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Electrician Red Seal · Question

An industrial plant operates a 4160 V, 3-phase motor drawing 150 A with a power factor of 0.85 lagging. The plant is considering installing a synchronous condenser to improve the facility's overall power factor. How does a synchronous condenser primarily contribute to power factor correction?

A synchronous condenser is essentially a synchronous motor running without a mechanical load. By overexciting its field winding, it can be made to operate at a

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Question: An industrial plant operates a 4160 V, 3-phase motor drawing 150 A with a power factor of 0.85 lagging. The plant is considering installing a synchronous condenser to improve the facility's overall power factor. How does a synchronous condenser primarily contribute to power factor correction?

Answer options:

  • It acts as a large resistor, absorbing leading reactive power.
  • It generates real power to offset the motor's inductive load. ✅ It can be overexcited to draw leading reactive current from the system.
  • It converts reactive power into real power through electromagnetic induction.

Correct answer: It can be overexcited to draw leading reactive current from the system.

Explanation: A synchronous condenser is essentially a synchronous motor running without a mechanical load. By overexciting its field winding, it can be made to operate at a leading power factor, meaning it draws leading reactive current from the power system. This leading reactive current compensates for the lagging reactive current drawn by inductive loads like induction motors, thus improving the overall power factor.

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