Incentives and technical considerations related to increased voltage tolerance in low voltage distribution grids

The rise of small scale decentralized production has increased the complexity of maintaining a rigid electrical grid. For a distribution network operator, knowledge of both the energy demand and supply in his portfolio has become very important. The discrepancy between production and consumption of power is buffered by the grid which can result in over/under voltages and voltage unbalance. Consequently, it is very important to balance demand and supply. For an energy supplier shortage of energy has to be purchased, which is expensive. Contradictory, an overcapacity can even result in negative energy prices. This paper suggests that, if the margins of the supply voltage variations are set more flexible, this could prove beneficial for both the distribution network operator and the energy supplier. One way to actively control the power consumption is the so-called demand side management (DSM). If the margins of the voltage variation are less strict, a higher variation in demand will be created. However, if a larger acceptable variation of supply voltage is envisioned, one has to be sure that these appliances will still work adequately. Additional to the incentives of allowing a larger spread on the voltage variation, this paper will try to explain how the influence of changing the supply voltage on household appliances can be tested and which parameters are important to interpret the results.