Smart grids for rural conditions and e-mobility - Applying power routers, batteries and virtual power plants

Significant reductions of greenhouse gas emission by use of renewable energy sources belong to the common targets of the European Union. Smart grids address intelligent use and integration of conventional and renewable generation in combination with controllable loads and storages. Two special aspects have also to be considered for smart grids in future: rural conditions and electric vehicles. Both, the increasing share of renewable energy sources and a rising demand for charging power by electrical vehicles lead to new challenges of network stability (congestion, voltage deviation), especially in rural distribution grids. This paper describes two lighthouse projects in Europe (“Well2Wheel” and “Smart Rural Grid”) dealing with these topics. The link between these projects is the implementation of the same virtual power plant technology and the approach of cellular grid cells. Starting with an approach for the average energy balance in 15 minutes intervals in several grid cells in the first project, the second project even allows the islanded operation of such cells as a microgrid. The integration of renewable energy sources into distribution grids primary takes place in rural areas. The lighthouse project “Smart Rural Grid”, which is founded by the European Union, demonstrates possibilities to use the existing distribution system operator infrastructure more effectively by applying an optimised and scheduled operation of the assets and using intelligent distribution power routers, called IDPR. IDPR are active power electronic devices operating at low voltage in distribution grids aiming to reduce losses due to unbalanced loads and enabling active voltage and reactive power control. This allows a higher penetration of renewable energy sources in existing grids without investing in new lines and transformers. Integrated in a virtual power plant and combined with batteries, the IDPR also allows a temporary islanded mode of grid cells. Both projects show the potential of avoiding or postponing investments in new primary infrastructure like cables, transformers and lines by using a forward-looking operation which controls generators, loads and batteries (mobile and stationary) by using new grid assets like power routers. While primary driven by physical restrictions as voltage-band violations and energy balance, these cells also define and allow local smart markets. In consequence the distribution system operators could avoid direct control access by giving an incentive to the asset owners by local price signals according to the grid situation and forecasted congestions.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

European Regional Science: Between Economy of Culture and Economy of Catastrophes (Review of the ERSA 2005 Amsterdam Congress Reports)

ERSA Congress can be seen as laboratory of ideas with broad representation not only European, but also scientists from US, Japan, Korea, Brazil, African and Asian countries. With very high speed new thoughts and phenomena from the European regional scientific community appear on the stages of the ERSA annual Congresses. Three new features were characteristic for the 2005 ERSA Congress in comparison with the previous ones. First, special focus on the factors of density in the regional development. That was not surprising as the meeting was held in the city of Amsterdam with the highest density in Europe where land and space are scarce goods. Second, integrative tendencies in attempt to use natural factors to explain traditional phenomena of the regional science. Issues of land and water management coincide with economic growth and regional development in many reports. Third, for the first time theme of networks and network society was embedded in many sections of the Congress and in the very title of the Congress itself. All these aspects as participants demonstrated could be positive creative factors increasing cultural assets of the European regions, efficiency of the knowledge transfer, leisure activities; or negative as the source of disaster and risk for human beings. Density factors (lack of people or lack of space?) divide European regional science into two sciences – urban for the populated regions and regional for the territories scarcely populated with very different themes, methods and tools of research. Housing markets, urban sprawl and commuting patterns are popular topics in the first case; labour markets and human capital in the second case. New Economic Geography models work smoothly in the first regions but are inappropriate in the second. Competition is harder in the labour markets of the populated regions but is softer in the regions with scattered population where it is substituted by the forces of cooperation. Contemporary regional society can be sustainable only as network society. In the reports networks were examined on different levels: a) as transportation networks in the investment national or interregional projects; b) as policentricity urban structures replacing Cristaller’s hierarchy of central places; c) as public-public, public-private partnerships combining public and private stakeholders in the decision-making process. Transition of the European regions from the industrial to network/service has begun 25 years ago. Position of the concrete region on this route determines clearly the type and intensity of its problem and research agenda. The more advanced is the region or nation on this route the more often terms like “reinventâ€, “rethinkâ€, “revisited†are used in the scientific community. Rediscovery of the old concepts, definitions, essence (as Amsterdam Congress demonstrated) is very creative and challenging process of the post-industrial regional science.