EMC testing of electricity meters using real-world and artificial current waveforms

In 2015, the energy measurement of some static electricity meters was found to be sensitive to specific conducted electromagnetic disturbances with very fast current changes caused by highly nonlinear loads, leading to meter errors up to several hundred percent. This article describes new results on...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Van Den Brom, H.E., ten Have, Bas, Hartman, Tom, Azpúrua Auyanet, Marco Aurelio|||0000-0001-8078-5116, Pous Solà, Marc|||0000-0003-2660-5254, Silva Martínez, Fernando|||0000-0003-3019-3993, Leferink, F., van Leeuwen, Ronald, Marais, Zander, Kok, Gertjan J. P., van Veghel, Marijn G. A., Kolevatov, Ilia, Malmbekk, Helge
Format: article
Publication Date:2021
Country:España
Institution:Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC)
Repository:UPCommons. Portal del coneixement obert de la UPC
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:upcommons.upc.edu:2117/366317
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/2117/366317
https://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TEMC.2021.3099721
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Electromagnetic compatibility
Electromagnetic interference
Electricity meters
Energy measurement
Immunity testing
Measurement errors
Standards
Compatibilitat electromagnètica
Interferència electromagnètica
Àrees temàtiques de la UPC::Enginyeria elèctrica
Description
Summary:In 2015, the energy measurement of some static electricity meters was found to be sensitive to specific conducted electromagnetic disturbances with very fast current changes caused by highly nonlinear loads, leading to meter errors up to several hundred percent. This article describes new results on the electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) of 16 different meters from all over Europe when exposed to real-world disturbance signals. Those test signals were obtained from household appliances and onsite measurements at metered supply points all over Europe. The results show that also the interference signals recorded onsite can cause measurement errors as large as several hundred percent, even for meters that pass the present EMC standards. This unambiguously demonstrates that the present immunity testing standards do not cover the most disturbing conducted interference occurring in present daily-life situations due to the increased use of nonlinear electronics. Furthermore, to enable the adoption of potential new test waveforms in future standards for electricity meter testing, artificial test waveforms were constructed based on real-world waveforms using a piece-wise linear model. These artificial test waveforms were demonstrated to cause meter errors similar to those caused by the original real-life waveforms they are representing, showing that they are suitable candidates for use in improved standardization of electricity meter testing.