• Smart Grids
• Microgrids and Nanogrids : Implementation, Advances in technology and Challenges
• Intelligent Home Energy Management Systems
• Modelling Energy Efficient Smart Grids
• Solar Irradiation and Weather Trends - Monthly / Annual
• SmartGrid Project Documentation:
• Rural Electrification

1. Quetchenbach, T. G., M. J. Harper, J. Robinson IV, K. K. Hervin, N. A. Chase, Chhimi Dorji, and A. E. Jacobson, " The GridShare solution: a smart grid approach to improve service provision on a renewable energy mini-grid in Bhutan", Environmental Research Letters 8, no. 1 (2013): 014018. This paper discusses the operation of a GridShare - a micro-hydro mini-grid, implemented in houses in the village of Rukubji, Bhutan. Using a "demand-side" approach, which restricts the use of electricity only when the demand exceeds the supply, this paper focuses on the case of using rice cookers at specific points in the day. Results show that, on implementing GridShare, the number of days mild brownouts occurred increased, but the frequency of severe brownouts decreased significantly.
2. Dave, Saraansh, Mahesh Sooriyabandara, and Mike Yearworth., " A systems approach to the smart grid.", The First International Conference on Smart Grids, Green Communications and IT Energy-aware Technologies, pp. 130-134. 2011, In ENERGY 2011. As the complexity of designing and maintaining a SmartGrid increases, this paper explores a systems approach of modelling the Smart Grid as a Multi-Agent System (MAS). Various research areas where this Multi-Agent Systems are being implemented are touched upon. Such a systems approach will lead to effective demand management is concluded.
3. Farhangi, Hassan., " The path of the smart grid.", Power and Energy Magazine, IEEE 8, no. 1 (2010): 18-28.. This paper discusses the evolution of the grid from the utility unidirectional grid to the emerging smart grid. It touches upon the concept of a smart grid, Smart Microgrids and Smartgrid standards
4. Hashmi, M., S. Hänninen, and K. Mäki., " Survey of smart grid concepts, architectures, and technological demonstrations worldwide.", In Innovative Smart Grid Technologies (ISGT Latin America), 2011 IEEE PES Conference on, pp. 1-7. IEEE, 2011. Various smart grid concepts,architectures and implementations are discussed in this paper. The concepts include DER aggregation, distribution network and ICT applications to develop future intelligent grids.
5. Yilmaz, Cagri, Sahin Albayrak, and Marco Lützenberger., " Smart Grid Architectures and the Multi-Agent System Paradigm.", In this paper, a multi-agent technology is applied to implement smart grid technologies. Java Intelligent Agent Component(JIAC) framework has been applied to smart grid applications and the results have been demonstrated.

6. Tolbert, Leon M., Hairong Qi, and Fang Z. Peng., " Scalable multi-agent system for real-time electric power management.", In Power Engineering Society Summer Meeting, 2001, vol. 3, pp. 1676-1679. IEEE, 2001.. A multi-agent approach has been explored to control distributed energy resources. This improves reliability, increases the quality of power and enables efficient power generation and consumption. Ancillary agents have also been developed for system stability.
7. Conejo, Antonio J., Juan M. Morales, and Luis Baringo., " Real-time demand response model.", Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on 1, no. 3 (2010): 236-242.. This paper presents a model where the hourly load of the customer is determined based on hourly electricity prices. Imposing limits on the loads, defining the maximum and minimum hourly load levels, the customer utility is maximised.
8. Mohsenian-Rad, Amir-Hamed, Vincent WS Wong, Juri Jatskevich, and Robert Schober., " Optimal and autonomous incentive-based energy consumption scheduling algorithm for smart grid.", In Innovative Smart Grid Technologies (ISGT), 2010, pp. 1-6. IEEE, 2010.. In this paper, autonomous demand side management is handled with the deployment of Energy Consumpion Scheduling(ECS) devices. These devices interact automatically with one another to find the optimal schedule for energy consumption. By doing so, simulation results have shown that the Peak-to-average ratio (PAR) is significantly reduced.
9. Roche, Robin, Benjamin Blunier, Abdellatif Miraoui, Vincent Hilaire, and Abder Koukam., " Multi-agent systems for grid energy management: A short review.", In IECON 2010-36th Annual Conference on IEEE Industrial Electronics Society, pp. 3341-3346. IEEE, 2010.. The multi agent concept finds its uses in various smart grid technologies as the grid is considered to be a collection of single entities(agents). This paper reviews the various multi-agent systems implemented in the smart grid.
10. Pipattanasomporn, Manisa, Hassan Feroze, and S. Rahman., " Multi-agent systems in a distributed smart grid: Design and implementation.", In Power Systems Conference and Exposition, 2009. PSCE'09. IEEE/PES, pp. 1-8. IEEE, 2009.. Using the concept of agents, this paper proposes to enable communication between the various agents using messages that are compatible with the Internet Protocol (IP). It demonstrates the use of Multi-agent systems in a distributed smart grid.
11. Tsoukalas, L. H., and R. Gao., " From smart grids to an energy internet: Assumptions, architectures and requirements.", In Electric Utility Deregulation and Restructuring and Power Technologies, 2008. DRPT 2008. Third International Conference on, pp. 94-98. IEEE, 2008.. This paper draws an analogy between the electricity flowing through a distribution line and the data packets that flow through the communication medium. Terming the implementation of smart grids as an energy internet, the benefits of the energy internet are outlined - openness, reliability and robustness.
12. Gao, Jingcheng, Yang Xiao, Jing Liu, Wei Liang, and CL Philip Chen., " A survey of communication/networking in smart grids.", Future Generation Computer Systems 28, no. 2 (2012): 391-404.. This paper reviews the various communication technologies in smart grids - the communication/networking architecture, different communication technologies that would be employed into this architecture, quality of service (QoS), optimizing utilization of assets, control and management, etc.

Microgrids and Nanogrids : Implementation, Advances in technology and Challenges

1. Nordman, Bruce, Ken Christensen, and Alan Meier., " Think globally, distribute power locally: The promise of nanogrids.," Computer 9, (2012),pp. 89-91. This paper focuses on DC nanogrids. By regulating the distribution of power using a local price structure, the local power generated from renewable sources of energy can be used efficiently. The paper also proposes the idea of integrating a local storage unit into the nanogrid is explored in this paper, outlining the various technologies that are/can be implemented.

2. Nordman, Bruce, and Ken Christensen., " Local power distribution with nanogrids.," In Green Computing Conference (IGCC), 2013 International,pp. 1-8. IEEE, 2013. In this paper, the operation of a simple nanogrid has been described, revolving around the controller, loads and electricity availablity from a renewable source of energy.

3. B. Nordman, " Nanogrids: Evolving our Electricity Systems from the Bottom Up," May 2011 This paper looks into the concept of evolving a grid from the bottom up. It defines a nanogrid - a very small grid - which can be aggregated to form a microgrid and explores its potential.

4. Mishra, Santanu, and Olive Ray, " Advances in nanogrid technology and its integration into rural electrification in India," In Power Electronics Conference (IPEC-Hiroshima 2014-ECCE-ASIA), 2014 International,IEEE,pp. 2707-2713,2014. This paper focuses on the Advances in Nanogrid Technology. In rural india, use of renewable energy at the community level ( a group of houses ) is explored in this paper, outlining the various technologies that are/can be implemented. It also touches upon the challenges of setting up a nanogrid.

5. Khan, M. Rezwan, and Edward D. Brown., " DC nanogrids: A low cost PV based solution for livelihood enhancement for rural Bangladesh", In Developments in Renewable Energy Technology (ICDRET), 2014 3rd International Conference on the,, pp. 1-5. IEEE, 2014. Being a concept paper, this paper considers the current electricity scenario and climatic conditions in Bangladesh and proposes the use of small sized solar grids for house hold usage of electricity as well as irrigation. A system that can use DC nanogrids for irrigation during the irrigation months (February to May) - when there is abundant sunshine and lesser demand of electricity in houses is proposed and discussed.

6. Yoo, Cheol-Hee, Won-Jun Choi, Il-Yop Chung, Dong-Jun Won, Sung-Soo Hong, and Byung-Jun Jang., " Hardware-in-the-loop simulation of DC microgrid with Multi-Agent System for emergency demand response", In Intelligent Agent Technology, 2006. IAT'06. IEEE/WIC/ACM International Conference On,, pp. 1-6. IEEE, 2012 In this paper, a DC Microgrid Model containing distributed resources, is implemented using the features of a Multi-Agent System(MAS) and Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) simulation. Each Agent communicates with other agents and the Customer Portal(CP) using wireless communication (using Contract Net Protocol - CNP). An Emergency Demand Response case has been studied, as an effective solution to deal with increase in demand and shortage of supply.

7. Jiang, Zhenhua, " Agent-based control framework for distributed energy resources microgrids", In Intelligent Agent Technology, 2006. IAT'06. IEEE/WIC/ACM International Conference On,, pp. 646-652. IEEE, 2006. This paper discusses an Agent-Based control framework for a Distributed Energy Resource (DER) Microgrid. Each energy resource and load is represented as an autonomous agent making the architecture "self organised". This adds the element of flexibility to the microgrid. Simulation results confirm that the Agent-Based control framework works effectively for a Distributed Energy Resources microgrid, with each agent managing the energy resources correctly.

8. Brocco, Amos, " Fully distributed power routing for an ad hoc nanogrid.", InIntelligent Energy Systems (IWIES), 2013 IEEE International Workshop on, pp. 113-118. IEEE, 2013. This paper discusses a model for a nanogrid that operates on distributed energy resources. Based on the demand, a distributed power routing algorithm is proposed, which focuses on maintaining an autonomous nanogrid. Simulation results show that the network set up with this protocol is adaptive and scalable.

9. Werth, Annette, Nobuyuki Kitamura, and Kenji Tanaka, " Conceptual Study for Open Energy Systems: Distributed Energy Network Using Interconnected DC Nanogrids", A DC-based open energy system (OES) has been described, to exchange power between houses(nanogrids) in a community. Equiped with a dc-dc converter and network controller, and a software layer(for autonomous control),power exchange between houses has been examined to handle distribution of DC power using demand response. This concept has been tested on the first three homes in a community in Okinawa.

10. Backhaus, Scott, Gregory W. Swift, Spyridon Chatzivasileiadis, William Tschudi, Steven Glover, Michael Starke, Jianhui Wang, Meng Yue, and Donald Hammerstrom., " DC Microgrids Scoping Study—Estimate of Technical and Economic Benefits.", 2015. This document looks into the drawbacks of AC microgrids and the advantages of their DC counterparts. Several AC and DC microgrid applications have been compared and the benefits of the DC Microgrids are made evident.

Home Energy Management Systems

1. Kawakami, Tomoya, Naotaka Fujita, Tomoki Yoshihisa, and Masahiko Tsukamoto., "An Evaluation and Implementation of Rule-Based Home Energy Management System Using the Rete Algorithm", In this paper, a rule based system for a smart house has been implemented, using the Rete algorithm and smart taps. The Rete algorithm, an IF-THEN algorithm is proposed. The smart tap is responsible for executing these rules and relating each rule to an action. Simulation results show that the maximum load of a node is reduced when compared to other methods(like the Server based method) and the rule processing load is distributed.

2. Ozturk, Yusuf, Datchanamoorthy Senthilkumar, Sunil Kumar, and Gordon Lee., " An intelligent home energy management system to improve demand response.", Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on 4, no. 2 (2013): 694-701. In this paper, the strategies of demand response (DR) and Time-Of-Use (TOU) are integrated to distribute energy in a locality. Aggregators communicate with the utility (Power company) and the residential layout and facilitate the distribution of power based on the demand (input from the residential layout) and supply (as communicated by the utility company). In this system, the Master Controller plays a key role in the system.

3. Xiong, Gang, Chen Chen, Shalinee Kishore, and Aylin Yener., " Smart (in-home) power scheduling for demand response on the smart grid.", In Innovative smart grid technologies (ISGT), 2011 IEEE PES, pp. 1-7. IEEE, 2011. In this paper, a communication protocol for power scheduling, for in-home appliances is proposed. Using the concept of real-time prices and a smart meter, the home appliances are connected in a home area network. The appliances are classified into two types : schedulable devices and real-time devices. Simulation results show that the peak demand is significantly reduced.

Modelling Energy Efficient Smart Grids

1. Xiong, Gang, Chen Chen, Shalinee Kishore, and Aylin Yener., " Smart (in-home) power scheduling for demand response on the smart grid. ",In Innovative smart grid technologies (ISGT), 2011 IEEE PES , pp. 1-7. IEEE, 2011. In this paper, a communications-protocol for in-home appliances has been proposed, based on a demand response mechanism. The target power consumption has been based on real time prices of energy, in order to make the smart grid more energy efficient. Simulation results show a reduced peak demand for the home implement this protocol.

2. Fan, Zhong., " A distributed demand response algorithm and its application to PHEV charging in smart grids. ", Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on 3, no. 3 (2012): 1280-1290. In this paper, a distributed framework for demand response and user adaptation is proposed. Pricing information is used to determine and regulate user demand of energy, thereby balancing the load on the network. Also, charging a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) in a smart grid is proposed, where it can be regulated to user preferences.

3. Wang, Chen, and Martin De Groot., " Managing end-user preferences in the smart grid.", In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Energy-Efficient Computing and Networking,, pp. 105-114. ACM, 2010. In this paper, methods to aggregate and manage the user preferences in a Smart Grid is explored, to achieve effective energy management. In a market where multiple Energy Service Companies(ESCO) are present, "selfish" load balancing is proposed to ensure both user satisfaction and energy efficiency. The network of ESCO's and distributed homes in the smart grid can be viewed as a decentralized grid.

4. Ramchurn, Sarvapali D., Perukrishnen Vytelingum, Alex Rogers, and Nick Jennings., " Agent-based control for decentralised demand side management in the smart grid.", In The 10th International Conference on Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems-Volume 1, pp. 5-12. International Foundation for Autonomous Agents and Multiagent Systems, 2011. In this paper, decentralized management of energy in a smart grid, modeled based on the demand, is discussed. Each Smart Meter is fed in the real time price (RTP) information periodicaly. The paper argues that just the RTP information isnt sufficient to balance the load and reduce the peak demand. It goes on to suggest an adaptive approach to combine with the RTP information, in order to reduce peak demand.

5. Samadi, Pedram, A-H. Mohsenian-Rad, Robert Schober, Vincent WS Wong, and Juri Jatskevich., " Optimal real-time pricing algorithm based on utility maximization for smart grid.”, In Smart Grid Communications (SmartGridComm), 2010 First IEEE International Conference on, pp. 415-420. IEEE, 2010. A real time pricing algorithm is proposed in this paper, that aims to satisfy the demands of the users whilst keeping the energy consumption in check. This is achieved by establishing a two way communication between the energy provider and the users. A distributed algorithm is implemented to calculate the optimal energy consumption of each user.

6. Zhang, Ziang, and Mo-Yuen Chow, " Incremental cost consensus algorithm in a smart grid environment," In Power and Energy Society General Meeting, 2011 IEEE,, pp. 1-6. IEEE, 2011. An Incremental Cost Algorithm is proposed in this paper, to enable all the nodes in a grid or network to come to a common consensus. It illustrates the use of distributed control in a smart grid. Each Agent / Node has two components : A controller and a consensus manager, using which, a consensus is reached among the nodes and communicated to the controller. This algorithm also aims at optimizing the operating conditions of grid.

7. Conejo, Antonio J., Juan M. Morales, and Luis Baringo., " Real-time demand response model," Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on 1, no. 3 (2010): 236-242.,

8. J.K. Kok, B. Roossien, P.A. MacDougall, O.P. Pruissen, G. Venekamp, I.G. Kamphuis, J.A.W Laarakkers, and C.J. Warmer, " “Dynamic Pricing by Scalable Energy Management Systems - Field Experiences and Simulation Results using PowerMatcher”," IEEE Power and Energy Society General Meeting 2012,, IEEE, 2012. A smart grid technology that deals with demand and supply integration using dynamic pricing is proposed in this paper. Simulation results are elaborated.

9. Keshav, Srinivasan, and Catherine Rosenberg., " How internet concepts and technologies can help green and smarten the electrical grid.," ACM SIGCOMM Computer Communication Review 41, no. 1 (2011): 109-114, A parallel is drawn between internet operations and operations of the smart grid. Outlining the similarities and differences between them, this paper gives us an insight on how to model the smart grid using existing technologies that have been deployed in the Internet

Solar Irradiation and Weather Trends - Monthly / Annual

1. Fu, Chia-Lin, and Hsu-Yung Cheng, "Predicting solar irradiance with all-sky image features via regression", Solar Energy 97 (2013): 537-550., In this paper, a regression technique is proposed which can predict the solar irradiance for the next few minutes. It is possible to design a better, more robust grid system, by using the information obtained by this method.
2. Mellit, Adel, and Alessandro Massi Pavan, " 24-hr forecast of solar irradiance using artificial neural network: Application for performance prediction of a grid-connected PV plant at Trieste, Italy", Solar Energy 84, no. 5 (2010): 807-821 In this paper, using Artificial Neural Networks, a practical method to predict the solar irradiance ( up to 24 hrs) is proposed. This is useful in order to design a robust and more effective control algorithm to enable communication in a smart grid.

3. Ghiassi-Farrokhfal, Yashar, Srinivasan Keshav, Catherine Rosenberg, and Florin Ciucu, " Firming solar power", In ACM SIGMETRICS Performance Evaluation Review, vol. 41, no. 1, ,pp. 357-358. ACM, 2013. A new model is proposed for solar power generation that models solar energy as a stochastic traffic source, using the concept of teletraffic modelling.

4. Tyagi, Ajit P., et al., " Solar Radiant Energy Over India.", India Meteorological Department, New Delhi, India, 2009. This paper throws some light on the amount of sunlight throughout the year all over india. This helps in sizing the systen for the best and worst case scenario.

5. Joshi, A. S., and G. N. Tiwari., " Monthly energy and exergy analysis of hybrid photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) system for the Indian climate.", International Journal of Ambient Energy 28.2 (2007): 99-112 This paper gives us some insight into the monthly weather trends in the south and north of india.

6. Joshi, A. S., and G. N. Tiwari., " Monthly energy and exergy analysis of hybrid photovoltaic thermal (PV/T) system for the Indian climate.", International Journal of Ambient Energy 28.2 (2007): 99-112 This paper gives us some insight into the monthly weather trends in the south and north of india.

SmartGrid Project Documentation

1. " Open Automated Demand Response communications specifications", The Open ADR document specification.

2. Peppink, Gerard, René Kamphuis, Koen Kok, Aris Dimeas, Evangelos Karfopoulos, Nikos Hatziargyriou, Nourédine Hadjsaid et al, " INTEGRAL: ICT-platform based Distributed Control in electricity grids with a large share of Distributed Energy Resources and Renewable Energy Sources", In Energy-Efficient Computing and Networking, pp. 215-224. Springer Berlin Heidelberg,, 2011. In this paper, using ICT components, standards and platforms, an integrated ICT-platform based distributed control is proposed. Deploying this standard and conducting experiments for various conditions, the results of three such tests are described.

3. Schaeffer, G. J., and H. Akkermans., " CRISP Final Summary Report", CRISP Deliverable D 5 (2006). The final-summary report outlining the CRISP deliverables.

4. Riedl, Johannes, Kolja Eger, Werner Mohr, and Ludwig Karg., " ICT enablers for smart energy.", In Towards a Service-Based Internet, pp. 302-308. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2011. This document focuses on the project outline, requirements and methodology using ICT in the field of smart energy.

5. " EMAN-IETF : Battery MIB Documentation.", In this IETF EMAN Charter document, objects are defined for reporting information about batteries using the Battery MIB Module. The different types of notifications, definitions, charging cycles etc are described..

Rural Electrification

1. Chakrabarti, Snigdha, and Subhendu Chakrabarti., "Rural electrification programme with solar energy in remote region–a case study in an island.", Energy Policy 30.1 (2002): 33-42., Using an island in West Bengal as a case study, this paper looks into the various factors that affect decentralised electrification of the island - technical, social and economic. Useful when it comes to understanding the trends in rural electricity consumption.
2. Kamalapur, G. D., and R. Y. Udaykumar., " Rural electrification in India and feasibility of photovoltaic solar home systems.", International Journal of Electrical Power & Energy Systems 33.3 (2011): 594-599. A paper that gives us insight into the feasibility of PV systems in rural villages and the current trends in electrification in rural villages.

3. Banerjee, Rangan., " "Comparison of options for distributed generation in India.", Energy Policy 34.1 (2006): 101-111. In the rural village scenario, this paper explores all the distributed generation (DG) options for electrification. Provides some insight into how PV cells can help the electrification needs of a village.

4. Liao, Alice " "LEDs: A Deep Dive in Dimming", Architectural Lighting. (2014) An article outlining the dimming properties of LED lights - important to consider when LED lights are used in a nanogrid.