Introduction to Smart Grids and Renewable Energy, 5 cr

Core content

• Overview of Smart Grids: Definitions, aims and drivers, functions, role of various actors.
• Overview of Power systems: Production and consumption, transmission and distribution networks, distributed generation, protection and automation, ICT systems.
• Electricity market: Actors, energy trading, network business, open European level energy market.
• Customers as part of Smart Grids: Energy measurements, AMR and load modelling, home energy management systems.
• Distributed energy resources as part of Smart Grids: Distributed generation and its impacts in electricity networks (protection, voltage, reliability), electric vehicles.
• ICT solutions for Smart Grids.
• Energy sources and their sufficiency and usage: Primary energy sources, renewable vs. non-renewable primary energy and energy conversions in power production.
• Renewable energy sources in power production: Current usage of renewable energy sources, renewable energy resources, potential of renewable energy in power production and development of renewable energy technologies.
• Wind power: Wind energy resources, conversion of wind energy to electrical energy, current usage of wind power and wind power in the future.
• Solar photovoltaic power: Conversion of solar radiation energy directly to electric energy via photovoltaic phenomenon, resources of solar energy globally and locally, the current usage of solar PV power, Solar PV power in the future on the market and technology development point of view and it's future role in power production.
• Hydropower capacity and current usage in power production. Conversion of mechanical energy of water to electrical energy. Current and future role of hydropower for power systems.
• Bio-energy as a source of power, current usage of bio-energy in general, conversion of bio-energy to electrical energy and current and future usage of bio-energy in power production.
• Other renewable energy sources for power production: An overview on the resources, usage and future utilization potential of wave energy, tidal energy, geothermal energy, ocean current energy etc.
• An overview on climatic change and the role of power production preventing climatic change.

Complementary knowledge

• Network operation and planning, reliability and power quality issues.
• Network business regulation.
• Use of AMR in network management.
• Micro-grids.