An Evaluation of Harmonic Mitigation Techniques

Non-linear loads (NLLs) cause distortion known as harmonic pollution, it creates power quality issues, such as, voltage supply distortion, electromagnetic interference, resonance, metering errors, and instability. Harmonics are a byproduct of devices which convert electrical to other forms of energy such as mechanical, thermal, and electrical. The goal of this project is to evaluate two harmonic mitigation techniques. Both methods involve the addition of an active filter across the NLLs; for Method I the active filter and the NLL act as an equivalent resistance, while for Method II the active filter and NLL produce the current of only the fundamental harmonic. Based on the simulation results it was determined that Method I is more efficient at mitigating current harmonics