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Location and Connection of Capacitor Banks

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Location of Capacitor Banks It is always desirable to connect a capacitor bank as close as possible to the load. This optimizes the use of the capacitor bank. Whenever a load is connected to the power system, the capacitor associated with that load also gets connected to the system. The capacitor cancels out the reactive … Read more

Shunt Capacitor Bank and Series Capacitor Bank

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Requirement of Capacitor Banks Let us first discuss the actual requirement of capacitor bank in the power system. Actually, inductive loads such as transformers, motors, reactors, transmission networks, etc., cause current to lag behind the voltage. This increases the phase angle between current and voltage which in turn reduces the cosine of that angle. The … Read more

Details of Capacitor Units in a Capacitor Bank

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Capacitor Elements A capacitor element is the fundamental building block of a capacitor unit, consisting of two metal electrodes separated by a dielectric medium. Multiple elements are connected in series or parallel to form the internal circuit of a capacitor unit. To match the system’s rated voltage, several capacitor units are connected in series. The … Read more

Reactive Power in Power System Network

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Reactive power is measured in VAR, where V stands for volts, A for amperes, and R denotes reactive. In power systems, particularly in transmission networks, reactive power is typically expressed in megavolt-amperes reactive (MVAR), where 1 MVAR equals one million VAR. What is reactive power? The reactive power is not a useful power. This is … Read more

Design of Contacts in Vacuum Interrupters

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The article will focus on the contact design of vacuum interrupters. Before discussing the subject, let us consider why a specific design of contacts is required. The simplest form of contact is the butt-type contact, which has a plain and flat surface. This type of contact is suitable for vacuum circuit breakers with a rated … Read more

Comparison of Vacuum Circuit Breakers with Other Circuit Breakers

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Before discussing the actual comparison, let’s look at the different mediums used in circuit breakers. These are air, oil, and SF6 gas. Nowadays, some other gaseous media like compressed air, C4-FN mixtures (C4-FN/CO2 or C4-FN/N2), C5-FK mixtures (C4-FK/air or C4-FK/CO2) and pure N2 or N2/CO2 mixtures are also being developed as insulating mediums. Although, some … Read more

Vacuum Interrupters – Construction, Function, and Arc Quenching

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We shall cover the constructional details of a vacuum interrupter along with its function, how it facilitates arc quenching, etc. Introduction to Vacuum Circuit Breakers Before entering into the detailed discussion about the vacuum interrupter, let us have a look at the basic concept of vacuum circuit breakers. A vacuum interrupter, which we also call … Read more

Working Principle of Vacuum Circuit Breaker

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Introduction In modern medium-voltage power systems, vacuum circuit breakers play a dominant role in safe and efficient current interruption. Engineers prefer these breakers for their robustness, low maintenance requirements, and high dielectric recovery strength. A vacuum circuit breaker, also known as VCB, uses the unique properties of a vacuum to quench electrical arcs. Unlike SF6 … Read more