energy analysis of a real grid connected lithium battery energy storage system

Abstract Today, in the grid there are more and more installation of renewable energy plants. The renewable sources are so discontinues and they may affect the stability and efficiency of the grid. Many distribution service operators are experimenting the battery energy storage systems (BESSs) to integrate them on the grid and resolve these problems. This paper analyses the energy performance under real conditions of a BESS prototype. The real BESS under focus has made by a lithium battery pack of 16 kWh, a DC/DC converter of 20 kW and an IGBT inverter of 30 kVA with a direct voltage bus of 600 V. The energy analysis has been performed through an integrated data acquisition system that take data from on-board electronic diagnostic measurements and from smart metering data. This latter using remote devices. The tests have been carried out on the system to monitor the following characteristic parameters: current and voltage of the batteries, current and voltage of the grid and current and voltage of the auxiliaries. The system energy performances have been analyzed in dynamic and real conditions with particular reference to the following quantities: energy consumption for the auxiliary system and overall efficiency of the system in a distributed energy resources microgrid. The entire system has been analyzed until twenty-four hours

Implementation of a Simulating Code for Heating and Cooling Networks for Residential, Commercial and Tertiary Buildings☆

Abstract In the present energy scenario in which efficiency and sustainability will take the primary role in the decision making process it becomes more and more important to dispose of reliable simulating codes which allow to highlight the pros and cons of a given energy installation. New and old (forgotten) technologies are nowadays challenging the traditional technologies in different sectors of energy transformation from power generation down to heating and air conditioning. In the present situation of fuel cost oscillations and with the perspective of long-term scarcity of fuels, new, less energy demanding systems must be employed to maintain the actual comfort level. The present work aims at creating a reliable tool for correct evaluation of energy performance of heating and cooling networks. A code has been implemented in Simulink environment to simulate the network behaviour in summer and winter weather condition and to evaluate the primary energy indexes for comparison with the traditional configuration of a distributed heating and cooling plants common in residential, commercial and tertiary sectors. The code has been validated and the results will show the energy, economic and environment feasibility and convenience of one solution with respect to another for different climatic regions in Italy

Control and Telecommunication Systems for Electricity Management in Networks for Smart Grid Services

In the thesis I show how I have developed a monitoring a control program for a Battery Energy Storage System interfaced with a smart metering system. The developed system is one of the first realized in Italy. The system has been specifically developed by integrating different communication protocols and control systems in order to analyze: 1) the real effects on the grid of BESS in terms of energy efficiency 2) the real effects on the grid of BESS in terms for auxiliary services 3) the integration of BESS with the grid I have followed these steps to address the target: 1) The bibliography research to check the state of the art for smart grid 2) The smart metering interface program and performances 3) The communication program with the BESS 4) The integration of the smart metering program with the BESS program 5) The application of different control systems to different smart grid services So new energy business services have been proposed. The contributions lie in two areas: communication protocols and new monitoring and control system for distributed generations/applications. The developed program analyzes how the BESS can be integrated in the power system and how can be managed by distributed control system that can: To offer active power services To offer energy services To offer ancillary services To reduce the final energy cos

Design and classification of smart metering systems for the energy diagnosis of buildings

At present, buildings account for a great share of energy consumption. It is well known that building automation control systems allow for increasing opportunities of improvement in the performance of buildings, with respect to e.g. energy performance and indoor comfort. As system within a building become more and more complex, buildings can be regarded not merely as a load but as a smart micro grid, with the possibility of actively interacting with a smart grid. In the depicted context, metering is essential for assessing the performance of management and detecting improvement opportunities. The scope of the present work is to propose a best practice for the implementation of smart metering systems in buildings and a practical methodology to classify the systems. In the present work, a novel classification protocol is devised; an existing metering system is then evaluated and an improved metering system is proposed. The proposed protocol rates the system performance via a set of weighted indicators -according to positioning of meters, measured data, system architecture, data visualization and monitored loads -, then calculates an overall grade. The protocol is tested on an existing metering system in an educational building. The metering system returns a poor rating and a number of flaws are detected thanks to the benchmark protocol. An improved metering system is then proposed which fixes existing flaws and returns a much better grade. In conclusion, the designed classification protocol allowed diagnosing an existing metering system and pinpointing improvement opportunities and it can be a useful practice in diagnostics or design of smart metering systems

Alternative Energy Sources: Hydropower

Hydro-Power generates electricity by using water and it is one of the cheapest and eco-friendly ways, especially small hydro power plants. It exploits the vast global water cycle: the water constantly evaporates from lakes and oceans, forming clouds, precipitating as rain or snow, and then flowing back down to the oceans. In this way it is possible to use water’s potential energy in its natural flow to produce power. The water cycle is an endless, constantly recharging system, and therefore hydro power is considered a renewable energy. As stated by International Energy Agency (IEA) in 2008, the total installed capacity of hydro power is about 850GW, and hydro sources produce about 3000TWh of electricity annually, supplying about 15% of total world’s electricity. The IEA projects that hydro will grow up to 63% for the period 2002-2030. The agency predicts that new hydro plants will continue to be built, not at a rate high enough to maintain hydro’s current percentage of total electricity generation. As a result, hydro power is projected to fall to 13% by 2030, from the present 15%. It is estimated that two-thirds of the world’s economically feasible potential is still to be exploited and it is mainly concentrated in developing countries such as Africa, Asia and South America. China is using only about one-quarter of its huge hydro potential of 450GW, and it is the main developer to hydro technology today. Chinas government figures suggest that it will add more than 12GW of new capacity each year until 2020 to reach 300GW. This paper highlights the basics of different hydro technologies, with a special focus on small hydro run-of-river plant

D-STATCOM with energy storage system for application in Smart Micro-Grids

The paper focus is on the application of Distribution Static Compensators (D-STATCOM) in Smart Micro-Grid (MG). First of all, Smart Grids concept is introduced and the main definitions on the Smart MG are given. Afterwards, an overview on D-STATCOMs is reported, pointing out their layout, components and possible functions, in presence of energy storage system or not. Finally the problem of management of these devices for application in Smart MG is analysed, with a particular focus on the choice of the communication technologies for data exchange with an Energy Management System (EMS). © 2013 IEEE

Sustainable Energy Microsystems for a Smart Grid

The paper deals with the proposal of a new architecture, called Sustainable Energy Microsystem (SEM), for a smart grid project in urban context. SEM includes energy sub-systems (SS) currently independent, such as high efficiency buildings, sustainable mobility systems (Electrical Vehicles and metro transit-systems), dispersed generation from renewables and Combined Heat and Power units. The present paper includes the description of the main SEM elements and some results of an energy analysis on each subsystem, showing the effective possibilities of integration, aimed to energy saving and environmental sustainability. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2013

Design of a fuzzy-based control system for energy saving and users comfort

Building automation systems (BAS) allow automated control of equipment and eventually control of indoor conditions. Indeed, BAS are becoming a powerful tool to improve the energy performance and occupant comfort, introducing the concept of “intelligent building”. At this regard, there is a need to build a knowledge base and to develop suitable algorithms for a smart management. Fuzzy logic is a valuable candidate for building robust algorithms. The aim of the present work is to demonstrate that a fuzzy logic approach is able to optimize the level of energy performance and comfort taking advantage of solar energy and BAS in an office space. In fact, solar energy can be used in the form of daylight and solar heat gain, benefiting both energy performance and psychophysical comfort, provided that dynamic façade elements and integrated multi criteria decision making methods are used. In this paper has been developed a virtual model of a smart office room (SOR), equipped with dynamic shading, lighting and air conditioning control system. Different scenarios were considered as follows: i) control versus no-control; ii) economy versus comfort mode; iii) summer versus winter scenario; iv) fluorescent versus LED lighting; v) dimming versus switching lighting control. The configured control model makes comfort mode energy performance similar to that of economy mode, thus demonstrating that the use of solar energy and BAS benefits energy saving and comfort as well. In addition, both economy comfort mode exhibited a better energy performance than non-controlled scenarios. In conclusion, the proposed model is a valuable tool to optimize comfort features and yet decreasing the energy demand