Towards Sustainable Mobile Networks: Evaluating Propagation Models for Energy-Efficient 5G and Beyond

Abstract

The rapid rollout of 5G and beyond mobile networks has resulted in denser infrastructure deployments and increased use of mid-microwave frequency bands such as 3.6 GHz and 6 GHz. While these developments improve capacity and spectrum efficiency, they also raise energy consumption during both network operation and planning. Radio wave propagation models play a key role in this context, as their accuracy, terrain awareness, and computational efficiency directly affect the number of required simulations, field measurements, and planning iterations. This paper evaluates empirical, hybrid, and deterministic propagation models from a sustainability-oriented perspective. Using urban, flat rural, and hilly Hungarian terrains as representative environments, the performance of ITU-R P.1546-6, the SUI model, ITU-R P.452-17, and the Parabolic Equation Method is assessed at 3.6 GHz and 6 GHz. The results show that terrain-aware and computationally efficient models can significantly reduce planning-related energy consumption while maintaining acceptable prediction accuracy, supporting greener mobile network design.