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Utility Savings

Utility Savings. Bill McGroarty Suburban Electric Supply Co. What is Power Factor?. “Power factor” involves a relationship between two types of power working power reactive power. Inductive Loads.

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Utility Savings

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  1. Utility Savings Bill McGroarty Suburban Electric Supply Co

  2. What is Power Factor? • “Power factor” involves a relationship between two types of power • working power • reactive power

  3. Inductive Loads • Most loads in modern electrical distribution systems are inductive: which means that they require an electromagnetic field to operate. • Require two kinds of current: • Working power • Reactive power

  4. Working power • Measured in kilowatts(KW) • Does the work for the system- providing the motion, heat or whatever else is required

  5. Reactive Power • Measured in kilovolt-amperes-reactive(KVAR) • Does not do useful work • Simply sustains the electromagnetic field

  6. Relationship of three types of power • Following right power triangle illustrates the relationship between these three types of power • square of apparent power equals the square of working power plus the square of reactive power • finally the power factor is the ratio of working power to apparent power or KW/KVA

  7. Relationship of power Working power (KW) Reactive power (KVAR) Apparent power (KVA) Power Factor = Working power/ Apparent power

  8. What does power factor measure? • Power factor measures how effectively electrical power is being used. • A high power factor means that electrical power is being utilized effectively • A low power factor indicates poor utilization of electrical power • numerical eg. Paper mill operating at 100kw (working power)and the apparent power consumed was 125 KVA, you would divide 100 by 125 and come up with a power factor of 80%--represents fairly low power factor

  9. Why should I be concerned about low power factor? • Low power factor means that you’re not fully utilizing the electrical power you’re paying for • In the previous example, with a power factor of 80%, your paper mill would be utilizing only 80% of the energy supplied by the utility. This means that only 80% of the incoming current is being used to produce useful work.

  10. What can I do to improve power factor? • The simplest way to improve power factor is to add power factor correction capacitors to your plant distribution system • Power capacitors act as reactive current generators. • By providing the reactive current, they reduce the total amount of current your system must draw from the utility

  11. How much can I save by installing power capacitors? • Power capacitors provide many benefits: • Reduced electrical utility bills ( a typical payback period is less than one year) • Increased system capacity • Improved voltage • Reduced heat losses

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