The Best in Power Quality

Feb. 4, 2013
Online resources on power supply safety
Every month, Control's editors take a specific product area, collect all the latest, significant tools we can find, and present them here to make your job easier. If you know of any tools and resources we didn't include, send them to [email protected], and we'll add them to the website.
UPS MANAGEMENT FUNDAMENTALSFrom plug and receptacle charts and facts about power problems to an overview of various UPS topologies and factors affecting battery life, you'll find a wealth of pertinent resources designed to help you develop the optimum solution. The UPS and Power Management Fundamentals Handbook also includes valuable, real-world case studies that showcase exactly how you can develop the best power protection solution. The handbook is a one-stop source for essential information, whether you need power protection for small, medium or large data centers, healthcare facilities or other environments in which ensuring uptime and safeguarding data are critical. You can download the handbook for free at www.switchon.eaton.com/order-handbook.aspx. Eaton Corp.www.powerquality.eaton.com

SPECIFYING YOUR IDEAL DC UPS
Microprocessor-based industrial controls—PLCs, industrial computers, HMI, drives, motion controllers and sensors—are the foundation of high productivity, quality and competitiveness. If there is one universal factor that can and will disrupt microprocessor-based controls and cause downtime, it is power quality. Since industrial electrical systems frequently experience voltage fluctuations, harmonic distortions, noise and short- or long-term power outages, it is essential to ensure maximum uptime by specifying an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for the application.

Specifying the optimum UPS for a control system can be one of the most cost-effective investments available. But how do you do it? This white paper outlines the advantages and disadvantages of AC and DC UPSs, important things to know about batteries, key features for operations and diagnostics, and more important information to help you choose the best UPS for your purposes. The white paper is free, but registration is required. The direct link is at http://tinyurl.com/b7jaez4.
EGS Electrical Group
www.emersonindustrial.com

REDUCING INPUT CURRENT HARMONICS
Non-linear loads are loads in which the current waveform does not have a linear relationship with the voltage waveform. Non-linear loads generate voltage and current harmonics, which can have adverse effects on equipment used to deliver electrical energy.

Power delivery equipment is subject to higher heating losses due to harmonic currents consumed by non-linear loads. Harmonics can have a detrimental effect on emergency or standby power generators, telephones and other sensitive electrical equipment. When reactive power compensation in the form of passive power factor improving capacitors are used with non-linear loads, resonance conditions can occur that may result in even higher levels of harmonic voltage and current distortion, thereby causing equipment failure, disruption of power service and fire hazards in extreme conditions.

This white paper discusses ways to control and reduce these dangerous harmonics. This paper is free with registration and downloadable at www.controlglobal.com/whitepapers/2010/035.html.
Yaskawa America Inc.
www.yaskawa.com