Energy Management System for Efficiency Increase in Cruise Ship Microgrids

This paper proposes the development of a shipboard Energy Management System (EMS), specifically devised to enhance the efficiency of electrical microgrids in cruise vessels. Due to the target application, the reference electrical plant is an Integrated Power System, typical of modern All Electric Ships (AESs). In order to enable the EMS operation, suitable architecture modifications on the current electrical system have been envisaged, which are also coherent with the ongoing transition of today marine electrical plants toward the microgrid paradigm. In particular, the introduction of energy storage systems (ESSs) has been considered. The proposed EMS performs a real-time scheduling of the electrical power flows, based on load demand forecasting data and a Dynamic Programming (DP)-based optimization strategy. Its main goal is the reduction of the load peaks, which are responsible for unnecessary oversizing of the electrical generators and consequently of inefficient operation. The EMS has been set up using a low-cost programmable embedded platform. The test results on the EMS demonstrate its effectiveness and feasibility.