Unit of Power for Diesel Generator Sets

With the rapid development of the national economy, the gap in urban and rural power supply is growing larger, and the number of diesel generator sets is increasing day by day. Especially in large and medium - sized cities with relatively concentrated populations, more and more enterprises and units need to purchase diesel generator sets. However, since many users are unfamiliar with mechanical equipment such as generator sets, they don't know where to start when making a purchase. Therefore, users need to learn some basic knowledge about the power and terminology of diesel generator sets.

We can always see "KW" and "KVA" on the nameplates of diesel generator sets. Users who have little contact with them are easily confused about the two and often can't figure out their relationship. Usually, when talking about the power of diesel generator sets, we often mention kilowatts. Now, let's learn about kilowatts and kilovolt - amperes together with the diesel generator set manufacturer.

The main difference between kilowatts (kW) and kilovolt - amperes (kVA) is the power factor. Kilowatt is the unit of active power, while kilovolt - ampere is the unit of apparent power (or active power plus reactive power). Therefore, unless the power factor is defined and known, it is an approximate value (usually 0.8), and the kVA value will always be higher than the kW value. Kilowatt is most commonly used when referring to generators in the United States and some other countries using 60 Hz, while most people around the world usually use the kVA value as the primary reference when referring to generator sets.

Kilovolt - ampere (kVA) is the apparent power, which includes both active power and reactive power.

Kilowatt (kW) is the active power.

Kilowatt (kW)=Kilovolt - ampere (kVA)×Power factor.

1 KW = 1.25 KVA or 1 KVA = 0.8 KW

The unit of the active power of a generator is KW (kilowatt), and the unit of the apparent power of a generator is KVA (kilovolt - ampere) (also known as installed capacity).

Active power = Apparent power × Power factor.

Power factor = Cosφ (generally 0.85)

In addition:

The unit of the reactive power of a generator is KVar (kilovar).

Apparent power² = Active power²+Reactive power².

P = UIcosφ.

P = UI is only applicable to pure resistive loads because the power factor of resistive loads is 1. However, the power factor of inductive loads is not 1, ranging from 0.5 to 0.9 or even lower. So, both "1 kVA = 0.8 kW" and "1 kVA = 1 kW" are correct. "1 kVA = 0.8 kW" is the calculation method when the power factor is 0.8.

Dingbo Power has advanced testing equipment, modern production technology, professional manufacturing technology, perfect quality management system, and strong technical research and development capabilities. It can provide 3KW～2500KW various specifications of ordinary, automatic, four protection, automatic switching, low noise and mobile generator sets, high quality and low energy consumption to meet the diverse power needs of customers, and can also meet users with different voltages and different frequencies. It is required to create a parallel power supply system for multiple units. If you are interested in our product or any question on generator, welcome to send email to [email protected].