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Defining Size and Location of Capacitor in Electrical System

(1)
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De fining Siz e and Lo c atio n o f Cap ac ito r in Ele c tric al Sys te m (1)

Content
Type of Capacitor Bank as per Its Application
1. Fixed t ype capacit or banks
T he reactive power supplied by the f ixed capacitor bank is constant irrespective of any variations in the
power f actor and the load of the receivers. T hese capacitor banks are switched on either manually (circuit
breaker / switch) or semi automatically by a remote-controlled contactor.
T his arrangement uses one or more capacitor to provide a constant level of compensation.
T hese capacitors are applied at the terminals of inductive loads (mainly motors), at bus bars.

Disadvant ages:
Manual ON/OFF operation.

Not meet the require kvar under varying loads.

Penalty by electricity authority.
Power f actor also varies as a f unction of the load requirements so it is dif f icult to maintain a
consistent power f actor by use of Fixed Compensation i.e. fixed capacitors.
Fixed Capacitor may provide leading power f actor under light load conditions, Due to this result in
overvoltages, saturation of transf ormers, mal-operation of diesel generating sets, penalties by
electric supply authorities.

Applicat ion:
Where the load f actor is reasonably constant.
Electrical installations with constant load operating 24 hours a day
Reactive compensation of transf ormers.
Individual compensation of motors.
Where the kvar rating of the capacitors is less than, or equal to 15% of the supply transf ormer
rating, a f ixed value of compensation is appropriate.
Size of Fixed Capacitor bank Qc 15% kVA transformer
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2. Aut omat ic t ype capacit or banks

T he reactive power supplied by the capacitor bank can be adjusted according to variations in the power
f actor and the load of the receivers.
T hese capacitor banks are made up of a combination of capacitor steps (step = capacitor + contactor)
connected in parallel. Switching on and of f of all or part of the capacitor bank is controlled by an
integrated power factor controller.
T he equipment is applied at points in an installation where the active-power or reactive power variations
are relatively large, f or example:
At the bus bars of a main distribution switch-board,
At the terminals of a heavily-loaded f eeder cable.
Where the kvar rating of the capacitors is less than, or equal to 15% of the supply transf ormer rating, a
fixed value of compensation is appropriate.
Above the 15% level, it is advisable to install an automatically-controlled bank of capacitors.
Control is usually provided by contactors. For compensation of highly f luctuating loads, f ast and highly
repetitive connection of capacitors is necessary, and static switches must be used.
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Types of APFC Aut omat ic Power Fact or Correct ion

Automatic Power Factor correction equipment is divided into three major categories:

1. Standard = Capacitor + Fuse + Contactor + Controller

2. De tuned = Capacitor + De tuning Reactor + Fuse + Contactor + Controller
3. Filtered = Capacitor + Filter Reactor + Fuse + Contactor + Controller.

Advant ages:
Consistently high power f actor under f luctuating loads.
Prevention of leading power f actor.
Eliminate power f actor penalty.
Lower energy consumption by reducing losses.
Continuously sense and monitor load.
Automatically switch on/of f relevant capacitors steps f or consistent power f actor.
Ensures easy user interf ace.
Automatically variation, without manual intervention, the compensation to suit the load requirements.

Applicat ion:
Variable load electrical installations.
Compensation of main LV distribution boards or major outgoing lines.
Above the 15% level, it is advisable to install an automatically-controlled bank of capacitors.
Size of Automatic Capacitor bank Qc > 15% kVA transformer.
Method

Advantages

Disadvantages

Individual
capacitors

Most technically ef f icient, most f lexible

Higher installation & maintenance cost

Fixed bank

Most economical, f ewer installations

Less f lexible, requires switches and/or

circuit breakers

Automatic
bank

Best f or variable loads, prevents over voltages,

low installation cost

Higher equipment cost

Combination

Most practical f or larger numbers of motors

Least f lexible

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Type of Capacitor as per Construction

1. St andard dut y Capacit or
Construction: Rectangular and Cylindrical (Resin filled / Resin coated-Dry)
Application:
1. Steady inductive load.
2. Non linear up to 10%.
3. For Agriculture duty.

2. Heavy-dut y
Construction: Rectangular and Cylindrical (Resin filled / Resin coated-Dry/oil/gas)
Application:
1. Suitable f or f luctuating load.
2. Non linear up to 20%.
3. Suitable f or APFC Panel.
4. Harmonic f iltering

3. LT Capacit or
Application:
Suitable f or f luctuating load.
Non linear up to 20%.
Suitable f or APFC Panel & Harmonic f ilter application.
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Selecting Size of Capacitor Bank

T he size of the inductive load is large enough to select the minimum size of capacitors that is practical.
For HT capacitors the minimum ratings that are practical are as follows:
System Voltage

Minimum rating of capacitor bank

3.3 KV , 6.6KV

75 Kvar

11 KV

200 Kvar

22 KV

400 Kvar

33 KV

600 Kvar

Unit sizes lower than above is not practical and economical to manuf acture.
When capacitors are connected directly across motors it must be ensured that the rated current of the
capacitor bank should not exceed 90% of the no-load current of the motor to avoid self -excitation of the
motor and also over compensation.
Precaution must be taken to ensure the live parts of the equipment to be compensated should not be
handled f or 10 minutes (in case of HT equipment) af ter disconnection of supply.
Crane motors or like, where the motors can be rotated by mechanical load and motors with electrical
braking systems, should never be compensated by capacitors directly across motor terminals.

For direct compensation across transformers the capacitor rating should not exceed 90 % of the noload KVA of the motor.
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Selection of Capacitor as per Non Liner Load

For power Factor correction it is need to f irst decide which type of capacitor is used.
Selection of Capacitor is depending upon many f actor i.e. operating lif e, Number of Operation, Peak Inrush
current withstand capacity.
For selection of Capacitor we have to calculate Total Non-Liner Load like: UPS, Rectif ier, Arc/Induction
Furnace, AC/DC Drives, Computer, CFL Blubs, and CNC Machines.
Calculation of Non liner Load, Example: Transf ormer Rating 1MVA,Non Liner Load 100KVA
% of non Liner Load = (Non Liner Load/Transf ormer Capacity) x100 = (100/1000) x100=10%.
According to Non Linear Load Select Capacitor as per Following Table.
% Non Liner Load

Type of Capacitor

<=10%

Standard Duty

Up to 15%

Heavy Duty

Up to 20%

Super Heavy Duty

Up to 25%

Capacitor +Reactor (Detuned)

Above 30%
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Conf iguration of Capacitor

Power factor correction capacitor banks can be configured in the following ways:
1. Delta connected Bank.
2. Star-Solidly Grounded Bank.
3. Star-Ungrounded Bank.
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1. St ar-Solidly Grounded
Initial cost of the bank may be lower since the neutral does not have to be insulated f rom ground.
Capacitor switch recovery voltages are reduced
High inrush currents may occur in the station ground system.
T he grounded-Star arrangement provides a low-impedance f ault path which may require revision to

the existing system ground protection scheme.

Typically not applied to ungrounded systems. When applied to resistance-grounded systems,
dif f iculty in coordination between capacitor f uses and upstream ground protection relays (consider
coordination of 40 A fuses with a 400 A grounded system).
Application: Typical f or smaller installations (since auxiliary equipment is not required)
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2. St ar-Ungrounded
Industrial and commercial capacitor banks are normally connected ungrounded Star, with paralleled
units to make up the total kvar.
It is recommended that a minimum of 4 paralleled units to be applied to limit the over voltage on the
remaining units when one is removed f rom the circuit.
If only one unit is needed to make the total kvar, the units in the other phases will not be overloaded
if it fails.
In industrial or commercial power systems the capacitors are not grounded f or a variety of reasons.
Industrial systems are of ten resistance grounded. A grounded Star connection on the capacitor bank
would provide a path for zero sequence currents and the possibility of a f alse operation of ground fault
relays.
Also, the protective relay scheme would be sensitive to system line-to-ground voltage Unbalance, which
could also result in f alse relay tripping.
Application: In Industrial and Commercial.
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3. Delt a-connect ed Banks

Delta-connected banks are generally used only at distributions voltages and are conf igured with a Single
series group of capacitors rated at line-to-line voltage. With only one series group of units no overvoltage
occurs across the remaining capacitor units f rom the isolation of a f aulted capacitor unit.
T heref ore, unbalance detection is not required f or protection and they are not treated f urther in this paper.
Application: In Distribution System.
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Ef f ect of series and Parallel Connection of capacitor

Parallel Connect ion
This is the most popular method of connection. T he capacitor is connected in parallel to the unit. T he
voltage rating of the capacitor is usually the same as or a little higher than the system voltage.
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Series Connect ion

T his method of connection is not much common. Even though the voltage regulation is much high in this
method,
It has many disadvantages.
One is that because of the series connection, in a short circuit condition the capacitor should be able to
withstand the high current. T he other is that due to the series connection due to the inductivity of the line
there can be a resonance occurring at a certain capacitive value.
T his will lead to very low impedance and may cause very high currents to f low through the lines.
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