A Decentralised Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading Platform for Residential Homes

Debrah, Kwame

Abstract

To achieve a sustainable and low-carbon energy system, it is necessary to develop novel solutions for the way household energy is consumed. Homes that have solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, electric vehicles (EVs), and microgrids can potentially transform the energy landscape by participating in decentralised energy market. All the previous blockchain-related work focuses on the general business use case and management; it does not provide the technical feasibility, bidding strategies and practical value of the renewable market.
Therefore, in this Research, SolarChain, a proposed blockchain model for storing and accessing Peer-to-Peer (P2P) transaction in a secured manner. This study demonstrates an experimental blockchain platform developed on Ethereum that is being implemented to exchange electricity. The demonstration replicates a P2P network, including microgrids, solar-powered homes, and Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) user nodes. User cases for P2P trading, smart contracts, tracking buyer-and-seller exchanges, and comprehensive implementation process information are all included in the implementation. The use of Smart Grids for dynamic pricing to balance supply and demand in microgrids, setting interval periods and token prices, automated and autonomous operation, market clearing prices(MCP), experimentation on a testbed using Node.js and web3.js API, and frontend user simulation with virtual consumers and prosumers derived from benchmarks are notable features.
The proposed architecture is validated using realistic user interface (UI) provides 10 default smart contract buttons that users can utilise to run the simulation and Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) environment of Ropten Test Network. The research also looks at the use case for Ethereum's constraints in the application at hand. P2P platforms can lower infrastructure and transmission costs by promoting p2p local energy community can reach cost efficiency and self-sufficiency.
Keywords: Blockchain, Ethereum, Prosumers. Energy trading, Peer-to-peer(P2P), Smart Micro-grid, HOMERs, Electric vehicle(EVs), Solar PV.

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Apr 18, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: May 26, 2024
• External URL: http://thesolarchain.co.uk/
• Award Date: Apr 25, 2024