Is a new electrical ecosystem needed and what could it offer?

mmm thinking about this a little more , cant use steel for conductors , specificying the generator units to be compatable is difficult and perhaps put this to one side at the moment , as like everything else generator tech has moved on.

I guess the big question is do we need an electricty transmission grid at all ?? You could have a sort of system where you have gas powered engines/generators generating to whatever you spec your big ring mains to 11kv and just run them to demands ??? so thats an interesting question.


A UHVDC grid could be specified to run to all the main cities , and if you have this it doesnt matter where you site your generation units so much , current thinking is for HV aluminium suspended wires , but obviously when things like the new sort of demands are thought about , then current conductor sizing probebly wouldnt do it . Given NJK cables have an undersea cable rated at 650kv and are working on a 750kv then one cable can now carry 3000mw and these are DC voltages , running temps at 70oC plus, so using these in an underground network , would probebely need some cooling and some very ingenious containment to last as infrastructure . 

The next question how much can be saved in transmission losses by going to UHVDC ??? and we all know it depends how high a volyage you can specify I would guess (and it is a guess) at least 1000mw possibly 2000mw at peak flows , however being as electricity looks like running cars and homes ,then at some point the gov are going to have to think about peak loads , and then there going to realise the current specification for the grid could not do it ,let alone the other fact that most on call generation is being replaced by renewables .

beyond transmission the question becomes more complex , if we have UHVDC transmission then we can run DC to distribution , but at the moment there isnt any HV DC demand (other than the efficiency of car charging) and the re specifyng the main 11kv grid main would be a difficult transition , even though it eventually would liberate previous electrical losses. beyond the 11Kv ring mains then things get very difficult , but my belief is ,if the gov does move to the fully electric/well designed  new build (and it may bee should have been done a long time ago)  then urban grids re specifying ,has to be done , but this will be very expensive and very difficult to tansition particulary where old inefficient housing is kept , as winter loads will be quite a lot higher perhaps 60GW or more .


I guess there are specialist engineers that model this sort of stuff , and I am having a go at very complex electrical engineering problem , but what sort of transmission grid is possible is quite exciting , however at distribution switiching to using more electricty , will need the efficiencies that a re specification can deliver , in short the shifting of energy use to electrical power (and this is useful) we have a distribution grid that cannot deliver the sorts of electrical quantities , that such a switch is outlaying as demand patterns.


My choice is to work out where you need to supply with a electricty transmission grid and where you dont , as a start and if the modern cabling can be routed  in an undergoround system , if we still cant get a coherent system for electricty transmission systems , then plan for a gas fired local generation .


I think this question will be one of the most important future engineering problems , that our best engineers can figure out , there are new specifcations to take adavantage of , but its a really difficult transition cost and challenge.

mmm thinking about this a little more , cant use steel for conductors , specificying the generator units to be compatable is difficult and perhaps put this to one side at the moment , as like everything else generator tech has moved on.

I guess the big question is do we need an electricty transmission grid at all ?? You could have a sort of system where you have gas powered engines/generators generating to whatever you spec your big ring mains to 11kv and just run them to demands ??? so thats an interesting question.


A UHVDC grid could be specified to run to all the main cities , and if you have this it doesnt matter where you site your generation units so much , current thinking is for HV aluminium suspended wires , but obviously when things like the new sort of demands are thought about , then current conductor sizing probebly wouldnt do it . Given NJK cables have an undersea cable rated at 650kv and are working on a 750kv then one cable can now carry 3000mw and these are DC voltages , running temps at 70oC plus, so using these in an underground network , would probebely need some cooling and some very ingenious containment to last as infrastructure . 

The next question how much can be saved in transmission losses by going to UHVDC ??? and we all know it depends how high a volyage you can specify I would guess (and it is a guess) at least 1000mw possibly 2000mw at peak flows , however being as electricity looks like running cars and homes ,then at some point the gov are going to have to think about peak loads , and then there going to realise the current specification for the grid could not do it ,let alone the other fact that most on call generation is being replaced by renewables .

beyond transmission the question becomes more complex , if we have UHVDC transmission then we can run DC to distribution , but at the moment there isnt any HV DC demand (other than the efficiency of car charging) and the re specifyng the main 11kv grid main would be a difficult transition , even though it eventually would liberate previous electrical losses. beyond the 11Kv ring mains then things get very difficult , but my belief is ,if the gov does move to the fully electric/well designed  new build (and it may bee should have been done a long time ago)  then urban grids re specifying ,has to be done , but this will be very expensive and very difficult to tansition particulary where old inefficient housing is kept , as winter loads will be quite a lot higher perhaps 60GW or more .


I guess there are specialist engineers that model this sort of stuff , and I am having a go at very complex electrical engineering problem , but what sort of transmission grid is possible is quite exciting , however at distribution switiching to using more electricty , will need the efficiencies that a re specification can deliver , in short the shifting of energy use to electrical power (and this is useful) we have a distribution grid that cannot deliver the sorts of electrical quantities , that such a switch is outlaying as demand patterns.


My choice is to work out where you need to supply with a electricty transmission grid and where you dont , as a start and if the modern cabling can be routed  in an undergoround system , if we still cant get a coherent system for electricty transmission systems , then plan for a gas fired local generation .


I think this question will be one of the most important future engineering problems , that our best engineers can figure out , there are new specifcations to take adavantage of , but its a really difficult transition cost and challenge.