Switching Control for Capacitor Banks in Distribution System

Objectives: A shunt capacitor bank with appropriate switching control using relay and circuit breakers is proposed to compensate reactive power in an 11kV Malaysian test distribution system with high density commercial load. Methods: Fuseless Capacitor Bank will be modelled according to IEEE standard using MATLAB. The designed switching control for the fuseless capacitor bank will perform condition checking based on the criteria of power factor and determine the best control action to be taken in order to compensate reactive power in the power system effectively. The designed system is then tested on an 11kV Malaysian test distribution system with high density commercial load. Findings: Simulation results clearly indicate that the designed system is able to react and compensate reactive power adequately in accordance to Malaysia’s utility regulations. Improvements: For future improvements, criteria focused on both voltage and power factor can be implemented to minimize power loss in the system.