MegaVARs at your fingertips!

[AlbertL]

This is the first time I've seen the actual user interface for adjusting reactive power generation:

[jonpaul]

The utilitys have automatic controls nowadays, with MW, MVAR, PF monitors and limits  and use

Capacitor banks
Synchronous Capacitors
Synthetic capacitors

j

[AlbertL]

The utilitys have automatic controls nowadays, with MW, MVAR, PF monitors and limits  and use

Capacitor banks
Synchronous Capacitors
Synthetic capacitors

j

Yes, I think that's how it's done in the transmission and distribution parts of the system, but at the generation end there's still some manual control under the direction of a load dispatcher.

My utility seems to use mostly fixed capacitor banks for PF control on the distribution system.  The cap banks are manually opened/closed via fused cutouts.  I think the idea is that the caps will be connected when summer arrives and air-conditioning motor loads pull down the PF, but I'm not sure that anyone ever does that.  One or two of the fuses on any given bank are always blown