Impacts of Residential Ice Storage Systems on Low Voltage Networks

Residential buildings with smart heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems provide flexibility to power distribution networks by shifting the electricity demand from peak periods to off-peak periods. Cold storage systems are low cost solutions that can significantly increase load shifting capability of HVAC systems. Understanding the impact of residential cold storage systems on low voltage networks (LVN) requires developing a joint electrical-thermodynamic model. In this paper, the impacts of residential ice storage systems on a radial LVN are investigated using a joint electrical-thermodynamic model. Real smart meter data of residential customers and an IEEE residential LVN are used to formulate a realistic case study. The results show residential ice storage systems can reduce the peak demand by 66% at a substantially lower cost compared to chemical batteries.