Demand Side Management and Energy Efficiency
Electricity is used so widely because it can be used for transporting large amounts of energy at a high rate, and is easily converted into a number of common end uses such as mechanical movement, heat and light. However, at present, a major problem with electricity is that it cannot be stored economically. Thus, the generation of electricity has to be controlled and adjusted according to its end use rate. The power drawn by end users at a given time is known as the ‘demand’ on the system. ‘Demand’ refers to instantaneous requirement. As the name suggests, demand side management (DSM) involves controlling the demand created by the end users. What is the need of demand side management? The higher the demand, the higher is the amount of current required. The generation, transmission and distribution equipment have to be designed and sized according to the demand and this infrastructure has a maximum capacity which it can safely handle. An increase in demand thus puts strain on existing ...