Polyphase apparent power and power factor under distorted waveform conditions

It is pointed out that the term apparent power does not have a unique meaning when used to describe polyphase, nonsinusoidal systems; in a general case it is an artificial concept with no physical interpretation. It is shown that this ambiguity can have implications for power factor calculations, reactive current compensation, and revenue metering. The time-domain based method of defining and measuring the apparent power is discussed. The necessity of a critical revision of terms relating to apparent power in the IEEE Standard Dictionary is pointed out.<
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