A simplistic technique for power factor compensation capacity calculation in medium size industry

Abstract

There are a variety of techniques developed in order to improve the efficiency of electrical systems and reduce cost of providing electricity to the consumer. In this paper, a simplistic technique for power factor capacity calculation in medium-sized industrial/commercial setups is presented. Various loads of similar nominal power factor are categorized and demand factor of loads is so selected that it has engineering justifications. The proposed system works on principle of low voltage power factor correction, which substantially reduces electricity bill and increases electrical system loading capacity. It allows commercial and industrial consumers to save on their power cost appreciably. This work is augmented by application software, which takes a few inputs and produces numerous useful results. Adoption of this system helps user in computing compensation capacity, system KVA (size of transformer) and cost of compensation. A feature of this system is prediction of low PF penalty. Moreover, it also suggests the tentative payback period