physics

Transactive energy

Transactive energy is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Transactive energy rather than just read about it. In short: Transactive energy refers to the economic and control techniques used to manage the flow or exchange of energy within an existing electric power system in regards to economic and market based standard values of energy. It is a concept that is used in an effort to improve the efficiency and reliability of the power system, pointing towards a more intelligent and interactive future for the energy industry.

Key takeaways

Transactive energy belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Transactive energy to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Transactive energy from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Transactive energy refers to the economic and control techniques used to manage the flow or exchange of energy within an existing electric power system in regards to economic and market based standard values of energy. It is a concept that is used in an effort to improve the efficiency and reliability of the power system, pointing towards a more intelligent and interactive future for the energy industry. Transactive energy promotes a network environment for distributed energy nodes as opposed to the traditional hierarchical grid structure. The network structure allows for communication such that all levels of energy generation and consumption are able to interact with one another, a concept that is also known as interoperability. In transactive energy, interoperability refers to the ability of involved systems to connect and exchange energy information while maintaining workflow and utility constraints. The network is exponentially more complex than traditional control of generating sources because the demand side of the grid offers millions points of control in contrast with an average 10 to 20 power plant points of control on the supply side.

Europe-based Efforts

Energy Flexibility Platform and Interface (EF-Pi) The goal of the Energy Flexibility Platform and Interface (EF-Pi) approach is to decouple Smart Grid services from the customer appliances. This opens up the markets and gives the customer freedom of choice in Smart Grid services. The End user should be able to combine it with all the connected appliances they already own in their house, without losing control and ownership. The EF-Pi is an open-source software platform that runs on low-power hardware located at a convenient place in the building. The EF-Pi communicates directly with smart appliances inside the building. The EF-Pi has an easy-to-use interface, which the end user can use to configure and control their own appliances and get insight in how their appliances are functioning. The core of the EF-Pi is the Energy Flexibility Interface (EFI). The EFI is a generic interface which appliance manufacturers can use to describe energy flexibility, and which Smart Grid service developers can use to describe how they want to use this flexibility. The EFI effectively provides a common language for both sides, facilitating interoperability between all Smart Grid services and smart appliances.

United States-based Efforts

Pacific Northwest Demonstration Project The Pacific Northwest Demonstration Project is a 5-year U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) funded research and development project created for the purpose of exploring transactive energy concepts at the regional scale that was completed in June 2015. The project participants included 11 utilities, two universities, and multiple technology companies to span five Pacific Northwest states: Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. The project evaluated 55 different technologies that could help reduce energy use and power bills, including smart meters, advanced energy storage, and voltage controls. It also tested and determined the potential benefits of transactive controls within a regional power grid. Transactive control is a technology developed by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) that entails "automatic, electronic transactions between energy providers and users about whether or not to sell or buy power." In order to test this, transactive signals were used that would exchange information about predicted price and availability of power in real-time. This information was updated every 5 minutes. When peak power demand was predicted, the transactive control was designed to reduce power use. The project confirmed that transactive control technology works and can help improve energy efficiency and reliability, as well as reduce energy cost and encourage renewable energy usage. Public involvement was determined as a key parameter for smart grid deployment. Participants of the project emphasized the importance of customer engagement when new technologies are being implemented. The results of the project defined the next steps for implementing and improving transactive energy technologies. Several of the project participants have decided to continue smart grid programs on their own, even though the demonstration project is now complete, and new projects have also arisen from the results of the demonstration.

GridSMART Demonstration Project The gridSMART® Demonstration Project was implemented by AEP Ohio from 2009 to 2013. The project tested various new technologies for smart grid implementation on a local level including smart meters, distribution automation, volt-var optimization, consumer programs, plug-in electric vehicles, and smart appliances. AEP utilized Grid Command, a tool that was developed in partnership with Battelle in order to model much of the gridSMART circuit layout. The next steps for the next phase of gridSMART were identified to be upgrading current technologies in order to better manage supply, reduce costs, and minimize the number of customers affected by outages. This has been proposed through the installation of smart meter technology, distribution automation circuit reconfiguration (DACR), and volt var optimization (VVO). Testing included SMART Shift, a time-of-day rate plan that helps customers save money by load shifting and SMART Cooling, an air-conditioning technology that helps reduce peak demand in the summer. During the project, eView was developed to assist customers in monitoring their electric use and costs as well as estimating current month usage to measure against their energy budget. eView< is an in-home device that communicates with the smart meter through wireless technology and informs the consumer of the price of electricity and how much was being used. The project helped AEP Ohio in determining what methods and solutions would best help the company move forward in the growing industry. It was emphasized that customer experience and feedback is a very valuable and effective method of learning how to deliver electricity efficiently to customers.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Transactive energy

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Transactive energy claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Transactive energy before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Transactive energy ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Transactive energy

In research: Transactive energy appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Transactive energy in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Transactive energy is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Energy in the United States, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Transactive energy outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Transactive energy in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Transactive energy means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Transactive energy out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Transactive energy in simple terms?

Why does Transactive energy matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Transactive energy?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Transactive energy.