A Real-Life Application of a Smart User Network

Abstract

Smart Community microgrids could help to improve overall energy efficiency reducing transmission and distribution losses and allowing the implementation of optimal load control and resource dispatching. In this context, the authors have proposed the realization of DC smart microgrids. They are considered as a future prospective according to the increase of DC loads and DC output type distribution energy sources such as Photovoltaic and energy storage systems. In this paper, a DC smart microgrid, called Smart User Network, realized in a real-life application as a part of pilot site under the national research project PON04_00146 Smart cities and Communities and Social innovation named “Reti, Edifici, Strade Nuovi Obiettivi Virtuosi per l’Ambiente e l’Energia” (RES NOVAE), is illustrated. The Smart User Network, is managed by a distributed and decentralized control logic, the DC Bus Signaling, which allows the converters to operate independently of each other according to a decentralized logic. It guarantees the reliability, the continuity and the quality of supply, optimizing the use of energy produced by renewable energy sources, also in stand-alone configuration. The most significant experimental results obtained both in grid-connected and stand-alone configuration are presented and discussed.

A Renewable Energy Community of DC Nanogrids for Providing Balancing Services

“…Figure 7 illustrates the case study of this paper: five modern houses or nanogrids, equipped with a set of PV plant installed on the rooftop and a set of lithium-ion batteries. It is worth underlining that the effectiveness of the proposed DBS for a single nanogrid, demonstrating how the single converters interfacing the nanogrid sources (PV plant, battery storage) operates based on the DC bus voltage changes, was reported by the authors in previous papers [10,11,44]. As before mentioned, the effectiveness of DBS is not influenced form the load variability, thus in this paper, the load modeling has not been investigated otherwise faced by the authors in [45,46].…”

An Analysis of the Operation of Distribution Networks Using Kernel Density Estimators

“…Implementation of European Union provisions in the field of energy efficiency are focused on increasing energy security, counteracting climate change, and should also have a positive impact on the economy through the development of the market for new services and innovative energy technologies [1]. The improvement in energy efficiency can be achieved in many ways, one of which is to reduce electricity losses in distribution grids [2,3], to construct smart micro-grids [4,5], to carry out a stochastic loss analysis approach for distribution systems [6], to assess reliability of renewable energy interfaced distribution system taking into account loss minimisation [7] or to integrate of wind power and energy storage with the bulk power system [8].…”

Smart Community Energy Cost Optimization Taking User Comfort Level and Renewable Energy Consumption Rate into Consideration

“…Therefore, it plays an important role in improving energy 2 of 17 efficiency and promoting the use of low-carbon energy [9,10]. However, at present, the operation and management of smart communities still lacks perfect user comfort evaluation methods and research on renewable energy consumption, which will seriously hinder the further development of smart communities [11]. Therefore, it is of great significance to study further the influence of user comfort level, renewable energy consumption, and other factors on the optimal operation of the smart community.…”