An optimization model to characterize the aggregated flexibility responsiveness of residential end-users

Abstract

This paper proposes an optimization model to characterize the aggregated flexibility responsiveness of residential end-users. The outcomes of this study are aimed to support the aggregator in defining the bids to the reserve services markets. To this end, the operation of demand-side energy resources of different end-users is modeled and optimized. The operation scheduling is defined in face of the time-differentiated prices defined by the energy supplier. The aggregator defines a reward that is communicated to the end-users. The flexibility of each end-user is calculated by reoptimizing its scheduling problem affected by the reward. Another optimization model is formulated at the aggregator level that collects the optimal flexibility of all individual end-users. The amount of aggregated flexibility is computed under two different aggregation scenarios to evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. The impact of the reward on the end-users’ responsiveness and the aggregator’s profit are assessed considering different reward values and timeframe of the market. The illustrative results show the effectiveness of the proposed model in characterizing the flexibility at both end-user and aggregator level.