On mercury vapor lamps and their effect on the smart-grid PLC channel

The mercury vapor lamp is the oldest high intensity discharge technology lamp that uses an electric arc, and comes in different shapes and designs. It creates a very bright light by using an arc through vaporized mercury in a high pressure tube. This lamp can cause unwanted interference to the smart-grid network or power line communications channel when connected to the channel´s wiring system. In this paper we investigate the negative effects that the mercury vapor lamps with electric ballast have on the smart-grid PLC channel. This can have a strong and negative effect when using the smart-grid PLC network to control the automatic switching of lamps in public places. The narrowband and broadband channels are investigated where the interference level from mercury vapor lamps is significantly below the allowed maximum PLC signal levels on the band: (3 kHz - 150 kHz), and competes with Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) levels on the 150 kHz - 30 MHz band. The mercury vapor lamp uses an electric ballast to connect to the powerline system. This connection is explained in detail.