How Important is an Energy Manager?

Meaning of Energy Management:

Before knowing who the Energy Manager is and what is his or her role lets us understand the meaning of Energy management and importance of energy efficiency.

The term 

" Energy Management " means an effective and judicious use of energy to maximize profits or to minimize the cost. 

 It simply means cutting out the waste by making the best possible use of energy consumed.

How important is Energy Efficiency and Energy Management?

Energy efficiency is very important to all organizations, particularly to energy intensive units and organizations. Organizations looking for more financial returns opt for superior energy management and continuously and effectively work towards improving their energy efficiency. A sound energy management system is a pre-requisite for identifying and implementing energy conservation measures, and sustaining the momentum.

Need for Energy Manager:

Leading organizations appoint Energy Manager and form a dedicated energy management team to establish the energy management programme. So the responsibility for the overall management of energy in its widest contexts is focused formally on the Energy Manager. The tasks of Energy manager are:

•  setting goals, 
• tracking progress, and
• promoting energy management programme. 

It is his or her duty to optimize energy usage within the total limits of his/her specified area.

To be really effective, the Energy Manager requires….

Successful Energy Manager very well understands how energy management helps the organization to achieve its financial and environmental goals.

To be really effective the energy manager requires:

• a broad education,
• vision, 
• imagination, 
• experience, and 
• common sense. 

The traditional Energy Manager has been primarily focused on the energy conservation aspects. As a result their responsibilities were limited to finding Energy Conservation Opportunities (ECOs) performing economic evaluations and submitting proposals to the management.

In addition to the above requirements, today’s Energy Manager must take on a much broader responsibility to accomplish the objectives of an energy management programme. The present generation of Energy Managers may have had a formal training and education in the inter-disciplinary subject of energy management. They may have been trained as engineers in their respective courses and have been exposed, to a greater or lesser extent, to a number of the disciplines which are fundamental to energy management. Today’s Energy Manager must understand financial and physical risk management and be able to evaluate corporate energy risk regarding reliability and energy cost.

Good Convincing Ability:

Energy Manager must be able to convince the benefits of their programs to top management. He or she might find themselves dealing with:

• engineers, 
• financial planners, 
• accountants, 
• supervisors, 
• public relation specialists, 
• government officials, 
• lawyers, 
• journalists etc. 

A good Energy Manager must be able to communicate clearly and persuasively with all those people.

Position of an Energy Manager:

If the objectives of energy management are to be achieved, the Energy Manager must have the authority and direct say into the day-to-day decision making. Depending on the size of the organization, the Energy Manager’s role can be a full time position or an addition to other responsibilities.

The location of the energy manager, whether performed by a single Energy Manager or a number of middle level managers, usually resides somewhere in the organization between senior management and those who control the end-use of energy.

Responsibilities of an Energy Manager and the Team:

Responsibilities and the duties assigned under the Energy Conservation Act 2001, to the Energy Manager and the team are:

1.     Make an annual activity plan with detailed financial investment information to control and   reduce energy costs.

2.      Establish an energy conservation cell within the organization.

3.  To check the efficiency of equipments and to compare with standard energy efficient equipments.

4.  To spread energy awareness among other staff members, conduct internal workshops and distribute the informative materials.

5.     To provide regular training to operative staff.

6.    To collect right information about energy saving from market and from Energy Managers of the same sector through association.

7.  Report to Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and state level designated agency about the action taken on the recommendations of accredited energy auditor in the prescribed format.

8.    Establish good system of data recording and to analyze the energy consumption trends.

Future Aspects:

It is more likely that Energy Managers will become progressively involved in the conceptual and design stages of projects so as to reflect on the impact made by the design and operation of new generation of process and service industry.        

Automatic Power Factor Controller for Industries

Induction motor accounts for more than half of the industrial load and are responsible for the poor power factor. The power factor of an induction motor varies with the load on the motor. Lightly loaded motor has a very poor power factor. Poor power factor results in reduced capacity of transformers, cables and other equipments and are also responsible for higher power losses because of increased current flow. They also cause additional voltage drop.

Motivation for power factor improvement:  

Utilities usually encourage the consumers to improve the power factor of their installation by incorporating power factor based penalty/rebate in the power tariff structure.

Figure shows the Electricity Bill of a Hotel for the month of Dec 2016. The premises, which is fed from 11 kV, is having an average power factor of 0.63 (as can be seen in the picture) for which the consumer has to pay a penalty of 28,759 INR ( a hefty amount indeed, for sheer casual approach)

Coal-fired Power Plants: Hazardous to your Health

The aspiration for rapid economic growth leading to express industrialization, accelerated urbanization and mechanization of agriculture has been responsible for the increasing energy demand ever since the independence in India. In the recently concluded 21^st Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Paris, a resolution on limiting the use of coal across countries was proposed for consideration. Coal-fired power plants are among the most polluting industrial facilities. This is of particular relevance in the Indian context as coal fired power plants form the back bone of Indian electricity generation sector.

Pollution from Coal-fired Power Plants

In 2014, nearly 79% of the electricity generated in India was from thermal power plants. Power plants in the country use different qualities of coal, different combustion technologies and operating conditions. As a result these plants have different efficiencies and different emission levels. Main emission from lignite based coal-fired  power plants are CO₂, NOx, SOx and air borne particles such as fly ash, soot, Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM) and other trace gases. 

As per the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) report the best specific coal usage for any Indian coal-fired power plant is less than 0.6 kg/kWh whereas the worst has been 1.0 kg/kWh. The Indian coal has high ash content (35-50%) and low Calorific Value (CV), about 2500-5000 kCal/kg. Low CV means more coal usage and high ash disposal requirements. 

The emissions per unit of electricity generated (kWh)  are estimated to be in the range of 0.91 to 0.9 kg/kWh for CO₂, 6.94 to 7.2 g/kWh for SO₂ and 4.22 to 4.38 g/kWh for NO during the year 2010. The future emission scenario (for the year 2020-21), based on the projected coal consumption in Indian coal-fired power plants is in the range of 714976 to 914680 Gg of CO₂, 4734 to 6051 Gg SO₂ and 366 to 469 Gg of NO. The continued use of older coal-fired power plants, many of which have minimal or no pollution controls and the construction of more of these power plants will only worsen the situation.

Health Hazards from Coal-fired Power Plants

So these coal-fired power plants, by burning of coal, releases a lot of Green House Gases (GHG) and other harmful pollutants into the atmosphere. These pollutants such as Sulphur-dioxide, Nitrogen Oxides and particulate matters released in the air and water, may cause respiratory problems along with other serious health consequences. Pollution produced by these plants is responsible for thousands of non-fatal heart attacks and millions of Asthma attacks each year.

Coal-fired power plants annually produce millions of tons of Coal Combustion Waste (CCW) – coal ash, scrubber sludge and other by-products. This waste contains toxics such as arsenic and heavy metals. Arsenic increases the risk of skin, lung, bladder, liver, kidney and prostate cancer. It can also cause liver disease, anaemia, gangrene and various skin diseases. Heavy metals such as cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, nickel etc. can cause cancer, nervous system and brain damage and learning and behavioural problems in children.

A single large power plant may require several hundred acres of landfill space to dispose of its coal ash causing damage to the green land. The pollutants in the coal ash can get into the soil and contaminate the nearby ground water and make the drinking water hazardous.

Pollution from NTPC's Badarpur Coal-fired Power Plant: An example

Barely 25 km from the Central Delhi, a 40 year old coal-fired power plant run by NTPC is working way beyond its life. Along with other reasons this power plant is responsible in listing Delhi, the Indian capital, as one of the worst air polluted cities in the world. It is ranked at 11th position among the most polluted cities on the Earth with worst air quality, a WHO report says.  

New Delhi has the world's highest levels of tiny, toxic particles that lead to respiratory diseases, lung cancer and heart attacks as already mentioned above. The city averaged 153 micrograms/cubic meter in the year 2013 as per the WHO report. The level of pollution reported is 15 times higher than the WHO's recommended pollution level. PM 2.5 level has been increasing in the city since last 5 years and the measured average annual PM 2.5 was 122, whereas WHO recommends that it should be kept below 10.  Residents nearby the power plant go out using handkerchiefs as masks to avoid breathing soot and fly ash. Eye burns and headaches because of coal dust are common to many residents.

National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) is now seeking to cut emissions across its facilities in the country and is planning to spend 12 billion INR annually on technology upgrading to enhance efficiency and reduce the pollution.      

Future Agenda

Now the question is who is responsible for all this, the government, the utilities, the pollution controlling agencies or somebody else. Can we play a more interactive role in reducing the deadly pollution? The answer is YES. To meet the future energy needs safely while protecting Human health and the nature, we must:

1.        Judiciously use the energy with greater efficiency i.e. increase energy efficiency and conservation, and
2.          Aggressively pursue RE resources such as Solar, Wind, Bio-mass etc.
3.        We must eliminate these polluting power plants in phases like France.

Get ready for the Net Metered Solar PV System

Rapidly depleting fossil fuel reserves, higher energy demands, ever increasing global pollution- the present scenario has made it essential for us to look for other sources of energy. Solar PV energy has emerged as a convenient, pollution free and mature solution to this problem.

In India, the solar PV system has generated much curiosity among the common people about its use, the subsidies granted by various government agencies, the business opportunities in solar industry etc. It has created an atmosphere of awareness among the masses. It will promote de-centralized electricity generation thereby reducing the transmission and distribution losses, which is significantly high in the country.   

The state of Madhya Pradesh is bestowed with high solar radiation (5.5 kWh/m²/day on an average) and around 300 days of clear sunny day per annum. The state has a proposed Solar PV capacity addition target of 2200 MWp by 2022. The Madhya Pradesh Solar Policy 2012 has given the much needed thrust for installation of grid connected Solar PV projects. 

The most recent and much talked about development that has caught the attention of the people is the Net-metering. The state policy for ‘Net metering based solar applications: 2015’ has been structured so as to promote generation and self consumption of energy generated from solar PV system by individuals. Now let us see what the net metered solar PV system is all about.

What is Net-Metering or Net-metered solar PV system?

In the grid connected system, the solar PV system is installed at the roof top or within the premises of the consumer (existing electrical energy user). The power produced by solar PV system will be used by the consumers for their own use. The energy produced in excess of the consumer’s requirement could be injected into the utility’s LT network. In case the energy need of the building is more than that generated by the solar PV system, then the required additional energy will be drawn from the LT lines.

A bi-directional or import-export energy meter has to be installed for keeping the energy record. The electrical energy thus exported could be adjusted against the import by the consumer from the utility network. Such type of solar PV system is known as ‘Net metered Solar PV system’. The consumer, after settlement of energy within the settlement period, shall pay for the net energy purchased by him/her from the utility.

The concept seems to be good, but the question arises is who can install the net metered solar PV system?  

Who can apply for Net-metered solar PV system (Eligibility Criteria)?

All categories of electrical consumers who have installed solar PV system in their premises, or are willing to install, to balance part or all of their electrical energy needs are eligible for ‘net metering’ Solar PV scheme. The solar PV system can be either self owned or third party owned.  

Every activity or installation in which any government organization is involved, has its own set of sanction procedures. Now the question is, where the interested party can apply and what are the approval procedure? 

     

What is the Approval Procedure?

The eligible consumer is required to fill and submit an on-line application form along with the necessary fee and documents such as current electricity bill. The form is available at the MP Urja Vikas Nigam (MPUVN) and the Distribution Companies (DISCOM) website.

Once the solar PV beneficiary (a person who is willing to install the solar PV system at his/ her own premises) applies for "Net metered" solar PV system at his premises along with the registration fee of 1000 INR (as on May 2017), the Discom official shall visit the said premises for verifying the technical feasibility for grid connection of the proposed Solar PV system. They will inspect the available LT network, in case the application is for residential use. The available capacity of the concerned distribution transformer should also be ascertained before giving the sanction. The applications are to be handled on first come first serve basis. As per current rules, the total capacity of grid tie solar PV system on any distribution transformer cannot exceed 30% of the transformer's kVA capacity. The approval procedure is supposed to take nearly 30 days from the date of application.

The eligible consumers have to complete the installation of the approved Solar PV system within 3 months from the date of approval by DISCOM, otherwise the sanction will be cancelled.

This solar PV system is supposed to feed back the extra energy produced to the grid, means you are connecting your solar PV to the utility grid. For this you certainly have to follow a set of safety and technical rules and regulations. What are these rules and regulations?  

What are the safety and technical points of the system?

The Solar PV system is expected to have a lifespan of 25 years. Also the system is to be grid tied; hence utmost care should be taken during the installation process so as to ensure that every safety and technical standards are followed. 

The interconnection with the LT network shall be made as per the technical standards for “connectivity of distributed generation resources regulations” notified by Central Regulatory Authority (CEA). Similarly, metering arrangements should confirm to MP Electricity Regulatory Commission (MPERC) “Grid connected Net metering Regulations 2014” and subsequent amendments thereof and CEA Regulation 2006 for the “Installation and Operation of meters”.   

One of the most important and typical safety requirement of Net- metered or Grid-Tie solar PV system is the "anti-islanding" feature. In this feature it is mandatory that the grid-tie solar system must be shut down automatically in case of grid failure so as to ensure that the associated utility network and equipments are safe to work on. This safety feature is essentially incorporated in the grid-tie inverter. 

MPUVN ltd., New and Renewable Energy department, Government of Madhya Pradesh, shall be the nodal agency for Net-metering based Solar PV systems in the state. To ensure quality work the consumer has to get the installation work done by developers/facilitators empanelled with the MPUVN.

Is there any tax benefit or financial assistance for the system?

Installation of Solar PV systems under the policy shall be exempted from wheeling, cross-subsidy and open access charges. The energy generated from the solar PV system shall be exempted from electricity duty and cess. All eligible consumers can avail the financial assistance from Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) as per the applicable schemes. The equipments for the solar PV system under this policy shall be exempted from VAT and entry tax.    
      

Even after the steep growth in this sector if you have not installed a roof top solar PV system at your house, it is high time now to awaken from your slumber and acknowledge the technology; at least for the sake of your future generation.

GAS INSULATED TRANSMISSION LINE: A BACKBONE FUTURE TRANSMISSION SYSTEM?

The power transmission system of today will see basic changes in the near future and Gas Insulated Transmission Line (GIL) is one of them. When overhead (OH) lines cannot be built, then the GIL offers an alternative solution by going underground with the same quantum of power as the OH line.

The gas insulation technology was introduced to sub-stations in the late 1960s and is widely used today because of its significant advantages. Application of GIL was started way back in the 1975, when the Siemens co. installed a GIL inside a tunnel for one of the pumped storage power stations in Germany. 

These lines can be laid above the ground, under the ground directly in soil or in underground tunnels depending upon the requirements. The introduction of 2^nd generation GIL in 2001 using Nitrogen (N₂) and Sulphur Hexa-fluoride (SF₆) mixture and pipeline laying techniques to reduce the cost makes the GIL a long distance, bulk power transmission system with greater reliability and availability.

Construction of Gas Insulated Transmission Lines:

Gas insulated transmission line consists of a number of modular components which are assembled to make the complete GIL. They consists of an Aluminium conductor inside a tubular enclosure. The conductor is rested on cast resin insulators which keeps the conductor right in the centre of the outer enclosure. The outer enclosure is a strong aluminium alloy tube which provides the needed mechanical protection. The spacing between the conductor and the enclosure is filled with a mixture of Nitrogen and SF₆ gas to provide the required electrical insulation.

Usually the SF₆ percentage is small (about 20%). When these lines are buried directly into the ground, the outer ‘Al’ alloy enclosure is coated with a polyethylene layer throughout its entire length. Ultrasonic inspection technique is used to check the leakage of gas mixture. Fig 1 shows the construction of a GIL.

Fig.1: Construction of a GIL

Advantages of Gas Insulated Transmission Lines:

The advantages of Gas Insulated Transmission Lines (GIL), as compared to other transmission systems, are:

• higher power transfer capability (3000 MVA/system for a rated voltage of 550 kV), 
• superior Electro-Magnetic Compatibility (EMC), 
• low losses (less than 150 W/m for a loading of 1800 MVA) and 
• no fire or explosion hazard and hence higher safety. 

The insulating system is not subjected to aging and hence reduces the risk of internal failure. Since these lines are fully enclosed, hence are entirely protected from the environmental impacts. These lines have a very less maintenance requirement, only external inspection is needed. Because of these features the GIL system has an expected life of more than 50 years. The housing i.e. the outer enclosure is solidly grounded and therefore makes the GIL a safe system.  

The capacitance of GIL is very low (55nF/km) as compared to XLPE cables, and hence the compensation required in the form of reactors is usually not needed for lines up to 70 km. These lines are suitable for direct connection to sub-stations and no modification in the protection techniques is required.

Gas insulated transmission lines are gas tight and are sealed for lifetime and because of which they have superior operation throughout their comparatively higher lifetime. GIL have a very low magnetic flux density, 15 to 20 times less than conventional power transmission lines and hence are more suitable for power transfer through populated areas, EMC sensitive areas, and along with telecommunication systems. These lines are un-affected by high ambient temperature and severe atmospheric pollution.

Fig.2 shows the comparative analysis of magnetic flux density of GIL with other transmission systems.

Fig.2: Comparative analysis of magnetic flux density (in microTesla) of GIL with other transmission systems.

The GIL installation process consists of assembly of pre-fabricated modules at the installation site. The key elements are light in weight and can be easily transferred to the site location. During the installation gas tightness is to be ensured at all cost and which very much depends on the welding process.

Application of Gas Insulated Transmission Line: 

Gas insulated transmission line can be used in the voltage range of 245 to 550 kV with the current capacity up to 4.5 kA. Gas Insulated Transmission Lines in underground tunnels can be very viable option in future, as the land above the tunnel can be fully restored for agricultural use. Gas insulated transmission line can be installed vertically also, and hence can be used with underground power plants.  The tunnels used for GIL can also be used for ventilation purpose in the case of underground power plants which reduces the overall cost of the system. 

GILs have all the qualities to become the backbone of future transmission systems. They can also be deployed to transfer bulk power in the GW range from large off-shore wind farms through undersea tunnels with greater reliability. 

How useful is a Combiner Box in a solar PV system?

We are fast adopting renewable energy (RE) sources to fulfil our energy requirements and solar energy is going to be the dominant RE source in future, particularly in India. Two different systems of solar energy are employed now-a-days viz. solar thermal plants, and solar PV plants. Solar PV system is gaining a swift popularity among the mass, particularly the roof top solar PV system.

Two diverse types of roof top solar PV systems are in use. They are the standalone i.e. grid independent PV system and the second one is the grid-tied roof top solar PV system. The standalone solar PV system is relatively small in capacity; varying from a few hundred watts to a couple of kilowatts. On the other hand grid-connected or the grid-tied roof top solar PV system is comparatively larger in size; starting from a couple of kilowatts to few hundred kilowatts.

To get the required power output, the different PV panels are connected in series and/ or parallel. How a panel is connected depends on the rating of the charge controller, battery and the inverter. Factors such as voltage drop and power loss are also taken into consideration while going for a particular connection.

Let’s understand this aspect considering an example:

Suppose that we have to install a 400 W solar PV system. Four panels of 100 W each with a voltage (at maximum power) of 17.2 V and maximum current of 5.8 A are considered for installation. Now as per the load calculation and needed back up time an inverter of 850 VA and battery of 150 Ah are to be employed. Usually an inverter of 850 VA is available in the 12 V rating and so is the battery. Thus we have to use a charge controller of 12 V rating and matching the required current capacity. 

All the four panels should be connected in parallel so that the DC output after the charge controller is of 12 volts (input to the charge controller is a bit higher than 12 V). In this way, by parallel connection of panels, we can match the voltage rating of all the equipments i.e. inverter, the battery and the charge controller. Now if the inverter available in the market is of 24 V, then we have to use two batteries of 12 V each in series so that their voltage adds up. Now you have to connect your PV panels in series parallel combination. I hope the connection is clear to you.

What is a Combiner Box? 

       

Combiner boxes are an integral part of solar PV installation. They serve as the junction point where the several parallel connections from the PV panels come and join. Panels are connected in series and / or parallel as per the requirement as mentioned above.
               

The combiner box contains the necessary over-current fuses and circuit breaker, the bus-bars and the terminals for the required connections. Many solar PV installers fabricate their own combiner boxes to cut down the cost and to promote their products; otherwise there are so many combiner box manufacturers with many variants. Custom build or tailor made combiner boxes are also available on demand. Smart combiner box with data monitoring capability are also available which allows easy installation of data monitoring system.

 Solar PV systems above 5 kW usually have more wires and their connection becomes a difficult job without the use of a combiner box. Some grid-tied inverters come with the fuse protection and arrangements for parallel input connections and hence separate combiner box is not required.

Fig 1: A combiner box with Fuses & Circuit Breakers

Location of a Combiner Box

The combiner box should be as close as possible to the PV panels so that the length of wire required is reduced and the trouble shooting becomes easy as one can easily locate/ identify different wires. Since most of the combiner boxes are installed near the PV array i.e. they are installed outdoor and hence must be adequately weatherproof.

Voltage rating of a Combiner Box

Each combiner box is rated for a specific DC voltage. Most of the combiner boxes compatible with standalone PV system can handle 150 V DC at the maximum, whereas the grid-tied combiner box is rated up to 600 V DC.

Number of Terminals in a Combiner Box

Combiner boxes usually have a fixed number of input and output terminals. Grid interactive system requires fewer input and output terminals, as they usually work at higher DC voltage, while the battery backed PV system has more number of parallel wires. Large battery backed system may have multiple charge controllers and each controller may have its own combiner box. For an off-grid system it is a smart decision to have enough terminals in the combiner boxes for future extensions. To make the future additions an easy job, the combiner box and its output wires should be adequately sized.

Protection in a Combiner Box

As stated earlier both fuses and DC circuit breakers are used as protective devices in a combiner box, depending upon the DC system voltage. The fuse used in a combiner box cannot be opened up under load and hence cannot be employed as DC disconnectors. 

Power Conditioning Unit: A key element of Solar PV System

Power Conditioning Unit (PCU) is a very vital piece of equipment in any solar PV system and is also called solar power conditioning unit. The main components of any solar PV system are PV panels, charge controller, battery bank, inverters, cables, switches and the protection.

"Power Conditioning Unit (PCU) is a combined unit consisting of a solar charge controller, an inverter and a grid charger integrated in a single unit." 

Role of Power Conditioning Unit (PCU)

Power Conditioning Unit (PCU) is usually a DSP based PWM technology using IGBT and MOSFET. It facilitates the charging of battery bank through either solar PV panels or the grid/DG system. All the solar PCU has the ability to continuously monitor the state of battery, solar power output and the load. They not only monitors the state of affairs but even displays vital parameters such as PV voltage and current, load percentage, overload percentage, charging current etc.  

The solar energy is intermittent in nature and therefore a balance has to be made between the solar generation and the demand. When excess energy is generated the extra kWh is to be either fed into the grid, which is possible only in case of grid tied system, or to be stored into the battery bank. Due to over usage of power, if the battery voltage goes below a pre-defined level, the PCU will automatically transfer the load to the utility grid and simultaneously charges the batteries through the grid supply. 

Once the batteries attain a given voltage, the PCU cuts off the grid power to the system and returns back the load on to the solar system. The rest of the battery charging is now done by the solar PV system. In this way the PCU gives priority to the solar power over the grid, and uses the grid power only when the solar power and the battery power of required level is not available.

Fig.1: Back view of an off-grid Solar PCU

Significant advantages of PCU

The significant advantages of PCU are pure sine wave output with low Total Harmonic Distortion (a measure of power quality), higher efficiency, data logging monitoring etc. The commercially available PCU have efficiency more than 85% and nearly 5% Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) for linear loads. These units come with the deep discharge protection and thus ensure the health of batteries. PCUs have nearly 300% overload facility for a few milliseconds which helps during the starting of heavy loads. Thus these units have the inbuilt overload and short-circuit protection and therefore no need to worry about overloads and short circuits. Remote monitoring of the unit can be done with the help of RS232, Ethernet, GSM and GPRS.

Ratings of commercially available single phase PCU

The usual ratings of commercially available single phase off-grid PCU in India are 600 VA/24 V, 1kVA/24 V, 2kVA or 3kVA/48 V, 3/4/ 5/6 kVA/96 V, 7.5 kVA/120 V