Performance Evaluation of a Hydrogen-Based Clean Energy Hub with Electrolyzers as a Self-Regulating Demand Response Management Mechanism

Abstract

Energy management of hybrid resources has become a critical issue in integrated energy system analysis. In this study, as a self-regulating demand response (DR) management mechanism, deferrable electrolyzers are used as a main controlled resource in a hydrogen-based clean energy hub (CEH), which includes a traditional generation plant (TGP), a low-carbon generation plant (LGP), and wind energy. Based on the hysteresis control model for aggregated electrolyzers, a comfort-constrained optimal energy state regulation (OESR) control strategy is implemented to model the deregulation feature of aggregated electrolyzers. The electrolyzers’ population can be integrated as a controlled efficient power plant (EPP) to provide the virtual spinning reserve for CEH. As a flexible and self-regulating participant, the electrolyzer-based EPP is integrated into the hybrid resource constrained optimization model; this reduces the total cost of CEH and carbon emissions and improves the integration of wind energy. Combined with TGP, LGP, and wind energy, the simulation results show that the deployment of aggregated electrolyzers on both the supply and demand sides of the CEH contributes to significant amounts of low-carbon hydrogen. The simulation also illustrates that the DR control strategy has a positive effect on active power and reserve re-dispatch.

Keywords

• clean energy hub (CEH)
• electrolyzers
• energy management
• demand response (DR) control strategy
• wind energy integration