Introduction to Power Engineering

Lecture # 01

Definition of Electric Power

Power is a measure of energy per unit time. Power therefore gives the rate of energy consumption or production. The units for power are generally watts (W). For example, the watt rating of an appliance gives the rate at which it uses energy.

Definition of Electric Power

The total amount of energy consumed by an appliance is the wattage multiplied by the amount of time during which it was used. This energy can be expressed in units of watt-hours or, more commonly, kilowatt-hours.

Definition of Electric Power

Power dissipated by a circuit element is given by the product of its resistance and the square of the current through it

P=I2R
The term dissipated indicates that the electric energy is being converted to heat.
This heat may be part of the appliances intended function, as in any electric heating device. It may also be considered a loss, as in the resistive heating of transmission lines.

Definition of Electric Power

Another, more general way of calculating ower is as the product of current and voltage.

P=IV
For a resistive element, we can apply Ohms law (V = IR) to see that the formulas P = I2R and P = IV amount to the same thing:

P = IV = I(IR) = I2R

Definition of Electric Power

Example:
Consider an incandescent light bulb, rated at 60 W. This means that the filament dissipates energy at the rate of 60 W when presented with a given voltage. This assume to be the normal household voltage, 120 V.

The power equals the voltage applied to the light bulb times the current through it.

Definition of Electric Power

The current is 0.5 A.

60 W = 0.5 A. 120 V
The power rating is specific to a given voltage but one property of the light bulb that is always the same is its resistance, in this case, 240 ohms.

We could determine the resistance from Ohms law:

120 V = 0.5 A* 240 ohm.

And also verify that the power also corresponds to I2R:

60 W = (0.5 A)2 *240 ohm

Difference between the power dissipated and the power transmitted by the line
The dissipated power is simply given by P = I2R. We could also write this as P = IV. But that would be less convenient for two reasons:
First, although it is tempting to think of a power line as just a resistive wire, it actually has a significant reactance.
Because of the phase shift involved, the presence of reactance means that multiplying I and V together will be more complicated. On the other hand, taking the square of the current magnitude is always easy, regardless of phase shifts.

Difference between the power dissipated and the power transmitted by the line
Second, if we tried to calculate dissipated power by using P = IV, we would have to be very careful about which V to use. Since Ohms law refers to the voltage drop across a resistor, then V must be the voltage difference between the two ends of the line, otherwise known as the Line Drop. This line drop is distinct from the Line Voltage. Line voltage specifies the voltage with respect to ground.

Difference between the power dissipated and the power transmitted by the line
Typically, the line drop would be a few percent of the line voltage, but it is usually not known precisely. If transmission lines had no resistance at all, there would be zero line drop.

For these reasons, Thermal Losses are better calculated using P = I2R, and are often referred to as I2R losses.

Difference between the power dissipated and the power transmitted by the line
When we ask about the power transmitted by the line, we can think of the line as extended terminals, like battery terminals. The power that is available to a load connected to this line can be calculated with the formula P = IV. But now V refers to the line voltage, which is that seen by the load between the two terminals. We say that the power has been transmitted by the line at the voltage V.

Intuitive understanding of P = IV
We can have an intuitive understanding of P = IV. Voltage is a measure of energy per unit charge. Current is the flow rate of charge. The product of voltage and current therefore tells us how many electrons are passing through, multiplied by the amount of energy each electron carries. [Energy/Charge] x [Charge/Time] = [Energy/Time]

Complex Power
Applying the simple formula P = IV becomes more problematic when voltage and current are changing over time, as they do in a.c. systems. Let us begin by considering power, voltage, and current as real quantities that vary in time. The fundamental and correct way to interpret the statement P = IV when I and V vary in time is as a statement of instantaneous conditions. Instantaneous Power is equal to the instantaneous product of current and voltage.

Complex Power
In other words, at any instant, the power equals the voltage times the current at that instant. This is expressed by writing each variable as a function of time.

P(t) = I(t) x V(t)

t is the same throughout the equation (i.e., the same instant).

However, instantaneous power as such is usually not very interesting for us.

Complex Power
In power systems, we generally need to know about power transmitted or consumed on a time scale much greater than 1/60 of a second. Therefore, we need an expression for power as averaged over entire cycles of alternating current and voltage. Consider first the case of a purely resistive load. Voltage and current are in phase. They are oscillating simultaneously.

Complex Power
The Average Power, that is the average product of voltage and current, can be obtained by taking the averages, rms values, of each and then multiplying them together.

Pave = IrmsVrms (resistive case)

Power for the resistive case is illustrated in Figure on the next slide.

Complex Power

Power as the product of voltage and current, with voltage and current in phase

Complex Power
But now consider a load with reactance. The relative timing of voltage and current has been shifted. Their maxima no longer coincide. In fact, one quantity is sometimes negative when the other is positive. As a result, the instantaneous power , the product of voltage and current, is sometimes negative. This is shown in Figure on next slide.

Complex Power

Power as the product of voltage and current, with current lagging behind voltage by a phase angle f.

Complex Power
We can interpret the negative instantaneous power. It is the power that flows backwards along the transmission line, or out of the load and back into the generator. Since instantaneous power is sometimes negative, the average power is clearly less than it was in the resistive case. But just how much less? Fortunately, this is very easy to determine.

Complex Power
The average power is directly related to the amount of phase shift between voltage and current.

Here we skip the mathematical derivation and simply state that: The reduction in average power due to the phase shift is given by the cosine of the angle of the shift.

Pave = IrmsVrms cos

Complex Power
The factor of cos is called the POWER FACTOR, often abbreviated p.f. This same equation can also be written as:

Pave = (ImaxVmax cos )/2

Each rms value is related to the maximum value by a factor of 1/2.

Complex Power
This equation is true for any kind of load. In the special case where there is only resistance and no phase shift, we have =0 and cos= 1. So there is no need to write down the cos, and we get the formula from the previous page.

Pave = IrmsVrms (resistive case)

Complex Power
Consider another special case where the load is purely reactive, having no resistance at all. In this case, the phase shift would be =90o and cos=0. It means that power only oscillates back and forth, but is not dissipated the average power is zero.

Complex Power
The Average Power corresponds to the power actually transmitted or consumed by the load. It is also called Real Power, Active Power or True Power, and is measured in watts.

Complex Power
There are other aspects of the transmitted power that we wish to specify. The product of current and voltage, regardless of their phase shift, is called the Apparent Power, denoted by the symbol S. Its magnitude is given by:

S = IrmsVrms
Although apparent and real power have the same units physically, they are expressed differently to maintain an obvious distinction. Thus, the units of apparent power are called volt-amperes (VA).

Complex Power
Apparent power is important in the context of equipment capacity. Actually, the crucial quantity with respect to thermal capacity limits is only the current. In practice, though, the current is often inconvenient to specify. Since the operating voltage of a given piece of equipment is usually quite constant, apparent power is a fair way of indicating the current. The point is that apparent power is a much better measure of the current than real power, because it does not depend on the power factor. Thus, utility equipment ratings are typically given in kVA or MVA.

Complex Power
So what is the difference between Apparent and Real Power. It is the Reactive Power. Reactive power is the component of power that oscillates back and forth through the lines, being exchanged between electric and magnetic fields and not getting dissipated. It is denoted by the symbol Q, and its magnitude is given by:

Q = IrmsVrms sin

Complex Power
Again, note how the equation converges for the resistive case. When =0, then sin=0, and there will be no reactive power at all. Reactive power is measured in VAR, for Volt-ampere Reactive. We can represent power as a vector in the complex plane.

Complex Power

The complex power S, with real power P in the real and reactive power Q in the imaginary direction.

Complex Power
The angle is the same as the phase difference between voltage and current. The projection of the apparent power vector onto the real axis has length P and corresponds to the real power. The projection of apparent power onto the imaginary axis has length Q and corresponds to reactive power. This agrees with the factors of cos and sin in the formulas for P and Q, respectively.

Complex Power
In mathematical terms, S is the vector sum of P and Q. In this sense, it is completely analogous to the complex impedance Z, which is composed of the resistance R in the real and the reactance X in the imaginary direction.

Complex Power
Note that when Q and S are pointing upward in Figur, is positive and the power factor is said to be lagging It is like the current lagging behind the voltage. For a leading power factor, would be negative, and Q and S would point downward.

Complex Power
Example: Consider a vacuum cleaner that draws 750W of real power, at a voltage of 120V a.c. and a power factor of 0.75 lagging. How much current does it draw? Since the real power is given by the apparent power times the power factor, the apparent power equals 750 / 0.75 = 1000 VA = 1 kVA. The rms current is the apparent power divided by the rms voltage: 1000 VA / 120 V = 8.33 A.

Complex Power
When we say that a load draws power, it means that when presented with a given voltage, a certain amount of current will flow through this device. Accordingly a certain amount of power will be dissipated or exchanged. Just as a load draws real power in relation to its resistance, it draws reactive power in relation to its reactance. In fact, the ratio of resistance to reactance determines the ratio of real to reactive power drawn by a load. In other words, the angle in Z is the same as the angle f in S.

Complex Power
Specifically, inductive loads are said to consume reactive power, whereas capacitive loads are said to supply reactive power. This is merely a terminological convention, and a rather misleading one.

Recall that inductors and capacitors produce opposite phase shifts.

Either type of shift causes reactive power to oscillate through the circuit. But because of the difference in timing, the contributions of inductance and capacitance to reactive power are opposite.

Complex Power
At the instant that the inductor magnetic field absorbs energy, the capacitor electric field in the same circuit releases energy. Conversely, at the instant that the magnetic field releases energy, the electric field absorbs it. Although on average neither inductor nor capacitor gains or loses energy, their effects are complementary. Following the law of energy conservation, the amount of energy going into the circuit must equal the energy coming out of the circuit at every instant.

Complex Power
In principle, therefore, inductance and capacitance in a circuit must always be matched. A circuit will behave in such a way as to provide equal absorption and release of reactive power at any instant. The preferable way to satisfy the reactive power balance is by adjusting the a.c. power source to compensate for the loads circulation of reactive power.

Thus, in operational terms, the problem of managing reactive power is analogous to that of managing real power.

Complex Power
Just like the utility must supply the precise amount of real power that is demanded at any instant, the utility must compensate for the precise amount of reactive power that is being circulated at any instant. In practice, electric loads are dominated by inductance, not capacitance. Utilities therefore associate supplying real power with compensating for inductive reactance, a lagging current. This operational perspective explains the use of the physically improper terminology of consuming and supplying reactive power.