While both are used to represent electrical power, there is a noticeable difference between kVA and kW. These units are the power ratings used for each measuring device to measure current characteristics.
Both units are used to express power and are short for kilovolt amps and kilowatts. In this section, we will learn the difference between KVA and KW.
KVA is used to represent the notional power and KW is used to represent the actual power of the power system. Its use in electrical circuits is unique because of the difference between AC and DC circuits. Considering a DC circuit, kW and kVA are the same because the current is not out of phase. However, we can identify several differences when considering an AC circuit.
For real power solutions, we need a negligible value that varies depending on the electronics. This is called the power factor, and its values are given as 0 and 1 or percentages. The closer it is to unity, the more efficient any device involving the use of electricity will be.
What is kW?
Kilowatt is short for kilowatt. Reactive power or absolute power or absolute power is the unit of measurement. A kilowatt provides a measure of the average power consumption of an electrical device. 1 kilowatt of electricity is equal to 1000 watts. Thus the numerical value in kilowatts can only be converted to kilowatts by multiplying by 1000 ie.
Watts or kilowatts are used to measure the average DC power in a DC circuit, while AC circuits measure the active and real part of the total AC power supply.
1kW=1×1000W=1000W
What is kVA?
kVA stands for kilovolt-amperes. kVA is a unit of measurement for the apparent electrical power of an AC circuit. The KVA is a larger unit of sensible power, and its base unit is the VA (Volt Ampere).
kVA is a term associated with AC circuit only. There is no such thing in a DC circuit, because all power in a DC circuit is measured in watts or kilowatts.
1kVA=1×1000VA=1000VA
Difference Between KVA and KW
| KVA | KW |
| It is used to represent apparent power. | It is used to represent actual power. |
| Both kinds of power are equal in DC circuits. | Both kinds of power are different in AC circuits. |
| A fraction of kVA is accessed to do work and the rest is considered excess in current. | It shows the actual power which does the valid work. |
| Its full form is kilovolt amperes. | Its full form is kilowatts. |
