SAG COMPENSATOR

Modern industry is becoming more automated and the sensitivity of processes to power quality events is increasing.

It is generally recognized that quality is an important aspect of the electricity service. Not only low prices are important, also high-quality matters to customers. Price and quality are often complementary aspects; together they define the value that customers derive from consuming electricity.

In practice the voltage is never perfect.

If the quality of electricity supplied to the plants drops below a certain level, equipment no longer works properly and customers are likely to experience problems. Sensitive industry sectors may incur a Power Quality cost up to 4% of their turnover, with about 60% of those costs caused by voltage sags and short interruptions.

The cost of a voltage sag is usually lower than the cost of an interruption, either short or long, but sags are much more frequent. An interruption will affect all (unprotected) services, sags may affect only those

that are most sensitive.

Many businesses require voltage or power conditioning rather than battery back up power, provided by UPS system. In those cases where back-up power is unnecessary, a voltage conditioner provides superior protection and additional power quality functions, such as protecting against over/under voltage, voltage fluctuations, sags and dips.

Moreover protecting a whole plant by UPS, which can guarantee sags immunity, may be very costly, due to battery and maintenance costs.

The right solution is the sag compensator.

What are voltage sags?

A voltage sag is a short-term reduction in, or complete loss of, nominal voltage. Generally voltage sag happens when the nominal voltage decreases between 10 and 90 percent of nominal voltage for one-half cycle to one minute. There are two main causes of voltage sags; starting of large loads either on the affected site or by a consumer on the same circuit and faults on other branches of the network.

Motor drives, including variable speed drives, are particularly susceptible.

Data processing and control equipment is also very sensitive to voltage sags and can suffer from data loss and extended downtime.

Relevance of voltage sags

The more modern the equipment is and the more electronics is required, the more serious are the problems caused through voltage sag. With the increasing number of regenerative energy sources, energy sags, fluctuations and frequency deviations also increase.

Example of costs due to voltage sags:

Costs for unproductive personnel due to the sudden termination of the production cycle.

Costs for raw materials and production lost.

Costs for damages and/or malfunctions of machineries (repairs to them, temporary hire of new ones).

Penalties caused by contractual shortcomings.

Sanctions for damage to the environment.

Increase in general insurance costs.