EPHYRA

Hybrid grid EMS for green hydrogen

EPHYRA will demonstrate the generation of green hydrogen on an industrial scale with a 30 MW electrolyzer that will consume renewable energies and will be integrated into the Motor Oil Hellas refinery.

The Instituto Tecnológico de Aragón ITA is responsible for the development of the energy management system (EMS) of the hybrid power grid in the EPHYRA project.

Clean energy
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Problem

The electrical grid that feeds the EPHYRA project’s electrolyzer is composed of renewable sources, including wind and photovoltaic; heat recovery systems for electrical generation, through organic Rankine cycles (ORC); and probably battery storage. In other words, a hybrid network that requires a specific energy management system (EMS) that optimizes the production and storage of hydrogen and renewable energy.

Results

ITA is responsible for the development of the energy management system (EMS) of the hybrid power grid in the EPHYRA project. The first stage consists of the design of the control algorithms for renewable energy sources and storage including constraints on electrolyzer operation and energy resources, as well as the impact of electricity contracts and markets.

Following this stage, ITA will develop a digital twin of the power grid, which will allow the evaluation of the previously designed energy management and optimization algorithms. Prior to its implementation at the Motor Oil Hellas demonstrator, the EMS will be validated in a real-world environment at ITA’s Zero Emissions Lab, a 100 kVA hybrid microgrid incorporating renewable energy (photovoltaic and wind), storage sources (batteries, supercapacitors and hydrogen-based systems), and charging emulators. The laboratory, designed to meet the challenges of the power grids of the future, makes it possible to analyze the stability of the grid with millisecond dynamics and to work in island and in connection, and even to analyze the transitions between the two.

Zero Emissions Laboratory of the ITA.