Refine
Year of publication
Document Type
- Conference Proceeding (18)
- Article (reviewed) (8)
- Part of a Book (2)
- Contribution to a Periodical (2)
- Report (2)
Conference Type
- Konferenzartikel (17)
- Konferenz-Abstract (1)
Is part of the Bibliography
- yes (32) (remove)
Keywords
- Demand side flexibility (2)
- Digitalization (2)
- Energie (2)
- Energy Flexibility (2)
- Energy Management (2)
- Energy systems modeling (2)
- MPC (2)
- Optimization and control (2)
- Umweltforschung (2)
- heat pump (2)
Institute
- INES - Institut für nachhaltige Energiesysteme (23)
- Fakultät Elektrotechnik, Medizintechnik und Informatik (EMI) (ab 04/2019) (19)
- Fakultät Maschinenbau und Verfahrenstechnik (M+V) (11)
- Fakultät Elektrotechnik und Informationstechnik (E+I) (bis 03/2019) (5)
- CRT - Campus Research & Transfer (2)
- Zentrale Einrichtungen (2)
Open Access
- Closed Access (12)
- Open Access (11)
- Closed (8)
- Bronze (2)
- Diamond (1)
- Gold (1)
Am 1. Juli 2022 trafen sich im Rahmen des Abschlusskolloquiums des Projekts ACA-Modes rund 60 Teilnehmende aus Forschung, Lehre und Industrie zu einer internationalen Konferenz an der Hochschule Offenburg. Hier wurden die Projektergebnisse rund um die erfolgreiche Implementierung modellprädiktiver Regelstrategien vorgestellt, aktuelle Fragestellungen diskutiert und Entwicklungspfade hin zu einem netzdienlichen Betrieb von Energieverbundsystemen skizziert.
Encapsulant-free N.I.C.E. modules have strong ecological advantages compared to conventional laminated modules but suffer generally from lower electrical performance. Via long-term outdoor monitoring of fullsize industrial modules of both types with identical solar cells, we investigated if the performance difference remains constant over time and which parameters influence its value. After assessing about a full year’s data, two obvious levers for N.I.C.E. optimization are identified: The usage of textured glass and transparent adhesives on the module rear side. Also, the performance loss could be alleviated using tracking systems due to lower AOI values. Our measurements show additionally that N.I.C.E. module surfaces are in average about 2.5°C cooler compared to laminated modules. With these findings, we lay out a roadmap to reduce today’s LIV gap of about 5%rel by different optimizations.
Soiling is an important issue in the renewable energy sector since it can result in significant yield losses, especially in regions with higher pollution or dust levels. To mitigate the impact of soiling on photovoltaic (PV) plants, it is essential to regularly monitor and clean the panels, as well as develop accurate soiling predictions that can affect cleaning strategies and enhance the overall performance of PV power plants. This research focuses on the problem of soiling loss in photovoltaic power plants and the potential to improve the accuracy of soiling predictions. The study examines how soiling can affect the efficiency and productivity of the modules and how to measure and predict soiling using machine learning (ML) algorithms. The research includes analyzing real data from large-scale ground-mounted PV sites and comparing different soiling measurement methods. It was observed that there were some deviations in the real soiling loss values compared to the expected values for some projects in southern Spain, thus, the main goal of this work is to develop machine learning models that could predict the soiling more accurately. The developed models have a low mean square error (MSE), indicating the accuracy and suitability of the models to predict the soiling rates. The study also investigates the impact of different cleaning strategies on the performance of PV power plants and provides a powerful application to predict both the soiling and the number of cleaning cycles.
Predictive control has great potential in the home energy management domain. However, such controls need reliable predictions of the system dynamics as well as energy consumption and generation, and the actual implementation in the real system is associated with many challenges. This paper presents the implementation of predictive controls for a heat pump with thermal storage in a real single-family house with a photovoltaic rooftop system. The predictive controls make use of a novel cloud camera-based short-term solar energy prediction and an intraday prediction system that includes additional data sources. In addition, machine learning methods were used to model the dynamics of the heating system and predict loads using extensive measured data. The results of the real and simulated operation will be presented.
In this paper we report on further success of our work to develop a multi-method energy optimization which works with a digital twin concept. The twin concept serves to replicate production processes of different kinds of production companies, including complex energy systems and test market interactions to then use them for model predictive optimizing. The presented work finally reports about the performed flexibility assessment leading to a flexibility audit with a list of measures and the impact of energy optimizations made related to interactions with the local power grid i.e., the exchange node of the low voltage distribution grid. The analysis and continuous exploration of flexibilities as well as the exchange with energy markets require a “guide” leading to continuous optimization with a further tool like the Flexibility Survey and Control Panel helping decision-making processes on the day-ahead horizon for real production plants or the investment planning to improve machinery, staff schedules and production
infrastructure.
A balcony photovoltaic (PV) system, also known as a micro-PV system, is a small PV system consisting of one or two solar modules with an output of 100–600 Wp and a corresponding inverter that uses standard plugs to feed the renewable energy into the house grid. In the present study we demonstrate the integration of a commercial lithium-ion battery into a commercial micro-PV system. We firstly show simulations over one year with one second time resolution which we use to assess the influence of battery and PV size on self-consumption, self-sufficiency and the annual cost savings. We then develop and operate experimental setups using two different architectures for integrating the battery into the micro-PV system. In the passive hybrid architecture, the battery is in parallel electrical connection to the PV module. In the active hybrid architecture, an additional DC-DC converter is used. Both architectures include measures to avoid maximum power point tracking of the battery by the module inverter. Resulting PV/battery/inverter systems with 300 Wp PV and 555 Wh battery were tested in continuous operation over three days under real solar irradiance conditions. Both architectures were able to maintain stable operation and demonstrate the shift of PV energy from the day into the night. System efficiencies were observed comparable to a reference system without battery. This study therefore demonstrates the feasibility of both active and passive coupling architectures.
Der verstärkte Einsatz von Wärmepumpen bei der Realisierung einer klimaneutralen Wärmeversorgung führt zu einer signifikanten Zunahme und Änderung der elektrischen Lasten in den Verteilnetzen. Daher gilt es, Wärmepumpen so zu steuern, dass sie Verteilnetze wenig belasten oder sogar unterstützen.
Inhalt des Projekts „PV²WP - PV Vorhersage für die netzdienliche Steuerung von Wärmepumpen“ (Projektlaufzeit 1.07.2018 – 30.06.2021) war die Demonstration eines neuen Ansatzes zur Steuerung von Heizungssystemen, die auf Wärmepumpen und thermischen Speichern basieren und in Kombination mit einer Photovoltaikanlage betrieben werden. Das übergeordnete Ziel war dabei die Verbesserung der Netzintegration und Smart-Grid-Tauglichkeit entsprechender Heizungssysteme durch eine kostengünstige Technologie bei gleichzeitiger Erhöhung der Wirtschaftlichkeit.
Dabei wurden drei zukunftsweisende Technologien in Kombination genutzt und demonstriert: wolkenkamerabasierte Kurzfristprognosen, prädiktive Steuerung und Regelung sowie machinelearning-basierte Systemmodellierung als Basis für die Optimierung. Als Demonstrationsumgebung diente mit dem Projekthaus Ulm ein real bewohntes Einfamilienhaus.Umweltforschung
Mit dem Klimaschutzgesetz 2021 wurden von der Bundesregierung die Klimaschutzvorgaben verschärft und die Treibhausgasneutralität bis 2045 als Ziel verankert. Zur Erreichung dieses ambitionierten Ziels ist es notwendig, im Bereich der Mobilität weitgehend von Verbrennungsmotoren mit fossilen Kraftstoffen auf Elektromobilität mit regenerativ erzeugtem Strom umzusteigen. Dabei ist die zügige Bereitstellung einer ausreichenden Ladeinfrastruktur für die Elektrofahrzeuge eine große Herausforderung. Neben der Installation einer ausreichend großen Zahl von Ladepunkten selbst besteht die Herausforderung darin, diese in das bestehende Verteilungsnetz zu integrieren bzw. das Verteilungsnetz so auszubauen, dass weiter ein sicherer Netzbetrieb gewährleistet werden kann. Dabei sind insbesondere Lösungen gefragt, bei denen der Ausbau der Ladeinfrastruktur und der Netzbetriebsmittel durch intelligentes Management des Ladens so gering wie möglich gehalten wird, indem vorhandene oder neu zu installierender Hardware möglichst effizient genutzt wird.
Hier setzte das Projekt „Intelligente Ladeinfrastruktur für Elektrofahrzeuge auf dem Parkplatz der Hochschule Offenburg (INTLOG)“ (Projektlaufzeit 15.11.2020 – 30.09.2022) an. Inhalt des Projekts war es, einen Ladepark für den Parkplatz der Hochschule Offenburg mit 20 Ladepunkten à 11 kW und somit einer Gesamtladeleistung von 220 kW an einen vorhandenen Ortsnetztransformator mit 200 kW Nennleistung anzuschließen, der aber bereits von anderen Verbrauchern genutzt wurde. Das übergeordnete Ziel war es also, eine Ladeinfrastruktur von maßgeblichem Umfang in die bestehende Netzinfrastruktur ohne zusätzlichen Ausbau zu integrieren.
Dabei wurden zukunftsweisende Technologien genutzt und weiterentwickelt sowie teilweise in Praxis, im Labor und in der Computersimulation demonstriert.
The conversion of space heating for private households to climate-neutral energy sources is an essential component of the energy transition, as this sector as of 2018 was responsible for 9.4 % of Germany’s carbon dioxide emissions. In addition to reducing demand through better insulation, the use of heat pumps fed with electricity from renewable energy sources, such as on-site photovoltaics (PV) systems, is an important solution approach.
Advanced energy management and control can help to make optimal use of such heating systems. Optimal here can e.g. refer to maximizing self-consumption of self-generated PV power, extended component lifetime or a grid-friendly behavior that avoids load peaks. A powerful method for this is model predictive control (MPC), which calculates optimal schedules for the controllable influence variables based on models of the system dynamics, current measurements of system states and predictions of future external influence parameters.
In this paper, we will discuss three different use cases that show how artificial intelligence can contribute to the realization of such an MPC-based energy management and control system. This will be done using the example of a real inhabited single family home that has provided the necessary data for this purpose and where the methods are implemented and tested. The heating system consists of an air-water heat pump with direct condensation, a thermal stratified storage tank, a pellet burner and a heating rod and provides both heating and hot water. The house generates a significant portion of its electricity needs through a rooftop PV system.
One of the major challenges impeding the energy transition is the intermittency of solar and wind electricity generation due to their dependency on weather changes. The demand-side energy flexibility contributes considerably to mitigate the energy supply/demand imbalances resulting from external influences such as the weather. As one of the largest electricity consumers, the industrial enterprises present a high demand-side flexibility potential from their production processes and on-site energy assets. In this direction, methods are needed with a focus on enabling the energy flexibility and ensure an active participation of such enterprises in the electricity markets especially with variable prices of electricity. This paper presents a generic model library for an industrial enterprise implemented with optimal control for energy flexibility purposes. The components in the model library represent the typical technical units of an industrial enterprise on material, media, and energy flow levels with their operative constraints. A case study of a plastic manufacturing plant using the generic model library is also presented, in which the results of two simulation with different electricity prices are compared and the behavior of the model can be assessed. The results show that the model provides an optimal scheduling of the manufacturing system according to the variations in the electricity prices, and ensures an optimal control for utilities and energy systems needed for the production.
Solar energy plays a central role in the energy transition. Clouds generate locally large fluctuations in the generation output of photovoltaic systems, which is a major problem for energy systems such as microgrids, among others. For an optimal design of a power system, this work analyzed the variability using a spatially distributed sensor network at Stuttgart Airport. It has been shown that the spatial distribution partially reduces the variability of solar radiation. A tool was also developed to estimate the output power of photovoltaic systems using irradiation time series and assumptions about the photovoltaic sites. For days with high fluctuations of the estimated photovoltaic power, different energy system scenarios were investigated. It was found the approach can be used to have a more realistic representation of aggregated PV power taking spatial smoothing into account and that the resulting PV power generation profiles provide a good basis for energy system design considerations like battery sizing.
The significant market growth of stationary electrical energy storage systems both for private and commercial applications has raised the question of battery lifetime under practical operation conditions. Here, we present a study of two 8 kWh lithium-ion battery (LIB) systems, each equipped with 14 lithium iron phosphate/graphite (LFP) single cells in different cell configurations. One system was based on a standard configuration with cells connected in series, including a cell-balancing system and a 48 V inverter. The other system featured a novel configuration of two stacks with a parallel connection of seven cells each, no cell-balancing system, and a 4 V inverter. The two systems were operated as part of a microgrid both in continuous cycling mode between 30% and 100% state of charge, and in solar-storage mode with day–night cycling. The aging characteristics in terms of capacity loss and internal resistance change in the cells were determined by disassembling the systems for regular checkups and characterizing the individual cells under well-defined laboratory conditions. As a main result, the two systems showed cell-averaged capacity losses of 18.6% and 21.4% for the serial and parallel configurations, respectively, after 2.5 years of operation with 810 (serial operation) and 881 (parallel operation) cumulated equivalent full cycles. This is significantly higher than the aging of a reference single cell cycled under laboratory conditions at 20 °C, which showed a capacity loss of only 10% after 1000 continuous full cycles.
It is considered necessary to implement advanced controllers such as model predictive control (MPC) to utilize the technical flexibility of a building polygeneration system to support the rapidly expanding renewable electricity grid. These can handle multiple inputs and outputs, uncertainties in forecast data, and plant constraints, amongst other features. One of the main issues identified in the literature regarding deploying these controllers is the lack of experimental demonstrations using standard components and communication protocols. In this original work, the economic-MPC-based optimal scheduling of a real-world heat pump-based building energy plant is demonstrated, and its performance is evaluated against two conventional controllers. The demonstration includes the steps to integrate an optimization-based supervisory controller into a typical building automation and control system with off-the-shelf HVAC components and usage of state-of-art algorithms to solve a mixed integer quadratic problem. Technological benefits in terms of fewer constraint violations and a hardware-friendly operation with MPC were identified. Additionally, a strong dependency of the economic benefits on the type of load profile, system design and controller parameters was also identified. Future work for the quantification of these benefits, the application of machine learning algorithms, and the study of forecast deviations is also proposed.
Die Digitalisierung kann der Türöffner sein, um effizient die mittelständische Industrie und den Energiemarkt zu verbinden. Das Projekt GaIN hat das Ziel, mit hochaufgelösten Produktions- und Messdaten von zehn mittelständischen Industriebetrieben neuartige Tarife und angepasste Marktplattformen zu entwickeln, die Prognosegüte für Energiebedarf, Nachfrage und Flexibilitätsverfügbarkeit zu erhöhen, die Interaktion vieler flexibler Unternehmen im Verteilnetz und in dem Bilanzkreis zu bewerten und die Auswirkung einer Nutzung der Daten auf die Energiewende anhand einer Systemanalyse zu beurteilen.
The twin concept is increasingly used for optimization tasks in the context of Industry 4.0 and digitization. The twin concept can also help small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) to exploit their energy flexibility potential and to achieve added value by appropriate energy marketing. At the same time, this use of flexibility helps to realize a climate-neutral energy supply with high shares of renewable energies. The digital twin reflects real production, power flows and market influences as a computer model, which makes it possible to simulate and optimize on-site interventions and interactions with the energy market without disturbing the real production processes. This paper describes the development of a generic model library that maps flexibility-relevant components and processes of SME, thus simplifying the creation of a digital twin. The paper also includes the development of an experimental twin consisting of SME hardware components and a PLC-based SCADA system. The experimental twin provides a laboratory environment in which the digital twin can be tested, further developed and demonstrated on a laboratory scale. Concrete implementations of such a digital twin and experimental twin are described as examples.
Active participation of industrial enterprises in electricity markets - a generic modeling approach
(2021)
Industrial enterprises represent a significant portion of electricity consumers with the potential of providing demand-side energy flexibility from their production processes and on-site energy assets. Methods are needed for the active and profitable participation of such enterprises in the electricity markets especially with variable prices, where the energy flexibility available in their manufacturing, utility and energy systems can be assessed and quantified. This paper presents a generic model library equipped with optimal control for energy flexibility purposes. The components in the model library represent the different technical units of an industrial enterprise on material, media, and energy flow levels with their process constraints. The paper also presents a case study simulation of a steel-powder manufacturing plant using the model library. Its energy flexibility was assessed when the plant procured its electrical energy at fixed and variable electricity prices. In the simulated case study, flexibility use at dynamic prices resulted in a 6% cost reduction compared to a fixed-price scenario, with battery storage and the manufacturing system making the largest contributions to flexibility.
The increasing number of prosumers and the accompanying greater use of decentralised energy resources (DERs) bring new opportunities and challenges for the traditional electricity systems and the electricity markets. Microgrids, virtual power plants (VPPs), peer-to-peer (P2P) trading and federated power plants (FPPs) propose different schemes for prosumer coordination and have the potential of becoming the new paradigm of electricity market and power system operation. This paper proposes a P2P trading scheme for energy communities that negotiates power flows between participating prosumers with insufficient renewable power supply and prosumers with surplus supply in such a way that the community welfare is maximized while avoiding critical grid conditions. For this purpose, the proposed scheme is based on an Optimal Power Flow (OPF) problem with a Multi-Bilateral Economic Dispatch (MBED) formulation as an objective function. The solution is realized in a fully decentralized manner on the basis of the Relaxed Consensus + Innovations (RCI) algorithm. Network security is ensured by a tariff-based system organized by a network agent that makes use of product differentiation capabilities of the RCI algorithm. It is found that the proposed mechanism accurately finds and prevents hazardous network operations, such as over-voltage in grid buses, while successfully providing economic value to prosumers’ renewable generation within the scope of a P2P, free market.
The PHOTOPUR project aims to develop a photocatalytic process as a type of AOPs (Advanced Oxidation Processes) for the elimination of plant protection products (PPP) of the cleaning water used to wash sprayers. At INES a PV based energy supply for the photocatalytic cleaning system was developed within the framework of two bachelor theses and assembled as a demonstration unit. Then the system was step by step extended with further process automation features and pushed to a remote operating device. The final system is now available as a mobile unit mounted on a lab table. The latest step was the photocatalytic reactor module which completed the first PHOTOPUR prototype. The system is actually undergoing an intensive testing phase with performance checks at the consortium partners. First results give an overview about the successful operation.