Design of a Supraharmonic Monitoring System Based on an FPGA Device

During the last few decades, the poor quality of produced electric power is a key factor that has affected the operation of critical electrical infrastructure such as high-voltage equipment. This type of equipment exhibits multiple different failures, which originate from the poor electric power quality. This phenomenon is basically due to the utilization of high-frequency switching devices that operate over modern electrical generation systems, such as PV inverters. The conduction of significant values of electric currents at high frequencies in the range of 2 to 150 kHz can be destructive for electrical and electronic equipment and should be measured. However, the measuring devices that have the ability of analyzing a signal in the frequency domain present the ability of analyzing up to 2.5 kHz-3 kHz, which are frequencies too low in comparison to the high switching frequencies that inverters, for example, work. Electric currents at 16 kHz were successfully measured on an 8 kWp roof PV generator. This paper presents a fast-developed modern measuring system, using a field programmable gate array, aiming to detect electric currents at high frequencies, with a capability for working up to 150 kHz. The system was tested in the laboratory, and the results are satisfactory.