Integrating Renewable Energy to the Grid

Distributed Algorithm
for Energy Management in Smart Grid
(Summary of paper)

1. Introduction
German energy turnaround results in trend towards an increasing amount of
renewable energy sources. German energies renewable act which aims to achieve 40%
to 45% of energy production by renewable energy sources in 2025 and 55% to 60% in
2035. Main contributors are biogas, photovoltaic and wind power plants.
There are two problem for using more renewable energy :
1) The fluctuation in availability of renewable energies depending on weather. To
address an imblance between generation and consumption energy suppliers can
create incentive models like offering energy at a reduced price during a sunny
phase.
2) If a household get the lower price signal and more of them using the electricity
like charging vehicle together, it will make unbalanced and the worst lead to
blackout and can be called the problem of simultaneity.

The propose of smart grid are avoid load peaks and to smooth the power
consumption through load shifting and adaption on a street level.

2. Approach
a. Architecture
Figure 1 shows the street based scenario where all households are connected
to one local transformer. The power transformer is equipped with sensors so that the
conventional homes can be monitored by the energy management. In conventional
home, there is no electronic device control for load, electricity consumption depend
on the owner. For smart home there is device that manage consumption and with an
interface device, it will make possible to transmitted data to server or other
participant. So, using the algorithm and the data from participant, this is the way to
solve the two problem before.
 Figure 1 Distributed middleware in smart grids

In smard grid, the load clasiffied by three, based load (conventional device
like gas stove and residents cannot be controlled), shiftable load (the load that
activation time can be shifted like washing machine), and adaptable load (load that
can adapt electricity consumtion rate like charger device). Just for note, in this paper,
there is home that have photovoltaic. Using smart grid, it is possible home
photovoltaic supply electricity to the grid. It will make negative peak like figure 7
and 8.

Figure 2 Architecture of the energy manager

b. Algorithm for load shifting

Washing machine, tumble drier, and dishwasher are example of shifting load.
For this kind of load, we can schedule the activation time to the lower electricity
consumption in the grid. In this paper, algorithm for shifting load is FIFO (first in
first out). It is mean all data shifting load/device from participant smart home will
be computed by the server in smart grid to make optimum combination activation
time according the grid capacity. Server will choose device that early order
activation. It possible the server will run more than one washing machine in the same
time in the midnight, because it depend more power available in the grid. Figure 3
show effect of the scheduling shifting load from 1 until 6 am, the peak load decrease.
Impact of that the power utilisation from 1 until 6 am increase. The black line is
usual energy consumption (not using algorithm) and the blue line is the consumption
after shifting/schedule the load.
 Figure 3 Demand side management

c. Algorithm for load adaption

The proposed algorithm for load adaption handles all devices that can adapt
their load at the time of computation. Example due to a lot of charging electric
vehicles, the charging rate can be reduced or even stopped. The algorithm is based
on the max-min fairness principle.
For example if the grid have 3 load (A= 2W; B=3W and C=5W) and have
capacity 9 W. First, the grid will devide equal by 3 so A,B and C will get 3W. But
because A just use 2W so 1 W will distributed for other load equally. So now, B get
3,5W and C get 3,5 W. B just use 3W so 0,5W will be distributed for C. And finally
C will get 4 W. Although C need 5W, but the grid only can give 4 W. This algorithm
make the power will devide fairness.
d. Distributed Algorithm
Using a distributed energy management each participant is able to conduct
necessary calculations itself thus ensuring privacy. The distributed algorithm is
based on a token that combines both of approach (two algorithm before) that
generated by the server in the middleware and consists initially of a list of all
participants. The expected future consumption, load capacity, load limit error, and
list of adaptable participants are needed and stored in the token.
The first round will collect all shiftable and adaptable load calculation from
all participant (black line). If still error, it mean the calculation of load in the group
round more than the capacity from grid, second round (blue line) will be make for
correction. For the second round the load that will be change is adaptable, for
shiftable, it is made fix in first round. If still error, the third round will make again
for correction adaptable load for fairness. The correction load related to the
algorithm for adaptable load(max-min fairness). The last participant will send the
token to the server (orange line). The server can make dirrect communication for
participant for make correction if still error (dash line).
 Figure 4 Distributed algorithm

3. Evaluation
The algorithm is simulated in an urban environment that consists of one street
with 100 households. The base load of the houses that is not controllable by the
algorithm has been simulated beforehand and is available in form of base load curves .
Shiftable devices are simulated by probability curves. Photovoltaic devices are defined
by a generation curve. Electric vehicles is not present during work time and wants to
charge its battery during night.

Figure 5 Average base load of a household

a. Simulation Result
As result (figure 6), with smart grid, we get the average load is smooth (red
line) compare conventional grid without optimization (black line) and smart home
(blue line), because using algorithm, we can manage the load (shifting and
adaptable). In smart home, the load depend on the price, do not have comunication
with server or other smart home, so it is possible they use electricity together
(simultaneity), that shown on 3 until 5 am.
 Figure 6 Comparison of different optimisation levels

By distributed enery management, we can see in figure 7 that shifting and

adaptable load can move to the time that have lower base load, so we can get the average
load smoothly. The negative peak mean the adaptable load use the power from
photovoltaic at that home.

Figure 7 Simulation result of distributed energy management

b. Simultaneity

Figure 8 Impact of share of smart homes controlled by the distributed algorithm

Total 100 households; 40 self-optimising smart homes; 20 of 40 smart homes

controlled by distributed algorithm
 If half of the smart homes are controled by smart grid the overall load can be
smoothened and distributed over the day resulting in a more balanced load curve
without any peaks.
c. Privacy
In order to be applied by house or device, owners privacy has to be kept.
Only the combined future load curve of all participants is visible to all of them.
Capacity limits and an error value are uncritical because they are a composition of
all participants. The list of adaptable participants is uncritical because it is not known
how much or in what direction the adaption is possible.

4. Conclusion
 The problem in renewable energy are the fluctuatif production (depend on weather)
and the simultaneity (most customer using electricity in same time/low price).
 Simulation results point out that the use of a FIFO and max-min fairness algorithm
can eliminate the problem of simultaneity in a smart grid and smooth the overall
consumption while avoiding load peaks. The distribution algorithm use for ensure
privacy in customer.
 This may lead to reduce network expansions costs in the future.
Reference : Brettschneider, D., Tönjes, R., Roer, P. and Hölker, D., Distributed algorithm for
energy management in smart grids, 2014