Flexible power management of electric power grids and an application example

Energy is one of the most important elements enhancing the quality of life of the people and industrial development. Equal attention should be paid both to energy efficiency during the provision, transfer and use of energy. One of the most effective methods in energy efficiency is energy management system. Energy management is a system that covers all phases of the electricity production to consumption. An important part of this system, Demand Side Management, is proportional by the consumption habits of the electricity consumers. It is important to monitor the electricity demands of consumers in real-time for healthy operation of Demand Side Management. Estimating the production capacity is very important considering the electricity generation capacity. Demand estimation is prepared on the basis of technological and socio-economic development of countries. It is a long-term production plan in terms of the reliability of energy supply. Additionally, technology-driven plans should be designed for generation, transmission, distribution and consumption of the energy. New energy systems with adaptive, real-time and interactive basis with the consumers are required for a structure that can be monitored and controlled. In this context, "intelligent networks (smart grids)" concept has been raised and it gains importance as an efficient and effective energy management system. Smart grid is defined as an energy management system that is continuous monitoring and control of balance between consumer demand and producer supply by consistent two-way communication. Smart grid system consists of three main control units that are formed by electric power generation, transmission-distribution and consumers. Smart grid systems will form an important step for smart home applications. Consumers can control some of the electrical devices due to a variety of applications, programmed as more economical jobs which are not needed instantaneously. In this way, distribution companies will be able to encourage more efficient use of energy by preparing user requirements as the best real-time rates. Thus, the load demand can be balanced in real time, and the slice of peak-time on the network can be extended to a wider time. In this study, the applicability of electrical networks for flexible power management, revealed the idea of a new application. In this context, a new hardware is added to existing systems, and the run-time of electrical household appliances is shifted. The proposed system, which is designed and applied in examples presented here, is aimed to reduce the burden of the network peak time period. Therefore, more emphasis is given on ensuring the balanced distribution of the load on the network. Peak energy demand in a specific time zone is postponed to a time frame with a more economical unit price. This is achieved by Android-based software which interacts with consumers. As an example of the application, the appropriate structure and functioning of the smart grid is realized by a flexible power management system that directs consumer demand. Today, in almost all the houses the intensive energy consumption depends on the frequency of use of washer / dishwasher peak loads in the time zone (17:00 to 22:00). This time frame is provided as a sample to the application control. The micro-controller based control system is integrated on the application, which corresponds to the time period between peak loads. If desired, it can be switched on the LCD display by the user, to "expensive energy tariff zone" which is given as a warning message. In the event of the user to approve the controller for the commissioning process, the peak load automatically shifted to the end of that time frame. When the process is complete, a message is transmitted to the user for information.