Optimal Power Dispatch and Conversion in Systems with Multiple Energy Carriers

This paper introduces a general optimization approach for power dispatch and conversion in power systems that include multiple energy carriers such as electricity, natural gas, and district heating. The classical Economic Dispatch method is modified in order to account for certain system properties, such as the possibility of conversion between the different energy carriers, or local overproduction and power feedback to the grid. In this work both a system model as well as an optimization approach are developed which are suitable for the integration of an arbitrary number of energy carriers. Analytical results show how the optimal conversion of power affects the marginal prices related to the different energy carriers. Finally the proposed optimization procedure is demonstrated in numerical examples.