Refrigerated container parks typical case of electrical systems with structured distributed loads

Abstract

A comprehensive design of an electrical system has to ensure optimal performances in terms of operation, maintenance and safety. The paper discusses the design criteria of electrical systems for refrigerated container parks in port terminals, characterized by a uniform placement of the containers inside the racks' structure. The paper considers, as case study, the terminal container of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The general design criterion of power systems is to structure the electrical distribution into two or more circuit levels adopting the barycentric approach, promoting modularity when possible, especially for the cases of uniform distributed loads (UDLs). The modularity allows to create mobile and easily deployable solutions that, in conjunction with a re-routable power network can significantly increase the overall availability that represents a crucial requirement considering the service continuity level of the reefers. The adoption of a barycentric distribution increases the overall optimization of the distribution system together with the appropriate voltage levels. This provides higher performances, while at the same time, reducing construction's costs. The authors therefore suggest, for the refrigerated container parks, the adoption of a main MV distribution together with a modular LV distribution, supplied by containerized mobile MV/LV transformer substations located in each rack.