Assessment of the effect of series passive filter on harmonic distortion-power losses relationship in an electricity distribution network

Abstract

Technological innovations in recent times have led to widespread use of non-linear loads in power networks. These loads generate harmonics which result in the distortion of the system’s voltage and current signals and consequently, leads to power loss. This research assessed the total harmonic distortion (THD) mitigation capability of series passive filters (SePF) in an electricity distribution network (EDN) with a high penetration level of non-linear loads and the resulting effect on power loss (PL). The EDN for 250-seater computer laboratory facility in Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta (FUNAAB), Nigeria was considered as a case study. The network modelled and simulated without and with SePF in MATLAB/Simulink environment (R2023a version). The system's voltage-current THD (THDV-I) and PL were evaluated to determine the relationship between the two parameters. The obtained results showed that when no filter was applied, the THDV-I and PL were 37.38% and 9,703 W, respectively. However, when SePF was used on the network, the THDV-I reduced to 4.90% and the PL minimised to 146 W. These results indicated that PL reduces with decrease in THDV-I. The series passive filter application on the considered facility in this research appropriately mitigated the observed THD and the associated PL.