High Voltage Power Supplies
High power voltages range between 115k to 230k volts alternating current (VAC). The high voltage system carries a power of more than 1000 volts between conductors and 600 volts between the conductors and the ground. With the help of the transformers, high power voltage can be distributed over long distances with lower currents. This increases efficiency and enables power plants to distribute power over long distances.
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Difference Between High, Medium, and Low Voltages
As per the International Standards, the required voltage depends on the type of consumer. In the United States, the National Electrical Code (NEC) and National Electrical Manufacturer Association (NEMA) provide guidelines to determine voltage. Following are the three main types and ranges of voltages:
- High Voltage (HV)
- 115,000 to 1,100,000 VAC
- Medium Voltage (MV)
- 2,400 to 69,000 VAC
- Low Voltage (LV)
- 240 to 600 VAC
Applications of High Power Voltage
- Systems need direct high voltages when conducting insulation tests on cables and capacitors.
- Industrial companies and medical instruments require high power voltages when operating their heavy machinery and equipment.
- Transformers and voltage dividers can easily convert high voltage power into low value. This helps to accurately attain any required value, so high voltage power is preferred in various industries.
- Generating high voltage is useful when research work is involved in pure applied physics.
- Charging impulse generators requires about 100 to 200 kV of high D.C. voltage.
Ranges of High Power Voltage
These voltages are associated with the supply transmission coming from the power plant. When the lower current accompanies the high power transmission, it allows the company to use thin, lightweight cables, which reduces the cost of the tower and the construction of electrical lines. High power voltage has three different types depending on voltage ranges:
- The range of High Voltage is 115,000 – 230,000 VAC.
- The range of Extra High Voltage is 345,000 – 765,000 VAC.
- The range of Ultra High Voltages is greater than 800,000 VAC.
Benefits of Using High Power Voltage
- It contributes to the transmission of very high voltage of power over long distances with very little loss of power.
- In the transmission of high power voltage, the main advantage is that there is a large amount of electric energy shift with a very low current volume. High currents require thick cables because a lot of heat will be wasted during the transmission. This is an inefficient and quite expensive method because the cables used on the transmission lines are very costly.
- Therefore, the smaller the diameter of the cable, the less it will cost. If industries use higher voltages, they will economically require less current and smaller conductors.
The use of high power voltage is very important to industrial functions, but it does come with some cost as well.
- The size of the insulator increases when dealing with high power voltage, since it has to keep a distance between the electric pole and the wire. For example, a disc has to be installed for a voltage of 11,000, which means that as the voltages will increase, so will the number of the discs.
- As the voltage increases in the system, it increases the size of the switchgear and the cost of the system. To match the high power, the circuit breaker is also used at a higher voltage.
- As the voltage increases, so does the height of the power transmission. Without increasing the height, the phase of the earth will develop faults. So by increasing the distance of transmission line wire from the ground when there is an increase in voltage, the cost will also increase.