A demand response method for an active thermal energy storage air-conditioning system using improved transactive control: On-site experiments

Abstract

Transactive control (TC) and active thermal energy storage (ATES) strategies can effectively achieve a supply–demand balance across energy sources in the power grid. However, past research mainly focused on one of these demand response (DR) strategies, and integrated DR strategies that combine TC and ATES are unavailable. Therefore, to fully utilize both TC and ATES strategies in the DR of air-conditioning systems and thus enhance power grid stability, a comprehensive DR strategy that combines an improved version of TC with ATES (ITC + ATES) was developed for energy storage air-conditioning systems. The ITC + ATES strategy utilizes the automatic feedback regulation effect of the real-time electricity price on the grid side to the air-conditioning users. Then, the system bids the cooling or heating demand on the user side in the power market, thus adjusting the dynamic temperature set-point in real time. The ATES system's automatic energy storage and release process is then regulated accordingly. Thus, this strategy not only allows the air-conditioning system to participate in the power DR, but ensures that the electricity consumption of the air-conditioning system conforms to the power market law and realizes the optimal social value of the power commodity. On-site test experiments of space cooling and heating conditions were conducted on a full-scale intelligent centralized air-conditioning experimental platform with an ATES system to test the effect of this strategy. Comparing the ITC + ATES strategy with the conventional control strategy, ATES strategy, and ITC strategy reveals that the ITC + ATES strategy is most effective in ensuring the thermal comfort of occupants, particularly during the DR period. Moreover, the maximum total electricity consumption reduction rate, the maximum total operating cost reduction rate, the maximum electricity consumption reduction rate during the DR period, and the maximum total operating cost reduction rate during the DR period of the ITC + ATES strategy were 33.20%, 49.69%, 76.14%, and 76.16%, respectively. These results suggest that the ITC + ATES strategy is an efficient and integrated DR approach.