Electricity is central to our lives. We are constantly flipping on lights, turing on the TV, and plugging in all kinds of devices, and that’s just to mention a few. It’s easy for us not to realize how many times we turn the lights on or just how much we depend on electricity to get us through the day. This dependance, however, begs the question “How much energy am I consuming?”. It is this question that Demand Response confronts. Offering an option to trim down energy consumption during specific times, Demand Response is a solution to limiting the amount of energy we use. The result of this voluntary limiting is relief for the power grid and a greener lifestyle.
The Grid
A basic understanding of electricity is needed before talking about Demand Response. Electricity is delivered to our homes via the power grid, an interconnecting web of transmission lines. The minimun amount of electricity the grid needs to handle on a daily basis is called the base load. This of course does not account for rises in electricity use, which it also needs to handle, but just the required minimum. There are times when the amount of electricity being consumed rises dramatically in comparison to other times and these are called peek usage times. These times are typically in the afternoon or evening, as well as during the summer months due to the constant use of air conditioners. It’s these times that Demand Response focuses on, but more on that later.
The amount of electricity the grid needs to provide is referred to as demand. When you flip on a light you expect it to turn on right away, not in a few minutes. You don’t expect to wait a while for the electricity to get to the bulb, you expect it to be there waiting for you. The grid has to respond to this. When millions of people start to demand electricity at once, this increases the demand load. This strain on the grid will only get worse as our dependance on electricity grows and our demand increases. Demand Response speaks to this strain and offers a solution to reducing our consumption.
Demand Response
The grid provides us with what we ask for, so in an effort to reduce the amount we ask for Demand Response was introduced. Demand Response is a voluntary reduction of electricity usage during specific times, such as peak usage times, as mentioned earlier, emergencies, to avoid black outs, or during a time of high prices. This reduction in the demand load relieves stress from the grid as well as conserves electricity, consequently saving money.
While Demand Response is open to residential, commercial, and industrial consumers, the program focuses in larger scale clients given their ability to provide hourly updates in the amount of electricity they consume, given that they consume a considerably greater amount than residential. However, the program will soon be open to residential clients as well once the details are worked out.
Right now the focus is on California as the leader in Demand Response. The establishment of the Demand Response Research Center will provide better outlook into the program and its functions, such as technologies, practices, and policies. California is considered to be the base model for all of North America, even the world, in how Demand Response will work and how to make it successful. The three primary companies who are testing the program are Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, and San Diego Gas and Electric Company. Each one provides monthly reports on their program so that a better understanding of Demand Response can be reached.
The Demand Response Research Center, since its creation in 2004, has focused on five main objectives. They are (as taken from their site):
- Create a roadmap to guide California DR Research.
- Establish multi-institutional partnerships.
- Pursue outreach efforts to foster connections with customer, vendors, utility, and other stakeholders.
- Sustain long-term attention to DR research.
- Conduct research, development, demonstrations, and technology transfer.
Through their continued research, Demand Response programs are sure to gain more support throughout the country as well as the world, bringing forth a more energy-efficient use of the power grid. Given that our consumption of electricity is only going to increase, Demand Response programs could not come at a better time.
Resources
http://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/demand-response.htm
http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/PUC/energy/Demand+Response/
http://drrc.lbl.gov/