A SURVEY OF NEUTRAL CURRENTS IN THREE-PHASE

COMPUTER POWER SYSTEMS

Thomas M. Gruzs
Member IEEE
Liebert Corporation
P. 0. Box 29186
Columbus, OH 43220

ABSTRACT In three-phase circuits, the triplen harmonic neutral currents

(third, sixth, ninth, etc.) add instead of cancel. Being three times
Neutral current in three-phase power systems is often thought to the fundamental power frequency and spaced in time by 120 elec-
be only the result of the imbalance of the phase currents. With trical degrees based on the fundamental power frequency, the
computer systems, very high neutral currents have been observed triplen harmonic currents are in phase with each other and so add
even when the phase currents are balanced. Measurements from a in the neutral circuit (as shown in Figure 3).
sample of computer power systems in the United States are pre-
sented to determine the extent of the neutral current problem.
Computer loads are generally nonlinear loads. The typical cur-
This paper explores the cause of high neutral currents in three-
rent waveform and harmonic content of the two popular computer
phase computer power systems, potential problems, and recom- power supply connections are shown in Figure 4 and given in Ta-
mended remedies. ble l. The current of typical line-to-line connected power sup-
plies contains no triplen harmonics. However, the typical current
INTRODUCTION
of line-to-neutral connected power supplies is very rich in
On three-phase wye power systems, neutral current is the vector triplens. For balanced line-to-neutral power supplies as de-
sum of the three line-to-neutral currents. With balanced, three- scribed in Table l, the neutral current would be 1.61 times the
phase, linear currents, which consist of sine waves spaced 120 phase current. Under worst-case conditions with rectifier con-
electrical degrees apart, the sum at any instant in time is zero, and duction angles of 30°, the neutral current could be 1.73 times the
so there is no neutral current (see Figure 1). In most three-phase phase current. Therefore, when line-to-neutral connected power
power systems supplying single-phase loads, there will be some supplies are used on three-phase power systems, significant neu-
phase current imbalance and some neutral current. Small neutral tral current can be expected.
currents resulting from slightly unbalanced loads do not cause
problems for typical building power distribution systems. Recent trends in computer systems have increased the likelihood
of significant neutral currents. There has been a shift from three-
There are conditions where even perfectly balanced single phase phase power supplies to single-phase power supplies. The devel-
loads can result in significant neutral currents. Nonlinear loads, opment of switched-mode power supplies, with their advantages
such as rectifiers and power supplies, have phase currents which of improved efficiency and lower cost, have also increased the
are not sinusoidal. The vector sum of balanced, non-sinusoidal, triplen harmonic content of the current waveform over the previ-
three-phase currents does not necessarily equal zero. For exam- ous linear power supplies. Switched-mode power supplies are
ple, balanced square wave currents will result in significant neu- connected directly to the line-to-neutral voltage without a step-
tral current (see Figure 2). down transformer. The stepdown transformer used with linear

+LO
I
I
360'
0.4
90' 180' 270'

I -
0B

z -1.0

+LO-0.5-0.5 = 0
0c

_1

D!
3
L -1.0

z I
I
+LO-1.0-1.0 = -1.0

BALANCED LINEAR 3-PHASE LOADS RESULT EXAMPLE OF BALANCED NON-SINUSOIDAL

IN ZERO NEUTRAL CURRENT 3-PHASE LOADS HAVING NEUTRAL CURRENT
Figure 1 Figure 2
1I14
 ..............

270'
............
I +l.O
...........

pvmvnu
OB
............ TYPICAL LINE-TO-LINE CONNECTED POWER
SUPPLY LINE CURRENT WAVEFORM
I +LO
...........

0c
...... 0'
..............

TYPICAL LINE-TO-NEUTRAL CONNECTED POWER

SUPPLY LINE CURRENT WAVEFORM
Figure 4

PROBLEMS OF HIGH NEUTRAL CURRENT

High neutral currents in computer power systems can cause over-
THIRD HARMONIC CURRENTS IN loaded power feeders, overloaded transformers, voltage distor-
THREE-PHASE POWER SYSTEMS tion, and common mode noise.
Figure 3
power supplies reduces the triplen harmonic currents because of Three-phase, four-wire building power feeders are often sized
its series inductance and because it allows connection to the line- based on three current-carrying conductors in a conduit in accor-
to-line voltage. dance with the National Electrical Code (NEC) [l] Table 310-16.
When the neutral conductor carries harmonic currents, addi-
Another trend in computer systems is the shift from AC motors tional heat is generated and the ampacity of the power feeder is
with linear input currents to DC motors having nonlinear input reduced. With four current-carrying conductors, the ampacity of
currents for such uses as fans, tape drives and disc drives. DC mo- the power feeder is derated to 80%of the three-current-carrying-
tors require power supplies with similar characteristics as other conductor rating in accordance with NEC Table 310-16 Notes 8
computer power supplies. The increased use of DC motors there- and 10. Neutral conductors, which are usually sized the same as
fore has increased the harmonic current distortion of the total the phase conductors, can be overloaded since the neutral current
computer system. can exceed the rated phase current.

2kddd
TYPICAL COMPUTER POWER SUPPLY HARMONIC CURRENT COMPONENTS

HARMONIC LINE-TO-LINE LINE-TO-NEUT=

POWER SUPPLY POWER SUPPLY
h
1 0.82 0.65
3 - 0.52
5 0.49 0.42
7 0.287 0.29
9 - 0.13
11 0.074 0.12
13
- 0.033 0.098
Total Phase Current =

$q= 1.00 1.00

Neutral Current

Ratio of Neutral
/- = 0.0 1 1.61

Current to Total -
- 0.0 1.61
Phase Current
The triplen harmonic currents which add in the neutral conductor DISTRIBUTION
are canceled in a delta-wye transformer. The triplen currents
flow as circulating currents in the transformer’s delta primary.
---.
POWER SOURCE PANEL

As a result, more current flows in the primary windings (causing

additional heating) than is detected by the transformer’s primary
circuit overcurrent protection device. Overloading of the trans-
former can result.

Because the power supplies which produce the harmonic neutral POWER BRANCH
FEEDER CIRCUIT
currents have high peak-to-RMS current waveforms, the voltage
waveform can become distorted. “Flat-topping“ of the waveform COMMON MODE NOISE I N A
can result due to the impedance of the power system a t the har- THREE P H A S E POWER SYSTEM
monic current frequencies. Since the power supplies use the peak Figure 5
voltage of the sine wave to keep the capacitors at full charge, re-
ductions in the peak voltage appear as low voltage to the power The survey does not include conventional building wiring sys-
supply even though the RMS of the voltage may be normal. The tems, modular office wiring systems, and other non-data process-
waveform distortion can also cause additional heating in motors ing areas (for definition of data processing areas, see
and other magnetic devices which are operated from the same NFPA75-1987 121) where computer equipment and other non-
(distorted) voltage source. linear loads may cause significant neutral currents.

One form of common mode noise in three-phase power systems is To evaluate the extent of the computer system neutral current
the voltage difference between neutral and ground. With high problem, the following information was deemed to be of interest:
harmonic neutral currents, the impedance of the neutral conduc-
tors at the harmonic frequencies can cause significant neutral 1.The ratio of average load to rated system capacity
conductor voltage drops. The neutral conductor voltage drop ap- (percent capacity).
pears as common mode noise to the computer system (see Figure
2. The ratio of neutral current to average phase current.
5). The effect of these relatively low frequency common mode
noise voltages on the computer system is somewhat debatable, yet 3. The ratio of neutral current to rated full load current.
computer vendor specifications typically call for less than 0.5 to 3
volts RMS,neutral to ground, regardless of frequency. 4. The ratio of neutral triplen harmonic current to average
phase current.
COMPUTE R LOAD CURRENT SURVEY 5. The ratio of neutral triplen harmonic current to rated
full load current.
While it has been recognized that high neutral current in com-
puter power systems is a potential problem, the extent of the prob-
lem in today’s computer power systems has not been determined. Items 1, 2, and 3 are straightforward calculations directly from
To determine the extent of the neutral current problem, a survey the survey data (RMS voltages, RMS phase and neutral cur-
of computer power system load currents was taken across the rents,and rated system capacity). Items 4 and 5 are of interest be-
United States with a variety of computer vendors’ equipment. cause they indicate the extent of the harmonic neutral current
problem by excludingneutral current which is the result of simple
The survey was conducted in two parts. First, ten sites were vis- phase current imbalance, a problem which can usually be readily
ited and detailed harmonic current measurements were taken to corrected by better balancing of the loads.
verify that simplified current measurements used in the second
part of survey would yield the desired information. The second A rigorous mathematical analysis indicates that if only the RMS
part of the survey included measuring only the RMS voltages and phase and neutral currents are known, the exact harmonic con-
currents, and recording site data such as location, computer ven- tent of the neutral current cannot be determined. However, a
dor, and rated system capacity. practical approximation of the harmonic content of the neutral
current can be made by assuming that the fundamental and all
The survey data collection was kept simple as a matter of practi- non-triplen harmonics exist in the neutral according to the RMS
cality to allow a larger number of sites to be surveyed. Liebert phase current imbalance and that all neutral current in excess of
Customer Service Engineers collected the data during their nor- the phase current imbalance is due t o triplen harmonics. Implicit
mal visits to computer sites across the country. This method of in this approximation is the assumption that the phase angles of
sampling introduces some bias since only computer sites having harmonic currents of the same frequency are approximately the
Liebert power centers, power conditioners, or U P S systems are same.
included. However, the bias would not be expected to be too sub-
stantial since computer systems from over 30 different vendors Neutral Current Due to
were included in the survey. Phase Current Imbalance =JAz + +
B2 @-(AB)-(BC)-(CA)
Neutral Current Due t o
Survey data was collected from over 195 sites across the United
Triplen Harmonics +
=+&-(A2 B2 + @-(AB)-(BC)-(CA))
States during the period ofApril t o December, 1988. After exclud- Where: A = Phase ARMS Current
ing incomplete measurements, 480 volt systems, and 400 Hz sys B = Phase B RMS Current
tems, 146 sites were included in the survey results. C = Phase C RMS Current
N = Neutral RMS Current
116
 3kibk2
COMPARISON OF lVZEASURED VS. fairly normally distributed about a mean (average) of 39%capac-
CALCULATED NEUTRAL TRIPLEN CURRENT ity with a standard deviation of 22.6%. The median is 38.5%ca-
'EUTRAL
pacity with a range of 3.5%to 101%capacity.
RMS CURRENTS TRIP EN CURRENT
Figure 7 shows the distribution of the ratio of neutral current to
A MEAS.
the average of the phase currents in percent. The distribution is
189A 193A 209A llOA 108.6A
166A 149A 164A 115A 110.6A not normally distributed and has a mean of 60%,median of 50%,
292A 286A 277A 81A 77.3A and a range of 0% to 244%.There are alarge cluster of sites having
188A 231A 145A 137A 111.6A less than 25%neutral current. 22.6%of the sites had neutral cur-
174A 191A 146A 66A 47.8A rent in excess of 100%of the phase current. High ratios of neutral
127A 70A 115A 176A 165.7A current to average phase current were the result of both severe
143A 164A 187A 120A 100.8A
226A 225A 224A 223A 220.6A phase imbalance and triplen harmonic currents.
19A 24A 6.8A
120A 127A 120A 23A 21.8A
Figure 8 shows the distribution of the ratio of neutral current to
rated system full load current. This distribution reflects the com-
bination of the distributions of Figures 6 and 7. Since the average
The data from the ten sites where detailed harmonic currents computer power system is relatively lightly loaded, even high neu-
were measured is summarized in Table 2. Since there is a good tral-current-to-phase current ratios result in low neutral-cur-
correlation of the measured neutral triplen currents with the cal- rent-to-rated-full-load-current ratios. The mean is only 22.4%
culated neutral triplen currents, it was decided that the practical with a median of 10.8%and a range of 0% to 147%. Only 3.4%of
approximation was valid. the sites had neutral current in excess of the rated phase current
(greater than 100%).
RESULTS

Figures 6 to 10 summarize the results of the survey. Figure 9 shows the distribution of the ratio of neutral triplen har-
monic current to the average of the phase currents. This ratio is
the same as the distribution in Figure 7 except that the effect of
Figures 6 shows the distribution of the present computer system any phase current imbalance has been removed, and allows the
load (KVA) compared to the rated power system capacity (name- evaluation of the harmonic neutral current problem by itself. The
plate KVA) in percent capacity. The distribution appears to be mean is 45.8%with a median of 31%and a range of 0% to 173%.

22 1

0-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 40-50 50-60 60-70 70-80 80-90 90-100
P E R C E N T UF C A P A C I T Y

PRESENT COMPUTER SYSTEM LOAD

Figure 6
117
w~ 16
14
55 12
=% 10

NEUTRAL TO AVERAGE PHASE CURRENT U >

NEUTRAL CURRENT COMPARED TO

AVERAGE PHASE CURRENT
Figure 7

50
6o 1

10

NEUTRAL TU FULL LOAD CURRENT ( X )

NEUTRAL CURRENT COMPARED TO

RATED SYSTEM FULL LOAD CURRENT
Figure 8
118
40

30

NEUTRAL TRIPLENS TO AVERAGE PHASE CURRENT (%>

NEUTRAL TRIPLEN HARMONIC CURRENT

COMPARED TO AVERAGE PHASE CURRENT
Figure 9

6o 1
50

10

NEUTRAL TRIPLEN TO RATED FULL LOAD CURRENT (%>

NEUTRAL TRIPLEN HARMONIC CURRENT

COMPARED TO RATED SYSTEM FULL LOAD
CURRENT
Figure 10
119
Figure 10 shows the distribution of the ratio of neutral triplen One proposed method of dealing with the potentially high neutral
harmonic current to the rated system full load currents. This dis- currents involves using full-sized neutral wiring and monitoring
tribution is the same as Figure 8 except that the effect of any the neutral current. The neutral conductor would be treated like
phase current imbalance has been removed. The mean is 18.6% other circuit conductors with the load on the system intentionally
with a median of 7% and a range of 0% to 146%. Only 2.7% of the limited to keep from overloading the neutral conductor(s). This
sites surveyed had neutral triplen currents in excess of the rated method is generally recommended since it can be applied to new as
system full load current. well as existing installations.

Significant phase current imbalance was observed in about half of

the sites. The significance of the unbalance can be seen in the dif- Another proposed method, which ensures adequate neutral wir-
ference between Figures 7 and 9, where the average was reduced ing ampacity for any possible load condition, is to size the neutral
by 14.2 points (-23.78, and Figures 8 and 10, where the average conductor for 1.73 times the phase conductor ampacity. When the
was reduced by 3.8 points (-17%). conductors are #1/0 AWG or larger, parallel neutral conductors
each sized the same as the phase conductors can be used (reference
NEC Article 3 1 0 4 which limits parallel circuit conductors to
CONCLUSIONS
#1/0 or larger). In this way, double the neutral ampacity is pro-
While very high neutral currents are possible in three-phase com- vided. For example, 3-#2/0 phase wires, 2-#2/0 neutral wires,
puter power systems, a very low percentage of data processing and a ground conductor in a conduit would be suitable for a 140
sites in the US are actually experiencing neutral currents in ex- amp computer power system feeder with up to 280 amps of neutral
cess of the rated full load current (see Figure 8). However, most current.
systems operate at less than half of the rated load (see Figure 6).
As the systems are more fully loaded, more sites would be expected
to experience neutral current in excess of the rated full load cur- All neutral components, including neutral terminals and neutral
rent. Even if all sites were operated a t rated full load, 22.6% of the busbars, should be sized for the additional neutral current. Often,
sites would be expected to have neutral current greater than the with standard electrical systems, oversizing of the neutral compo-
full load phase currents (see Figure 7). If the loads are able to be nents is not practical, such as with panelboard assemblies with
better balanced, then the number of sites expected to experience neutral accessories. The panelboard manufacturer may not allow
high neutral currents because of triplen harmonic currents would a larger (non-standard) neutral accessory to be used. In these
be significantly lower (see Figures 9 and 10). Recent trends in cases, the maximum loading on the phases must be limited to pre-
computer systems, including the increased use of line-to-neutral vent overloading the neutral components. In the case of a 225 amp
switched mode power supplies, are expected to increase the per- panelboard with a 225 amp neutral accessory, assuming the worst
centage of sites having high neutral current as older computer case of neutral current’s being 1.73 times the phase current, the
systems are replaced. loading on the panelboard phases must be limited to 130 amps
(225h.73) to ensure that the neutral current will be less than 225
amps.
It should be noted that this survey does not include building wir-
ingsystems, modular office wiringsystems, etc. which also supply
power to computers and other electronic loads. High neutral cur- For branch circuits, a separate neutral conductor should be used
rents and the resultingproblems have also been observed in these for each circuit. The widespread practice of usinga common neu-
systems. I t is arguable that the harmonic neutral current problem tral for multiple branch circuits should be avoided. Good practice
is potentially a greater hazard in these systems because the sys- for computer systems is to use a dedicated branch circuit (in its
tem design did not anticipate high neutral currents and the sys- own conduit or raceway) for each load to minimize interaction be-
tem loading is less controlled due to a lack of monitoring. The first tween loads.
indication of high neutral current is often a failed component.

B C O M M E N D E D REMEDIES The loading on the three phases should be kept as balanced as pos-
sible. In this way, neutral current in excess of the triplen harmon-
Observations of computer power systems have indicated har-
ic current is minimized. Whenever changes are made to the com-
monic neutral currents from nearly zero (with predominately
puter system, the phase current balance should be checked.
line-to-line power supplies) to 1.73 times the phase current (with
predominately line-to-neutral power supplies). Even though the
majority of computer power systems today do not have significant
A delta-wye transformer or other delta-wye power source should
neutral currents, changes made to the computer system may pro-
be located as close to the computer loads as practical to cancel the
duce high neutral currents. Therefore, for safety, high neutral
triplen harmonic neutral currents and to minimize the length of
currents should be considered in the design of all three-phase
the output power feeders and branch circuits. In this way, com-
computer power systems.
mon mode noise at the loads and the effect of neutral current are
minimized. For best results, the transformer and branch circuit
All four-wire, three-phase power feeders or branch circuits for distribution should be combined, such as in a computer power
computer systems should be designed to accommodate neutral center. The transformer should be of a three-legged common core
currents up to 1.73 times the phase current. The wiring am- construction to provide the best path for the circulating triplen
pacities should be calculated considering the neutral to be a cur- harmonic currents. Individual (single-phase) transformers con-
rent-carrying conductor. For four-wire, three-phase circuits in nected for three-phase operation (asis common practice for build-
a conduit or raceway, the ampacity should be derated to 80% of ing transformers) should not be used with computer systems be-
the three-conductor-in-a-conduit ampacity (reference NEC Ta- cause they do not provide a low impedance path for the circulating
ble 310-16 Notes 8 and 10). triplen harmonic currents.
120
The loading of the transformer with nonlinear loads requires ad- The design of a computer power system transformer could be al-
ditional considerations. Most transformers are designed for lin- tered to improve its ability to supply nonlinear currents. How-
ear loads with a peak current of 1.414 times the RMS current. ever, oversizing (or derating) the transformer is often a more prac-
With nonlinear loads, the maximum loading of the transformer tical and less costly approach. Generally, power systems dedi-
should be reduced to less than nameplate capacity to avoid over- cated for computer loads are recommended to be operated at less
heating the transformer and to avoid causing excessive output than 80%capacity to lower the stress on all components and im-
voltage distortion. prove performance and reliability. Where a high concentration of
line-to-neutral power supplies exist, it is recommended that the
One proposed derating method for standard transformers is to transformer loadingbe limited to less than 50 to 60%of nameplate
base the transformer’s capacity with nonlinear loads on the nomi- capacity. The reduced loading on the transformer is required to
nal peak current with linear loading. For example,with nonlinear prevent overloading of the transformer as well as to control the
loads having a crest factor of 2.5 and linear loads having a crest amount of voltage distortion caused by the nonlinear loads.
factor of 1.414,the nonlinear capacity of the transformer would be
56.6%of nameplate capacity (1.41412.5). The overcurrent protection of transformers feeding computer sys-
tems require additional considerations. The NEC allows pri-
Another proposed derating method for computer power system mary-only overcurrent protection as long as the primary overc-
transformers is to limit the neutral current to the rated full load urrent protection does not exceed 125% of the transformer full
phase current. For computer systems with a ratio of neutral cur- load amps. Because the triplen harmonic load currents circulate
rent to phase current of 1.5, the nonlinear capacity would be in the delta primary windings of the transformer, the transformer
66.7%of nameplate capacity (U1.5). For the worst-case harmon- input KVAcan be less than the output KVA. The transformer can
ic neutral current of 1.73 times the phase current, the nonlinear be damaged by overload without tripping the primary overcurrent
capacity would be 57.7%of nameplate capacity (111.73). protection device. For better protection of transformers feeding
computer systems, secondary overcurrent protection should be
used to detect the actual KVA loading on the transformer. The
ANSUIEEE C57.110-1986 Recommended Practice for Establish- recommended supplemental overcurrent protection of computer
ine Transformer Capabilitv When SupplvinPNonsinusoidal Load power transformers uses temperature sensors in the transformer
Currents [3] provides two methods to establish the maximum ca- windings which detect the actual transformer loading, as well as
pacity of a power transformer when the harmonic content of the the additional heatingeffects of the harmonic currents. The tem-
load current is known. One method uses the design eddy current perature sensors can be used to sound an alarm and/or shut down
loss data while the other method estimates the eddy current loss the system before damage to the transformer occurs.
using the DC winding resistances and total power loss data. For
typical computer power system transformers in the range of 15 to
225 KVA, using the DC winding resistances and total power loss Computerpower centers (power distribution units) are the recom-
data, the calculated maximum per unit winding eddy current loss mended method to supply power to computer/data processing ar-
at rated load ( m a . Pec-r) is in the range of 1.0 to 3.0. Table 3 eas [4]. The power center uses an isolation transformer or other
shows the calculated transformer nonlinear load capacities (in power conditioning technology to provide a controlled power and
percent of rated capacity with linear load) for the two nonlinear computer grounding system, thereby minimizing common mode
loads described in Table 1 and for two typical computer systems power disturbances. Power centers from reputable manufactur-
with currents having 42% and 23% total harmonic distortion ers are proven designs which accommodate nonlinear loads and
(THD). The calculated deratings according to ANSUIEEE high harmonic neutral currents of modern data processing sys-
C57.110-1986 appear to be quite conservative since the survey in- tems. The power center design should follow the previously men-
cludes systems operating in excess of these calculated nonlinear tioned recommended remedies. Power centers are better able to
load capacities without observed problems.

CURRENT
THD
-4 MAX. Pec-r
(PER UNIT)
CALC. CAPACITY
(% OF RATING)

Line-to-Line 70% 1.49 17.65 1.0 - 3.0 39%to 33%

Power Supplies
Line-to-Neutral 116% 2.34 31.28 1.0 - 3.0 37%to 31%
Power Supplies
Typical Observed 42% 1.18 4.79 1.0 - 3.0 63%to 55%
Computer Systems 23% 1.05 2.25 1.0 - 3.0 80%to 73%

121
supply computer loads than comparable building power systems.
Power centers are typically designed for use in up to 40°C am- REFERENCES
bients while the data processingroom temperature is usually less National Electrical Code, NFPA 70-1987,National Fire
than 25°C. Most power centers are designed for convection cool- Protection Association, Quincy, MA.
ing while most data processing areas use pressurized raised floor
cooling systems which effectively provide forced-air cooling for Protect ion of Electronic Comp&&Data Processing
BauiDment, NFPA 75-1987,National Fire Protection As-
the power center, thereby reducing component operating tem-
sociation, Quincy, MA.
peratures and providing greater design safety margins. Tempera-
ture sensors for alarm and shutdown are included in the power Recommended Practice For Establishing Transformer Ca-
center to provide supplemental protection of the transformer from d i l i t v When supplv
.inP Nonsinusoidal b d Currents,
inadequate cooling, overload, or the effects of nonlinear loads. ANSIIIEEE C57.110-1986, The Institute of Electrical and
Monitoring systems are often included in the power center to pro- Electronic Engineers, Inc., New York, NY 10017.
vide annunciation and display of parameters and alarm condi-
tions. The power center capacity and neutral current are readily Guideline on Electrical Power For ADP Installations, Fed-
available to operating and maintenance personnel which helps eral Information Processing Standard Publication 94,Na-
prevent accidental system overloading. tional Bureau of Standards, 1983.

T. M. Gruzs, “Power System Problems Associated From

SUMMARY
High Harmonic Neutral Currents”, Comuuter Technolvgy
The magnitude of the neutral current in three-phase computer Review, Winter, 1988.
power systems depends on the harmonic content and phase bal-
ance of the load currents. While very high neutral currents are
possible due to the additive nature of triplen harmonic currents, a
low percentage of data processing sites in the US are actually ex-
periencing neutral currents in excess of the rated phase current.
However, recent trends in computer systems make high harmonic
neutral currents more likely. Power system problems associated
with high harmonic neutral currents include overloaded four-
wire power feeders and branch circuits, overloaded transformers,
voltage distortion, and common mode noise. Whenever three-
phase, wye power systems are used to supply power to computer
systems or other similar electronic loads, the power system design
should allow for the possibility of high harmonic neutral current
to avoid potential problems.

122