A Modeling Toolkit for Comparing Ac vs. Dc Electrical Distribution Efficiency in Buildings

A. Othee, James Cale, A. Santos, S. Frank, D. Zimmerle, O. Ghatpande, G. Duggan, D. Gerber
2022 Social Science Research Network  
A MODELING TOOLKIT FOR COMPARING AC VS. DC ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION EFFICIENCY IN BUILDINGS An increasing proportion of electrical devices in residential and commercial buildings operate from direct current (DC) power sources. In addition, distributed power generation systems such as solar photovoltaic (PV) and energy storage natively produce DC power. However, traditional power distribution is based on an alternating current (AC) model. Performing the necessary conversions between AC and DC
more » ... r to make DC devices compatible with AC distribution results in energy losses. For these reasons, DC distribution may offer energy efficiency advantages in comparison to AC distribution. However, reasonably fast computation and comparison of electrical efficiencies of AC-only, DC-only, and hybrid AC/DC distributions systems is challenging because DC devices are typically (nonlinear) power-electronic converters that produce harmonic content. While detailed vii 8.11 Predicted versus measured total system power losses, Scenarios
doi:10.2139/ssrn.4025724 fatcat:ilckwznzgrdg3anthrbp6mvosa