What is power quality, and why should we care?

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What is power quality, and why should we care?

Back in 2001, a manufacturing company lost more than $3 million in one day in Silicon Valley when the lights went out and its manufacturing plant sat idle without electricity.¹ Worldwide customer surveys show that power quality related disturbances are increasing every year. Today, nearly 20% of the world’s electricity is wasted due to inefficiencies in power transmission and distribution, resulting in devastating business downtime and financial impact and adding the equivalent of millions of tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere every year. As our reliance on electricity continues to grow, improving the efficiency of how we generate, transmit, and use energy is more crucial than ever. 

In this blog, we’ll explore the essential role of grid components in powering our world, the challenges posed by poor power quality, and how advancements in technology are helping to make the journey of electricity more sustainable and efficient for everyone.

Power quality: The invisible challenge 

While we all expect electricity to be a constant and uninterrupted force, the reality is that modern power grids are increasingly strained by a variety of new loads. Devices like LED lamps, computers, medical equipment, and electric vehicle chargers contribute to what is known as power pollution. These devices can introduce harmful effects into the network, leading to poor power quality, which in turn impacts equipment reliability, performance, and even human health.

From flicker to failure: The fix for improving power quality

Now that you understand power pollution – the disruptions and inconsistencies in electricity that plague energy networks – let’s explore how it wreaks havoc across critical industries.

From a financial perspective, poor power quality can mean a drain on the bottom line, thanks to damaged equipment, lost productivity, and product spoilage. In addition, poor power quality increases energy consumption by causing inefficiencies that waste power, drive up costs, and boost carbon emissions. With much of our electricity still sourced from fossil fuels, every inefficiency in the system adds to our environmental footprint.

To help you grasp the full extent of the impact of poor power quality, let’s break down the consequences it brings to these key industries:

• Hospitals: Where power quality equals life quality
  In hospitals, power quality can literally be a matter of life and death. Critical medical equipment – like ventilators, infusion pumps, and heart monitors – requires a steady, uninterrupted power supply to function properly. Harmonics can cause them to malfunction, leading to potentially dangerous outcomes.

  The fix: One effective way to combat harmonics is by using active harmonic filters. This technology provides greater flexibility and scalability, allowing for more efficient power factor correction, harmonics filtering, and voltage balancing. Hitachi Energy’s active filters equipped a hospital in Brazil to operate with improved power quality to ensure seamless operation of critical equipment such as tomography and resonance machines.

• Schools: Power interruptions that disrupt learning
  In today’s classrooms, technology is at the core education. From interactive smartboards and projectors to online resources, schools rely heavily on stable electricity to ensure lessons run smoothly. Risks of poor power quality go beyond flickers and interruptions. In an era where education is increasingly dependent on technology, unstable power can undermine learning and hinder students’ ability to succeed.

The fix: Since schools deal with high levels of harmonics from multiple electronic devices, active harmonic filters prove to be the most effective solution by correcting distortions in real time, ensuring reliable power and less equipment downtime. The PQactiF active harmonic filter is Hitachi Energy’s newest modular, flexible, and high-efficiency solution for modern power networks.  This technology played a key role in improving the power network quality at a leading school in Vietnam, enhancing the overall learning environment.

• Food manufacturing: Poor power is a recipe for disaster
  When it comes to the food manufacturing industry, precision is more than a goal – it’s an important necessity. Poor power quality can throw off automated processes, impacting everything from temperature control to production timing. Even a small voltage dip can cause freezers to malfunction, jeopardizing the quality of ingredients and risking costly food spoilage. Unreliable power can result in wasteful resources and possibly damage a company’s reputation.

The fix: To safeguard against the costly impacts of poor power quality, food manufacturers can implement active harmonic filters and power conditioning systems. When paired together, it provides a robust defense against downtime, maintaining high standards of food quality. Hitachi Energy’s PQactiF helped to cancel harmonics at a leading food processing company in Belgium and is an ideal solution for networks powered by renewable energy.

Protecting networks: The role of surge arresters

Imagine walking outside on a nice quiet afternoon, when suddenly, a thunderclap hits – bright, loud, and completely unexpected. Your heart races for a while and the feeling freezes you for a moment. Now, picture that same surge of energy racing through your power lines. Without protection, it could do extreme damage to equipment and cause major disruptions. And that’s where surge arresters come in and save the day.

Just like your body instinctively reacts to thunder, surge arresters quickly divert excess voltage, safeguarding the energy system from the shock. Surge arresters are designed to protect critical and expensive equipment from power surges. This not only reduces the need for costly repairs but also contributes to the long-term sustainability of the grid by ensuring that critical components are protected.

The first line of defense in preventing wildfires

One of the most innovative solutions in the power grid today is the Spark Prevention Unit (SPU), which aims to reduce the risk of wildfires caused by electrical systems. Surge arresters, especially those used in fire-prone areas, can sometimes become overloaded and create sparks. These sparks can ignite vegetation, leading to devastating wildfires. The SPU addresses this issue by monitoring the thermal loading of surge arresters and disconnecting them from the network if they are at risk of failure. This preventive measure has already helped avoid numerous wildfires in regions such as the USA and Australia, where wildfires are a common and deadly occurrence.

Wildfires not only cause immense environmental damage but also contribute to carbon emissions. In fact, wildfires are responsible for a significant portion of global CO₂ emissions, which is why preventing them is such an important part of reducing our environmental footprint.

The future of power grids: Adapting to change

Electricity is what keeps our world running smoothly, and innovations like active harmonic filters and surge arresters are the unsung heroes that make it all possible. These incredible solutions protect power networks from voltage spikes and tackle distortions caused by excessive loads, ensuring everything from high-tech equipment to everyday appliances operate seamlessly.

As technology advances, so too must our power grids. The grid is evolving, and new challenges and opportunities are emerging. At Hitachi Energy, we are committed to developing solutions that not only improve the efficiency of the grid but also help reduce its environmental impact. From harmonics filtering to surge protection and wildfire prevention, our goal is to create a more sustainable, efficient, and reliable energy future.

Interested to learn more? Tune in to the latest Power Pulse episode where I explain how modern lifestyles, new technologies, and burgeoning populations are straining power grids – making efficient, reliable, and sustainable power quality essential.

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