power.
 Harmonics are usually eliminated by filters.
The Ideal Compensator
 It is a device which can be connected at a supply point and
performs the following three main functions:
i. Correct the power factor to unity
ii. Eliminate (or reduce to an acceptable level) the voltage
regulation, and
iii. Balance the load currents or phase voltages

 A further property of the ideal compensator is the ability to

respond instantaneously in performing its three main
functions.
 It would not itself generate any extra harmonics.
 It would also consume zero average power i.e. it would be
lossless.
 More precisely the ideal compensator must:
Provide a controllable and variable amount of
reactive power precisely according to the
requirements of the load and without delay.
Present a constant-voltage characteristic at its
terminals.
Be capable of operating independently in the three
phases.
The burden of responsibility for
providing compensation?
Divides between supplier and consumer according
to several factors including:
 The size and nature of the load and any future
extensions projected for it
 The national standards in force
 Local practice
 The degree to which the other consumers may be
affected
Practical Considerations
 Loads requiring compensation
 Acceptance standards for the Quality of supply
 Specification of a Load compensator
Loads requiring compensation
 Whether a given load should have power-factor
correction in the steady state is an economic question
whose answer depends on ????

 Supply tariff
 The size of the load
 Uncompensated power-factor

 It is typical that for sizeable industrial loads, power-

factor correction is economically advantageous if the
uncompensated power-factor is less than 0.8.
 Loads which cause fluctuations in the supply voltage
need to be compensated not only for power factor but
for voltage regulation also

 The degree of voltage variation is assessed at the

"gauge point" or "point of common coupling" (PCC),
which is usually the point in the network where the
customer's and the supplier's areas of responsibility
meet

For example:- the high-voltage side of the distribution

transformer supplying a particular factory.
 Loads which are inherently nonlinear in operation and
those which cause disturbance by being switched on and
off are
For ex:- arc furnaces, induction furnaces, arc welders,
induction welders, steel rolling mills, mine winders, very
large motors etc.

 These non linear loads usually generate harmonics as

well as fundamental-frequency voltage variations.

 They virtually always include harmonic filters, usually for

harmonic orders 3, 5, 7 and often for orders 2, 4, 11, and 13
as well.
 A first idea of the compensation requirement can be
formed by characterizing the load according to the
following headings:
 Type of drive (dc or ac; thyristor-fed or transformer-
fed)
 Duty-cycle in terms of the real and reactive power
requirements.
 Rate of change of real and reactive power.
 Generation of harmonics.
 Concurrence of maximum real and reactive power
requirements in multiple-load plants.
Acceptance standards for the Quality of supply

 The degree to which the supply voltage variations are

objectionable depends not only on the magnitude of the
light variation but also on its frequency or rate of change.
Specification of a Load compensator
 The parameters and factors which need to be considered
when specifying a load compensator are:
 Maximum continuous reactive power requirement, both
absorbing and generating.
 Overload rating and duration (if any).
 Rated voltage and limits of voltage between which the
reactive power ratings must not be exceeded.
 Frequency and its variation.
 Accuracy of voltage regulation required.
 Response time of the compensator for a specified
disturbance.
 Special control requirements.
 Protection arrangements for the compensator and
coordination with other protection systems, including
reactive power limits if necessary.
 Maximum harmonic distortion with compensator in
service.
 Energization procedure and precautions.
 Maintenance; spare parts; provision for future expansion
or rearrangement of the plant.
 Environmental factors
 Performance with unbalanced supply voltages and/or
with unbalanced loads.
 Cabling requirements and layout; access, enclosure,
grounding.
 Reliability and redundancy of components.
Fundamental Theory of Compensation:
Power-Factor Correction & Voltage Regulation In
Single-Phase Systems

 Its first purpose must be to explain the relationships

between the supply system, the load, and the
compensator.
 The supply system, the load and the compensator
can be characterized or modeled in various ways.
 The supply system can be modeled as a Thevenin’s
equivalent circuit with an open circuit voltage and a series
impedance, its current or its power and reactive power (or
power-factor) requirements.

 The compensator can be modeled as variable impedance

or as a variable source (or sink) of reactive current; or as a
variable source (or sink) of reactive power.

 The loads and system characteristics are understood to be

either constant or changing slowly enough so that phasors
can be used.
Power-Factor and Its Correction
Voltage Regulation
 In the actual compensator, this value would be
determined automatically by control loop.
 The equation also indicates that, we can find the value of
Qs by subjecting a condition such as E = V irrespective of
the requirement of the load powers (Pl; Ql).
 This leads to the following conclusion that a purely
reactive compensator can eliminate supply voltage
variation caused by changes in both the real and
reactive power of the load, provided that there is
sufficient range and rate of Qs both in lagging and
leading pf.
 This compensator therefore acts as an ideal voltage
regulator.
 If the compensator is designed to compensate power
factor, then Qs = Ql + Qy = 0. This implies that Qy = -Ql.
Substituting Qs = 0 for Ql in (14) to achieve this
condition, we get the following,

 From above equation, it is observed that V is independent

of Ql.
 Thus we conclude that a purely reactive compensator
cannot maintain both constant voltage and unity
power factor simultaneously.
 Of course the exception to this rule is a trivial case when
Pl = 0.
Approximate Reactive Power
Characteristics
 Voltage regulation with a varying inductive load
 Power factor improvement
 Reactive power bias
Voltage regulation with a varying
inductive load
Power factor improvement
Reactive power bias
Load Compensator As A Voltage
Regulator
The important parameters of the compensator which
play significant role in obtaining desired voltage
regulation are:
 The knee point voltage Vk
 The maximum or rated reactive power Qγmax and
 The compensator gain Kγ
Phase Balancing & Power Factor
Correction of Unsymmetrical loads
 In considering unbalanced loads, both load and
compensator are modeled in terms of their
admittances and impedances.
Three-phase Unbalanced Loads
Representation of Three-phase
Delta Connected Unbalanced Load