IEEE 1584 · Engineering
Harmonic Study and Analysis in Spain | Carelabs Experts
Voltage total harmonic distortion is commonly limited to around 5% under both IEEE 519 and the EN 50160 family of standards that inform Spanish power-quality practice. Carelabs measures your facility's actual THD with a harmonics analyser and models system impedance versus frequency to check for resonance risk, in line with the REBT (Reglamento Electrotécnico para Baja Tensión). Where levels run high, mitigation options include harmonic filters, relocated power-factor correction capacitance, or higher-pulse-number rectifiers.
Free ConsultationDistortion, and what it costs on a Spanish tariff
Harmonic current degrades equipment and inflates consumption, and on an industrial supply it interacts directly with how reactive energy is billed. Measurement establishes both positions at once.
What We Deliver
Compliance position at the connection point
Voltage and current distortion are measured at the point of common coupling and assessed against the applicable limits, which is the only place a compliance statement has meaning. Distortion measured at a drive terminal looks alarming and establishes nothing.
WHY IT MATTERS
Correcting the wrong quantity
A capacitor bank installed to improve power factor on a distorted supply attracts harmonic current it was never rated to carry. Where it resonates with the transformer, the amplification is severe and the bank fails repeatedly.
- Measurement logged across a representative period covering real production, since distortion tracks load and a snapshot answers the wrong question.
- Instrumentation applied to a defined measurement method, so results are comparable between campaigns rather than dependent on the instrument used.
- Both voltage and current distortion reported: voltage describes what your equipment experiences, current describes what you inject into the network.
- Transformer derating assessed where distortion is significant, because eddy current losses rise sharply with harmonic order and consume capacity you have paid for.
- Neutral conductor loading checked in four-wire distribution, since triplen harmonics add rather than cancel and can exceed phase current.
DELIVERABLES
What you receive
Issued against REBT and the applicable distortion limits, with the measurement basis and any uncertainty stated rather than implied.
- 1Measured voltage and current distortion at the point of common coupling, with the full harmonic spectrum
- 2Assessment against applicable limits, with the basis of the limit stated
- 3Attribution by feeder showing which loads are responsible for which orders
- 4Frequency scan identifying resonance points and the margin to each
- 5Mitigation options with the trade-offs: line reactors, tuned filters, active filters or detuning
How the study runs
Define the question
We agree whether the study is establishing a compliance position, diagnosing recurring failures, or clearing a planned load addition before it is purchased.
Fix the measurement points
The point of common coupling is identified first, with feeder-level points added where attribution is required, since the two serve different purposes.
Log a representative period
Measurement runs across the operating cycle that matters, covering shift patterns, start-up and the low-load periods when capacitor stages switch.
Model the network
The network is built in ETAP and a frequency scan locates resonance, which measurement alone cannot reveal and which governs what mitigation is safe.
Assess and attribute
Results are compared against applicable limits and the spectrum is used to identify the loads responsible, so mitigation is directed rather than broad.
Report and options
Mitigation is presented with what each option addresses and what it does not, so the choice between source-side and busbar-side treatment is made on evidence.