Source: Energy & Management Powernews, October 31 2022
A digital twin of the German electricity system, "Energy Lab 2.0," is underway at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). The federal research minister launched it on October 28.
Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) are simulating the German electricity system with a "digital twin." The "Energy Lab 2.0" aims to better explore the balance between supply from volatile renewable generators and demand. Parameters such as power-to-X plants for the storage or further use of electricity surpluses, for example during periods of strong solar radiation, or innovative energy storage systems can be switched on in the model at will.
Federal Research Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) officially commissioned the Energy Lab 2.0 on October 28. Together with Michael Theurer, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport (BMDV), she launched a large-scale simulation. "What works on a small scale must be rolled out on a large scale," the minister said as the goal of the digital model. Existing technologies such as hydrogen and biomass also need to come into use, she appealed, saying, "That's where we can get faster now."
Generators and consumers replicated
In Energy Lab 2.0, all power lines and switches as well as couplings to neighboring countries are captured in a level of detail not found anywhere else, said Michael Decker, professor of technology assessment. The whole thing is linked to a mini-village to map the power supply from generation to consumption, he said. Differently oriented and tilted photovoltaic systems, for example, capture sunlight. Model homes are equipped with various infrastructure such as heat pumps.
"One of the things being researched there is how household appliances can contribute to the stability of the energy grid, for example by adapting their consumption to the amount of electricity available at any given time," Decker explained. The simulation can also show ways to keep the energy system stable even if, for example, the gas supply from Russia suddenly collapses or a power plant fails. Professor Thomas Hirth, KIT's vice president for Transfer and International Affairs, said, "With the Energy Lab 2.0, we can show that a climate-neutral energy system is possible in perspective."
Climate-neutral Germany as a target version
"Even though Germany will probably always remain an energy importing country, we can provide the technologies and build up the know-how to realize this internationally and locally," Hirth explained. The simulation, he said, is based on renewable energies as well as a closed carbon cycle, i.e., an energy system like the one the German government plans to be a reality in 2045. The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is largely funding the work on Energy Lab 2.0.
The KIT campus also has practical facilities available for research, including solar fields and geothermal energy, innovative energy storage systems, power-to-X plants, residential buildings, electric cars, and a great deal of computing power. Over the next few years, a new generation of experts is expected to learn here how to drive the networked energy system of the future safely through dark periods and attacks by cyber criminals.
Slow grid expansion hinders energy turnaround
Meanwhile, Andreas Kommol of grid operator Edis called the stalled grid expansion "the underestimated bottleneck of the energy turnaround" at a hearing in the economic committee of the Schwerin state parliament. Grid expansion is not keeping pace with the expansion of renewable energies, especially in northeastern Germany, he warned. This is due, among other things, to the length of the approval process. The application phase for wind power or photovoltaic plants takes about 3 years in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, he said, but between 8 and 12 years for power lines.
Further information on the KIT Energy Lab 2.0 is available on the Internet.
Author: Susanne Harmsen
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