Abstract

“Geometric Foundations of Power Theory for Multiphase AC systems in the Frequency Domain” is a great research article written by Francisco Montoya and others and it clearly explains a method for analyzing the power components in a distorted multiphase AC system that is not necessarily balanced. This method relies on harmonic analysis, geometric algebra, and symmetrical components to build up a general mathematical extension to the power triangle that works in any situation.  This method is important because it provides both an accurate general overview of things like power delivered vs power reflected as well as the detailed granularity that engineers need to design specific filters and compensators to mitigate particular problems. The goal of this paper is to take a real distorted 3 phase waveform and work through the multivector computations proposed in Montoya’s paper explaining any relevant concepts as they come up.