Everything You Should Know About Power Quality Problems and Solutions

Even though power authorities in all parts of the world work hard on supplying the best electric power quality that is free from corruption, local or unforeseen circumstances such as neighbouring industries, storms or accidents have often been reported to intervene and cause irregularities in the power quality and cripple the operations. With the technology evolving each day, a lot has been done to make electronic equipment less tolerant to transient voltages.

Some of the most common problems one has to experience because of poor power quality include: 

1. Under-voltage
2. Temporary over-voltage (TOV)
3. Transients
4. Power outages
5. Noise
6. Dropouts
7. Harmonic distortion
8. Frequency variations

Most of the above-mentioned problems can be dealt with efficiently by relying on power quality solutions such as

1. Surge Protection Devices (SPDs)
2. Filters
3. Line Conditioners
4. UPSs
5. Short Break or Standby
6. True on line
7. Hybrid
8. Isolation Transformers

While we try to gather information about the problems and solutions related to power quality, it is important to understand what causes fluctuations in the supply. Most power surges and disturbances are often a result of lighting and power switching transients. Switching of inductive loads such as motors, air conditioning plants, domestic appliances and more can cause huge transient spikes.

Icopower ESCO deals with problems related to power quality with the help of voltage optimization solutions, power factor correction, and harmonics. Our mission is to analyze, design, and implement energy efficiency solutions that will create value for facility owners and operators across all sectors in East Africa and beyond and we work with our clients to reduce operating expenses, upgrade and maintain infrastructure, stabilize energy costs, improve infrastructure efficiency, increase energy reliability and conserve the environment by reducing the carbon footprint.

Visit www.icopower-esco.com to know more.

Reasons for Low Power Factor and How It Can Be Corrected

What Is Power Factor?

Power factor is the ratio of the real power that’s used to do work and the apparent power that’s supplied to the circuit. In simple words, it is a way of measuring efficient power usage, or how effectively the equipment at your site utilizes electricity. It is expressed as a numerical value between 0 & 1. The closer the power factor is to 1, the more efficiently your business is consuming electricity.

Some Common Reasons for Low Power Factor  

• Inductive loading – Almost 90% of industrial load consists of single and three phase induction machines, which draw magnetizing current for producing the magnetic field and therefore work at low power factor.

• Harmonic currents – Harmonics increase the amount of power required by the system due to a reduction in electric power quality, and therefore contributes to a lower power factor.

• Variations in power loading – When the system is loaded lightly, the voltage increases and the current drawn by the machines also increases. This results in a low power factor.

• Improper wiring or electrical accidents – A condition called ‘3 phase power imbalance’ occurs as a result of improper wiring or electrical accidents that further causes low power factor.

When you have a low power factor, you aren’t able to fully utilize the electrical power you’re paying for. Utility companies often penalize the customers for low power factor to compensate for this inefficiency and that’s one of the reasons it is important to invest in power factor correction.

Icopower ESCO is one of the companies known for providing the best power quality solutions to businesses across Kenya and Seychelles. The company designs and installs capacitor banks tailored to a site’s specific requirements, and also troubleshoots and fine tunes existing power factor banks for maximum functionality. To know more, please visit https://icopower-esco.com/ or email @ fm@icopower-esco.com 

The Key Benefits of Power Factor Correction

According to a recent study, energy consumption is expected to rise by almost 30% over the next two decades. In order to keep up with our power-dependent lifestyles, we need to invest in better energy efficiency solutions. As a measure to move towards a more energy efficient future, businesses ought to measure how effective their electricity usage is through energy efficiency solutions like Power Factor. 

• What Is Power Factor (PF)?

Power Factor (PF) is the ratio of working power, measured in kilowatts (kW), to apparent power, measured in kilovolt amperes (kVA). It is usually expressed as a percentage — the lower the percentage, the less efficient power usage is. One of the main causes of poor power factor is the inductive load on the equipment, which resists changes in current & causes lag.

• How Is Power Factor Correction Performed?

The simplest way to improve Power Factor is to add Power Factor Correction capacitors to the electrical equipment. The capacitors work as reactive current generators that help to offset the non-working power being used by the inductive loads, thereby improving the PF (Power Factor). Not only are these capacitors cost-effective and easy to install, but they also offer an excellent Return on Investment (ROI) typically within 1-2 years. 

The Key Benefits of Power Factor Correction

• Reduces electric bills by eliminating utility penalties for poor power factor
• Increases capacity of the current
• Improves energy efficiency through reduced power losses
• Improves voltage to equipment
• Enhances lifecycle of equipment as less heat is generated within switchgear, cables, transformers & other equipment
• Environmentally-friendly – lesser power needs to be generated, so lesser carbon-dioxide is produced

If you want to avail these benefits, get in touch with Icopower ESCO today! It is a well-known company in Kenya and Seychelles that specializes in designing as well as installing capacitor banks tailored to a specific site’s requirements. They also offer energy efficiency project financing for facilities over a 3-5 years time period. Visit https://icopower-esco.com/ to learn more!