What is the sub-project about?
A renewable rich, sustainable power system is a key player in the journey toward the Green Transition. So, the interest in adding more renewable-based generation to the grid by replacing conventional generators has increased rapidly. At the same time, challenges to power system reliability and stability due to high penetration of renewables and distributed generation have become a great concern. Increasing power system flexibility is a solution to handle these challenges while welcoming more renewables to the grid.
What specific problems or challenges are you trying to solve with your research work?
Adding more and more renewables to the grid can impact the reliability and stability of the grid mainly due to the intermittent nature of renewable-based generation. So, the modern power system should be more flexible to handle these uncertainties to keep the power system stable and welcome more renewable generation. Demand-side flexibility is a major component of power system flexibility that activates through flexible generation and consumption. Assessing the impact of demand-side flexibility, quantification of flexibility provision, and determining limitations is advantageous for both power system operators and decision-makers.
How do flexibility solutions impact the reliability and robustness of the power system?
The key objective of flexibility solutions in the power system is to address the uncertainty of renewable generation and to distribute the peak loads with the available resources of the power system. In contrast, flexible power system resources are to be used to balance the supply-demand and to reduce possible stability issues of the grid by changing their routing operation to support the grid.
What have you discovered so far in your research, and what results do you expect in the future?
So far, we have been able to model flexibility provision through flexible energy storages considering system-wide and local flexibility solutions in an LV test network. Then to demonstrate the effect of activating Energy Flexibility for distribution grid voltage levels. From that estimate LV network capacity for flexible energy storages. Further, the role of local flexibility through voltage support flexible energy storages was studied. The study will be extended to other types of flexibility resources, solutions, and further possible issues to the distribution grid.
How can increased flexibility in power consumption and generation benefit both consumers and the overall grid?
Overall grid is directly benefited by the increased reliability and stability of the grid. Economical benefits to the grid can also be highlighted as the additional infrastructure cost can be eliminated by increasing grid flexibility. On the other hand, customers as prosumers will be economically benefited by participating in flexibility provisions using either the price-based method or incentive-based method.
What challenges have you encountered at work?
As the flexibility of the power system is a wide area identifying the most important part of it that need to be focused first was challenging. Focusing on some of the selected flexibility solutions to model, and analyze the effect on the distribution grid first as a starting point, helped to overcome that challenge.
Do you have any companies /business partnering with/related to the work?
ABB, Piteå Energi, and Skellefteå Kraft are among the business partners that we are closely working together with. Their input to the research work has been a merit in identifying industry needs and to accessing some of their resources.
How can decision-makers and power system owners use your research to make more informed decisions?
Mainly the research can be used to increase the power system flexibility by the power system operators. Specially, Distribution System Operators can use the research to be aware of possible impacts on the Distribution Grid by activating flexible resources. Hence the limit of flexibility provision that they can handle without disturbing their operations. Also, to see possible ways to improve the limits within the available grid resources. At the same time, Transmission System Operators can also be aware of the limit of harnessing flexibility from the LV grid level. On the other hand, the decision-makers can be able to use the results for developing policies and standards for increasing power system flexibility.