Blockchain for peer-to-peer energy trading

• Main Author: Yang, Jiawei
• Other Authors: Gooi Hoay Beng
• Format: Thesis-Master by Research
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2020
• Subjects: Engineering::Electrical and electronic engineering
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/139944
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

This thesis presents the study of blockchain technology used in peer-to-peer energy trading. The proposed blockchain methodologies are applied in the transactions happening between prosumers, who are equipped with PV panels. The blockchain studies are focused on how smart contracts and mining process could help and support transactions from microgrids. The protocols of the proposed blockchain are Proof-of-State and Proof-of-Work. The main goal of these studies is to explore the potential capability and how deep the blockchain technology could operate technically in the power system. Increasing penetration of renewable-based distributed generatiors (DGs) and the presence of distributed energy resources (DERs) encourage a direct energy trading among prosumers, which is called P2P energy trading. P2P energy trading is the flexible trading among the peers, where excess energy from many small-scale DERs is traded locally. But it cannot be applied without a software platform, which enables the information exchange among peers, and also assists the system operators to monitor and control the distribution network. Also, different trading rules defined by the platform also have significant influences on the decisions made by peers when trading with other peers. Therefore, blockchain technology that works as the platform, is introduced in the energy trading field to support P2P transactions. The proposed approaches aim to apply a blockchain based P2P market platform where all members of a network could enter directly into energy exchanges with any other members without restrictions or oversight from a centralized authority. The blockchain based P2P market enables the energy trading through smart contracts in which energy transactions are immediate, automated, and flexible. Blockchain applications in a P2P energy market also help to reduce corruption; increase transparency; provide payment platform for energy trading; and support seamless integration of multiple microgrids; etc. The prosumers possess specific load profiles and power generation profiles with a specific cost function and generation capability margins. The price of electricity is dependent on the grid selling and buying prices and the marginal costs of the controllable generators. The energy-trading algorithm should decide the market clearing prices for considering the welfare maximization of the prosumers. Work is oriented towards the technical operations of power systems, including compensating for power loss and developing a generic integrated blockchain-supported decentralized market platform. This can facilitate the secure and transparent electrical energy trading, which can be adapted to country-specific restrictions in terms of infrastructure and regulatory framework. Decentralized clients of a market platform can use smart contracts based on bidding algorithms and schedule individual power flows according to the transactions. Methods to regulate market participants' behaviours such as credit rating or mining-rewarding mechanism are designed to support the blockchain based P2P energy trading model. The blockchain framework is built on the Ethereum platform by using Geth (one of the Ethereum's functions). The content of the smart contracts are written in Solidity language. The experimental case studies for the proposed P2P energy trading market are carefully designed and simulated using the MATLAB. The proposed blockchain methodologies are compared with those of some existing works. The results validate the feasibility of the proposed blockchain methods and show that these methods could be implemented to support the P2P trading effectively.