Harmonics from compact fluorescent lamps

The measured performance of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) and some rectified incandescent lamps, which can cause considerable harmonic distortion of the input power, is discussed. These include both the electronically and magnetically ballasted CFLs with poor power factors and/or high harmonics. Using the model of a building´s electrical load, it is shown that there is little cause for concern for power supply quality problems when the CFLs are less than 25% of the building´s total load. Several reasonable low-cost passive circuits that can improve the power factor as well as suppress the harmonic distortion are described. The use of active circuits will be more effective but more costly and are best considered for CFLs above 30 W and for special applications where minimum harmonics are required