Total Harmonic Distortion and Effects in （总谐波失真和效果）.pdfVIP

Total Harmonic Distortion and Effects in Electrical Power Systems Associated Power Technologies Introduction The power quality of distribution systems has a drastic effect on power regulation and consumption. Johan Lundquist of the Chalmers University of Technology in Goteberg, Sweden put it best, stating “The phrase ‘power quality’ has been widely used during the last decade and includes all aspects of events in the system that deviates from normal 1 th operation.” This has been especially true after the second half of the 20 century when new types of electronic power sources caused distortion in waveforms of the power system. Power sources act as non-linear loads, drawing a distorted waveform that contains harmonics. These harmonics can cause problems ranging from telephone transmission interference to degradation of conductors and insulating material in motors and transformers. Therefore it is important to gauge the total effect of these harmonics. The summation of all harmonics in a system is known as total harmonic distortion (THD). This paper will attempt to explain the concept of THD and its effects on electrical equipment. It will also outline the low THD of the Associated Power Technologies (APT) line of programmable sources and how these can be used to more effectively test equipment. What is Total Harmonic Distortion? Total harmonic distortion is a complex and often confusing concept to grasp. However, when broken down into the basic definitions of harmonics and distortion, it becomes much easier to understand. Imagine a power system with an AC source and an electrical load (Figure 1). Figure 1: Power System with AC source and electrical load Now imagine that this load is going to take on one of two basic types: linear or non- linear. The type of load is going to affect the power quali