Blockchain-enabled decentralized and hierarchical framework for peer-to-peer electric energy markets

许多分布式能源(DER)的集成，如可再生能源、灵活负载和能量存储，正在推动加拿大和世界各地配电系统的革命性变化。分布式、不确定和小规模的DER对可靠和高效的电网运营提出了许多挑战，包括在公用事业价值链中产生收入的基本原则。与此同时，配备了计算和通信能力的DER提供了前所未有的机会，以建立本地点对点(P2P)能源市场，激励DER提供服务进行支付。该项目将开发一个概念验证原型软件平台，使P2P能源交易能够在确保客户隐私的同时，实现高效可靠的电网运营。这项研究将通过以下方式实现这一总体目标：(I)为P2P能源市场开发计算效率高的算法，该算法可随着大量参与者的参与而扩展；以及(Ii)通过分布式分类账(区块链)技术实施P2P能源市场，以实现信任、隐私和互操作性。我们的合作伙伴组织认识到，现有的市场架构不足以支持通信支持的DER的广泛部署，他们期待着将我们的原型扩展为生产级商业软件，最终将区块链应用扩展到能源行业。更广泛地说，该项目将加强加拿大在全球大规模DER一体化趋势中的地位，并有助于走出一条可靠的脱碳道路。

The integration of many distributed energy resources (DERs), like renewable energy sources, flexible loads, and energy storage, is driving revolutionary changes in electric distribution systems in Canada and worldwide. The distributed, uncertain, and small-scale nature of DERs presents many challenges to reliable and efficient grid operations, including fundamental principles of revenue generation within the utility value chain. At the same time, DERs equipped with computing and communication capabilities offer the opportunity, as never before, to establish local peer-to-peer (P2P) energy markets that incentivize DERs to offer their services for payment. This project will develop a proof-of-concept prototype software platform that enables P2P energy transactions aimed at efficient and reliable grid operations while ensuring customer privacy. The research will achieve this overarching objective by: (i) developing computationally efficient algorithms for P2P energy markets that scale with massive DER participation, and (ii) implementing P2P energy markets over distributed ledger (blockchain) technologies to enable trust, privacy, and interoperability. Our partner organization recognizes that existing market architectures are insufficient to support widespread deployment of communication-enabled DERs, and they look forward to extending our prototype into a production-grade commercial software that definitively expands blockchain applications to the energy sector. More generally, this project will bolster Canada's position in the worldwide trend toward massive DER integration and contribute to a credible path toward decarbonization.