Power and Energy Systems Planning & Electrification
Power and Energy Systems Engineering, Economics and Policy
The increasing share of power generation from solar and wind generation technologies often referred to as variable renewable energy (VRE) poses significant complications to the design, operation, business model, and regulation of electric power systems. Key among these challenges are the negative impacts of increasing levels of grid variability and uncertainty introduced by VRE expansion on grid performance. This research thrust investigates the impacts of VRE expansion and offers technical, market, and policy solutions to reduce and manage generation variability and uncertainty. Using statistical regression analysis, this thrust assesses if increased use of flexible generators, such as modern gas turbines and combined cycles, results in reduced VRE capacity, and if the growth of these flexible electricity generation systems is correlated with increased non-fossil renewable fuels demand. Examples of econometric and statistical methods applied include the System Generalized Method of Moments (System GMM) estimation of the dynamic relationship between variables. For instance, System GMM has been used to analyze the effect of natural gas on renewable energy diffusion and the ratio of fossil fuels increase to policy-driven solar demand for the ten states with the fastest growth in solar generation capacity in the U.S. (e.g., California, North Carolina, Arizona, Nevada, New Jersey, Utah, Massachusetts, Georgia, Texas, and New York).
Energy Markets, Policy, and Regulation
Secondly, this research thrust assesses the major drivers of the energy transition, especially the change in electric power systems, including growth in distributed energy generation (DERs) systems such as intermittent renewable electricity and gas-fired distributed generation; flat to declining electricity demand growth; aging electricity infrastructure and investment gaps; proliferation of affordable information and communications technologies (e.g., advanced meters or interval meters), increasing innovations in data and system optimization; and greater customer engagement. In this ongoing electric power sector transformation, natural gas and fast-flexing renewable resources (mostly solar and wind energy) complement each other in several sectors of the economy.
This thrust explores a plausible distributed utility framework that is suitable for DER development and informed by “Utility 2.0” concepts:
Microgrid development
Emerging technologies, e.g., AI, ML, and predictive analytics
Distributed solar
Electric market design innovations
Smart grid systems
Big data and analytics
The examples being studied include case studies from the United States (i.e., New York’s Reforming the Energy Vision (REV), Illinois’s NextGrid and California’s Energy Savings and Performance Incentive), the U.K.’s RIIO (Revenue = Incentives + Innovation + Outputs), Germany’s Energiewende, and Australia’s Electricity Network Transformation Roadmap. These frameworks provide conceptual bases with which to imagine the electric power industry of the future as well as a practical solution to study the potential and future of DERs in other states.
BUILDING AND TRANSPORTATION ELECTRIFICATION
Building Automation and Transportation Energy Solutions: Demand-side management (DSM) programs in the U.S. have been expansionary in scope, scale, and structure. This expansion can be traced to the U.S. dependence on foreign imported oil which peaked in the 1970s, with its attenuated threats on national security.
Hitherto, a vigorous debate over the efficacy of DSM programs has also emerged. At one end of this debate are DSM advocates who see the significant potential of investments in energy efficiency that can be obtained at low and even negative costs. At the other end of the debate are economists who question the “proverbial DSM free lunch.”
DSM opponents argue that if these programs are cost-effective as they are often claimed then why are they under-appreciated by firms and consumers?
They point to imperfect market information, and not factoring in the full costs of negative externalities in energy prices, as the reason why to paraphrase Amory Lovins, we have chosen the “hard paths” over the “soft paths.” So why aren’t we promoting the soft path?
This research thrust investigates two energy efficiency gap perspectives in transportation, smart mobility, and smart cities and their hidden assumptions i.e., (i) a technological-oriented perspective that emphasizes engineering-economic calculations, and (ii) a market-oriented perspective fronted by economists who look at the issues from market failure and social welfare point of view. The thrust studies infrastructure investment, “uncertainty” in energy efficiency measurement and finance.
Finally, this research thrust focuses on the economic imperatives of transportation, smart mobility, automation, and energy infrastructure investment.
