Distributed Energy

Distributed energy is both complementary and alternative to “centralized power generation,” addressing many of the shortcomings of centralized systems. Key qualities of distributed energy are that it is decentralized, diverse, and close to the end user. As such, distributed energy resources (DERs) are increasingly used to address common problems of centralized power systems such as peak power, backup power during power outages, increased power quality, as well as lower cost and lower energy consumption for electrical, heating, and cooling needs. Distributed energy systems commonly used today include diesel and fuel generators, solar power, fuel cells, wind turbines, biomass, microturbines, load reduction technologies, and battery storage systems. Though very basic distributed energy systems, such as diesel-operated backup generators, represent a significant exception, more and more distributed energy technologies provide cleaner, faster, and more efficient energy than centralized power systems. All distributed energy systems have the built-in advantage of generating power nearer to the point of consumption, thus reducing losses inherent in the transmission and distribution system of centralized power stations.

In one type of distributed energy, the concentrating solar plant, the sun's energy is focused onto a point using mirrors or lenses, generating intense heat. This solar-energy dish-collector field is in Shenandoah, Georgia

Source: Sandia National Laboratory

The nation's overall energy portfolio is increasingly reliant on distributed energy technologies, for they have, as many reports clearly indicate, the important potential “to mitigate congestion in transmission lines, reduce the impact of electricity price fluctuations, strengthen energy security, and provide greater stability to the electricity grid.” Along the same lines, industry observers have likened distributed energy systems to the historical evolution of computer systems: once highly centralized and expensive, they have become, in short order, more efficient, more decentralized, cheaper, and more user friendly. And, of [Page 142]course, primarily as a result of these developments, both distributed energy systems and computer systems find an ever-widening range of uses.

The basic idea behind distributed energy systems, of course, is not at all new. Indeed, it was not until the advent of the industrial revolution, the creation of urban centers, and the building of the first large-scale power plants that energy production became centralized. During the early years of the American republic, people had their own furnaces and their own wind or water-generated mills—very much a decentralized or distributed energy system. Despite the fact that there is still no clearly agreed-upon definition for distributed energy, however, it is different from such historical examples of decentralized systems in that it is part of a larger system, or network. Indeed, many European countries now pay costumers for feeding energy back into the grid from their own energy generators, assuming they are zero carbon emissions. In some cases, more per kilowatt is fed into the grid from these homes than what is taken out of the grid.

DERs have become particularly significant in the information technology industry, which is dependent on a steady and reliable supply of electricity, without any tolerance to variations in energy quality, much less complete power outages. And since a large and growing part of U.S. business transactions are based on information technology, DERs are increasingly viewed as vital to the overall well-being of the economy.

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