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POWER FACTOR Explained
To understand how effectively power is consumed within a facility, reviewing the working and non-working components of the electrical power supplied from the utility is essential.
REACTIVE POWER is responsible for the magnetic field surrounding the conductors and magnetizing the iron in transformers and rotating machines.
POWER FACTOR is the measurement of how efficiently electrical power is consumed by equipment within a facility's distribution system. If equipment uses all of the power delivered to it for actual work, the POWER FACTOR would be equal to ‘one’ or considered 'unity’ at (100%). Normal facility operations includes equipment requiring 'non-working' or REACTIVE POWER to function.
COMPONENTS OF ELECTRICAL POWER AND POWER FACTOR
WORKING or ACTIVE POWER ▼
Power that’s used for actual work. ACTIVE POWER converted into mechanical power, heat or light.
NON-WORKING or REACTIVE POWER ▼
Power not used for actual work output. REACTIVE POWER is used for ‘magnetizing energy’ needed to operate inductive equipment (such as motors, etc.)
Electrical Power Consists of Three Components ▼
❶ ACTIVE POWER = Watts (W)
❷ REACTIVE POWER = Volt-Amps-Reactive (VAR)
❸ APPARENT POWER = Volt-Amperes (VA)
TOTAL or APPARENT POWER ▼
Measured combination of both the
ACTIVE (kW) and REACTIVE (kVAR) power.kVA2 = kW2 + kVAR2
While we clearly need REACTIVE POWER, problems arise when equipment (such as motors) operate at less than its rated capacity. As electrical equipment 'unloads', the system requires more reactive power.
As a consequence, Total Power (KVA) increases. Since POWER FACTOR is a measure of electrical efficiency or Real Power to Total Power...
Power Factor = Working Power (kW) / Total Power (kVA)
If the working power requirements of the equipment remain constant, as total power increases, POWER FACTOR decreases - meaning, your electrical system is operating at less than ideal efficiency.
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