Abstract
With the integration of Wireless Sensor Networks and the Internet of Things, the smart grid is being projected as a solution for the challenges regarding electricity supply in the future. However, security and privacy issues in the consumption and trading of electricity data pose serious challenges in the adoption of the smart grid. To address these challenges, blockchain technology is being researched for applicability in the smart grid. In this paper, important application areas of blockchain in the smart grid are discussed. One use case of each area is discussed in detail, suggesting a suitable blockchain architecture, a sample block structure and the potential blockchain technicalities employed in it. The blockchain can be used for peer-to-peer energy trading, where a credit-based payment scheme can enhance the energy trading process. Efficient data aggregation schemes based on the blockchain technology can be used to overcome the challenges related to privacy and security in the grid. Energy distribution systems can also use blockchain to remotely control energy flow to a particular area by monitoring the usage statistics of that area. Further, blockchain-based frameworks can also help in the diagnosis and maintenance of smart grid equipment. We also discuss several commercial implementations of blockchain in the smart grid. Finally, various challenges to be addressed for integrating these two technologies are discussed.
Highlights
Smart grids are currently advancing technologically at a very fast pace by leveraging the benefits offered by Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) and the Internet of Things (IoT)
Based on the existing surveys and reviews on blockchain applicability in IoT [32,33,34,35], in this paper, we focus on these five important application areas in smart grids where blockchain technology has been extensively researched
The transaction part of the block structure consists of data specific to each transaction such as Transaction ID (TID), Meter ID (MID), Amount of Energy Requested (AER), Amount of Energy Granted (AEG) for the requesting buyer by the supervisory nodes based on the available energy from the sellers, Energy coins Transferred (ET) by the buyer for the transaction, Digital Signature of the Seller (DSS) indicating a successful transaction, and Digital Signature of the Processing node (DSP) indicating validation of the transaction
Summary
Smart grids are currently advancing technologically at a very fast pace by leveraging the benefits offered by Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) and the Internet of Things (IoT). Some works [8,9,10] have proposed novel Kalman filter-based approaches for accurate microgrid state estimation and control for the smart grids Their models encourage consumers to use environment-friendly renewable energy sources which will lead to many benefits such as line-loss reduction, reliability, energy efficiency, etc. The authors of [11] discussed energy demand reduction of the utilities and consumers and smart energy management while considering the ever-growing renewable energy integration. Another issue that hinders an efficient grid management system is the requirement of third parties for the supply and distribution of energy.
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