Design and Implementation of a Microgrid Energy Management System

A microgrid is characterized by the integration of distributed energy resources and controllable loads in a power distribution network. Such integration introduces new, unique challenges to microgrid management that have never been exposed to traditional power systems. To accommodate these challenges, it is necessary to redesign a conventional Energy Management System (EMS) so that it can cope with intrinsic characteristics of microgrids. While many projects have shown excellent research outcomes, they have either tackled portions of the characteristics or validated their EMSs only via simulations. This paper proposes a Microgrid Platform (MP), an advanced EMS for efficient microgrid operations. We design the MP by taking into consideration (i) all the functional requirements of a microgrid EMS (i.e., optimization, forecast, human–machine interface, and data analysis) and (ii) engineering challenges (i.e., interoperability, extensibility, and flexibility). Moreover, a prototype system is developed and deployed in two smart grid testbeds: UCLA Smart Grid Energy Research Center and Korea Institute of Energy Research. We then conduct experiments to verify the feasibility of the MP design in real-world settings. Our testbeds and experiments demonstrate that the MP is able to communicate with various energy devices and to perform an energy management task efficiently.