An Active Power Factor Correction Laboratory Experiment for Power Electronics Course

The use of power factor correction (PFC) circuits has been proven to save electrical energy use by up to 25%. When electrical loads are predominantly linear, a simple shunt capacitor will generally be sufficient to improve the power factor. However, as the use of power electronics becomes more prevalent, a more advanced solution using active components is needed. One such active PFC circuit currently installed in today’s off-line switching power supplies, such as those used in personal computers, is the boost-converter active PFC. Such an increasing use of active PFC demands understanding of its concept and operation for future power supply engineers. This paper presents a new laboratory experiment that was developed to enhance student’s understanding of the boost-converter active PFC. The experiment consists of computer simulation and hardware setup enabling students to inspect and observe the benefits of using active PFC as compared to two conventional methods. Moreover, the hardware setup for the lab experiment uses a module that was built in a simple way such that it can be easily replicated. The content of the experiment including its simulation and hardware portions along with its sample results will be presented.