Energy Management System for Flexible Replication: Tests in Cyber-Physical Mode

Abstract

The aim of this paper is Energy Management System (EMS) flexibility for replication in polygeneration grids with a special focus on industrial symbiosis. This innovative EMS, which was developed and tested for application on Eigerøy island (Norway), is based on the integration of optimization software, a scheduler for the energy storage system(s), and a Model Predictive Control (MPC) tool to take into account the dynamic response of the components. Due to the flexibility target of having an easily replicable EMS, this tool was applied to two further grids, as scheduled in the ROBINSON project: the Manna district in Crete (Greece) and the Creed district in the Western Islands (United Kingdom). However, following software replication and preliminary simulations, an experimental support was necessary to confirm the EMS robustness and to check its stability during operations in real systems. This was performed using a cyber-physical approach in the Innovative Energy Systems (IES) laboratory of the University of Genoa. It was based on the real-time coupling of hardware components (microturbine, photovoltaic panels, and a thermal grid) with software tools for the components not physically available in the laboratory. For both replication cases, 24-hour tests were performed in cyber-physical mode after a necessary EMS stabilization. The results obtained for these two innovative replication cases were successfully compared with “No EMS” simulations (not including this new optimization tool), showing significant decrease in variable costs (-7.5% for the Manna district and -39.6% for the Creed case).