GE Multilin’s Solution For Power Quality MonitoringJohn Levine
GE Multilin’s solution
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Power Quality issues cause business problems such as:
Lost productivity, idle people and equipment
Lost orders, good will, customers and profits
Lost transactions and orders not being processed
Revenue and accounting problems
Customer and/or management dissatisfaction
Overtime required to make up for lost work time
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Why PQ is such a Big Problem?
The sensitivity of today’s electronic equipment makes it susceptible to power disturbances
For some devices, a momentary disturbance can cause
scrambled data
interrupted communications
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* GE Consumer & Industrial Multilin *
PQ Problems are Expensive
Berkeley Lab Study Estimates $80 Billion Annual Cost of Power Interruptions … Research News, Berkeley Lab, February 2, 2005
$50 billon per year in the USA is lost as a results of power quality breakdowns …. Bank of America Report
A manufacturing company lost more than $3 million one day last summer in Silicon Valley when the “lights went out.” … New York Times January 2000
“A voltage sag in a paper mill can waste a whole day of production - $250,000 loss” … Business Week, June 17,, 1996
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PQ Definitions Revisited
For Electric Utilities Control of Voltage and Prevention of Outages is Power Quality
IEEE Categories Std 1159-1995
Uninterruptible Power Supplies
Variable Frequency Drives
Medical Equipment, e.g. MRIs and X-Ray Machines
Office Equipment and Computers
Typical problems
Disturbance Type
Possible Causes
Steady-state
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Typical problems
Disturbance Type
Possible Causes
Steady-state
Interruption Garbled data Random increase in harmonics levels
Utility faults Inrush currents Inadequate wiring
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Typical problems
Disturbance Type
Possible Causes
Steady-state
Interruption Garbled data Random increase in harmonics levels
Utility faults Inrush currents Inadequate wiring
Intermittent lock-ups Lights flicker Garbled data
Sags/Swell
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Typical problems
Disturbance Type
Possible Causes
Steady-state
Interruption Garbled data Random increase in harmonics levels
Utility faults Inrush currents Inadequate wiring
Intermittent lock-ups Lights flicker Garbled data
Sags/Swell
Component failure Dielectric breakdown Lock-ups Garbled data Wavy CRTs
Impulses EMI/RFI
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Typical problems
Disturbance Type
Possible Causes
Steady-state
Interruption Garbled data Random increase in harmonics levels
Utility faults Inrush currents Inadequate wiring
Intermittent lock-ups Lights flicker Garbled data
Sags/Swell
Component failure Dielectric breakdown Lock-ups Garbled data Wavy CRTs
Impulses EMI/RFI
Overheated transformers and motors Voltage and current distortions Garbled data Lock-ups
Harmonics
Switching off a large load
Source: EPRI, 1994
Losses per Voltage Sag Event
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Category
Minimum
Maximum
Industrial
$0.1
$0.5
Source: EPRI “The Economics of Custom Power”, IEEE T&D 2003
Sheet2
Sheet3
* GE Consumer & Industrial Multilin *
High Speed Waveform Capture
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Benefits of Continuous PQ Monitoring
Continuous PQ Monitoring Detects, Records, and Leads to the Prevention of PQ Problems
Power Quality monitoring provides a continuous “Health Check” of a facility’s power system … for example:
Harmonic interaction between loads and power conditioning equipment spotted
High Inrush currents from equipment startup detected
Transients from load switching are seen
It provides data to see, diagnose and avert looming problems – “like squeaky brakes on a car”
Trends can be detected
JIT equipment maintenance programs can be established
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What is needed for PQ Monitoring?
PQ Monitors must detect and record the 7 types of PQ problems
Transients
Interruptions
Sag/Under Voltage
Swell/Over Voltage
Waveform Distortion
Voltage Fluctuations
Frequency Variations
These include Flicker and Compliance to ITI(CBEMA), IEEE and ISO Standards
Plus they must …
Be Suitable for continuously monitoring indoors and outdoors
Interface with standard PQ analysis Software…PQDif format
Be fast enough to capture high speed events that produce equipment problems
Have enough storage to save the waveforms you need
Have PQ analysis tools that produce usable, actionable recommendations
ITI: Information Technology Industry Council (Computer & Business Equipment Manufacturer’s Association)
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* GE Consumer & Industrial Multilin *
Source: AGA Brazil
Continuous Monitoring of the Station for PQ Problems
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ITI Acceptable Power Disturbance Envelope
ITI: Information Technology Industry Council (Computer & Business Equipment Manufacturer’s Association)
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Summary
GE Multilin provides the necessary tools for a successful PQ disturbance analysis and allows users to take remedial actions
Feels the pulse of the power system network
Symptoms
Examinations
GE Communicator software
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A good concept will be to show the pulse of a heartbeat machine and build on it.
* GE Consumer & Industrial Multilin *
Finally…
If You Can’t Measure it You Can’t Manage it
If You Can Measure it You Can Manage it
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Commercial shops$0.1$0.5
Source: EPRI “The Economics of Custom Power”, IEEE T&D 2003
Cost of Momentary Interuption