Multifunctional hydrogen technologies supporting power system balancing, energy storage and market

The aim of the project is to research the possibilities of using hydrogen technologies for balancing the electric power system and energy storage. To reduce the carbon footprint and CO2 emissions, many new renewable energy sources (wind, photovoltaics, hydropower) are being installed, however, unfortunately they do not follow the time profile of energy demands, as they depend upon weather and time of year. Therefore, in parallel with the installation of renewable sources, it is necessary to introduce services for balancing the production and consumption of electricity. This is done in various ways: by adjusting energy consumption, by adjusting production (of those sources that be controlled) and by temporarily storing surplus electric energy and releasing it in periods of shortage. Technological possibilities for storing large amounts of electric energy are limited, one of the useful options are hydrogen systems, which consist of electrolyser, hydrogen storage tank and fuel cell. By hydrogen technologies, temporal surpluses of electric energy can be converted by electrolysis of water into hydrogen, which is stored in gaseous or liquid form in storage tanks. Stored hydrogen can later, during increased demand, be converted back into electricity using fuel cells, or it can be used directly as a fuel for heating and transport or as a feedstock for industry. To ensure efficient balancing of the power system and economically sustainable operation, hydrogen system must be properly designed and sized, and its operation must be constantly coordinated with the conditions and needs of the electric power system. Addressing these two challenges represents the core of the proposed project. Therefore, the first goal of the project is to develop an automatic coordination algorithm of the hydrogen system, which should automatically and optimally respond to the conditions and requirements of the power system and the market. It will be involved in several balancing mechanisms: ancillary services, the balancing market and seasonal energy storage. It will consider current and future forecasted conditions of the electric power system (forecast of electricity consumption and production), dynamic limitations of the hydrogen system, efficiency of the hydrogen system depending on the operation mode, the impact of dynamic operation on life time, etc. Based on the listed factors, the coordination algorithm will use the optimization algorithm to generate balancing actions. The second goal of the project is to develop digital twins (dynamic simulation models) of the hydrogen system and the power system and market. By digital twins, we will create a simulation environment to numerically simulate the operation of the hydrogen system in connection with the power system and market. In the simulation environment, we will test and optimize the operation of the coordination algorithm, evaluate the balancing efficiency and the resulting economic effects of hydrogen system operation. In addition, the digital twins will be indirectly integrated into the coordination algorithm to generate balancing actions using model-based multi-criterial optimization The results of the project will be extremely useful for all potential investors in hydrogen systems. With the help of developed digital twins of the hydrogen system and power system and market, it will be possible to determine the parameters of the hydrogen system with the help of computer simulation and observe how they affect operation and economic sustainability. Using the developed coordination algorithm, it will be possible to optimally coordinate hydrogen systems with the electric power system and to observe and optimize its operation in the simulation environment, to predict the potential economic effects and investment outcome. The coordination algorithm will be ready for transfer from the simulation environment to real hydrogen systems.