ELECTRICAL RESILIENCE
On-site PV generation
Battery- buffered electric vehicle charging
Inverters
Microgrid control
Combined battery
storage and UPS
Critical loads
Standby generators
Tomas Jucas
HV transformer with voltage optimisation
Figure 10: A BESS and standby generator arrangement within healthcare electrical infrastructure.
scenarios, the LCA of the analysed generator set while running on diesel was 1,321.44 tCO2
eq and 1,057.44 tCO2 eq.
Carbon LCA figures were significantly lower when the generator was running on biodiesel, resulting in 386.5 tCO2 311 tCO2
eq and eq respectively.
Conclusions There is no guaranteed level of assurance that the Distribution Network Operator can provide during a power cut. HTM 06-01 sets out information on final decision-making regarding electrical services resilience with respect to patients and business continuity. With their instantaneous response to power loss, and ability to charge when the grid carbon footprint is lowest, Battery Energy Storage Systems certainly have a place in healthcare as another layer of ‘defence and stability’, and while carbon-emitting diesel generators are considered ‘old technology’, with their ability to operate for as long as fuel is present, they still provide further resilience and a last line of defence against loss of power when other systems fail to enable healthcare sites to continue operating. The two systems have similar levels of carbon emissions throughout their lifetime. The carbon emissions are subject to the recharging source of electricity for BESS, and the type of fuel and frequency of use for the generator.
The importance of a fully functioning
infrastructure is sometimes taken for granted. The loss of it would be devastating to the modern world. In addition to healthcare, service disruption to infrastructure, including water and drainage, due to power cuts would cause severe disruption nationwide. A relevant resilience strategy must be established to provide power for extended periods of time. This underlines the significance of the systems operating in the background while providing reassurance of service continuation. While both standby diesel generators and BESS systems are considered acceptable to ensure electrical resilience on hospital and other healthcare sites, however, the associated risks should be fully assessed. If considering swapping one for the other, a risk assessment needs to be undertaken, with an agreement and final sign-off by the Electrical Safety Group.
References 1 Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. Electricity Supply Emergency Code. Published 1 January 2015; updated 6 November 2019.
2 Northern Powergrid. Understanding emergency power cuts. Frequently Asked Questions. 2023. https://
www.northernpowergrid.com/ emergencypowercuts
Grid
Tomas Jucas is a principal electrical engineer within the National Healthcare Team at Mott MacDonald. He has nine years’ building services experience, the majority having been spent honing his skills, and increasing his expertise, within the healthcare sector. He graduated with a Bachelor’s Honours degree in Electrical Engineering in 2008, and was subsequently awarded a Master’s degree in Building Services Engineering with distinction in 2021. He said: “I have developed expertise within generic electrical services in buildings, while working for some great companies, where the knowledge passed down to me has contributed to me becoming a competent engineer, and achieving Chartered Engineer and Fellow of IHEEM status in 2022. I find medium and low voltage electrical distribution infrastructure among the most intriguing aspects of engineering – a factor which has further motivated me to progress toward achieving Authorising Engineer status in association with IHEEM.”
3 Boyer C. The importance of thermal management of stationary lithium-ion energy storage enclosures. 24 April 2019. Solar Power World Online. https://tinyurl. com/4dcc7z4v
4 Shuai M, Jiang M, Tao P, Song C, Wu J, Deng T et al. Progress in Natural Science: Materials International 2018; 28(6): 653-666. Available from: https://www.
sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ S1002007118307536
5 Pesaran A, Santhanagopalan S, Kim GH. Addressing the impact of temperature extremes on large format li-ion batteries for vehicle applications (presentation). National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States), 2013. https://
www.nrel.gov/docs/fy13osti/58145.pdf
6 Guide M. Maintenance engineering and management. CIBSE, November 2014.
https://tinyurl.com/26226fdb
September 2023 Health Estate Journal 57
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