Determination of the total cost of active power losses and methods to reduce power losses in low-voltage distribution networks

Accurate determination of power losses at the design stage is very important for optimizing the network structure, choosing the places and number of substations and cable cross-sections. Losses in low-voltage distribution networks for different sources account for 2-4% of the total energy consumption. Reducing losses leads to lower CO2 emissions. This paper proposes a methodology for comparative calculation of losses in low-voltage distribution networks to select economically optimal network configurations and cable cross-sections at the design stage. The paper assesses the main factors that contribute to reduce losses of active power. The software used allows the designer to create various versions of network models for their comparative analysis and calculate the losses of active power in the cables, taking into account the proximity and skin effects. As a result the designer gets all the necessary parameters to select the final, economically optimal design of a network. These parameters are the predicted total cost of losses for the estimated operating life for each variant of network and the difference in the cost of building a network for each variant relative to the base variant. The purpose of the present publication is to introduce a practical method to be used in the MeteorSpec PRO software when calculating power losses in low-voltage distribution networks (in symmetrical three-phase low-voltage radial TN-systems), considering the specific characteristics of these networks. The proposed technique is based on determinations of active energy losses, which are calculated by load curves of consumers taking into account actual operating temperatures of conductors.