Distribution series capacitor with high-energy varistor protection

Several series power capacitor banks of a new design have been successfully applied to Duke Power Company's distribution feeders. The capacitive reactance of the series capacitor effectively cancels the system reactance and substantially reduces the voltage flicker caused by starting motors. The series capacitor is protected by a high-energy varistor, which limits the capacitor voltage during a feeder fault. The action of the varistor also limits the magnitude of the feeder fault current. The desirable characteristics of the new distribution series capacitor arrangement and operating experiences on the Duke Power system are described. >