Abstract

Quebecs large solar power potential markedly contrasts with its poor achievements in using solar energy in this large and wealthy region of the world. Reviewing recent developments and putting discussion in the socioeconomic context, we provide arguments that justify our viewpoint that solar energy will soon be a relevant source of power in this Province of Canada. The rapid fall in price of both main solar power technologies, photovoltaics, and solar thermal, along with significant levels of insolation and the pronounced environmental awareness of Quebecs population support the conclusions of this study.

Abstract

Global electricity demand is increasing every year. New services appear on the market in order to make our daily life easier. Decarbonization in transport sector makes electric vehicles more popular. Those electric vehicles are considered new demand in electricity sector. New power plants are to be built in order to serve those increasing demand. Due to climate change and global warming, many countries tend to increase the share of renewable energy. Those renewable power plants such as wind and photovoltaic tend to be, not only unpredictable, but also, distributed generation. They tend to be a number of small-scale power plants which are installed close to the loads in order to reduce the transmission losses. This high number of small-scale power plants makes it more challenging to manage. With all these challenges, the electrical grid must be smarter in order to cope with the increasing demand and also be able to balance between power demand side and power supply side. It should be monitored and be able make real-time adjustment in order to deliver electricity efficiently with standard power security and power quality to consumers.There are various types of smart grid technologies that can contribute directly to the reduction of electricity production cost. The reduction of peak demand is the key. Smart grid technologies such as Home energy management system, utility-scale battery storage system, and vehicle-to-grid are investigated in this master thesis in order to reduce the peak demand. von Dechawat Tamaneewan Arbeit an der Bibliothek noch nicht eingelangt - Daten nicht geprüft Abweichender Titel nach Übersetzung der Verfasserin/des Verfassers Technische Universität Wien, Masterarbeit, 2020 (VLID)4795383

Abstract

In recent years, consumer demand, energy consumption rates, and control requirements have increased. This necessitates the control of electrical systems remotely with communication system by advanced technologies which have distributed energy resources. Therefore, transforming the existing electrical grid into the smart grid requires remote control for the development of more efficient, more convenient and more reliable systems and its structures are being researched. In this thesis, communication structures used in control requirements and integration of renewable electrical sources are examined. Then, micro grid system model is designed which is used with power line communication infrastructure, distributed energy resources, and electric vehicles system and the overall system is simulated by Matlab Simulink. Photovoltaics technology is integrated as distributed resources and the simulation results are examined for the quality of transmitted energy in different situations of the micro grid. Besides, the applicability of the distributed resources considering power quality is observed when placed near to non-linear load buses. At the same time, the increased power of distributed resources has improved both the system's voltage and its power quality indices.

Abstract

The energy system is being transitioned to increase sustainability. This transition has been accelerated by the increased awareness about the adverse effects of the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions into the atmosphere. The transition includes switching to electricity as the energy carrier in some sectors, e.g., transportation, increasing the contribution of renewable energy sources (RES) to the grid, and digitalizing the grid services. Electric vehicles (EVs) are promoted and subsidized in many countries among the sustainability initiatives. Consequently, the global sales of EVs rapidly increased in the recent years. Many EV owners might charge their EVs only at home, thereby increasing the residential load. The residential load might further increase due to the initiatives to electrify the heating/cooling sector. This thesis contributes to the knowledge about the operation of the future energy system by modeling the spatial charging load of private EVs in cities, and by proposing a forecasting model to predict the residential load. Both models can be used to evaluate the impacts of both technologies on the local electricity grid. In addition, demand response (DR) schemes can be proposed to reduce the adverse effects of both the charging load of EVs and the residential load. A case study of the EV model on the Herrljunga city grid showed that 100% EV penetration with 3.7 kW (charging rate of 14.8 km/h) chargers will not cause voltage violations in the grid. Winter load is responsible for 5% voltage drop at the weakest bus, and EVs add only 1% to this drop. In a Swedish city, charging EVs will require adding extra 1.43 kW/car to the grid capacity—assuming 22 kW (charging rate of 88 km/h) residential chargers. If the EV charging is not restricted to residential locations, an increase of 1.23 kW/car is expected. The proposed forecasting model is comparable in accuracy to previously developed models. As an advantage, the model produces a probability density function (PDF) describing the model’s certainty in the forecast. In contrast, many previous contributions provided only point forecasts.

Abstract

The shift towards more renewable energy sources is imminent, this shift is accelerated by the technological advancement and the rise of environmental awareness. However, this shift causes major operational problems to the current grid that is optimised for unidirectional power flow. Besides the operational problems, there are problems related to the optimal tariff scheme. In this thesis a study on the effect of the adoption of photovoltaic solar panels and the electric vehicles on the households' electricity demand profile is presented. The change on the demand profile is going to affect the current tariffs, this effect is also explored in this thesis. In this thesis real life data on household electricity use and photovoltaic power production was used. For electric vehicle charging simulated data was used. Besides that, a demand response scheme for electric vehicle is proposed in order to estimate the savings potential of this demand response on the electricity bill. The results show that the change in the demand profile is not merely a change in the total energy consumption, but it is a change in the power peaks as well. The peaks change significantly in condominiums and rental apartments, in this households' type it increases by around 80%, while in detached and row houses little change is noticed on the peaks, yet they still increase by around 10%. The demand response shows around 1- 12% savings in the distribution bill depending on the household, however it showed more incentives for condominiums and rental apartments. The current distribution tariffs perform asymmetrically with the various households. However, one tariff ensures 11.7 MSEK financial revenue for the distribution system operator, this is higher than the other tariffs' revenue by more than 28.5%. The new prospective situation requires totally different tariffs that ensure a balance between firstly a reasonable revenue for the distribution system operator and secondly incentives for consumers to self produce electricity as well as to reduce their peaks. 

Abstract

Electric Vehicles (EVs) are active loads as they increase the demand for electricity and introduce several challenges to electrical distribution feeders during charging. Demand Response (DR) or performing load control in commercial buildings along with the deployment of solar photovoltaic (PV) and ice storage systems at the building level can improve the efficiency of electricity grids and mitigate expensive peak demand/energy charges for buildings. This research aims to provide such a solution to make EV penetration transparent to the grid. Firstly, this research contributes to the development of an integrated control of major loads, i.e., Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC), lighting and plug loads while maintaining occupant environmental preferences in small- and medium-sized commercial buildings which are an untapped DR resource. Secondly, this research contributes to improvement in functionalities of EnergyPlus by incorporating a 1-minute resolution data set at the individual plug load level. The research evaluates total building power consumption performance taking into account interactions among lighting, plug load, HVAC and control systems in a realistic manner. Third, this research presents a model to study integrated control of PV and ice storage on improving building operation in demand responsive buildings. The research presents the impact of deploying various combinations of PV and ice storage to generate additional benefits, including clean energy generation from PV and valley filling from ice storage, in commercial buildings. Fourth, this research presents a coordinated load control strategy, among participating commercial buildings in a distribution feeder to optimally control buildings' major loads without sacrificing occupant comfort and ice storage discharge, along with strategically deployed PV to absorb EV penetration. Demand responsive commercial building load profiles and field recorded EV charging profiles have been added to a real world distribution circuit to analyze the effects of EV penetration, together with real-world PV output profiles. Instead of focusing on individual building's economic benefits, the developed approach considers both technical and economic benefits of the whole distribution feeder, including maintaining distribution-level load factor within acceptable ranges and reducing feeder losses. Ph. D.

Abstract

Most modern distribution networks are experiencing an energy evolution to satisfy the need of sustainable, secure and clean sources of energy. New technologies are driving this transition, including photovoltaics, energy storage systems and electric vehicles. The integration and deployment of these technologies in the distribution network is having a positive impact on system efficiency. However, their behaviour in the power system introduces technical challenges such as reverse power flow, voltage variation and other power quality issues. The integration of these technologies requires careful planning and operation to maintain or improve system stability and reliability. This work reviews the challenges imposed by deploying these low carbon technologies on low voltage systems. The main contributions of this study can be summarized as follows: Firstly, it generally reviews the solution methodologies and power management strategies applied in the distribution network in the presence of low carbon technologies. Secondly, it outlines some important facts and statistics about their deployment. Finally, it discusses the energy evolution of the Northern Ireland network highlighting challenges and solutions and providing recommendations for future research.

Abstract

There is “breakneck” growth in the global photovoltaics market, with the global market of photovoltaic cells growing by about 47% in 2009, 72% in 2010, and 74% in 2011. Global installed capacity in 2011 was three times more than 2009. Italy and Germany are leading with a 57% share of the global market. Costs are dropping rapidly and photovoltaic (PV) power generation is an attractive option for investors. Increasing support of European Union (EU) for renewable energy in general and PV aims to diversify sources of energy and reduce reliance on fossil fuels, on nuclear and on imported energy. Energy security is an important dimension for the EU. Almost all experts agree that there is no single technology that will provide a sustainable global supply of cleaner energy. However, the scale, the cost of the change needed and supporting policy and legislation are often subject to debate. High costs could be counterbalanced by economic yields from new businesses, the creation of new jobs, and economic growth from clean energy investments. The current situation in which Germany and Italy account for almost 2/3 of global PV market growth and, also, the strong reliance on supporting policies is unstable. If PV power generation is to continue growing, the balance of development will have to shift to new markets – both inside and outside of Europe. Fixed price policy is a game to be played with caution. This article highlights examples of Spain, Italy, and Germany that illustrate that without robust policy the system can be easily misbalanced. When – or even if – photovoltaic power does become cheap enough to compete without subsidies against more established energy sources, depends upon a number of uncertainties, including the continuing political will to provide financial support, and how readily developing nations such as China and India embrace renewable energies.

Abstract

During the first half of 2015, for the first time, the zonal electricity price in Sicily decreased below than the national wholesale price in Italy. Showing the unique pattern of electricity consumption in Italys largest region at different time scales, we identify the effectiveness of the impact of renewable power generation on utility-scale in Sicily upon the whole of Italys electricity market. Increasing the electrification of the energy end uses, as it is happening despite prolonged reduction in electricity demand, will lead to further benefits for power consumers throughout the whole country.