Harmonic analysis of the industrial power system with an AC electric arc furnace

Power quality is a growing concern to both electric utilities and their customers. Among the commonly seen nonlinear loads, electric arc furnaces (EAFs) in the steel plant play important roles that cause power quality disturbances. The nonlinear characteristics of the EAF generate significant harmonic currents and flickers flowing through the plant and the utility power system. This paper presents a harmonic analysis for a steel plant with an ac EAF load. Simulation results obtained by using Matlab/Simulink are then validated by the actual measuring data. It is shown that the simulation model including the power network and the EAF load is relatively accurate in comparing with the actual field measurements