Optimal Scheduling and Real-Time Operation of Distribution Networks With High Penetration of Plug-In Electric Vehicles

In this article, a method for real-time control and optimal operation scheduling of distribution networks with high penetration of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) is proposed. The main targets of the method are to minimize PEV charging cost at aggregator level, satisfy all distribution network and PEV constraints using accurate models of low computational requirements. An innovative definition of the flexibility of a PEV to change its active power is used to achieve efficient optimal active power dispatch to each PEV of a cluster. Real-time optimal dispatch of the reactive power to each PEV is also achieved. A hierarchical multiagent system is designed in order to deal with the increased complexity of the controlled system and collect the necessary information from the network. It is shown that the proposed method requires very small computation and communication times that do not depend on the number of PEVs. The convergence of the method is ensured with only one round of agent negotiations. The efficiency of the method is proved by detailed simulation results of a realistic distribution network and based on processed real data sets of the activity of the drivers.