Control Techniques

Harmonics
Guide

A technical guide to supply

harmonics and drives.

Issue Number: P1
 Harmonics Guide
This guide explains the subject of supply harmonics and provides help in ensuring
that installations using variable speed drives do not exceed the power companies’
limits on harmonics or cause operating difficulties because of harmonics.

2 Issue Number: P1
 Contents
1 OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................................ 4

2 THE BASICS.............................................................................................................................. 6

3 THE PRACTICAL ISSUES ...................................................................................................... 15

4 REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS ....................................................................................... 23

APPENDIX 1 - ESTIMATING NEUTRAL CURRENT WITH SINGLE-PHASE LOADS................ 25

APPENDIX 2 - APPLYING UK ELECTRICITY ASSOCIATION ENGINEERING

RECOMMENDATION G5/3 ........................................................................................................... 26

Issue Number: P1 3
1 Overview

− Supply harmonics are caused by input rectifiers in variable speed drives and a
wide range of other electronic equipment. The current drawn from the supply
is not sinusoidal, and the effect is that current is fed back into the supply at
frequencies which are multiples of the supply frequency.

− Supply harmonics are not high-frequency effects and very rarely cause
interference with other circuits by stray coupling. They are not affected by RFI
filters or other EMC measures such as cable screening and earth bonding.
They are not nor do they cause “spikes”or similar transient effects.

− As a rule of thumb, if less than 25% of the capacity of a mains supply system
is rectifier loads (ie drives, electronic equipment, UPS etc.) then it is most
unlikely that harmonics will present any kind of problem. If the proportion is
more than 50% then careful attention must be paid to harmonics.

− If harmonics do cause a problem, it is through the cumulative effect on the

power system of numerous harmonic-generating loads. Problems may be
experienced within the plant that generates the harmonics, or in other
premises fed from the same supply. The main possible effects are:
− power factor less than unity - ie current higher than necessary for a
given power
− increased heating of power plant
− (rarely) over-stress of power factor correction plant due to local
resonance
− (rarely) noisy bus-bars, electrical protection gear etc.
− Overheating of neutral conductors (single-phase loads only)

− The electricity supply companies operate guidelines which control the

connection of loads which generate harmonics. In the UK the current guideline
is referred to as G5/3. It gives limits for harmonics generated at a given site at
its point of common coupling with other power users. Appendix 2 of this guide
gives an outline of G5/3 and some advice on how to apply it. The guide also
describes remedial measures which can be applied if the requirements of
G5/3 are not met.

− Harmonic currents from similar types of rectifier on the same supply system
add up directly. In combinations of single and three-phase rectifiers some of
the important harmonics cancel, such as the fifth and seventh.

− Three-phase drives generate lower harmonic levels than single-phase drives

of the same power rating.

− Drives incorporating DC inductance generate lower currents at the crucial fifth

and seventh harmonics than those with no inductance.

− Series inductance at the AC input can further reduce harmonics.

4 Issue Number: P1
− There is a limit beyond which adding more AC inductance is not acceptable,
and if further harmonic reduction is needed then 12-pulse methods or active
input stages may be used.

− Control Techniques can provide data on the harmonic currents for all of its
products, including cases where measures such as AC line inductors and/or
12-pulse arrangements are used.

− The Control Techniques Unidrive can be operated as an “active front-end” to

give virtually zero input harmonics as well as fully regenerative four-quadrant
operation.

− There is a move internationally to create product standards for harmonics (IEC

standards and reports such as IEC61000-3-2 and IEC61000-3-4, and
European standard EN61000-3-2). These are useful for low power equipment
which is sold in very large quantities, such as PCs and household apparatus,
but for industrial and building services applications it is more cost-effective to
assess the complete installation. In the majority of cases no counter-measures
are needed.

Issue Number: P1 5
−

2 The Basics
What are harmonics?
The subject can be confusing, especially because the idea of harmonics is used
in many branches of electronics, to help in analysing signals in electronic circuits.

In principle, any time-varying periodic electrical quantity can be expressed as a

series of single-frequency sinusoidal harmonics by finding the corresponding
Fourier series. This helps in understanding it, because sinusoidal quantities can
easily be analysed in electrical circuits, and their behaviour depends on their
frequency.

This concept is used frequently in the study of EMC (Electromagnetic

Compatibility) to help in understanding the behaviour of fast-changing electric
current and voltage. For example, a microprocessor with a clock frequency of
40MHz may cause interference to radio equipment at its third harmonic of
120MHz, or any other multiple of 40MHz.

If the output of a variable speed drive is not perfectly sinusoidal then this can be
expressed as a series of output voltage harmonics, whose effect on the motor
can be estimated (note that modern PWM drives generate negligible output
harmonics but they do generate a switching frequency and its harmonics).

Fast “spikes” and transients can be analysed for their frequency content, and this
helps in understanding their behaviour.

Although the types of harmonics described above may be important in

some cases, this guide is discussing power supply harmonics,
which are present at the input of most variable speed drives.
They are not caused by the fast-switching power stage of the drive
nor the microprocessor.
They are caused by the input circuit of the drive, which is usually a
simple diode bridge rectifier drawing its current from the mains supply
in a series of pulses. In most cases the mains system can
accommodate this non-sinusoidal current without ill effects, but in
extreme situations it may cause problems. The electricity supply
companies therefore operate limits to the permitted harmonic currents
to protect other power users and their supply networks.

DC drives are still widely used in some industries. Their input harmonics are
broadly similar to those of AC drives, although there are detailed differences in
their behaviour. This guide concentrates on AC drives because their use is
increasing steadily and they are often used in general applications, whereas DC
drives tend to be of high power rating and installed by specialists who are aware
of the harmonic issues.

6 Issue Number: P1
Supply harmonics and AC variable speed drives
Figure 1 shows the essential circuit for a typical AC VSD. The input is rectified by
the diode bridge, and the resulting DC is smoothed by the capacitor and, for
drives rated at typically over 2.2kW, the inductor. It is then chopped up in the
inverter stage which uses PWM to create a sinusoidal output voltage of
adjustable voltage and frequency.

L
3 Φ supply

C
~
M

Figure 1: Essential features of AC variable speed drive

The input can be single or three phase. For simplicity the single phase case is
covered first. Current flows in pulses at the peaks of the supply voltage as shown
in figure 2.

Supply
voltage

Current

0 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 2: Typical input current waveform for a 1.5kW single phase drive
(with supply voltage)

Issue Number: P1 7
Figure 3: Corresponding spectrum for figure 2

Figure 3 shows the Fourier analysis of the waveform in figure 2. It comprises lines
at multiples of 50Hz. Because the waveform is symmetrical in the positive and
negative half-cycles, apart from imperfections, only very low level even-order
harmonics are present.
The odd-order harmonics are quite high, but they diminish with increasing
harmonic order.
(All currents shown in spectra are in peak values, ie 2 times their rms values.)

By the 25th harmonic the level is negligible. The frequency of this harmonic for a
50Hz supply is 1250Hz which is in the audio frequency part of the
electromagnetic spectrum and well below the radio frequency part which is
generally considered to begin at 150kHz. This is important, because it shows that
supply harmonics are low frequency effects which are quite different from radio
frequency EMC effects. They are not sensitive to fine details of layout and
screening of circuits, and any remedial measures which are required use
conventional electrical power techniques such as tuned power factor capacitors
and phase-shifting transformers. This should not be confused with the various
techniques used to control electrical interference from fast switching devices,
sparking electrical contacts etc.

8 Issue Number: P1
 0 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 4: Typical input current waveform for a 1.5kW three phase drive

Three-phase drives cause less harmonic current for a given power than single-
phase drives. Figure 4 shows the input current waveform for a 1.5kW three-phase
drive. The line current is less in any case, and there are two peaks in each mains
cycle each of about 20% of the peaks in the single phase drive.

Figure 5: Spectrum corresponding to figure 4

Figure 5 shows the corresponding spectrum. Compared with the single phase
case the levels are generally lower, and the triplens (multiples of three) are
absent. The most significant harmonics are the fifth and seventh.

Issue Number: P1 9
Effects of harmonics
The diode bridge input circuit in a single phase AC drive is the same as used in a
very wide range of electronic equipment such as personal computers and
domestic appliances. All of these cause similar current harmonics. Their effect is
cumulative if they are all connected at the same low voltage (eg 400V) supply
system. This means that to estimate the total harmonic current in an installation of
single-phase units, the harmonics have to be added directly.Phase-controlled
equipment such as lamp dimmers and thyristor DC drives cause phase-shifted
harmonics which can be added by root-sum-squares to allow for their diverse
phase angles.

In a mixture of single- and three-phase loads, some of the important harmonics

such as the fifth and seventh are 180°out of phase and actually mutually cancel.
Sometimes this information can be very helpful even if there is no certainty that
the loads will be operated simultaneously - for example, in an office building
which is near to its limit for fifth and seventh harmonic because of the large
number of single-phase computer loads, the installation of three-phase variable
speed drives will certainly not worsen the fifth and seventh harmonics and may
well reduce them.

0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms

Figure 6: Supply voltage waveform with single phase loads of 50% supply
capacity

Figure 6 shows the voltage waveform which would result if 50% of the loading of
a supply distribution transformer was made up of single-phase rectifier loads. The
voltage distortion could cause disturbance or excessive heating in some kinds of
load - although it is interesting to note that if the load was made up entirely of
rectifiers, they would suffer no ill effects and even operate at reduced stress
because of the reduced peak current.

Another possible ill effect of harmonics is that the current in the neutral conductor
of a three-phase four-wire power system supplying single-phase loads does not

10 Issue Number: P1
cancel at the triplen frequencies since they are co-phasal. In some cases over-
heating of neutral conductors has occurred. This does not happen with three-
phase rectifiers. Triplen harmonics cancel in the delta winding of a transformer,
so they have no significant impact on medium and high voltage circuits of the
power distribution system.

0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms

Figure 7: Neutral current waveform with balanced set of single-phase drives

Figure 7 shows the neutral current waveform for a balanced set of single-phase
drives. Note that the basic frequency is 150Hz. The neutral rms current is 171%
of the line currents.

Power factor
From the point of view of the installer the main effect of harmonics is to increase
the supply current for a given power, ie to reduce the power factor. This is
automatically accounted for in the rated input current for the drive given in its
specification data. A small single phase drive may have a power factor as low as
0.4, whereas a larger three-phase drive will achieve typically 0.9. In conventional
electrical engineering the power factor is taken as cosφ where φ is the phase
angle between voltage and current. With power electronic circuits this is no longer
the case and the fundamental definition of power factor should be used, ie the
ratio of the power to the product of RMS voltage and current. As a measure of the
ratio of useful current to the required current-carrying capacity of the supply plant,
it has the same effect. The difference is that phase angle can be corrected if
required using power factor capacitors (for a lagging load) whereas harmonics
may be more difficult to reduce. However there is at present no charge from the
electricity companies for harmonic current absorption, whereas there is a peak-
capacity charge for VArs in industrial and commercial installations.

The box contains the expressions used to calculate the main factors used to
describe the effects of harmonics and phase angle in power systems. The power
factor is the overall ratio of the actual power to the apparent power found by
multiplying the rms current and voltage. The power factor can be split up into two

Issue Number: P1 11
constituent factors, the displacement factor which is controlled only by the phase
angle and the distortion factor which is controlled only by the harmonic content.

Power Factor = Power

rms current × rms voltage

Displacement = Power = cos φ

Factor
Fundamental current × Fundamental
voltage

Distortion Factor = Fundamental current × Fundamental

voltage
rms current × rms voltage
So:
Power Factor = Displacement Factor × Distortion Factor

Some examples illustrate how these factors work:

Displacement Distortion Factor Power

Factor factor
Simple induction motor 0.8 1.0 0.8
Typical three phase 0.95 0.9 0.86
VSD
Typical single phase 0.95 0.5 0.48
VSD

Harmonic calculations
The impact of a harmonic current on the power system can be estimated by
calculating the resulting harmonic voltage at a point in the supply system shared
with other equipment. The interest of the power supply companies is to control
the quality of the power delivered to consumers, so their interest is at the point
where the supply is shared with another consumer - the point of common coupling
(PCC).
The basic equivalent circuit for this calculation is shown in Figure 8.

ZS ZC1
consumer 1
ZC2
Fault level consumer 2
~ at ZC3
PCC consumer 3
determined
by ZS Point of common
coupling (PCC)

Figure 8: Supply system, showing point of common coupling with fault level

12 Issue Number: P1
For the study of harmonics, the principle of superposition is used which means
that the mains source is turned off and the consumer being studied is considered
as a source of harmonic current, as shown in figure 9

ZS ZC1 Harmonic current

consumer 1
ZC2
consumer 2
Harmonic ZC3
voltage at consumer 3
PCC

Figure 9: Supply system arranged for harmonic analysis

Each harmonic is considered in turn. The voltage is simply the product of the
current and the impedance of the supply system upstream of the PCC. The
impedance at 50Hz (or other mains frequency) can be found from the declared
fault level of the supply, which should be available from the supply company. If it
is expressed in MVA then the impedance in ohms at mains frequency can be
calculated as follows:
V2 where V is the voltage between lines and, Z S is the fault
ZS = impedance of one line
MVA ×10 6
The impedance is assumed to be predominantly inductive - as is the case with
high power circuits - so that for a harmonic of order n the impedance is nZ S .

This calculation is required for assessment against stage 3 of the UK Electricity

Association recommendation G5/3. It is widely accepted as giving a reliable basis
for assessment of harmonic penetration. The presence of power-factor correction
capacitors causes a more complex situation where resonance causes the
impedance to rise at certain frequencies. If these coincide with odd harmonics
where substantial currents exist, a higher harmonic voltage than estimated can
occur. Fortunately this is an unusual situation, which can be expensive to cure.

Note that in Figure 9 the harmonic voltage within the premises of consumer 1 will
be higher than that at the PCC, because of the voltage drop in ZC1. Meeting G5/3
at the PCC is no guarantee of tolerable harmonic levels within the system of the
consumer generating the harmonics. The limits applied at the PCC contain
considerable safety margin, so it is unlikely that the consumer will experience
difficulty in this respect, but there is always a possibility of harmonic disturbance
especially if ZS is small (stiff supply) but ZC1 large (eg long transmission line or
small transformer down-stream of PCC).

In order to analyse a practical system, the known harmonic data for all the
rectifiers and other distorting loads must be combined to predict a total current. In
general, each harmonic from each unit is a vector quantity which can only be

Issue Number: P1 13
added to the others through vector addition. Usually the phase angle is unknown,
and in the case of phase angle controllers it varies with the operating condition.

For uncontrolled rectifiers, the phase angles of the dominant harmonics will be
similar, and the amplitudes add directly. G5/3 permits the application of a
coincidence factor of 0.9 to reflect the fact that perfect addition is not possible.

Where phase angle controlled loads are added to one another or to a group of
uncontrolled loads, the random phase angles mean that addition by square root
of sum of squares is appropriate, whereas G5/3 suggests a coincidence factor of
0.75.

Diversity of loading is also an important issue. In some installations only a small

part of the possible load on each drive can occur simultaneously. This must be
considered to avoid an over-estimate of the harmonic loading.

The effect of load is very different for AC and DC drives. Although AC drives at
full load generally generate rather higher levels of harmonic than DC drives, the
input current and all the important harmonics fall with reduced load power
whether this is caused by falling torque or speed or both. With DC drives the
current is proportional to shaft torque but does not fall with reducing speed.

14 Issue Number: P1
3 The Practical Issues
For many drive applications the effect of harmonics is negligible and no special
action is required. The installation is simply designed for the rated input currents
of the drives used, and there is no need for any other consideration. The fact that
some of the input current comprises harmonics usually has no practical impact.

If the total power rating of the drives and any other electronic equipment installed
(eg computers, UPS systems, large rectifiers) exceeds about 25% of the power
supply capacity at the utility feed point then it would be wise to make a more
detailed assessment of the harmonic situation.

The table shows the main risks, and what steps should be taken to avoid them.

Risk Action
1. Over-heating neutral cables Only applies to single-phase input drives.
Estimate neutral current and ensure
adequate conductors provided. See
Appendix 1.

2. Harmonic voltage levels Estimate total harmonic current at PCC

exceed G5/3 limits at PCC Compare with G5/3 limits
Take remedial measures if necessary - see
next section

3. Harmonic voltage levels Generally if the installation meets G5/3

cause disturbance in plant then the site levels will not be so high as to
cause problems, but there this might not be
true if:
− The drives etc. represent a high
proportion (over 50%) of the rating of a
distribution transformer, and the PCC is
at the transformer primary
− There is a long line down-stream of the
PCC with a high proportion of rectifier
loads
− The system has a high impedance at
some frequencies - due to resonance of
power factor correction capacitors
The remedial measures are the same as
for item 2., but must be applied at the
affected point in the power system rather
than the PCC.

Remedial Measures - simple

Some simple techniques can give useful reductions in harmonics.

AC line inductance
The addition of AC input inductance to the single phase drive improves the
current waveform and spectrum from those shown in Figures 2 and 3 to those

Issue Number: P1 15
shown in Figures 10 and 11. It is particularly beneficial for the higher order
harmonics, but the fifth and seventh are reduced by a useful degree. Only the
third harmonic is little improved.

0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 10: Input current waveform as figure 2 but with 2% input inductor

Figure 11: Input current spectrum for figure 10

Since the three-phase rectifier has no third harmonic current, the AC inductor is
even more beneficial, as shown in Figures 12 and 13.

16 Issue Number: P1
 0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 12 Input current waveform as figure 4 but with 2% input inductors

Figure 13: Input current spectrum for figure 12

In these examples the value of the AC inductor is 2% (ie 0.02 pu). This is the
highest value recommended where full torque at base speed is required, since
the drive output voltage begins to be reduced significantly for higher values.

DC inductance
Drives rated at 4kW or more usually have three-phase input and include
inductance in the DC link. This gives the improved waveform and spectrum
shown in Figures 14 and 15, which are for a hypothetical 1.5kW drive for ease of
comparison with the previous illustrations.

Issue Number: P1 17
 0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 14: Input current waveform for 1.5kW drive with DC inductance

Figure 15: Spectrum for figure 14

Further improvement is possible by adding AC inductance as well as DC, as

shown in Figures 16 and 17. This represents the limit of what can be practically
achieved by very simple low-cost measures.

18 Issue Number: P1
 0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 16: Input current waveform for 1.5kW drive with DC and input
inductors

Figure 17: Spectrum for figure 16

Remedial Measures - more complex

12-pulse rectifier
A well-known technique for high-power rectifiers where a transformer is part of the
installation, is to use two 6-pulse rectifiers in a phase-shifted arrangement as
illustrated in Figure 17. The star and delta windings (or zig-zag windings) have a
relative 30° phase shift which translates to 180° at the fifth and seventh
harmonics (as well as 17,19,29,31 etc.), so that current at these harmonics
cancels in the transformer.

Issue Number: P1 19
 Phase-shifting
transformer
Output

Figure 18: Basic twelve-pulse rectifier arrangement

0ms 10ms 20ms 30ms 40ms

Figure 19: Input current waveform for 150kW drive with 12-pulse rectifier

20 Issue Number: P1
Figure 20: Spectrum for figure 19

For the 12-pulse rectifier to be effective, the load current in the two groups must
be the same. The transformer ratios and resistances need to be carefully
balanced. In practice there will be a residual level of the cancelled harmonics -
mainly the fifth and seventh - which can usually be kept to about 5% although to
be cautious a level of 10% is often assumed.

The two rectifier groups do not necessarily have to feed the same drive. Two
drives with a load-sharing control system can give similar results. Even if there is
no automatic load sharing, there is still a benefit in arranging a number of drives
on two phase-shifted supply systems if there is a known correlation between their
loading - ie they are usually operated at similar loads at a given time.

Higher pulse numbers

Occasionally 24-pulse rectifiers are specified, when the first significant harmonic
is the 23rd.

Filters
Excessive harmonics may be filtered. The most common passive filter is a series-
tuned arrangement which is connected in parallel with the supply and presents a
low impedance at the troublesome frequency, so that the current circulates in the
filter and less of it enters the supply system. The simplest arrangement is a power
factor correction bank with additional series inductors, typically tuned to fifth and
seventh or eleventh and thirteenth harmonics. This also gives correction of a
lagging displacement factor. It is particularly suitable for use with DC drives as
they have lagging power factor. It is also suitable where there is a mixture of AC
drives and directly driven induction motors. For drives alone it may over-
compensate the VAr. A VAr-neutral arrangement is available at extra cost.

Harmonic filters should be designed by specialist suppliers who will undertake to

commission them and resolve any problems which arise. One possible difficulty is
where the existing distortion level is already high, since the filter tends to draw

Issue Number: P1 21
harmonic current from the supply and in extreme cases may even be over-loaded
by such a current.

No more than one filter should be fitted to a given LV supply, since they may
interact and cause resonance at unexpected frequencies.

Although they are useful in some cases, passive filters are generally expensive
and may be troublesome.

Active filters are becoming available which use power electronic techniques to
cancel generated harmonics. They generally avoid the problems of leading phase
angles and the circulation of pre-existing harmonics presented by passive
systems. They only have to be rated to carry the harmonic current, so their
current capacity is less than that of the associated drives (etc.). They can be
allowed to run into a controlled over-load during harmonic peaks thus further
reducing their rating relative to the load. Currently they are rather expensive, but
are likely to fall in price with increasing use.

Active input stages (sinusoidal rectifiers, unity power factor input stages,
regenerative drives)
The standard diode bridge rectifier can be replaced by an active input stage which
forces the input current to be sinusoidal and in phase with the supply voltage, ie
the input power factor is unity. For a small single-phase unit this circuit can be
relatively simple, although its cost is still a substantial part of the drive cost. With
a three-phase input the input stage is as complex and expensive as an inverter,
but it does offer further benefits through its inherent ability to regenerate power
from the load and its excellent DC voltage regulation. One input stage may be
used to supply a number of drives through a shared DC link.
The Control Techniques Unidrive has been designed to operate as an active input
stage as well as an inverter. The only further requirement is for input inductors
and a current inrush control circuit.

The active input stage uses Pulse Width Modulation to achieve current control
with good efficiency. This means that there is current in the input at the switching
frequency which is typically in the 3 - 10 kHz range. Where the power system fault
level is relatively low - which is likely to be the case if this solution is required to
avoid harmonics problems - then the switching frequency current may generate
significant voltage which is capable of disturbing other equipment. A special input
filter is then required to prevent such problems. Because the frequency is much
higher than that of the main harmonics, this filter is considerably less expensive
than a harmonic filter.

Control Techniques harmonic calculator

Control Techniques has produced a spreadsheet running under Microsoft™
Excel™ , which estimates the harmonics produced by any combination of Control
Techniques AC drives, and tabulates the results with the G5/3 limits for ease of
assessment. Copies are available from Customer Technical Support.

22 Issue Number: P1
4 Regulations and standards

Rules for installations

The UK electricity supply industry recommendations G5/3 have been mentioned
previously. More detail is given in Appendix 2.

In the Unites States the utilities generally apply IEEE519, which gives a
comprehensive account of harmonic sources and control methods, and defines
limits to harmonic voltage on the public supply system which are similar to that in
G5/3. The same limits are specified in international standards such as IEC61000-
2-2, IEC61000-2-4 and IEC61000-2-14. (These give “compatibility levels” and
“planning levels”, from which emission limits can be derived). Most electricity
supply organisations apply similar limits.

Standards for individual products

In all the above cases the limits apply to the supply system and have to be
respected by individual electricity consumers. They therefore require the
consumer’s installation to be assessed to ensure that it will not cause excessive
harmonic levels. For industrial installations this is a practical approach which
allows cost-effective application of power electronics without requiring
unnecessary harmonic control measures. However for individual small users it is
not practical to analyse every installation, and therefore there is an interest in
standards which apply to individual products rather than to the complete
installation.

The EU EMC Directive covers low frequency EMC effects, which includes
harmonics, so European harmonics standards may effectively become mandatory
in the EU under this Directive. At the time of writing, it is expected that EN61000-
3-2 will become mandatory for equipment within its scope on 1 January 2001. It
covers equipment with input current less than 16A per phase, but “professional”
equipment rated over 1kW is currently not subject to any limits. International
standard IEC61000-3-2 is identical in all technical aspects.

Standards are most appropriate for domestic equipment and other equipment
which is manufactured in very large quantities - for example, personal computers.
The standards have to be based on an assumption about the proportion of
electrical power generated which is eventually used in such products, since they
have a cumulative effect. This is rather speculative, and since it would be difficult
to change it a rather cautious assumption has been made. The emission limits
therefore tend to be quite stringent, and VSDs in current manufacture do not meet
them. For industrial and similar applications it is not appropriate to apply stringent
standards to low-power equipment, when higher power equipment is permitted
very much higher emission levels, subject to the compliance of the complete
installation to the supply organisation requirements.

When a VSD with rated input current less than 16A is used in an end product with
input current rating exceeding 16A it is not necessary for it to meet EN61000-3-2.
If the end product is rated at less than 16A then from 1 January 2001 it will be
necessary for it to meet EN61000-3-2. In the power range approximately 250W -

Issue Number: P1 23
1000W this would require additional active electronic harmonic reduction
measures.

A further publication EN61000-3-4 covers equipment rated above 16A. This has
the status of a report and will not be mandatory under the EMC Directive. It gives
harmonic limits as a function of the ratio of the supply short-circuit capacity to the
equipment rating, thereby allowing relatively high harmonic current emission
where the supply has a low impedance so that the resulting harmonic voltage is
acceptable.

24 Issue Number: P1
Appendix 1 - Estimating neutral current with single-phase loads

The effect of the co-phasal harmonics with single-phase loads (predominantly

third harmonic) is that even when the loads are perfectly balanced around the
phases, there is current in the neutral connection.

A cautious (high) estimate for the rms value of the co-phasal (triplen) harmonics is
60% of the rated line current of the unit. This must be added to the usual estimate
of neutral current based on diversity of loading around the phases, but since the
frequencies are different the addition is as square root sum squares, ie

I N = I FUND + I COPH
2 2
where I FUND is the estimated fundamental neutral current
(from imbalance) and I COPH is the total estimated co-phasal harmonic current for
all single phase rectifier loads, ie 60% of the total rated line current of all single
phase rectifier loads.

This calculation applies to the usual situation where single phase loads are
connected between individual phases and neutral of a three phase four-wire
supply. It is possible to use a special low voltage three phase supply with the
single phase loads connected between lines. In this case there is no neutral
current (there is no neutral!) and the co-phasal currents simple circulate around
the loads. Only any residue caused by imbalance affects the supply.

Issue Number: P1 25
Appendix 2 - Applying UK Electricity Association Engineering
Recommendation G5/3

IMPORTANT NOTE
This information is given to help those unfamiliar with the
recommendations. It is based on experience within Control Techniques Plc
of assisting customers in meeting G5/3, and is believed to be correct, but
the reader is strongly advised to refer to the original document. Control
Techniques accepts no liability for the consequences of following the
advice given here. The electricity supply utility has the discretion to refuse
to connect any consumer if they have reason to believe that unacceptable
disturbance could result to the power system, or to other electricity users.

G5/3 is copyright by the Electricity Association. Therefore this guide quotes only
restricted specific information from it, by permission of the EA. Copies of G5/3 are
available from:

The Electricity Association

30 Millbank
London SW1P 4RD
Telephone 0171-9635700

At the time of writing an early draft version of a new recommendation G5/4 is in

circulation. This will eventually replace G5/3.

G5/3 was written for UK supply voltages before European voltage harmonisation,
so voltages for the LV supply are 240V and 415V.

Principles of G5/3
G5/3 provides a staged mechanism for assessing a proposed installation,
whereby successive stages provide more scope for installing distorting loads but
at the price of deeper analysis and calculation. Therefore we can consider the
stages in succession.

The term “convertor” is used to represent any power electronic equipment which
uses semiconductor switching devices so that the supply current departs from the
sinusoidal. When G5/3 was published in 1976 this was most commonly thyristor
controlled rectifiers and AC regulators. The increased use of simple diode
rectifiers associated with PWM inverters, UPS and SMPS had not yet begun.

Stage 1
Converters which meet stage 1 criteria may be connected without further
consideration.

Single phase converters for connection at 240V should not exceed 5kVA
capacity. Several loads may be connected to a three-phase system distributed
evenly around the phases, but if there is more than one per phase then
consideration under Stage 2 is required.

26 Issue Number: P1
Individual three-phase converters rated less than 12kVA may be connected to the
415V system and less than 130kVA to the 11kV system without further
consideration.

Stage 2
Stage 2 gives limits to harmonic current at the PCC at 415V, 11kV and higher
voltage levels. No calculation is required beyond the estimation of the total
harmonic current for the installation as discussed above. For a number of
uncontrolled rectifier loads the coincidence factor of 0.9 can be applied. Any
knowledge about the limits to total loading (ie if not all drives can be fully loaded
simultaneously) should be incorporated.

The Control Techniques harmonic calculator can be used directly to compare the
effect of any combination of CT drives with the stage 2 limits. Note that the effect
of other distorting loads within the same installation must be added, using the
appropriate coincidence factor and any allowance for loading diversity.

A condition for applying stage 2 is that the existing voltage distortion should not
exceed 75% of the permitted levels under stage 3. It is our experience that utilities
do not generally require the consumer to verify this, but if existing distortion is
known to be high they may notify the consumer of reduced permitted harmonic
currents under stage 2.

Stage 3
For stage 3 the harmonic voltages resulting from the harmonic currents have to
be estimated. This requires a knowledge of the system impedance, and requires
more data and more computation than stage 2.

The first requirement is for harmonic survey data. In some cases this is available
from the utility, but if not then the consumer must arrange with a suitable test
organisation for a survey to be carried out.

Next the harmonic voltage resulting from the proposed load must be estimated.
This requires a knowledge of the supply impedance (fault level) at the PCC. This
data should be available from the utility. It should allow for the possibility of a
lower fault level during summer when less generating and distribution plant is
operating. The Control Techniques harmonic calculator provides the harmonic
voltage data, given the fault level at the PCC. Note that the calculator allows the
resulting voltages to be compared with the G5/3 limits, but this is for indication
only since it does not incorporate the effect of existing harmonic voltages.

For a preliminary calculation, if the fault level is not known, the following best
estimates can be used to obtain a first impression of how close to the limit is a
given proposed installation:

400V 10MVA
11kV 100MVA

However it is common in heavy industrial installations for the 11kV fault level to
be considerably higher.

Issue Number: P1 27
The Control Techniques calculator does not apply a coincidence factor to
individual drives. Therefore a multiplier of 0.9 may be applied to its predictions.

The individual voltage predictions must then be added to the existing distortion
levels. Issues to be considered are:
− What coincidence factor to be applied - given that the source of the existing
harmonic voltage is unknown.
− How to handle time variations - whether the maximum or average existing
distortion should be taken depends on any possible correlation with the
operation of the proposed plant.

The individual harmonic voltages should be determined, and then the total
harmonic distortion (THD) calculated from the square root of the sum of the
squares of these voltages. THD figures cannot be added directly.

In any case where the installed distorting load exceeds 1MVA the utility may
require tests to be carried out to verify the calculations.

28 Issue Number: P1