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Power and Energy Systems

The centre is a world reference in large-scale integration of Distributed Energy Resources. Our expertise led us to take on key roles in important EU projects and also led to contracts for development and consultancy with manufacturing equipment companies and with power generation, transmission and distribution companies, regulators, government agencies and investors in Europe, South America, the United States of America and Africa.

At CPES, we address the following main research areas: Decision Making, Optimisation and Computational Intelligence, Forecasting, Static and Dynamic analysis of Energy Grids, Reliability, Power Electronics.

Part of our activity is developed in the Laboratory of Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles that supports the validation of major developments in a real environment.

Over the last years, we have made several developments in the electrical network planning and operation, namely the inclusion of distributed energy resources forecasting and network  optimisation tools embedded in different voltage layers, exploiting the MicroGrid hierarchical concept. Relevant steps were given on the inclusion of computational intelligence in control algorithms that were demonstrated under real conditions in several pilots.   

Latest News
Power and Energy Systems

Enlit Europe: INESC TEC with a consolidated presence at the largest European event on energy solutions

Three days. 15,000 power and energy experts. More than 700 stands. Hundreds of sessions and debates on digitalisation, decentralisation and decarbonisation. The numbers are impressive, but the impact generated by Enlit Europe is difficult to measure. INESC TEC participated, yet again, in the world’s largest stage of energy and technological innovation to present tech solutions for the sector. Want to know more?

05th November 2024

Supporting the European power grid from our homes? Yes, it is possible – and this INESC TEC solution proves just that

The InterConnect project brought the concept of interoperability into our homes and provided residential consumers the possibility to contribute to a more resilient power grid. A tool consisting of an energy manager and a mobile application made this possible. The result? More participation, less network load at peak times and “reduced intensity in terms of carbon produced”.

31st October 2024

Power and Energy Systems

INESC TEC strengthens European leadership in Big Data

INESC TEC joined the Big Data Value Association (BDVA), a European organisation that promotes the research, development and adoption of Big Data technologies in a sustainable and innovative ecosystem. This is an important step for the Institute, allowing to advance the impact and visibility of INESC TEC's research in different projects, as was the case of InterConnect.

04th October 2024

Power and Energy Systems

Sustainable energy transition in agriculture? INESC TEC can help

Five training sessions, five themes: over several months, the cycle of webinars "Sustainable Energy Transition in Agriculture" - organised by INESC TEC with the National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research (INIAV), and with the support of the partners of the Tools4AgriEnergy project - will address questions like the introduction of PV systems in agriculture, robotics and IoT, energy efficiency and circular economy, as well as new business models and decarbonisation. The first online meeting will take place on October 16, at 2 p.m.

02nd October 2024

Decarbonise the industry through new ways to store energy? INESC TEC tests new tools in Portugal

One of the vital elements in the decarbonisation of the energy sector is storage, since it enables integrating the production of energy generated through renewable sources on a larger scale. However, there are still several technological challenges. The SINNOGENES project seeks to address these questions, exploring different ways of storing energy, including thermal storage - which is very relevant to decarbonise the industry.

21st June 2024

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Featured Projects

INESCTEC.OCEAN

Centre of Excellence in Ocean Research and Engineering

2025-2030

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Laboratories

Laboratory of Smart Grids and Electric Vehicles

Publications

CPES Publications

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2025

Multiobjective energy management of multi-source offshore parks assisted with hybrid battery and hydrogen/fuel-cell energy storage systems

Authors
Kazemi-Robati, E; Varotto, S; Silva, B; Temiz, I;

Publication
APPLIED ENERGY

Abstract
With the recent advancements in the development of hybrid offshore parks and the expected large-scale implementation of them in the near future, it becomes paramount to investigate proper energy management strategies to improve the integrability of these parks into the power systems. This paper addresses a multiobjective energy management approach using a hybrid energy storage system comprising batteries and hydrogen/fuel-cell systems applied to multi-source wind-wave and wind-solar offshore parks to maximize the delivered energy while minimizing the variations of the power output. To find the solution of the optimization problem defined for energy management, a strategy is proposed based on the examination of a set of weighting factors to form the Pareto front while the problem associated with each of them is assessed in a mixed-integer linear programming framework. Subsequently, fuzzy decision making is applied to select the final solution among the ones existing in the Pareto front. The studies are implemented in different locations considering scenarios for electrical system limitation and the place of the storage units. According to the results, applying the proposed multiobjective framework successfully addresses the enhancement of energy delivery and the decrease in power output fluctuations in the hybrid offshore parks across all scenarios of electrical system limitation and combinational storage locations. Based on the results, in addition to the increase in delivered energy, a decrease in power variations by around 40 % up to over 80 % is observed in the studied cases.

2025

Life cycle assessment comparison of electric and internal combustion vehicles: A review on the main challenges and opportunities

Authors
da Costa, VBF; Bitencourt, L; Dias, BH; Soares, T; Andrade, JVBD; Bonatto, BD;

Publication
RENEWABLE & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY REVIEWS

Abstract
A notable shift from an internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) fleet to an electric vehicles (EVs) fleet is expected in the medium term due to increasing environmental concerns and technological breakthroughs. In this context, this paper conducts a systematic literature review on life cycle assessment (LCA) research of EVs compared to ICEVs based on highly impactful articles. Several essential aspects and characteristics were identified and discussed, such as the assumed EV types, scales, models, storage technologies, boundaries, lifetime, electricity consumption, driving cycles, combustion fuels, locations, impact assessment methods, and functional units. Furthermore, LCA results in seven environmental impact categories were gathered and evaluated in detail. The research indicates that, on average, battery electric vehicles are superior to ICEVs in terms of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (182.9 g CO2-eq/km versus 258.5 g CO2-eq/km), cumulative energy demand (3.2 MJ/km versus 4.1 MJ/km), fossil depletion (49.7 g oil-eq/km versus 84.4 g oil-eq/km), and photochemical oxidant formation (0.47 g NMVOC-eq/km versus 0.61 g NMVOC-eq/km) but are worse than ICEVs in terms of human toxicity (198.1 g 1,4-DCB-eq/km versus 64.8 g 1,4-DCB-eq/km), particulate matter formation (0.32 g PM10-eq/km versus 0.26 g PM10-eq/km), and metal depletion (69.3 g Fe-eq/km versus 19.0 g Fe-eq/km). Emerging technological developments are expected to tip the balance in favor of EVs further. Based on the conducted research, we propose to organize the factors that influence the vehicle life cycle into four groups: user specifications, vehicle specifications, local specifications, and multigroup specifications. Then, a set of improvement opportunities is provided for each of these groups. Therefore, the present paper can contribute to future research and be valuable for decision-makers, such as policymakers.

2024

Photovoltaic Projects for Multidimensional Poverty Alleviation: Bibliometric Analysis and State of the Art

Authors
Castro L.F.C.; Carvalho P.C.M.; Saraiva J.P.T.; Fidalgo J.N.;

Publication
International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy

Abstract
Motivated by initiatives such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), particularly SDG 1-Poverty Eradication and SDG 7-Clean and Accessible Energy, the search for solutions aiming to mitigate poverty has been recurrent in several studies. This paper main objective is to evaluate the dynamics of global research on the use of photovoltaic projects for poverty alleviation (PVPA) from 2003 to 2022. We use a bibliometric analysis to identify publication patterns and consequently list research trends and gaps of the area. A total of 336 publications from Scopus database are identified and complemented by a state-of-the-art study, where the articles are investigated and classified according to: Business model and financing and evaluation of PVPA results. The results show that PA is often associated with PV power and its application in rural areas. “Biomass” and “application in developing countries” have become a trend. Urban areas application, aiming to reduce poverty, and the need for a synergetic integration of energy and urban planning, to mitigate the risks associated with energy flow and efficiency, are the most relevant gaps identified. Most of the publications focus on macropolicies effects involving PV technology; papers on projects construction and ex-post are not identified.

2024

Virtual power plant optimal dispatch considering power-to-hydrogen systems

Authors
Rodrigues L.; Soares T.; Rezende I.; Fontoura J.; Miranda V.;

Publication
International Journal of Hydrogen Energy

Abstract
Power-to-Hydrogen (P2H) clean systems have been increasingly adopted for Virtual Power Plant (VPP) to drive system decarbonization. However, current models for the joint operation of VPP and P2H often disregard the full impact on grid operation or hydrogen supply to multiple consumers. This paper contributes with a VPP operating model considering a full Alternating Current Optimal Power Flow (AC OPF) while integrating different paths for the use of green hydrogen, such as supplying hydrogen to a Combined Heat and Power (CHP), industry and local hydrogen consumers. The proposed framework is tested using a 37-bus distribution grid and the results illustrate the benefits that a P2H plant can bring to the VPP in economic, grid operation and environmental terms. An important conclusion is that depending on the prices of the different hydrogen services, the P2H plant can increase the levels of self-sufficiency and security of supply of the VPP, decrease the operating costs, and integrate more renewables.

2024

Impact of the C-rates and AC-AC RTE on the annual cycles and operation cost of different battery technologies that provide market services

Authors
Agamez Arias, P; Miranda, V;

Publication
2024 IEEE 22nd Mediterranean Electrotechnical Conference, MELECON 2024

Abstract
This paper aims to study battery response under two operation strategies to analyze the annual cycles and operation costs (revenues) via sensitivity analysis. A battery model that considers performance parameters (AC-AC RTE, DOD, and C-rates) for different technologies is approached to identify how these parameters influence battery behavior and revenue. Strategies refer to (A) energy arbitrage, EA, and (B) EA and the provision of tertiary reserve. Simulations conducted for real data from Portuguese electricity and regulation markets showed regardless of the strategy used, the annual cycles and revenue are dominated by the performance parameters, instead of price volatility. In addition, for batteries with higher C-rates, as the AC-AC RTE is reduced up to 80%, the annual cycles and revenues are significantly reduced to 50% and 45% respectively, regarding its ideal model (100% AC-AC RTE). For lower C-rates, the annual cycles and revenues are slightly reduced with AC-AC RTE reductions. Specifically, strategy B revealed that annual cycles and revenue could also be influenced by the capacity requirements and the control area where batteries are providing services. © 2024 IEEE.

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24Senior Researchers

2016

1Book Chapters

2020

0Proceedings in indexed conferences

2020

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