Improving the Efficiency of Electrical Systems via Exergy Methods

The benefits of using exergy to understand the efficiencies of electrical technologies and systems and to guide improvement efforts are demonstrated. Although exergy applications in electrical engineering are uncommon, exergy clearly identifies efficiency improvements and reductions in thermodynamic losses for electrical technologies and systems. A range of devices is considered, including simple electrical conversion devices, power generation systems, generation systems for multiple products including electricity, and devices that use or are driven by electricity. The information provided by energy assessments is shown to be less useful than that provided by exergy and prone to be misleading. It is concluded that exergy has a significant role to play in evaluating and increasing the efficiencies of electrical technologies and systems, and should prove useful to engineers as well as decision and policy makers.