Harmonic mitigation for various nonlinear load using active filter

Abstract

Power electronics such as computers, adjustable speed drives, LEDs lamps, fluorescent lamps, etc which are termed non-linear loads introduce a considerable distortion to the sinusoidal waveforms of the supply current, leading to severe consequences for both power utilities and consumers. This project aims at providing a solution to this problem through optimum design and simulation of effective and reliable harmonic mitigation methods using power electronic-based devices. These include Active Power Filter (APF) and Static Synchronous Compensator (STATCOM) with different models of nonlinear loads. The system design is framed using mathematical theories in conjunction with MATLAB/Simulink software. Based on the IEEE519 standard, the current harmonic conditions of the model systems are analyzed before and after mitigation. the performance of each device is evaluated using FFT signal processing toolbox in the same software. The results from the FFT spectra showed that the model systems contain a high number of harmonics before filtering. However, when these devices are connected to the system, all higher-order harmonics have been maintained within the standard with STATCOM giving a comparatively better performance.