what is kva

kVA stands for kilovolt-ampere, which is a unit of measurement for apparent power in an electrical circuit. It is the product of the root mean square voltage (in volts) and the root mean square current (in amperes) . In direct current (DC) circuits, the product of voltage and current is equal to the real power, measured in watts. However, in alternating current (AC) circuits, not all of the apparent power is being used for useful work output due to the inefficiency of the system. The actual power or working power is measured in kilowatts (kW) . The power factor is a measure of electrical efficiency and is given as a ratio or percentage. The difference between kVA and kW is that kVA measures the total amount of power in use in a system, while kW measures the amount of power that is converted into a useful output. The formula for converting kVA to kW is kVA x power factor = kW, while the formula for converting kW to kVA is kW / power factor = kVA.