Sensitivity of modern lighting technologies to rapid voltage changes

Rapid Voltage Changes (RVCs) are one of the Power Quality disturbances that are recently receiving a lot of attention from the point of view of international standards. However, although they can cause or contribute to flicker, IEC 61000-4-15 only addresses periodic amplitude fluctuations and more effort is needed to regulate the occurrence of RVCs, according to their effect on flicker perceptibility. Alongside, flicker perception is challenged by the integration of modern lighting technology, whose response is different from the traditional incandescent lamp. This paper studies the connection between the increasing importance of RVCs and the evolution of illumination technologies. Sensitivity of modern lighting technologies to RVCs is studied by measuring flicker with a high precision light flickermeter. A large set of modern lamps is tested and the relationship between RVCs parameters and flicker perceptibility is analyzed.