A Society of Devices: Integrating Intelligent Distributed Resources with Transactive Energy

Abstract

Secure, Clean, and Efficient Energy is one of the great societal challenges of our time. Electricity as a sustainable energy carrier plays a central role in the most effective transition scenarios toward sustainability. To harness this potential, the current electricity infrastructure needs to be rigorously re-engineered into an integrated and intelligent electricity system: the smart grid. Key elements of the smart grid vision are the coordination mechanisms. In such a system, vast numbers of devices, currently just passively connected to the grid, will become actively involved in system-wide and local coordination tasks. In this light, transactive energy (TE ) is emerging as a strong contender for orchestrating the coordinated operation of so many devices.