Sector Coupling

The share of renewables in the total energy supply continuously grows as the energy transition progresses, posing a major challenge for grid operators and energy suppliers. Due to the strong fluctuations common in wind and photovoltaic power, the demand for electricity may significantly exceed the production in some phases, while being so much lower at other times that power plants need to be shut down.Thermal, chemical, or electrical storage of energy and its subsequent deployment to the consumption sectors of heating, cooling, and mobility take pressure off the electricity grid and increase the overall share of usable renewable energy. Thus, surpluses from renewable electricity generation contribute to the decarbonisation of the consumption sectors.

Our work focuses on:

• Design of energy concepts using renewable energies and storage of heat and electricity, ranging up to seasonal heat storage
• Simulation of electrical distribution grids
• Characterisation and forecasting of electrical generators and consumers
• Modelling of smart grid components (e.g. converters, batteries)
• Non-invasive analysis of photovoltaic systems
• Plausibility checking, management, and visualisation of large data volumes and time series
• Economic viability studies