Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management (Oct 2010)
Greening elements in the distribution networks
Abstract
Due to climate change and the increase in environmental awareness in the world, the concept of Green Supply Chain Management appeared. The concept is aimed at the reduction of several elements: energy, materials, the pollution and the waste in production and logistics processes. Power networks are a part of a supply chain of production and distribution of electrical energy, and similar principles of greening could be applied. Currently, the losses within the distribution networks in the whole world are between 3.7 to 26.7 % and they primarily occur due to the losses in the conductors and the losses within distribution transformers. After an overview of the losses in the power networks and related CO2 emission, some solution of how to reduce the above mentioned losses are given. Such improvements, apart from the significant economic repercussions, in the same time represent non-negligible greening element in the area of electrical energy distribution.
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