FlexGrid

Project description

The primary goal of this project is to increase the efficiency of the electrical infrastructure in houses and buildings through intelligent and more flexible participation of decentralized generation, storage and controllable loads, as well as through the optimization of the power conversion steps (AC to DC, DC to AC or DC to DC.).

The higher participation of decentralized generation and storage devices working on DC, like photovoltaic cells, fuel cells, batteries, and electric vehicles, brings new opportunities for the built environment. Connecting DC sources and storage via a DC network lowers investment costs and increases efficiency. The efficiency gain is achieved by removing one conversion step - the AC to DC conversion. Furthermore, DC enables more natural connection of the storage. The DC system can have 2-3 % higher efficiency than comparable AC system in the house and have lower overall costs. 

A multiport converter with multi-directional power flow, enabling vehicle2home and battery2home possibilities, acting as the electric hart of the DC smart home will be designed. Furthermore, a power and energy management system will be developed, that will optimize the use of storage, appliances, and renewable energy. In this way, we will facilitate the introduction of efficient low-voltage DC networks for smart buildings.