This web page lists finished projects within the intensified collaboration between Chalmers and Göteborg Energi.
Smart electricity meters – Opportunities
Göteborg Energi has installed smart electricity meters with
switches. The smart meters are used to monitor and control the amount of
ampere being sent via the electrical wires. Göteborg Energi is one of a
few companies that have installed meters with switches. This project
aims to investigate the opportunities for the electricity customer and
the utility having this function.
Switches in electricity meters can for example give customers the
possibility to contribute to the power balancing in the electricity grid
and contribute to the overall power balancing reserve. This could in
turn support in avoiding disturbances in the electricity delivery due to
insufficient production capacity when the use is at its highest. To
have the possibility to control the effect for the customers depending
on the situation in the electricity grid, provides opportunities to
optimize the planning of the grid. The new opportunities having this new
feature is not fully explored and this project will investigate the
role of switches in the future electricity grid. Therefore, the project
will analyze the needs and functions that will face the future switches
and meters.
Read more about the project in the news item
Smart meters can secure electricty to important services.
HVDC lab
HVDC technology means high voltage direct current that allows
transmission of electrical energy for long distances with low losses
compared to conventional alternating voltage (AV) technology. Göteborg
Energi is building an HVDC-plant in connection to the 4 MW wind turbine
that were built during fall 2011 at Risholmen in Göteborg. The wind
turbine is constructed to fit offshore wind power. The turbine and the
HVDC-plant are part of a bigger project where the overall objective is
to technically demonstrate, verify and evaluate properties of a wind
turbine at the scale of 4 MW.
The HVDC-plant results in the unique opportunity to test that
the wind turbine meets all the requirements that network owners impose
on a wind turbine. This particularly applies to the operation of voltage
dips and different frequencies. The HVDC system is also suitable for
testing other electrical equipment and its ability to be connected to
and resist interference from the grid.
EXAMINE: Extracting useful information out of data in AMI networking
Correctly processed data from advanced meetering
infrastracture (AMI) provide valuable, timely information on the
electricity grid. The project aims to develop and evaluate methods for
(i) alerts relating to events such as alarms, loss of energy or fraud,
and to (ii) validate and gather readings of energy consumption to
extract information for planning and operation.
Energy efficiency in buildings
Smart energy networks – connection between the smart grid and smart district heating
In the world today an ongoing development of smart grid and smart
district heating network is in progress. This project investigates the
link between the two energy systems. To see the two systems as a
coherent energy system at an early stage and not as two separate
systems, one can avoid getting into a situation where the two energy
systems have been optimized on their own merits and not for optimum
functioning in interaction.
Read more about the project in the news item
Thermal energy storage in buildings makes district heating more climate friendly.
Building integrated electricity
New legislation, rising energy prices and greenhouse issues are all
factors that contribute to an increased role for renewable electricity
generation that can be integrated into existing buildings. The project
will provide suggestions for how building-integrated photovoltaics
(BIPV) can be used to improve the overall economy (life cycle cost) for
new construction and refurbishment in Sweden.
The project will create conditions for:
- Technical integration of prefabricated building technologies to
reduce the installation cost in the construction and energy industry.
- Structural engineering principle solutions that optimize production and minimize cost.
- Knowledge of small-scale power generation and its integration into existing power grids.
More by Less – The role of district heating in a future energy system where humans are the focus
The energy used in buildings contributes to a significant part of
Sweden’s energy consumption. Fortunately, district heating offers
potential for energy efficiency in buildings and thus could and should
play an important role in a future sustainable society. Yet, for an
energy system to be as efficient as possible, it is required that the
residents themselves approve the system and voluntarily adopt energy
efficient behaviour patterns. Through applying a user-centred design
approach to address the residents’ attitudes, knowledge and behaviours,
new solutions for sustainable energy use can be designed that visualise
the positive aspects of district heating, encourage energy efficient
utilisation and fit to the residents’ lifestyles. With focus on human
needs of the users, new design solution will be investigated to improve
the efficiency of the energy system.
Biogas
Advanced microbial process studies for enhanced biogas production
Anaerobic digestion is an established technology for the recovery
of chemical energy from e.g. wastewater and manure as biogas. Although a
proven technology, research is required to increase biogas yields and
productivity. The overall aim of the project is to acquire a deeper
understanding of the processes taking place in anaerobic digestion of
manure and food waste, while increasing the biogas yield and production
rate of a full scale thermophilic digester of Göteborg Energi located in
Sävsjö.
Charging of Plug-In Hybrid Electric Busses (PHEV)
The plug-in hybrid electric bus (PHEV) transportation challenge concerns decisions on the design of the electric charging infrastructure and the sizing of the PHEV powertrain. The goal of this project is to find the optimal cost effective solution to this problem, which can be addressed by simultaneous optimization of the cost from charging stations, battery sizing and energy management strategy for the PHEVs. The PHEV transportation problem is to be solved by simulating a PHEV powertrain model over suitable bus lines in Göteborg.
Development of data algorithms for networks in order to increase adaptability and robustness in power grids
Since 2009, Göteborg Energi, has a system for automatic meter reading for facilities with a current of less than 63 A. The system manages the collection of about 270 000 facilities and uses a radio based technology.
The introduction of this advanced meter reading infrastructure results in large volumes of data associated with the electricity grid. With appropriate processing and interpretation, these data can be used to support resource planning, fault tolerance and adaptability of the network. With the right information at hand you can for example:
- Control and aggregate the electricity delivery on demand.
- Discover critical situations and react to isolated parts of the network.
- Let customers take pre-planned decisions to improve energy efficiency.
One aim of the project is to create an understanding of how network operations can be influenced and optimized and to develop algorithms and methods to manage and control the network in order to minimize solutions that require intervention in the hardware.
A river vessel as a platform for testing and validation of technology
The project aims to clarify the conditions for including the ability to evaluate alternative fuel sources in ongoing projects with the next generation of Västtrafik´s river vessels. Concrete goal of the project is to investigate the feasibility of using a future river vessel (Älvpendel) as a test platform for new technology.
Inventory and Evaluation of Environmental Performance Indices for Shipping
Environmental and sustainability information is an important part of sustainability efforts in business and public sectors. To have a standardized form and a certification of data are essential to be able to use the information.
For a long time industry has not seen maritime transport as a prioritized part of a product´s life cycle. Recently, however, interest has increased, mainly due to the fact that maritime transport in total makes up a large part of Swedish import and that consumers/customers are demanding recognition of the overall environmental impact of products.
Today there are various different indices and attempts at standardization. In the project an inventory and evaluation of existing indices are performed. The project result will represent a starting point in order to be able to evaluate different indices concerning specified uses and users.