Power Factor Correction

[Nathan L,]

From my days studying electronics (or as I recall), PFC was basically
implemented to correct usages in current for the meter man.

How true is that? Is there any performance to be gained with the device
after correction?

 

[Clifford Heath]

Nathan L, wrote:

From my days studying electronics (or as I recall), PFC was basically
implemented to correct usages in current for the meter man.
How true is that? Is there any performance to be gained with the device
after correction?

Not at all, AFAIK. Australian meters (almost?) universally measure
true RMS power. PFC is necessary to reduce resistive losses in
delivering that power.

 

[Franc Zabkar]

On Fri, 17 Dec 2004 13:27:39 +1300, "Nathan L,"
<NoSpamthenexus@ihug.co.nz.No.Spam> put finger to keyboard and
composed:

From my days studying electronics (or as I recall), PFC was basically
implemented to correct usages in current for the meter man.

How true is that? Is there any performance to be gained with the device
after correction?

This advice from Energy Australia:

===================================================================
Most residential classification customers are metered by a spinning
disc meter, or a basic electronic meter which does not have enough
"smarts" in the meter device to enable billing to be carried out at a
KVA pricing.

Currently small customers are billed on KWh pricing, and KVA Demand
pricing usually relates to large commercial and industrial
installations where poor power factor may impact upon the EA network,
and there may be an economic billing benefit in the customer pricing
to ensure that Power factor is closer to Unity.
===================================================================


- Franc Zabkar
--
Please remove one 's' from my address when replying by email.

 

[Mitchell McCreath]

Nathan,

In a nutshell:
Power factor correction is used to make up for the difference
in apparent power used as opposed to actual power used.
i.e. change the reactance of the circuit, the phase relationship
of voltage and current......

A sparky told me that because a lot more people are now
installing fluorescent lights that the manufacturers of
said lights now install Power Factor correction caps in
the fittings as a mater of course.

Merry XMAS all,
Mitchell

REF:
http://www.seav.vic.gov.au/ftp/advice/business/info_sheets/Power_Factor_Correct_1_0.pdf