Development of Power Factor Controller using PIC Microcontroller

Abstract

Power factor correction (PFC) is a technique of counteracting the undesirable effects of electric loads that create a power factor that is less than one. Power factor correction may be applied either by an electrical power transmission utility to improve the stability and efficiency of the transmission network or correction may be installed by individual electrical customers to reduce the costs charged to them by their electricity supplier. In order to improve transmission efficiency, power factor correction research has become a hot topic. Many control methods for the Power Factor Correction (PFC) have been proposed. This thesis describes the design and development of a power factor corrector using PIC (Programmable Interface Controller) microcontroller chip. This involves measuring the power factor value from the load using PIC and proper algorithm to determine and trigger sufficient switching capacitors in order to compensate excessive reactive components, thus bringing power factor near to unity.