Management and Activation of Energy Flexibility at Building and Market Level: A Residential Case Study

Paolo Taddeo,Rafael E Carrillo,Cristina Corchero Garcia,Yves Stauffer,Ivan Bellanco,Baptiste Schubnel,Lluc Casals Canals,Alba Colet,Jaume Salom

doi:10.3390/en13051188

Abstract

The electricity sector foresees a significant change in the way energy is generated and distributed in the coming years. With the increasing penetration of renewable energy sources, smart algorithms can determine the difference about how and when energy is produced or consumed by residential districts. However, managing and implementing energy demand response, in particular energy flexibility activations, in real case studies still presents issues to be solved. This study, within the framework of the European project “SABINA H2020”, addresses the development of a multi-level optimization algorithm that has been tested in a semi-virtual real-time configuration. Results from a two-day test show the potential of building’s flexibility and highlight its complexity. Results show how the first level algorithm goal to reduce the energy injected to the grid is accomplished as well as the energy consumption shift from nighttime to daytime hours. As conclusion, the study demonstrates the feasibility of such kind of configurations and puts the basis for real test site implementation.

Highlights

The decarbonization of the electricity grid goes in hand with the penetration of renewable power sources
On the left axis it is reported the thermal comfort range in which the building algorithm (BA) could operate on on the bottom axis are reported the hours of experiment
This study shows that the semi-virtual laboratory testing is useful to test flexibility capacities from buildings prior to full deployment in the market

Summary

Introduction

The decarbonization of the electricity grid goes in hand with the penetration of renewable power sources. Big renewable power generation plants have represented the majority of renewable power sources [1], a significant change is under way in the traditional paradigms of the electricity sector. The inherent variability of renewable generation from dispersed small producers together with the fluctuation in the consumption opens the door to additional opportunities in grid balancing. Consumers should be capable to modify their consumption and generation patterns reacting to the requirement of the grid, becoming “prosumers”. This is called demand response (DR), which is gaining relevance in the whole system and should be considered in the nearby future for energy distribution and management [2]

Methods

Results

Conclusion