Description
The need to develop this new project arises from two aspects, first by the priority of the European Union on energy and improving energy efficiency, and second, by the identified requirement within the energy distribution and transportation sector, particularly in the power transformers. In Europe there are a total amount of 4.5 million power transformers used for distribution, with an estimated annual market investments and replacements of around 3% of total units. These power transformers accounted for about a third of global losses from transmission and distribution of energy, which in terms of the EU-27 can be estimated at 38 TWh/year of energy looses. Therefore a large amount of energy is being wasted for purely low energy efficiency, increasing in turn CO2 emissions into the atmosphere. The objective of the project is to develop a tool that allows the energy exploitation of the losses in power transformers by processing advanced calculation in order to define the design changes that have to be implemented in transformers, in order to reuse their energy losses as for instance: heating, district heating applications, etc.
Summary of project results
In Europe there are 4.5 million power transformers used to distribution, with an estimated annual market investments and replacements of around 3% of total units. These power transformers accounted for about a 1/3 of global losses from transmission and distribution of energy. Therefore a large amount of energy is being wasted, increasing in turn CO2 emissions. The project aims to develop a tool that allows the energy exploitation of the losses in power transformers by processing advanced calculation in order to define the design changes that have to be implemented in transformers to reuse their energy losses. This objective has been achieved through the development of different models which enable quantify electrical transformer losses, define the alternatives to extract the heat and analyse the utilisation of transformer internal losses, verifying its economical viability. Models for analysing the improvement that occurs in the chargeability of transformers have been also addressed.
Summary of bilateral results