Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Imperial College London
Doi
Abstract
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
