Design of a 380 V/24 V DC Micro-Grid for Residential DC Distribution

This research will investigate a direct current (DC) micro-grid for power distribution in residential households. DC distribution has a long history, being considered at the beginning with alternating current (AC) distribution; however, due to the ease of distributing AC power over a long distance using transformers, it won against DC. Today, with the majority of electronics and appliances being used in the household using DC voltage, DC distribution is being studied as a viable alternative to AC. DC distribution also benefits renewable energy generation that generate DC power, such as photovoltaic (PV), by reducing the number of energy conversion steps.The practicability of the proposed DC micro-grid is investigated by comparing to the existing 240 V AC system of homes. The primary goal is to design an energy efficient household to reduce the impact on the current power grid from increasing energy demand, and to manage local electricity generation and storage systems at the household level. Most previous worksiiiinvestigate a low voltage (LV) household, with a distribution voltage range from 24 V to 48 V, with imposed restrictions on available power and appliances used. This research will look at maximizing energy efficiency with a solution that is scalable through a large range of households, allowing for application in households with low power demands and households with high power demands. This is accomplished through the use of both high voltage (HV) DC at 380 V and low voltage DC at 24 V. The implementation of the DC micro-grid and current AC system takes into consideration the losses due to converters and rectifiers, standby power, and wiring. Power consumption measurements for typical household equipment and appliances (e.g. TVs, lighting, refrigerator, air-conditioning systems, washer, dryers, etc.) are used for evaluation of the proposed micro-grid. The validity of the DC micro-grid is obtained through simulations in both PSIM and Simulink. It is concluded that a 380/24 V DC micro-grid is a more economical solution versus the existing AC system.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering

Level thesis:degree_level

masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Electrical Engineering

Grantor dc:publisher

University of Toledo

Year dc:date

2013

Author dc:creator

• Webb, Victor-Juan Eli

Contributors dc:contributor

• Wang, Lingfeng

• Electrical Engineering
• Energy
• Engineering
• DC distribution
• micro-grid
• 24 V
• 380 V
• residential
• AC distribution
• AC vs. DC
• household

Statement dc:rights

• unrestricted
• This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws.

Language dc:language

English

Repository record dc:identifier

http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1355247158

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:toledo1355247158