Lesson 1: Overview of Distribution System

Structure of Power System

Generation (Power Plant)  Station (step-up)  Transmission (High Voltage Power Lines) 
Substation (step down) Distribution (Industrial, Commercial, and Residential)

Electrical Engineering is a profession that involves the conceptualization, development, design

and application of safe, healthy, ethical, economical and sustainable generation, transmission,
distribution and utilization of electrical energy for the benefit of society and the environment
through the knowledge of mathematics, physical sciences, information technology and other
allied sciences, gained by study, research and practice.

Structure of Power System

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

 The part of the power system which distributes power to the consumers for utilization
 In general it is the electrical system between the substation fed by the transmission
system and the consumer’s meter

DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM CONSIDERATIONS

In determining the design of distribution systems, the following need to be considered:

 The type of electric system: DC or AC, and if AC, single-phase or polyphase

 The type of delivery system: radial, loop or network
 The type of construction: overhead or underground
Advantage of Underground Distribution System

 Good Appearance
 Less Maintenance Cost

Disadvantage of Underground Distribution System

 High Capital Cost

 Can’t use for High Voltage Levels

COMPOSITION OF A DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

 Distribution substation
 Located near or inside city /town/ village / industrial area and receives power from a
transmission network
 The high voltage from the transmission line is then stepped down to the primary
distribution level voltage

 Feeder
 A conductor which connects the substation to the area where power is to be
distributed
 No tappings are taken from the feeder so that the current in it remains the same
throughout
 Main consideration in the design is the current carrying capacity

 Distributor
 A conductor from which tappings are taken for supply to the consumers
 The current through it is not constant because tappings are taken at various places
along its length
 Main consideration in the design is the voltage drop

 Service mains
 A small cable which connects the distributor conductor at the nearest pole to the
consumers’ terminals

Ac Power Distribution System

TYPES OF DELIVERY SYSTEMS

The part considered distribution can be divided into two subdivisions:

 Primary distribution
 carries the load at higher than utilization voltages from the substation (or other
source) to the point where the voltage is stepped down to the value at which the
energy is utilized by the consumer
 Most commonly used distribution voltages in some countries are 11 KV, 6.6KV, and
3.3 KV. In the Philippines: 13.2 KV,13.8 KV, 23 KV, and 34.5 KV and is carried by
three phase three wire systems
 It is three-phase because a three-phase Ac circuit can carry 3x the power which can
be carried by an equivalent single phase circuit. Therefore, a three-phase circuit is
more economical to use in terms of initial cost and losses for transmission and
distribution system
 Transmission lines are Three-phase three-wire circuit because it has a balanced
three-phase circuit and does not require a neutral conductor. It is because the
instantaneous sum of three line currents is equal to zero and Distribution Lines are
three-phase four-wires because a neutral wire is necessary to supply single phase
loads (domestic and commercial)

3 TYPES OF PRIMARY DISTRIBUTION

1. Radial systems, including duplicate and throw over systems

 The simplest and most commonly used delivery system because of its low initial cost
 Separate feeders radiate from a single substation and feed the distributors at one
end only
 Based on schematic, the feeder is considered main and trans portion which is
connected to the lateral.

DISADVANTAGES OF RADIAL SYSTEM

 The end of the distributor nearest to the feeding point will be heavily loaded
 The consumers are dependent on a single feeder and single distributor
 The consumers at the distant end of the distributor would be subjected to serious
voltage fluctuations when the load on the distributor changes
 When it required the distribution system over long distances. Radial System is only used
for short distance application and to be able to extend the use of radial system when
there is a particular consumer that is part from the distribution a lateral should be used to
be able to offset the limitation of the radial system.

2. Ring main/Loop systems, including open and closed loops

 The primaries of distribution transformers form a loop feed for critical consumers
 The loop circuit starts from the substation bus-bars, makes a loop through the area
to be served, and returns to the substation
OPEN LOOP SYSTEM

 The several sections of the feeder are connected together through disconnecting
devices, with the loads connected to the several sections, and both ends of the feeder
connected to the supply
 At a predetermined point in the feeder, the disconnecting device is intentionally left open
 According to the schematic, the open loop system starts from the source and goes back
to the source which is the distribution substation. If the fault occurs in the section of the
primary, that section can be disconnected at both it ends and service can be established
by closing the loop so that the consumers can have power.

CLOSED LOOP SYSTEM

 The breakers are actuated by relays, which operate to open only the circuit breakers on
each end of the faulted section, leaving the remaining portion of the entire feeder
energized
 Proper relay operation can only be achieved by means of pilot wires which run from
circuit breaker to circuit breaker and are costly to install and maintain
 Pilot wire is connected to circuit breaker. A fault will de-energized several system of the
loop or adjacent section of feeder and when fault is found, can be opened to isolate the
fault and the unfaulted sections will be re-energized by closing the proper circuit breaker.

ADVANTAGES OF RING MAIN SYSTEM

 There are less voltage fluctuations at consumer’s terminals

 The system is very reliable as each distributor is fed via two feeders; in the event of fault
on any section of the feeder, the continuity of supply is maintained

3. Network/interconnected systems
 A feeder ring that is energized by two or more sources
 Formed by tying together primary mains ordinarily found in radial systems to form a
mesh or grid

ADVANTAGES OF NETWORK SYSTEM

 It increases the service reliability

 Any area fed from one generating station during peak load hours can be fed from the
other generating station; this reduces reserve power capacity and increases efficiency of
the system

 Secondary distribution
 Operating at relatively low utilization voltages, and may be of four general types:

1. An individual transformer for each consumer (single service from each

transformer)
 2. A common secondary main associated with one transformer from which a group
of consumers is supplied
3. A continuous secondary main associated with two or more transformers,
connected to the same primary feeder, from which a group of consumers is
supplied (known as banking of transformer secondaries)
4. A continuous secondary main or grid fed by a number of transformers,
connected to two or more primary feeders, from which a large group of
consumers is supplied (known as a low-voltage or secondary network)

Individual Transformer - Single Service

 Applicable to certain loads that are more or less isolated, such as in rural areas where
consumers are far apart and long secondary mains are impractical, or where a particular
consumer has an extraordinarily large or unusual load even though situated among a
number of ordinary consumers

Common Secondary Main

 Takes advantage of diversity between the different consumer’s loads and demands
 The common secondary distribution system, the secondary main is more or less
continuous but it’s being cut into sections and is being insulated by means of strain
insulator. So as the change of the loads increase, the position of the division may
change.

Banked Secondaries

 Not very commonly used, although such installations exist and are usually limited to
overhead systems
 Fuses or automatic circuit breakers are located between the transformer and the
secondary main and these serve to clear the transformer from the bank in case of failure
of the transformer. When transformer fails, there will be no power interruption because a
sectionalizing fuse is used and place between sections of transformer banks.
 The advantages outweigh the disadvantages which include uninterrupted service or
supply, better distribution of load, better normal voltage conditions, and ability to
accommodate load increases by changing only one or some of its transformers without
disturbing the existing arrangement.
 If one of the transformers fails, the additional loads imposed on the adjacent unit may
cause another transformer to fail and in turn their loads may fail. They also need to have
same impedance and characteristics or the loads will not be distributed equally among
those transformers. Sufficient reserve capacity must be provided to carry emergency
load safety

Secondary Networks

 Provide the highest degree of service reliability and serve areas of high load density,
where revenues justify their cost and where this kind of reliability is imperative
  In general, secondary networks is created by connecting the secondary mains fed by
transformer supplied by two or more feeder

REQUIREMENTS OF A GOOD DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM

Some of the requirements of a good distribution system are:

 Proper voltage
 Voltage variations at the consumer’s terminals should be as low as possible. The
changes in the voltage will cause variation in the system. High voltage causes lamps
to burnout and may cause failure to other appliance. A good distribution system
should ensure that the voltage variation at the consumer’s terminal is within
permissible limits. The required or statutory is ± 5% of the rated value of the
consumer’s terminal and should not exceed 240 volts while the consumer voltage
should not be less than 219 V.

 Availability of power on demand

 Power must be available to any consumers in any amount from time to time. It is
because motors may be shut down at any time during the day/. As electrical energy
cannot be stored, A distribution system must be capable of supplying load demands
of the consumers at any time during the day. This means that the operating staff of
the particular supply company must continuously study the load patterns to be able ti
predict in advance the major changes in load that follow the load that is being
required any time throughout the day.

 Reliability
 Modern Industry is dependent on electric power for its operation. Residential
consumers, Office building, Commercials, and Industrials are lighted, heated,
ventilated by electric power and this calls for reliable service. Unfortunately, Electric
Power can never be absolutely and is not 100% reliable.
 The reliability of the distribution system can be improved to a considerable extent by
using an interconnected system, reliable automatic control system, and provide
additional reserve facility
Lesson 2: Load Characteristics

Economical Consideration

 In all engineering projects, the question of cost is of prime importance

 The design and construction of an electric power system is undertaken for the purpose
of producing electric power to be sold at a profit.
 Hence every effort is made to produce the power as cheap as possible

Cost of producing electric power can be divided into:

 Fixed cost/ Standing charges

 Interest on capital investment, depreciation, taxes and insurance, salaries, and
wages
 Operating costs/ Running charges
 Fuel cost, small portion of salaries and wages, repair and maintenance

Demand

 Load requirement (in kW or KVA) averaged over a suitable and specifies interval of time
 Average demand of an installation is its average power requirement during some
specified period of time of considerable duration such as a day, a month or a year

kWh consumed∈the period

Avera≥Power=
hours ∈the period

 Maximum demand is defined as the greatest of all the demands which have occurred
during a given period

Maximum peak demand

 It is indefinite and has no specific meaning, for example “maximum demand is 170 kW”
 To render it meaningful, it is necessary to:
 Indicate the period of load under consideration
 Specify the time interval used, 15mins or 30mins, etc

Demand Factor

 It is used for estimating the proportion of the total connected load which will come on the
power plant at one time
 Defined as the ratio of actual maximum demand made by the load to the rating of the
connected load

maximum demand
Demand Factor =
connected load
 Group DF =
∑ of individual max . demand
actual max demand of the group

max demand of the group

Peak DF =
demand of the group at the time of system peak demand

EXAMPLE 1

A residence has the following connected loads: three 60-Wm lamps, ten 40-W lamps, four 100-
W lamps and five 10-W lamps. Assuming that the demand meter indicates a 30-min maximum
demand of 650 W. Calculate the demand factor.

SOLUTION:

Connected load = 3(60) + 10(40) + 4(100) + 5(10) = 1030 W

30-min maximum demand = 650 W

maximum demand 650

∴ Demand Factor = = =63.1%
connected load 1030

Diversity of Demand

 The maximum demands of various consumers occurs at different times during the day
and not simultaneously
 Results in lower cost of electric energy

Diversity Factor

 The ratio of the sum of the individual maximum demands of the different elements of a
load during specified period to the simultaneous maximum demand of all these elements
of load during the same period
 High value means that more consumers can be supplied for a given station maximum
demand, and lower prices can be offered to consumers

Diversity Factor=
∑ of individual maximum demand
connected load

EXAMPLE 2

Suppose that the maximum demands of six elements of a load as observed from their maximum
demand meters M1, M2, etc. are 620 W, 504 W, 435 W, 380 W, 160 W and 595 W,
respectively. If the coincident maximum demand of the whole group as observed by the
maximum demand meter MT is only 900 W, calculate the diversity factor

SOLUTION:
Sum of individual maximum demands

= 620 + 504 + 435 + 380 + 160 + 595 = 2694 W

Diversity Factor=
∑ of individual maximum demand = 2694 =2.99
connected load 900

Load Factor

 Ratio of the average power to the maximum demand

 Usually expressed in percent
 Time interval over which the maximum demand is based and the period over which the
power is averaged must be specified
 The average power may be either generated or consumed depending on whether the
load factor is required for generating equipment or receiving equipment
 The maximum demand is the value of the maximum peak load
 When applied to a generating station:

No .of units supplied per year

Annual Load Factor =
Maximum possible demand x 8760

No . of units actually supplied per month

Monthly Load Factor=
Maximum possible demand x 720

 When applied to a receiving equipment:

No . of units consumed per year

Annual Load Facto r =
Maximum possible demand x 8760

No . of units consumed per month

Monthly Load Factor=
Maximum possible demand x 720

No. of units consumed per day

Daily Load Factor=
maximum possible demand x 24

 In general,

Average Power
Load Factor= per year ∨ per month∨ per day
Maximum demand

EXAMPLE 5
If a generating station had a maximum load for the year of 18000 kW and a load factor of 30.5%
and the maximum loads on the substations were 7500 kW, 5000 kW, 3400 kW, 4600 kW and
2800 kW, calculate the units generated for the year and the diversity factor.

SOLUTION:

Average Power
Load Factor=
Maximum demand

Average Power = 18000 x 0.305 = 5490 kW

kWh generated per year = 5490 x 8760 = 48,092,400 kWh

Diversity Factor=
∑ of individual maximum demand
connected load

Sum of Individual maximum demand = 7500 + 5000 + 3400 + 4600 + 2800 = 23300 kW

23300
∴ Diversity Factor = =1.29
18000

Lesson 3:

Underground Distribution Lines

 Uses conduits, cables, and manholes under the surface of steets and sidewalks

Comparison of UDS vs ODS

Underground Distribution System