The electrical power distribution system is mostly forgotten as a way to reduce energy consumption in a facility. Engineering staff are familiar with the benefits of high-efficiency motors and energy-saving lamps, but few dare to venture much further into electrical power conservation. Electricity is not distributed throughout a building free. As the electricity flows through wires and busbars, it must overcome natural resistance in the conducting metal. This causes a slight reduction in voltage and diminishes the power available at the point of use. The closer the current is to the wire’s rated capacity, the more energy is lost to resistance. This loss is evidenced as heat, which itself costs energy to eliminate in the cooling season. Excessive heat also damages the insulation covering of the wire, reducing the integrity of its insulating cover, and increasing the possibility of shorts and even fires.
Another way to think of electricity, and to understand how it works, is to consider the analogy of water flowing through pipes. (The mathematical expression of both systems is identical.) The electric current correlates to water flow, and voltage is the same as pressure head. Just as water flowing through pipes experiences a pressure loss from the friction of the rough pipe inside surface, the electric current loses voltage owing to the less-than-perfect conductivity of the wiring.
Wherever electricity flows, then, it sacrifices some of the energy to overcome resistance. This energy is manifested as heat that can cause further complications. The projects in this section are more than potential energy savers, but lessons in the distribution and use of electrical power.
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Excerpt from Energy Conservation Projects.