Engineering Commons^™

Cost Minimizing Energy Management Control Scheme For Microgrids Considering Dynamic Electricity Prices, Levi T. Miller

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Fall 2023 to Present

As countries develop and technology improves, the world is using more energy than ever before. This fact along with several other political, social, and economic factors has resulted in simultaneous energy and climate crises. A partial solution to both problems is bringing clean energy sources of electricity closer to the customers who use that energy. A microgrid is a smaller version of the national electric grid where smaller electricity generators are networked with local consumers and controlled independently of the main grid. Because control of electricity sources and loads are transferred to local controllers, the flexibility with which they can …

Tracking Emissions In Power Systems, Kenji Santacruz

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Greenhouse gas emissions have been increasing in concentration in the atmosphere, which poses risks to the environment. Since 2011, the 𝐶𝐶𝐶𝐶2 emissions reached an average of 410 parts per million (ppm). The burning of fossil fuels for energy production was identified as the primary source of these emissions, making up 25% of global emissions by sector in 2010. To promote sustainable practices, there is an increasing need to accurately track greenhouse gas emissions in power systems. To accomplish this, an emission tracking method that can provide emission information for each load point in real-time is needed. In addition, certain indices …

Bitcoin's Technical Foundation And Its Potential For A Decentralized And Environmentally Friendly Future, Iqtiar Md Siddique

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This research examines a systematic analysis of Bitcoin, employing a Coefficient of Variation (CV) approach to gauge its degree of decentralization. Bitcoin, an innovative decentralized digital currency, has received much attention for its potential to revolutionize traditional financial systems. This study employs the Coefficient of Variation (CV) to acquire insights into the wealth distribution and concentration among Bitcoin users. This research demonstrates how decentralized the network of Bitcoin is. The methodology uses real data on Bitcoin addresses and their holdings to compute the Coefficient of Variation (CV). This approach provides valuable insights into the ongoing discourse surrounding Bitcoin's decentralization, offering …

“Increasing Renewable Energy Potential Of Landfill Gas By Electrocatalytic Conversion Of Carbon Dioxide To Methane At Low Temperature.”, Asma Akter Rony

Civil Engineering Dissertations

The conversion of carbon dioxide into methane at a low temperature has great potential to reduce current international environmental issues like global warming and will create new sources of renewable energy. The overall goal of this research is to increase renewable energy production from landfill gas using an unconventional process – electrocatalytic methanation of carbon dioxide – which has not been implemented for landfill gas yet. The electrocatalytic methanation follows the Waseda process, which applies an electric field in the presence of a Ruthenium-supported cerium oxide (CeO2) catalyst. The specific objectives of this research were: 1. To explore the impact …

Study On The Performance Of Solar Cells Cooled With Heatsink And Nanofluid Added With Aluminum Nanoparticle, Rouhollah Salehi, Ahmad Jahanbakhshi, Jong B. Ooi, Abbas Rohani, Mahmood R. Golzarian

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

The cooling of photovoltaic (PV) panels based on nanofluids is one of the emerging cooling methods to improve the efficiency of PV panels. In this study, the effects of aluminum nanoparticles on the cooling performance and conversion efficiency of PV panels were investigated experimentally. The surface temperature, output power, and efficiency of the PV panels were assessed in Mashhad, Iran on a sunny winter day in November 2020 under ambient temperatures between 10 and 17 °C. Experimental results indicated that the nanofluid with aluminum nanoparticle improved the solar panel efficiency and solar PV panel's output power by an average of …

Impacts Of High Renewable Power Grids On System Planning And Monitoring, Zhihao Jiang

Doctoral Dissertations

To achieve the goal of a carbon pollution-free electricity sector by 2035 proposed by Biden’s Administration, the U.S. power grids are expecting a dramatic transformation in the resource mix of electricity generation. This dissertation will present related research in several different aspects that will be largely affected by the clean energy transition.

The increasing size and complexity of the bulk power systems have made it more computationally burdensome to simulate the power system in full-size. As an alternative to traditional model-based methods, Chapter 2 proposes a measurement-based model reduction approach using system identification techniques. Chapter 3 presents a parameter fine-tuning …

Consensus-Based Active And Reactive Power Control And Management Of Microgrids, Shruti Singh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Microgrids incorporating distributed generation and renewable energy sources offer potential solutions to the energy crisis while modernizing traditional grids. Despite cost-effectiveness in some technologies, financial support remains crucial for expensive ones like PV, fuel cells, and storage technologies. Microgrids bring economic benefits, efficiency, reduced emissions, and improved power quality. Their success hinges on cost reductions in renewables, storage, reliability, and energy management systems, enabling operation both with and without the utility grid.

Economic Dispatch optimizes system costs, considering all constraints. Various methods tackle this problem, including quadratic convex functions, Lagrangian relaxation, and quadratic programming. For microgrids with distributed generators, seamless …

Achieving High Renewable Energy Integration In Smart Grids With Machine Learning, Yaze Li

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The integration of high levels of renewable energy into smart grids is crucial for achieving a sustainable and efficient energy infrastructure. However, this integration presents significant technical and operational challenges due to the intermittent nature and inherent uncertainty of renewable energy sources (RES). Therefore, the energy storage system (ESS) has always been bound to renewable energy, and its charge and discharge control has become an important part of the integration. The addition of RES and ESS comes with their complex control, communication, and monitor capabilities, which also makes the grid more vulnerable to attacks, brings new challenges to the cybersecurity. …

The Intertwined Renewable Energy–Water–Environment (Rewe) Nexus Challenges And Opportunities: A Case Study Of California, Shahryar Jafarinejad, Rebecca R. Hernandez, Sajjad Bigham, Bryan S. Beckingham

Michigan Tech Publications

In our built environment, societal production of energy and clean water is inextricably linked to the natural resources from which they are derived. Acknowledgement and consideration of the coupling of energy, water, and the environment (the energy–water–environment nexus) will be critical to a sustainable future. This is particularly true as we transition away from historical energy sources (e.g., coal, petroleum, natural gas) and into the widespread adaptation of renewable energy (RE) sources (e.g., solar, wind, geothermal, hydro, bioenergy) as a strategy to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and consequently slow global climate change. This transition is fraught with both challenges and …

The Neighborhood As An Energy-Generating Community The Case Of El-Banafseg Residential Neighborhood, East Cairo, Amany G. Micheal Prof., Mona Helmy Dr.

Centre for Advanced Materials

Nowadays, energy consumption is a global challenge. This is due to the shortage of several energy sources, and consequently, to their increasing prices. This paper argues that by using an integrative approach for using various energy harvesting techniques, a typical residential neighborhood can be operated as a self-generator of its needed energy, or part of it.

The paper follows a mixed qualitative, experimental, and numerical simulation approaches to examine the practicality of the paper hypothesis. It uses Space syntax modeling theory (a socio-spatial software) to analyze the pedestrian flow to indicate the potential locations of the kinetic energy harvesting Piezoelectric …

Compositional Engineering Of Precursor Inks For Intense Pulsed Light Compatible Deposition Of Perovskite Solar Cells., Blake Martin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Perovskite solar cell (PSC) technology offers a promising alternative to silicon-based photovoltaics (PVs), but challenges of stability, module efficiency, and scalability hinder commercialization. This study aims to explore potential solutions to overcome scalability and cost limitations of PSCs, addressing technical barriers to commercialization. We adapt the conventional three-stage perovskite deposition process (deposition, translational phase formation, and annealing) for scalable platforms using wide-area depositions, meniscus coating methods, forced laminar airflow drying, and radiative annealing methods, making it more suitable for roll-to-roll fabrication. A technoeconomic analysis shows that large-scale operations can produce solar films at a cost of $0.04-$0.10 per watt, making …

Voltage And Reactive Power Combinational Evaluation Of Regional Power Grid Based On Ewm-Ahp-Bp Neural Network, Yuqi Ji, Huan Xie, Shaoyu Shi, Ping He, Nan Jin, Huili Wang

Journal of System Simulation

Abstract: In order to quantitatively evaluate the influence of renewable energy access on voltage and reactive power operation, a combinational evaluation method of voltage and reactive power based on EWM-AHP-BP neural network is proposed to carry out the multi-objective evaluation weight calculation. Considering voltage qualified rate, voltage fluctuation, power factor qualified rate and reactive power reserve, the comprehensive evaluation model is established. The operation data of renewable energy and power load are clustered to divide the typical scenarios and the evaluation model under multiple scenarios is scored by the combination method of entropy weight method and analytic hierarchy process. The …

A Study On Scaling Floating Offshore Wind Turbine Geometry And Hydrostatics With Increasing Turbine Size, Samuel Davis

Honors College

Floating offshore wind offers a clean and sustainable alternative to fossil fuels for the future of energy production. In Maine in particular, there is a great opportunity to take advantage of the wind resource off the coast and become a global leader in offshore wind. With the Maine coastal waters being too deep for fixed-bottom turbine structures, floating platforms that support the turbines have the opportunity to gain traction as the technology matures. As wind turbines increase in size and capacity, the floating hulls must also increase in size. The research presented in this thesis aimed to calculate and examine …

Super–Protonic Conductors For Solid Acid Fuel Cells (Safcs): A Review, Sh. Afroze, Md S. Reza, M.R. Somalu, A.K. Azad

Eurasian Journal of Physics and Functional Materials

Fuel cell holds the promise of being environmentally friendly and becomes one of the alternatives for renewable energy. Solid acids have super–protonic behavior which allows them to become conductors. It can function at high temperatures. Hydration, on the other hand, may be used to improve the performance of the solid acid. Moreover, the conductivity, stability, and crystal structure of the solid acid compounds of the fuel cell are all influenced by the size of the electrolyte membrane. Very few works have been done on solid acid fuel cells which are still under investigation to make it one viable as well …

Design And Concept Of Renewable Energy Driven Auto-Detectable Railway Level Crossing Systems In Bangladesh, Iftekharuzzaman Iftekharuzzaman, Susmita Ghosh, Mohammad K. Basher, Mohammad A. Islam, Narottam Das, Mohammad Nur-E-Alam

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Bangladesh’s railway system mostly uses typical manual railway crossing techniques or boom gates through its 2955.53 km rail route all over the country. Accidents frequently happen at railway crossings due to the lack of quickly operating gate systems, and to fewer safety measures at the railway crossing as well. Currently, there are very few automatic railway crossing systems available (without obstacle detectors). Additionally, all of them are dependent on the national power grid, without a backup plan for any emergency cases. Bangladesh is still running a bit behind in generating enough power for its consumption; hence, it is not possible …

Evaluating The Impact Of Increased Cycling On Thermal Power Plants Due To Wind Energy Penetration In The Midwest: A Case Study, Joscelyne Larson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

One of the most significant shifts in the mix of U.S. electricity generation over the past few years has been the rapid expansion of renewable energy resources, especially solar and wind. However, fossil fuels are still necessary to fulfill the world’s energy requirements. Despite efforts to increase the use of renewable energy sources, these sources can be at times unreliable, causing countries around the world to continue to rely on base load units such as coal and natural gas. This decrease in fossil fuels and increase in renewable energy sources presents many complex issues in terms of power system planning, …

Editorial: Internet Of Energy For Renewable Energy-Based Decarbonized Electrical Energy Systems, Onur Elma, Murat Kuzlu, Nasibeh Zohrabi

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

[Introduction] This research topic aims to highlight the current state-of-the art technologies in digitalized smart grids, including renewable energy and others with the Internet of Energy (IoE) under the decarbonized electrical energy systems. These approaches will increase the overall efficiency of electrical power systems, along with emerging technologies and applications in the current system. IoE covers all digitalization processes with mobility, electronic devices, and energy network as seen in Figure 1.

Power System Dynamic Control And Performance Improvement Based On Reinforcement Learning, Wei Gao

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation investigates the feasibility and effectiveness of using Reinforcement Learning (RL) techniques for power system dynamic control, particularly voltage and frequency control. The conventional control strategies used in power systems are complex and time-consuming due to the complicated high-order nonlinearities of the system. RL, which is a type of neural network-based technique, has shown promise in solving these complex problems by fitting any nonlinear system with the proper network structure.

The proposed RL algorithm, called Guided Surrogate Gradient-based Evolution Strategy (GSES) determines the weights of the policy (which generates the action for our control reference signal) without back-propagation process …