Integration of storage and thermal demand response to unlock flexibility in district multi-energy systems

Abstract

Optimal operation of generation units is crucial when looking for reduction in energy consumption and carbon emissions in multi-energy systems (i.e. multiple generation sources, energy networks and storages). This work proposes an innovative optimization approach that can be applied to energy systems composed by multiple small units for the production and conversion of electricity, heating and cooling. The optimization is conducted acting on the operation of the production units, the capacity and operation of thermal storage units and the application of demand side management to the thermal network. The optimization procedure is based on a two-level approach, combining a genetic algorithm and a linear programming approach and including a physical model of the district heating network. Multiple scenarios corresponding with typical days are considered. An application to a realistic system, which is optimized assuming an economic objective function, is performed. Results show that thermal storage installation can reduce costs of about 1.5 %, while its integration with demand-side management leads to a cost reduction up to 4 % and allows reducing the storage size.