Strategies for Design of Future Distribution Networks

The role and economics of future distribution network design are fundamentally changing. One of the key elements of network design that is yet to be incorporated in the design is consideration of network losses given the increased energy costs coupled with a significant fall in price of distribution network equipment. In addition, the climate change challenge has focussed attention on energy efficiency and initiatives to potentially electrify heat and transport sectors. This thesis investigates the implications of alternative options for operation and design of distribution networks under various future development scenarios. To achieve this, a fractal-based distribution network model has been developed and implemented. In particular, the model allows for the creation of representative networks with various topological features, which is comparable with those of real distribution networks of similar topologies. The validity of the model has been demonstrated through the investigation of various alternative design options for Coventry network. Furthermore, relevant techniques have been developed for network assessment, allowing for the quantification of the impact of distributed energy resources on the distribution network performance and investment. The research findings suggest that losses will be a major driving factor for distribution network design. Such design should bring long-term economic and environment benefits, if compared with the historic peak-load driven design. The analyses from this research also suggest that three voltage level design (by phasing out the 33kV level) is likely to be more cost-effective in urban areas, while rural areas has potential voltage drop problem and suffer poor reliability performance from such design, making it economically unattractive. Finally, significant benefits of optimising demand response have been identified and quantified for different levels of penetrations of electric vehicles and heat pumps in the GB electricity distribution network

Role of losses in designing electricity distribution networks

The role and economics of future distribution network design are fundamentally changing. One of the key elements of network design that is yet to be fully incorporated in the design guideline is the life-cycle consideration of network losses, particularly on determining the optimal cable rating in distribution system

Performance Comparison for Parabolic Dish Concentrating Solar Power in High Level DNI Locations with George Town, Malaysia

Parabolic Dish (PD), Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) generation has appeared as one of Renewable Energy (RE) that is efficient and trustworthy. As technology moves into commercialization, it is necessary to study the performance of PD system at various locations. Current literature on PD especially for tropical environment such as Malaysia and locations with Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI) lower than 1500kWh/m2/year is still scarce and scattered. Most of the studies are focusing on the performance at location with DNI higher than 2100 kWh/m2/year. Therefore, this paper presents the performance of PD in tropical environment of Malaysia and four other locations such as; Thailand, Korea, Australia and United States of America (USA). System Advisor Model (SAM) was used to analyze the performance of PD for selection countries. The simulation result shows that the annual energy production for George Town in Malaysia is 21,845kWh, and shows areas of high DNI have high power output such as Phoenix, USA 184,189kWh; Canberra, Australia 121,536kWh; Bangkok, Thailand is 48,736kWh and Inch'on, Korea 45,450kWh

Design and implementation of a laboratory scale single axis solar tracking system

The renewable solar energy can be produced by using the Photovoltaic (PV) panel which converts the solar energy to the electrical energy. Global warming can be reduced by using the solar energy to generate electricity. Therefore in this project, an active type single axis solar tracking system is designed and constructed. The solar tracking system can enhance the amount of solar energy harvest throughout the day as compared to the fixed solar panel. A laboratory-scale single axis solar tracking system is developed to have a better understanding on the working mechanism of the solar tracking system. By using the laboratory-scale system, the system becomes portable and convenient to be allocated at the suitable workplace for solar tracking process. Moreover, the laboratory scale solar tracking system can be easily controlled and programmed by the users such as angle of rotation of the solar panel and the direction of rotation. In this project, microcontroller is used as an integrated control unit and the plant is actuated by the DC geared motor. The validity of the laboratory-scale single axis solar tracking system was examined experimentally. The solar tracking system operates by rotating to the desired angle in every hour. The workspace of the solar tracking system is determined and identified. The solar tracking system workspace must be identified and examined carefully before the installation to prevent any accidents occurred during operation. This research is important for Faculty of Electrical Engineering of Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) to identify the safety workspace for the solar tracking system due to the actual solar tracking system plant is still cannot be operated because of the limited workspace

Three-Phase Virtual Instrument Measurement System

Electrical engineering laboratory often involves measurement of current and voltage signals. Conventionally, it is accomplished by using various types of hardwired measurement equipments. If further signals information is required the oscilloscope becomes the preference. However, for measurement of voltage that is connected to the mains, prior knowledge to isolation is a must. Conventional oscilloscopes neither have the isolation function nor the data logging capabilities for further analysis. This paper presents the hardware and software development of a custom-built three-phase measurement system, equipped with isolation and data logging features. It also includes a description of the application of virtual instrumentation, written in LabVIEW that uses the developed hardware. A case study will also be presented

Semantic agent architecture: embedding ontology into the agent's reasoning engine

This research presents the development of semantic agent architecture which incorporates semantic technology that allows decision making, reasoning and learning. The agent architecture is the software architecture that is intended to support decision making process for intelligent agent. From the review of existing agent architectures, BDI architecture is chosen to incorporate semantic technology due to the widely adoption of BDI architecture. The BDI architecture is based on the practical reasoning and mentalistic notion. Semantic technology is set of technologies that make data more easily machine-processable. Thus, by incorporating semantic technology into BDI architecture, a semantic agent architecture that allows decision making, reasoning and learning is created. This study illustrates the semantic agent architecture through simple trading system. The trust and reputation are augmented into the agent architecture to allow the agent to evaluate the performance of the other agent

Statistical appraisal of economic design strategies of LV distribution networks

This paper presents a statistical approach for assessing general LV distribution network design strategies based on a large set of realistic test networks and optimal economic circuit design. The test networks are generated using a fractal-based algorithm that allows creation of generic networks with various topological features (e.g., typical of rural/urban/mixed areas) and characterised by different numbers of substations, numbers of customers, load densities, and so forth. In comparison to standards derived from a traditional approach, that is, case studies on a small number of specific real or test networks, the proposed approach facilitates the derivation of more robust conclusions on optimal network design policies and can thus be used as a valuable tool for decision support. The methodology is exemplified through numerical applications for both urban and rural areas

Development of Design Parameters for the Concentrator of Parabolic Dish (PD) Based Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) under Malaysia Environment

Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) technologies has the ability to harness solar energy for producing the electricity. The development becomes increasingly important for economies in many countries, especially in the regions that is hot, dry and received excellent solar radiation. Meanwhile, among the CSP technologies, Parabolic Dish (PD) system has demonstrated a high thermal efficiency and the implementation of PD concentrator will result in sustainable energy generation with emission free operation. However, PD based CSP technology is still an emerging industry in Malaysia with no operation plant installed so far. It still needs thorough review before developing the PD technologies under the Malaysia tropical environment. Therefore a Matlab Simulink is used in this work to design the concentrator for the PD 1kW system under Malaysia environment. This paper elaborates the methodology utilized to develop the concentrator for the PD 1kW system and outlines the parameter that's used for increasing the efficiency of PD based CSP under Malaysia tropical environment. From the simulation result, it is suggested to used 3.7 meters for the concentrator diameter and aluminium as the reflective material for the concentrator. As a conclusion the size and the reflective material for the concentrator are essential. Therefore, it should be taken into account before developing the geometric parameters for PD concentrator under Malaysia environment