Distributed utility‐based real‐time power flow optimization in ICT‐enabled low voltage distribution grids

Abstract Low‐Voltage (LV) distribution grids are facing a rapid increase of connected Photovoltaic (PV) power plants as well as flexible consumers like Battery‐Electric Vehicle (BEV) chargers and Heat Pumps (HPs). The coordinated operation of these generation, storage and consumption units, referred to as Distributed Energy Resources (DERs), is regarded as a key requirement to maximize the benefits of renewable generation without violating, for example, voltage limits. Therefore, an operation management scheme was proposed in previous work that optimizes the power flows in LV grids in real‐time, where optimality is expressed as a maximization of the utility that DER owners experience from power consumption or injection, respectively. In this contribution, this method is extended by: (1) detailing a time‐varying utility‐model to express customer needs, (2) introducing a distributed implementation enhancing the robustness to failures, (3) developing a testbed using a real‐time digital power grid simulator and a communication network emulator, and (4) integrating a real‐time information flooding protocol. The performance is evaluated in different simulation scenarios, showing that the proposed method is able to cooperatively utilize the flexible units in order to fulfil the DER owners' needs even in the event of controller failures and constrained communication.