Collaborative Research: A Nonbinding Commitment Modeling and Control for Deployment of Distributed Flexible Energy Resources

最近新兴技术的进步和可再生能源的进一步整合增加了人们对分布式灵活能源的兴趣。然而，由于难以评估这些资源对电网运作的贡献、难以设计补偿机制以及难以吸引参与，部署这些资源的障碍依然存在。该项目将研究具有几个新特征的市场模型，以鼓励大规模部署分布式灵活能源。特别是，电力聚合器和分布式能源资源都不需要提前承诺在特定时间购买或供应电力。取而代之的是，操作许可将在随机时间发送给计划参与者的子集，然后他们有权利但没有义务采取行动。预计这项研究将为公用事业公司、监管机构和政策制定者提供有关设计高效和有吸引力的部署计划的见解。除了清洁能源的重点领域外，这项研究的预期结果将适用于许多情况，即事件以受高层决策影响的随机时间到来的速度。本研究的目的是在一般的背景下分析所提出的市场模型，并针对一类具有点过程的两级连续时间随机控制问题发展理论和算法策略。点过程的统计特性将使协调方案可扩展到更多聚集级别和参与者。通过在为诱导行为而采取行动的机会中引入随机性，同时保持对参与资源的非约束性，将创造一个有利的环境，以促进在分销网络层面上的投资和灵活资源的部署。

The recent advancements in emerging technologies and the greater integration of renewable energy resources have increased interest in distributed flexible energy resources. However, barriers to the deployment of these resources continue, due to difficulties in evaluating their contributions to the operability of the power grid, in designing compensation mechanisms, and in eliciting participation. This project will investigate market models with several novel features for encouraging the large-scale deployment of distributed flexible energy resources. In particular, neither the power aggregator nor the distributed energy resources will be required to commit in advance to buy or supply power at specific times. Instead, permissions to operate will be sent at random times to a subset of program participants, who then have the right but not the obligation to act. The research is expected to provide insights to utilities, regulators, and policy makers regarding the design of efficient and attractive deployment programs. Beyond the focus area of Clean Energy, the expected outcomes of this research will be applicable to many situations where events arrive at random times at a rate influenced by upper-level decisions. This research aims to analyze the proposed market models in a general setting and to develop theory and algorithmic strategies for the class of two-level continuous-time stochastic control problems coupled with point processes. Statistical properties of point processes will make coordination schemes extensible to more aggregation levels and participants. By introducing randomness in opportunities to act in order to elicit behaviors, while remaining nonbinding for the participating resources, a favorable environment will be created to foster investment and the deployment of flexible resources at the level of the distribution network.