Virtual Battery Control for Flexible Demand Grid Balancing
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing reliance on intermittent and uncontrollable power sources like solar and wind in power grids leads to inefficiencies in grid balancing, as traditional methods struggle to respond quickly and flexibly to fluctuations in power generation, requiring idle or inefficient controllable power sources to compensate.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a virtual battery model is used to predict and manage the power consumption of controllable resources, such as buildings with HVAC systems, by determining feasible power consumption requests based on a virtual battery model, allowing rapid adjustment to balance power distribution networks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional supply-side balancing methods are used with controllable power sources, then grid balancing can be achieved, but the response speed and flexibility are insufficient and require more idle generation capacity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional supply-side balancing approach by implementing demand-side management. Instead of adjusting controllable power sources to match intermittent generation, the system adjusts controllable power consumption to match available power supply. This is achieved through a system controller that receives power supply information and generates corresponding power consumption adjustment requests for controllable loads.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the system controller continuously receives information about power supply from intermittent sources and adjusts controllable power consumption accordingly. The controller generates power consumption requests based on real-time power supply conditions, creating a closed-loop system that responds dynamically to changes in generation availability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If price signals are used to encourage demand management, then consumer flexibility can be utilized, but the approach is slow and insufficiently flexible due to computation and transmission time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a system controller as an intermediary between the power supply system and controllable loads. This controller directly processes power supply information and generates real-time power consumption adjustment requests, eliminating the time delays associated with price signal computation, transmission, and consumer response. The intermediary enables direct control while preserving demand flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent enables controllable power consuming resources to automatically adjust their consumption based on system controller requests without requiring consumer intervention or decision-making. The internal controllers of controllable loads receive direct instructions from the system controller and execute power adjustment autonomously, achieving rapid response times.
3Reliability
If controllable power sources are ramped up or down to balance intermittency, then supply-demand balance can be maintained, but efficiency decreases as sources operate at low power levels
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the traditional approach of adjusting supply to match demand by instead adjusting demand to match available supply. Controllable power consuming resources are modulated to consume power that corresponds to available generation from intermittent sources, allowing these sources to operate more consistently without requiring backup generation to ramp up and down frequently.
Data Source
AI summary
Method of operating an electrical power distribution system (1), said power distribution system (1) comprising: —at least one electrical power generator (3, 5) with uncontrollable variable supply; —at least one electrical power consuming resource (13) with controllable demand and subject to at least one state constraint, said electrical power consuming resource (13) with controllable demand being arranged to be controlled by an internal controller (17); —a system controller (15) adapted to send requests to said internal controller (17) to request variation in said controllable demand; —an electrical power distribution network (9) arranged to transmit electrical power from said at least one electrical power generator (3, 5) to said at least one electrical power consuming resource (13) with controllable demand. A virtual battery model (19) of the electrical power consuming resource (13) with controllable demand is created, and is used to generate a set of feasible power consumption requests that the electrical power consuming resource (13) with controllable demand can fulfil on the basis of the virtual battery model (19)