Connecting office buildings to the smart grid:harvesting flexibility

Traditionally, the electricity system is oriented top- down and buildings are just energy consumers. Since electricity is expensive to store, supply and demand have to be balanced at all times. In the nearby future, the electricity system must be able to cope with an increase in intermittent decentralized energy production. Also, ongoing electrification is expected to contribute to an increase in demand. Demand side management and control is needed to ensure reliability of supply at acceptable costs. Buildings can be a part of the solution as they can offer flexibility in energy consumption and/or production. By enabling flexible control of processes on the building premises, the building can provide balancing services and respond to congestion problems in the power system, while user comfort can be guaranteed. For the engineering company BAM Techniek, it is of importance to know how the integration of such smart grid technologies in buildings can contribute to (energy) service provision. This study focusses on the enabling of flexibility in energy consumption and generation, while comfort is guaranteed. The project aims to create a framework that enables flexible control of building processes, and analyses of the potential value of flexibility in office buildings. The proposed framework consists of a technical solution, and an analysis of the economical benefits. Priority based control is introduced to enable flexible control of building processes. The concept is capable of prioritizing the energy consumption of processes, and controlling the consumption depending on the needs of the electricity market. An empty office has for instance, a low priority to consume energy. User needs are integrated in the prioritization mechanisms. This mechanism ensures that processes stay within the allowed bandwidth, while providing flexibility to the power system. Since the priority based control connects the end user needs to the market needs, a bi-directional flow of information is required. The Eneco World Office is used to perform a building case study to test the technological framework. Three sources of flexibility are investigated: decentralized climate systems, electric vehicles, and a sensible heat buffer. Results show that the amount of available flexibility depends mainly on load profiles and comfort settings. Electric vehicles and the sensible heat buffer provide significant amounts of flexibility. The flexibility in decentralized climate systems is limited since the room air temperature responds relatively fast to changes in settings and comfort boundaries are quickly met. The long term effect of storage in the building inertia should however be investigated further. Economical benefits can be created by using the variation in costs on the wholesale market caused by market volatility. When flexibility is used to contribute to the balance in a portfolio of buildings, the imbalance can be reduced, which leads to a reduction in costs. Finally, flexibility can contribute to a reduction in peak demand of buildings, leading to cost savings in the network connection. The need for smart grids is growing, while energy services are becoming more important in the built environment. Considering the potential value of smart grid services in the built environment and the market size, it is evident that the developing smart grid market presents opportunities for BAM Techniek. The provision of flexibility services can be a valuable addition to the energy services portfolio

Open-Source, Open-Architecture SoftwarePlatform for Plug-InElectric Vehicle SmartCharging in California

This interdisciplinary eXtensible Building Operating System–Vehicles project focuses on controlling plug-in electric vehicle charging at residential and small commercial settings using a novel and flexible open-source, open-architecture charge communication and control platform. The platform provides smart charging functionalities and benefits to the utility, homes, and businesses.This project investigates four important areas of vehicle-grid integration research, integrating technical as well as social and behavioral dimensions: smart charging user needs assessment, advanced load control platform development and testing, smart charging impacts, benefits to the power grid, and smart charging ratepayer benefits

Report from GI-Dagstuhl Seminar 16394: Software Performance Engineering in the DevOps World

This report documents the program and the outcomes of GI-Dagstuhl Seminar 16394 "Software Performance Engineering in the DevOps World". The seminar addressed the problem of performance-aware DevOps. Both, DevOps and performance engineering have been growing trends over the past one to two years, in no small part due to the rise in importance of identifying performance anomalies in the operations (Ops) of cloud and big data systems and feeding these back to the development (Dev). However, so far, the research community has treated software engineering, performance engineering, and cloud computing mostly as individual research areas. We aimed to identify cross-community collaboration, and to set the path for long-lasting collaborations towards performance-aware DevOps. The main goal of the seminar was to bring together young researchers (PhD students in a later stage of their PhD, as well as PostDocs or Junior Professors) in the areas of (i) software engineering, (ii) performance engineering, and (iii) cloud computing and big data to present their current research projects, to exchange experience and expertise, to discuss research challenges, and to develop ideas for future collaborations

Effective demand response gathering and deployment in smart grids for intensive renewable integration using aggregation and machine learning

Tesis por compendio de publicaciones.[EN] Distributed generation, namely renewables-based technologies, have emerged as a crucial component in the transition to mitigate the effects of climate change, providing a decentralized approach to electricity production. However, the volatile behavior of distributed generation has created new challenges in maintaining system balance and reliability. In this context, the demand response concept and corresponding programs arise giving the local energy communities prominence. In demand response concept, it is expected an empowerment of the consumer in the electricity sector. This has a significant impact on grid operations and brings complex interactions due to the volatile behavior, privacy concerns, and lack of consumer knowledge in the energy market context. For this, aggregators play a crucial role addressing these challenges. It is crucial to develop tools that allow the aggregators helping consumers to make informed decisions, maximize the benefits of their flexibility resources, and contribute to the overall success of grid operations. This thesis, through innovative solutions and resorting to artificial intelligence models, addresses the integration of renewables, promoting fair participation among all demand response providers. The thesis ultimately results in an innovative decision support system - MAESTRO, the Machine learning Assisted Energy System management Tool for Renewable integration using demand respOnse. MAESTRO is composed by a set of diversified models that together contribute for handling the complexity of managing energy communities with distributed generation resources, demand response providers, energy storage systems and electric vehicles. This PhD thesis comprises a comprehensive analysis of state-of-the-art techniques, system design and development, experimental results, and key findings. In this research were published twenty-six scientific papers, in both international journals and conference proceedings. Contributions to international projects and Portuguese projects was accomplished. [ES] La generación distribuida, en particular las tecnologías basadas en energías renovables, se ha convertido en un componente crucial en la transición para mitigar los efectos del cambio climático, al proporcionar un enfoque descentralizado para la producción de electricidad. Sin embargo, el comportamiento volátil de la generación distribuida ha generado nuevos desafíos para mantener el equilibrio y la confiabilidad del sistema. En este contexto, surge el concepto de respuesta de la demanda y los programas correspondientes, otorgando prominencia a las comunidades energéticas locales. En el concepto de "respuesta a la demanda" (DR por sus siglas en inglés), se espera un empoderamiento del consumidor en el sector eléctrico. Esto tiene un impacto significativo en la operación de la red y genera interacciones complejas debido al comportamiento volátil, las preocupaciones de privacidad y la falta de conocimiento del consumidor en el contexto del mercado energético. Para esto, los agregadores desempeñan un papel crucial al abordar estos desafíos. Es fundamental desarrollar herramientas que permitan a los agregadores ayudar a los consumidores a tomar decisiones informadas, maximizar los beneficios de sus recursos de flexibilidad y contribuir al éxito general de las operaciones de la red. Esta tesis, a través de soluciones innovadoras y utilizando modelos de inteligencia artificial, aborda la integración de energías renovables, promoviendo una participación justa entre todos los proveedores de respuesta de la demanda. La tesis resulta en última instancia en un sistema de apoyo a la toma de decisiones innovador: MAESTRO, Machine learning Assisted Energy System management Tool for Renewable integration using demand respOnse. MAESTRO está compuesto por un conjunto de modelos diversificados que contribuyen juntos para manejar la complejidad de la gestión de comunidades energéticas con recursos de generación distribuida, proveedores de respuesta de la demanda, sistemas de almacenamiento de energía y vehículos eléctricos. Esta tesis de doctorado comprende un análisis exhaustivo de las técnicas de vanguardia, el diseño y desarrollo del sistema, los resultados experimentales y los hallazgos clave. En esta investigación se publicaron veintiséis artículos científicos, tanto en revistas internacionales como en actas de conferencias. Se lograron contribuciones a proyectos internacionales y proyectos portugueses. [POR] A produção distribuída, nomeadamente as tecnologias baseadas em energias renováveis, emergiram como um componente crucial na transição para mitigar os efeitos das alterações climáticas, proporcionando uma abordagem descentralizada à produção de eletricidade. No entanto, o comportamento volátil da geração distribuída criou desafios na manutenção do equilíbrio e da fiabilidade do sistema. Nesse contexto, surge o conceito de resposta à procura e os programas correspondentes, conferindo proeminência às comunidades energéticas locais. No conceito de resposta à procura, espera-se um empoderamento do consumidor no setor elétrico. Isso tem um impacto significativo nas operações da rede e gera interações complexas devido ao comportamento volátil, preocupações com a privacidade e falta de conhecimento dos consumidores no contexto do mercado energético. Para isso, os agregadores desempenham um papel crucial ao lidar com esses desafios. É fundamental desenvolver ferramentas que permitam aos agregadores ajudar os consumidores a tomar decisões informadas, maximizar os benefícios de seus recursos de flexibilidade e contribuir para o sucesso global das operações da rede. Esta tese de doutoramento, através de soluções inovadoras e recorrendo a modelos de inteligência artificial, aborda a integração de energias renováveis, promovendo uma participação justa entre todos os fornecedores de resposta à procura. A tese resulta, em última instância, num sistema inovador de apoio à tomada de decisões - MAESTRO, Machine learning Assisted Energy System management Tool for Renewable integration using demand respOnse. A ferramenta MAESTRO é composta por um conjunto de modelos diversificados que, em conjunto, contribuem para lidar com a complexidade da gestão de comunidades energéticas com recursos de geração distribuída, fornecedores de resposta à procura, sistemas de armazenamento de energia e veículos elétricos. Esta tese de doutoramento abrange uma análise abrangente de técnicas de ponta, design e desenvolvimento do sistema, resultados experimentais e descobertas-chave. Nesta pesquisa, foram publicados vinte e seis artigos científicos, tanto em revistas internacionais como em atas de conferências. Foram realizadas contribuições para projetos internacionais e projetos portugueses

Spatial flexibility options in electricity market simulation tools: Deliverable D4.3

Project TradeRES - New Markets Design & Models for 100% Renewable Power Systems: https://traderes.eu/about/ABSTRACT: Deliverable D4.3 addresses the spatial flexibility options that are being considered by TradeRES models. D4.3 presents a report describing the spatial flexibility-related modelling components that are already implemented and those that are being designed for integration in TradeRES agent-based models. This report includes the main definitions, concepts and terminology related to spatial flexibility, as means to support the presentation of the specific models that are being developed by the project, namely about flow based market coupling, market spliting, nodal pricing, dynamic line rating, cross border intraday market, cross border reserve market, cross border capacity market, consumer flexibility aggregation, renewable energy aggregation, storage aggregation, electric vehicle aggregation and grid capacity.N/

Demand response approaches in a research project versus a real business

© 2023 Elsevier. This manuscript version is made available under the CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Demand response through Demand Aggregation is part of the energy transition towards a green and distributed system. Although the market is open in most European countries, its practical implementation is not much successful yet. In the last decade, research presented different options to deal with demand response and aggregation. This paper compares the benefits and limitations of strategies implemented from a research perspective and the strategy followed by a recently created company to see which of the advances in research are currently useful from a business perspective. The study presents a novel decision matrix to evaluate demand response strategies. Results show that there are technical limitations in current Energy Management Systems that need to be taken into account when developing demand aggregation platforms. In addition, the study highlights the importance to propose a simple and scalable solution to allow consumers to participate actively in electricity markets and create a success business model.This research has been supported by the research and innovation programme Horizon 2020 of the European Union under the grant agreement nr. 731211 SABINA. C. Corchero work is supported by the grant IJCI-2015-26650 (MICINN). All researchers have been partially supported by the Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain (2017 SGR 1219). L. Canals Casals thanks the national project IAQ4EDU (PID2020-117366RB-100) for giving the opportunity to continue his work in this field.Peer ReviewedObjectius de Desenvolupament Sostenible::7 - Energia Assequible i No ContaminantPostprint (published version

Ontologies for the Interoperability of Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Systems in the scope of Energy and Power Systems

Tesis por compendio de publicaciones[ES]El sector eléctrico, tradicionalmente dirigido por monopolios y poderosas empresas de servicios públicos, ha experimentado cambios significativos en las últimas décadas. Los avances más notables son una mayor penetración de las fuentes de energía renovable (RES por sus siglas en inglés) y la generación distribuida, que han llevado a la adopción del paradigma de las redes inteligentes (SG por sus siglas en inglés) y a la introducción de enfoques competitivos en los mercados de electricidad (EMs por sus siglas en inglés) mayoristas y algunos minoristas. Las SG emergieron rápidamente de un concepto ampliamente aceptado en la realidad. La intermitencia de las fuentes de energía renovable y su integración a gran escala plantea nuevas limitaciones y desafíos que afectan en gran medida las operaciones de los EMs. El desafiante entorno de los sistemas de potencia y energía (PES por sus siglas en inglés) refuerza la necesidad de estudiar, experimentar y validar operaciones e interacciones competitivas, dinámicas y complejas. En este contexto, la simulación, el apoyo a la toma de decisiones, y las herramientas de gestión inteligente, se vuelven imprescindibles para estudiar los diferentes mecanismos del mercado y las relaciones entre los actores involucrados. Para ello, la nueva generación de herramientas debe ser capaz de hacer frente a la rápida evolución de los PES, proporcionando a los participantes los medios adecuados para adaptarse, abordando nuevos modelos y limitaciones, y su compleja relación con los desarrollos tecnológicos y de negocios. Las plataformas basadas en múltiples agentes son particularmente adecuadas para analizar interacciones complejas en sistemas dinámicos, como PES, debido a su naturaleza distribuida e independiente. La descomposición de tareas complejas en asignaciones simples y la fácil inclusión de nuevos datos y modelos de negocio, restricciones, tipos de actores y operadores, y sus interacciones, son algunas de las principales ventajas de los enfoques basados en agentes. En este dominio, han surgido varias herramientas de modelado para simular, estudiar y resolver problemas de subdominios específicos de PES. Sin embargo, existe una limitación generalizada referida a la importante falta de interoperabilidad entre sistemas heterogéneos, que impide abordar el problema de manera global, considerando todas las interrelaciones relevantes existentes. Esto es esencial para que los jugadores puedan aprovechar al máximo las oportunidades en evolución. Por lo tanto, para lograr un marco tan completo aprovechando las herramientas existentes que permiten el estudio de partes específicas del problema global, se requiere la interoperabilidad entre estos sistemas. Las ontologías facilitan la interoperabilidad entre sistemas heterogéneos al dar un significado semántico a la información intercambiada entre las distintas partes. La ventaja radica en el hecho de que todos los involucrados en un dominio particular los conocen, comprenden y están de acuerdo con la conceptualización allí definida. Existen, en la literatura, varias propuestas para el uso de ontologías dentro de PES, fomentando su reutilización y extensión. Sin embargo, la mayoría de las ontologías se centran en un escenario de aplicación específico o en una abstracción de alto nivel de un subdominio de los PES. Además, existe una considerable heterogeneidad entre estos modelos, lo que complica su integración y adopción. Es fundamental desarrollar ontologías que representen distintas fuentes de conocimiento para facilitar las interacciones entre entidades de diferente naturaleza, promoviendo la interoperabilidad entre sistemas heterogéneos basados en agentes que permitan resolver problemas específicos de PES. Estas brechas motivan el desarrollo del trabajo de investigación de este doctorado, que surge para brindar una solución a la interoperabilidad de sistemas heterogéneos dentro de los PES. Las diversas aportaciones de este trabajo dan como resultado una sociedad de sistemas multi-agente (MAS por sus siglas en inglés) para la simulación, estudio, soporte de decisiones, operación y gestión inteligente de PES. Esta sociedad de MAS aborda los PES desde el EM mayorista hasta el SG y la eficiencia energética del consumidor, aprovechando las herramientas de simulación y apoyo a la toma de decisiones existentes, complementadas con las desarrolladas recientemente, asegurando la interoperabilidad entre ellas. Utiliza ontologías para la representación del conocimiento en un vocabulario común, lo que facilita la interoperabilidad entre los distintos sistemas. Además, el uso de ontologías y tecnologías de web semántica permite el desarrollo de herramientas agnósticas de modelos para una adaptación flexible a nuevas reglas y restricciones, promoviendo el razonamiento semántico para sistemas sensibles al contexto