The interactive dispatch strategy for thermostatically controlled loads based on the source–load collaborative evolution

Abstract

With the urbanization and the decarbonization of the heating sector, thermostatically controlled loads (TCLs) with a rising energy consumption proportion, have become important demand response (DR) resources, which can provide considerable regulation flexibility for transition to renewable energy. Depending on the measurement or the forecast, TCLs dispatch methods established from the static perspective, failed to sufficiently consider the impact of DR chain reactions and the varying characteristics of TCLs response flexibility, which lead to the deterioration of the reliability and the availability of its dispatch potential. To address these issues, this paper proposes an interactive dispatch strategy based on the source–load collaborative evolution. Firstly, in light of system dynamics, a response evolution dynamic model is established by dividing of TCLs response process into multiple subsystems, which constitutes a comprehensive picture of TCLs response dynamics. Secondly, TCLs response flexibility is evaluated from the current and the evolution perspectives, which can enhance the reliability and stability of TCLs response by considering the potential response flexibility variations caused by the chain reaction of responses. Thirdly, an interactive dispatch strategy is devised by synthesizing of the source–load collaborative evolution dynamics from the dimensions of the elaborate state and the equivalent energy, which not only improves the dispatch performance, but also reduces the computational complexity. Based on the established strategy, TCLs response flexibility can be guided explicitly and quantitatively, like the energy storage in the dispatch, which improves the controllability and feasibility of TCLs response in DR service. Finally, the validity of the proposed strategy is verified via the comparison of it with the methods based on the static response mode.