Reactive-power planning relies on capacitor banks and reactors. Which statement best describes their roles?

Reactive-power planning relies on capacitor banks and reactors. Which statement best describes their roles?

• A. Capacitor banks absorb reactive power to raise voltage; reactors provide reactive power to lower voltage.
• B. Capacitor banks regulate real power; reactors regulate frequency.
• C. Capacitor banks provide reactive power to raise voltage; reactors absorb reactive power to lower voltage; placement and sizing support voltage profiles.
• D. Capacitor banks store energy for inertia.

Answer: (C)

Reactive-power planning hinges on using capacitors and reactors to shape voltage levels across the network. Capacitor banks inject reactive power into the system, which raises the voltage at nearby buses by offsetting the reactive power drawn by loads and the lines themselves. Reactors, being inductive, absorb reactive power from the network, causing local voltage to be suppressed or kept from rising too high. The combination and careful placement and sizing of these devices determine how the voltage profile behaves along feeders and across the system, ensuring voltages stay within limits under varying loading conditions and helping to reduce losses. Capacitors don’t store energy to regulate real power, and they don’t manage frequency; they inject reactive power to lift voltage. Reactors don’t provide inertia or store energy for that purpose. The key idea is the injection by capacitors to raise voltage and the absorption by reactors to limit or shape voltage, with placement and sizing tailoring the voltage profile across the grid.

Reactive-power planning hinges on using capacitors and reactors to shape voltage levels across the network. Capacitor banks inject reactive power into the system, which raises the voltage at nearby buses by offsetting the reactive power drawn by loads and the lines themselves. Reactors, being inductive, absorb reactive power from the network, causing local voltage to be suppressed or kept from rising too high. The combination and careful placement and sizing of these devices determine how the voltage profile behaves along feeders and across the system, ensuring voltages stay within limits under varying loading conditions and helping to reduce losses.

Capacitors don’t store energy to regulate real power, and they don’t manage frequency; they inject reactive power to lift voltage. Reactors don’t provide inertia or store energy for that purpose. The key idea is the injection by capacitors to raise voltage and the absorption by reactors to limit or shape voltage, with placement and sizing tailoring the voltage profile across the grid.