Electricity Demand: Measurement, modelling and management of UK homes

Abstract

The need to achieve a transition to a low carbon economy has renewed interest in "energy efficiency" and what has become known as "demand side management". This thesis investigates the role of measurement and modelling in the management of domestic electricity demand. Practice and policy have, since the 1950s, tended to favour a "supply paradigm" centred on the imperative of increasing energy supply. Despite the upheaval of market liberalisation, and twenty years of climate change debate, the domestic electricity "culture" has changed very little. The first half of this thesis contributes to this subject by describing the complex development of the electricity system that we are familiar with today. Drawing upon technical, social and political themes, the current and emerging practices of measurement, modelling, and management are critiqued. It is argued that current practices require revaluation, if alternative, decentralised approaches are to receive a fair analysis. The thesis contributes in empirical terms by extending the evidence base and developing modelling tools for the analysis of domestic electricity use. Field data collected by the author concerning the power flow characteristics of domestic appliances are presented which identify the dynamic nature of domestic electrical loads. A modelling framework is then introduced that combines social and technical aspects of domestic energy demand, allowing synthesis of domestic load profiles and allowing comparison between localised interventions.