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April 28, 2021The Centre for Technological Innovation in Static Converters and Drives (CITCEA) of the UPC is one of 14 partners in the European project BEYOND, whose aim is to implement local electricity markets to maximise the introduction of renewable energies, using flexible mechanisms in response to demand or batteries.
The European Commission is promoting the development of solutions to the challenges of electricity grids in the future renewable-based energy system. The local exchange of electricity could contribute to resolving this challenge and permit, for example, that the surplus generated by a photovoltaic panel could be offered to another user in the network. In this respect, blockchain technology offers new opportunities to design electricity markets and develop new business models that include the integration of local electricity markets into current national markets.
In this context, the European project BEYONDis part of the ERA-Net Smart Energy Systems initiative, supported by the research and innovation programme Horizon 2020 of the European Union. Participants include 14 members of 8 countries, including the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya · BarcelonaTech (UPC), through the Centre for Technological Innovation in Static Converters and Drives (CITCEA), under the leadership of researchers Mònica Aragüés and Andreas Sumper. In the project, CITCEA collaborates closely with the start-up FLEXIDAO, which is specialised in blockchain technology.
More sustainable energy generation models
The flexibility of electrical systems is fundamental in the process of energy transition to increasingly sustainable energy generation models. Flexible systems can adapt safely and efficiently to conditions of variability in energy generation and demand. The BEYOND project is designed to respond to these challenges through local electricity markets based on smart contracts and blockchain technologies, which include the use of peer-to-peer networks (P2P) and flexible markets.
In this project, various formulae will be studied for the interaction of local markets in national markets, with the idea of proposing and defining specific alternatives for each country, according to their own requirements. To validate the tools developed during the project, the aim is to implement a decentralised local market in three pilot projects in Austria, Ireland and Norway.
CITCEA will participate actively in the tasks of designing local markets, identifying and characterising the actors, roles and relations, and the cases of use for decentralised solutions for the energy trade.
Tests in the SmartGrid Lab micronetwork
Before the implementation of the pilot projects, the resulting market platform will be tested in the SmartGrid Lab of CITCEA, which has successfully validated algorithms in previous European projects. SmartGrid Lab is a micronetwork that offers the opportunity to emulate various real elements (for example, photovoltaic panels, electric vehicles, batteries, etc.) and acts as a user or set of users in different situations of the electricity network.
As various emulated devices can be added, it is easy to scale up the analysed system and implement different cases of use to verify operation. The opportunity to use this facility makes it easier to test the solutions that are developed before they are tried out in a real environment. This reduces the impact on users and electricity systems.
Related Projects
- Researchers from the Architecture, Energy and Environment research group (AiEM) and the Design and Analysis of Architectural Structures research group of the Department of Architectural Technology (DiCEA), which are part of the Centre for Research and Services for the Local Administration (CRAL) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC), have developed an innovative system for the structural strengthening of ceramic floor slabs using stress-activated timber, designed to intervene in occupied buildings in a fast, sustainable and replicable manner.
- A team of researchers led by the FLUMEN Research Institute at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC) has participated in the European ICARIA project. Its aim is to develop tools and risk maps that enable public authorities and infrastructure managers to anticipate the impacts of extreme climate events and make adaptation decisions on a more robust technical basis.
- The project is led by a team from the Rehabilitation and Architectural Restoration (REARQ) at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC), in collaboration with the Interdisciplinary Group on Building Science and Technology (GICITED), also from UPC, and CONSTRAULA.
- A research team from the UPC, in collaboration with the company B. Braun Surgical, has created a ceramic and biocompatible catalyst that captures greenhouse gases and transforms them into useful chemical products in a more sustainable way and at a lower cost than current technologies. The technology has successfully passed the pilot phase through joint projects with companies from different sectors.
