The value of conceptual power system design studies

An attempt is made to familiarize industrial plant engineers and power consultants with the elements of and the procedure for conducting a conceptual design study, which should be performed in the early phases of expansion and modernization projects. To contrast the differences with more familiar studies (such as short-circuit studies, etc.), an illustrative example indicating the high financial rewards involved is given. A conceptual design study involves the search for an optimum power system arrangement in which various facility-specific and system-design-specific criteria are harmoniously integrated to meet the present and future production objectives. These studies offer a credible procedure to maximize the long-range investment in an electrical power system by offering a number of system design alternatives based on and supported by a comprehensive engineering analysis of their characteristics. From this thorough examination, a final design is selected for implementation. These studies yield a rationalized alternative to the practice of designing a new system by merely duplicating a previous system design, which itself may have been derived from an earlier (and possibly obsolete) system